Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search

Reddit Comment Scraper — Text, Upvotes and Timestamps by Keyword

Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search pulls every comment from a Reddit post — plain text, author, upvote count, and absolute timestamp — without needing a Reddit account or API key. Feed it direct post URLs, a subreddit or search URL, or just a keyword, and it discovers matching posts and extracts their comments as structured JSON, ready to filter, analyze, or feed into an LLM. Run it now on Apify to pull your first batch of comments in minutes.

What is Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search?

Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search is an Apify Actor that discovers Reddit posts by keyword, subreddit, or direct URL, then extracts every comment on each post as clean, structured JSON — including nested replies, real timestamps, and derived content type. It runs entirely against Reddit's public pages; no Reddit account, OAuth app, or login is required. It's built for marketers tracking brand or product mentions, researchers studying community discussions, and developers or AI engineers who need Reddit comment data as a clean input for analysis or LLM pipelines.

What Reddit comment data is publicly available to scrape?

Reddit exposes full post threads — comments, authors, scores, and timestamps — to anyone browsing without an account. What's gated sits behind community membership or an active Reddit login, not behind the comment itself.

Data Category	Publicly Available	Restricted
Comments on public posts (text, score, timestamp)	Yes	—
Comment author username, avatar, permalink	Yes	—
Nested replies and reply threads	Yes	—
Private / invite-only subreddit content	No	Requires membership + login
Quarantined subreddit content	No	Requires an opted-in, logged-in account
Deleted or removed comment bodies	No — Reddit itself blanks the text	Not recoverable even with login
Private messages, saved/upvoted history	No	Always requires login as that account

Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search only returns publicly visible data — what any visitor sees. Nothing behind a login wall.

What data can I extract with Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search?

Every run returns one row per comment, covering post context, author identity, and the comment's content and engagement — 15 fields total (14 shown in the default dataset view, plus the nested replies field).

Post & comment identity

Field Name	Description
url	The post URL this comment was scraped from
discovered_post_title	The post's real title, read from Reddit's own JSON for that post
discovered_via	How the post was found: direct_url or search
comment_id	Reddit's unique ID for this comment
post_id	Reddit's fullname ID for the parent post (e.g. t3_1epeshq)
permalink	Direct link to this specific comment
parent_id	ID of the parent comment (or the post, for top-level comments)

Author fields

Field Name	Description
author	Commenter's Reddit username
userUrl	Link to the commenter's public Reddit profile
author_avatar	The commenter's real avatar image URL, resolved from their public profile

Content, engagement & replies

Field Name	Description
contentText	The comment's text body
content_type	Derived from the real comment body/media: text, image, video, or deleted
upvotes	The comment's score
created_time	Absolute ISO-8601 UTC timestamp, derived from Reddit's real created_utc
replies	Nested reply objects (same field shape), depth controlled by maxReplyDepth

🤖 Add-on: Need additional Reddit data?

Scraper-Engine doesn't currently publish a second Reddit-specific Actor, so this one is the account's single deep entry point for Reddit comment data — covering direct URLs, subreddit discovery, and keyword search in one run. If your project also needs comment data from other platforms, see the Related scrapers table below for Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube comment Actors from the same account.

How does Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search differ from the official Reddit API?

Reddit's official Data API requires an approved OAuth application and, since Reddit's 2023 pricing change, a separate paid commercial agreement for high-volume or commercial use — this Actor needs neither. Figures below are as publicly reported following that 2023 change and confirmed against multiple current third-party summaries as of 2026-07-25; Reddit negotiates exact commercial pricing per agreement.

Feature	Reddit Data API	Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search
Authentication	OAuth app registration, reviewed by Reddit	None — reads Reddit's own public pages directly
Commercial use	Requires a separate paid commercial agreement with Reddit (reported near $0.24 per 1,000 calls)	Pay-per-result on Apify; no separate Reddit contract
Free-tier scope	Free access is limited to non-commercial use, under Reddit's OAuth rate limits	Same Actor and pricing regardless of use case
Keyword/subreddit discovery	You build your own calls against approved search/listing endpoints	Built in — pass a keyword, subreddit URL, or search URL directly
Listing depth	Public reporting notes listing endpoints (/new, /top, /hot) cap out around 1,000 items	maxPostsToDiscover (up to 500) and maxCommentsPerPost (up to 10,000) set per run
Time-window filtering	No native since/until filter on comments	sinceDate / untilDate filter directly on real created_time

Use the official API when you're building a Reddit-native app that needs authenticated actions like posting or voting. Use this Actor for bulk, read-only comment extraction for research, monitoring, or feeding an LLM pipeline, without an OAuth approval process.

How to use Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search

Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search runs as an Apify Actor — there's no separate signup or API key beyond an Apify account.

1. Open the Actor's page on Apify and click Run, either in Apify Console or via the API.
2. Provide at least one way in: paste postUrls (direct Reddit post links), a searchUrls subreddit/search link, or a plain query keyword — all three are optional in the schema, but the Actor needs one to find anything.
3. Optionally set sort, maxPostsToDiscover, maxCommentsPerPost, maxReplyDepth, sinceDate/untilDate, and safeSearch.
4. Start the run.
5. Download results as JSON, CSV, or Excel from the run's dataset, or stream them via the API.

How to scale to bulk Reddit comment extraction

postUrls and searchUrls both accept arrays, so pasting dozens of post links or several subreddit/search URLs into one input runs them all in a single call — the Actor fetches them concurrently and dedupes overlapping targets automatically. There's no separate "bulk mode": add more entries to either array, or combine several searchUrls with one query, and raise maxPostsToDiscover to widen coverage in that same run.

What can you do with Reddit comment data?

• A brand manager monitoring mentions uses contentText and created_time (filtered with sinceDate/untilDate) to track how sentiment about a product shifts week over week.
• A market researcher exploring a topic uses query or searchUrls discovery plus discovered_post_title and upvotes to surface the highest-engagement threads on that subject.
• A community manager uses author and userUrl to identify the most active commenters in a target subreddit for outreach or moderation.
• A growth analyst compares upvotes and content_type across discovered posts to see which comment formats (text, image, video) drive the most engagement.
• An AI engineer feeds contentText alongside parent_id/replies thread structure into a RAG pipeline or an LLM sentiment-classification prompt to auto-summarize entire comment sections.

How does Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search handle rate limits and blocking?

The Actor tries a direct request to Reddit's public .json endpoints first. If Reddit returns a blocked or rate-limited response and you left proxy settings on default, it automatically retries through Apify's datacenter proxy, then residential proxy, as a resilience net. If you explicitly configure proxySettings, every retry uses exactly the group/country you selected instead. Retries back off exponentially between attempts.

If Reddit's .json API is unavailable network-wide for a given post — a known environment-level block, not specific to any one request — the Actor automatically falls back to the public Arctic Shift and PullPush Reddit comment archives so it still returns real comment data instead of failing silently. The same fallback applies to post discovery via keyword or subreddit search. Comments that can't be fetched from any source for a given URL are logged and skipped; the run continues with the remaining targets rather than aborting.

⬇️ Input

All 11 parameters are optional — provide at least one of postUrls, searchUrls, or query for the Actor to find comments.

Parameter	Required	Type	Description	Example Value
postUrls	No	array	Direct Reddit post URLs to scrape comments from. Leave empty to rely on discovery below.	["https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPT/comments/1epeshq/these_are_all_ai/"]
searchUrls	No	array	Subreddit-listing URLs or Reddit search URLs to auto-discover matching posts, then scrape their comments.	["https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPT/"]
query	No	string	A plain keyword or phrase used to discover matching posts across all of Reddit when no postUrls/searchUrls are supplied.	"prompt engineering tips"
sort	No	string (enum: hot, new, top, controversial, old)	Order comments are fetched in. Default is hot.	"new"
safeSearch	No	boolean	When true, NSFW/over-18 posts found via discovery are skipped. Does not affect directly-pasted post URLs. Default is off.	true
maxPostsToDiscover	No	integer	Cap on how many posts are discovered from searchUrls/query before their comments are fetched. Range 1-500. Default is 10.	25
maxCommentsPerPost	No	integer	Maximum number of comments to extract per post. Range 1-10,000. Default is 100.	200
maxReplyDepth	No	integer	Number of nested replies kept in each comment's replies field. 0 = unlimited. All replies are still collected in the flattened output regardless. Default is 2.	3
sinceDate	No	string (datepicker, absolute or relative)	Only keep comments posted on/after this date, filtered on the real created_time.	"2026-01-01"
untilDate	No	string (datepicker, absolute or relative)	Only keep comments posted on/before this date, filtered on the real created_time.	"2026-07-01"
proxySettings	No	object	Proxy configuration. By default, no proxy is used and only direct requests are made; when enabled, the Actor uses exactly the group/country you select, with retries.	{"useApifyProxy": true, "apifyProxyGroups": ["RESIDENTIAL"]}

Example input

{
  "postUrls": ["https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPT/comments/1epeshq/these_are_all_ai/"],
  "searchUrls": ["https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPT/"],
  "query": "prompt engineering tips",
  "sort": "new",
  "safeSearch": true,
  "maxPostsToDiscover": 25,
  "maxCommentsPerPost": 200,
  "maxReplyDepth": 3,
  "sinceDate": "2026-01-01",
  "untilDate": "2026-07-01",
  "proxySettings": { "useApifyProxy": true, "apifyProxyGroups": ["RESIDENTIAL"] }
}

⬆️ Output

Every run writes one typed JSON row per comment to the Actor's dataset, with a consistent schema across runs. Export it as JSON, CSV, Excel, or HTML directly from Apify, or pull it through the API.

Example output

{
  "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPT/comments/1epeshq/these_are_all_ai/",
  "discovered_post_title": "These are all AI generated images",
  "discovered_via": "direct_url",
  "comment_id": "lh3k9a2",
  "post_id": "t3_1epeshq",
  "author": "midjourney_fan99",
  "permalink": "https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPT/comments/1epeshq/these_are_all_ai/lh3k9a2/",
  "upvotes": 342,
  "content_type": "text",
  "parent_id": "t3_1epeshq",
  "author_avatar": "https://styles.redditmedia.com/t5_2qh1u/styles/profileIcon_snoo.png",
  "userUrl": "https://www.reddit.com/user/midjourney_fan99/",
  "contentText": "The lighting on the third one gave it away instantly.",
  "created_time": "2026-06-14T09:32:11Z",
  "replies": [
    {
      "comment_id": "lh3l0b7",
      "post_id": "t3_1epeshq",
      "author": "skeptical_sam",
      "permalink": "https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPT/comments/1epeshq/these_are_all_ai/lh3l0b7/",
      "upvotes": 58,
      "content_type": "text",
      "parent_id": "lh3k9a2",
      "author_avatar": "",
      "userUrl": "https://www.reddit.com/user/skeptical_sam/",
      "contentText": "Which one is the third? They're numbered weird.",
      "created_time": "2026-06-14T10:01:47Z",
      "replies": []
    }
  ]
}

How does it work?

Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search sends direct HTTP requests to Reddit's own public .json endpoints — the same JSON contract that powers reddit.com itself — so no browser rendering is needed. Requests try a direct connection first; if Reddit blocks or rate-limits the response, the Actor retries through Apify Proxy (your configured settings, or a default datacenter-then-residential fallback), and if Reddit's endpoint is unavailable network-wide, it fails over to public Reddit comment archives so real data still comes back. Only publicly visible posts and comments are ever returned — nothing that requires a login. Because the Actor targets Reddit's stable JSON structure rather than scraping rendered HTML, the output schema stays consistent even as Reddit's front-end UI changes.

Integrations

Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search runs on Apify, so it works with any tool that can call an HTTP API or the Apify SDK.

Calling Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search programmatically

from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_APIFY_API_TOKEN>")

run_input = {
    "searchUrls": ["https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPT/"],
    "query": "prompt engineering tips",
    "maxPostsToDiscover": 25,
    "maxCommentsPerPost": 200,
}

run = client.actor("YOUR_USERNAME/reddit-comment-scraper-by-keyword-search").call(run_input=run_input)

for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    print(item["contentText"])

Works in Go, Ruby, Node.js, cURL — any language that can make an HTTP request.

No-code tools (n8n, Make, LangChain)

In n8n, use the Apify integration node (or the HTTP Request node against the Apify API) to start a run and read back the dataset. In Make, use the Apify app's "Run an Actor" module and feed the resulting dataset items into downstream scenarios. In LangChain or a similar framework, wrap the Apify API call as a tool and pass the returned JSON comments directly into your chain or agent as context.

Is it legal to scrape Reddit comments?

Scraping publicly available Reddit comments is generally lawful, since this Actor only collects data any logged-out visitor can already see — no private subreddits, no login-walled content. Reddit usernames are pseudonymous handles, not real names by default, but a username combined with an avatar and comment history is still a persistent identifier, so GDPR/CCPA-style personal-data considerations can apply if you store and process this data at scale, particularly for EU or California residents. Reddit's Terms of Service also govern how scraped content may be reused. Consult legal counsel if your use case involves bulk storage or processing of personal data.

Frequently asked questions

What Reddit comment fields does Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search return?

It returns contentText, author, upvotes, created_time, and permalink as its core fields, plus post context, author avatar, and nested replies. See the full fields table above.

Does Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search require a Reddit account or login?

No. The Actor sends unauthenticated requests to Reddit's public .json endpoints — no Reddit account, OAuth app, or cookies are used or required.

How many Reddit comments can I extract in one run?

Up to maxCommentsPerPost (max 10,000) per post, across as many postUrls as you paste plus up to maxPostsToDiscover (max 500) posts found via searchUrls/query in that same run.

What happens if a keyword or subreddit search returns zero results?

The Actor logs that no post URLs or discovery results were found and exits without writing any dataset rows, rather than throwing an error — check your query/searchUrls input and re-run.

Can I scrape multiple Reddit posts or subreddits at once?

Yes. postUrls and searchUrls both accept arrays, so you can paste many post links and several subreddit/search URLs into a single run; they're processed concurrently and deduplicated automatically.

Does Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search work with Claude, ChatGPT, and other AI agent tools?

Yes — it's callable as a standard HTTP endpoint through the Apify API, so any agent framework that can make an HTTP call (LangChain, custom Claude/GPT tool definitions, etc.) can trigger a run and read back the JSON dataset.

How does Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search compare to other Reddit comment scrapers?

It combines three discovery paths — direct post URLs, subreddit/search URL discovery, and plain-keyword search — with a single comment-extraction engine, plus a built-in archive fallback (Arctic Shift/PullPush) when Reddit's own JSON API is blocked. Evaluate any alternative against your own required fields, discovery flexibility, and whether it degrades gracefully when Reddit's endpoint is unavailable.

Does Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search return data in a format LLMs can use directly?

Yes. Output is typed, normalized JSON with consistent field names across runs — no HTML parsing or CSS selectors needed. Pass it directly to an LLM prompt, index it into a vector store, or feed it to an agent tool.

What happens when Reddit changes its layout or anti-bot system?

The Actor is maintained against Reddit's JSON API contract, and the output schema is designed to stay stable across Reddit UI changes. No specific update turnaround time is guaranteed.

Can I use Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search without managing proxies or browser infrastructure?

Yes. There's no browser to configure — requests go straight to Reddit's JSON API — and proxy rotation (datacenter/residential fallback, or your chosen groups) is handled by the Actor automatically.

Which Reddit comment fields work best for AI training data and RAG indexing?

For RAG, index contentText alongside discovered_post_title and permalink for retrievable context with a source link. For training data or structured analysis, created_time, upvotes, and content_type return as consistent typed primitives (string, integer, and string enum respectively) across every record.

Related scrapers

Scraper Name	What it extracts
Facebook Comments Scraper: Reaction Breakdown	Facebook post comments with per-comment reaction breakdown (like/love/haha/wow/sad/angry/care) and derived engagement metrics
Instagram Comments Scraper With Lead Enrichment	Instagram post/reel comments enriched with lead/contact data
YouTube Comments Scraper : AI Sentiment Analytics	YouTube video comments with AI-driven sentiment analytics

Your feedback

Found a bug or missing a field in Reddit Comment Scraper By Keyword Search? Let us know through the Actor's Issues tab on Apify so we can take a look. Feedback like this is what keeps the Actor accurate as Reddit's own site evolves.