Connecting Appify to N8N for Automated Web Scraping: A No-Code Guide

Web scraping doesn’t have to involve complex programming. By connecting Appify with N8N, you can create powerful data collection workflows without writing a single line of code. This guide walks you through the entire process from setup to automation.

Getting Started with Appify

The first step is accessing Appify’s platform. Create a free account on Appify.com if you don’t already have one. Once logged in, navigate to the Actors tab where you’ll find pre-built scraping tools ready for use.

Actors are essentially ready-made scraping solutions that handle the technical aspects of data extraction. For beginners, using an existing actor is much simpler than creating one from scratch.

Selecting and Running a Scraper

From the Appify store, search for an appropriate scraper for your needs. The Google Maps scraper is a popular option that extracts business information from Google Maps listings.

After selecting your scraper, click the “Try it out” button to configure your scraping parameters. For example, if you’re interested in restaurants in New York, simply enter that as your search term. You can customize additional settings like the maximum number of results or language preferences.

When your parameters are set, start the scraping process by clicking the Start button. Appify will run the actor and collect the specified data.

Accessing Your Scraped Data

Once the scraping run completes, navigate to the Storage tab and select Data Set to view your results. The data appears in JSON format, which is perfect for integration with other tools.

Setting Up N8N for Automation

With your data successfully scraped, it’s time to set up automation through N8N. Create an account on N8N.io if needed, then start a new workflow from your dashboard.

Begin by adding a trigger node that determines when your workflow will run. The Schedule node is ideal for regular scraping tasks, while a Webhook trigger works well if you need to initiate scraping from external sources.

Connecting N8N to Appify

After setting up your trigger, add an HTTP Request node to connect to Appify. Set the method to GET, then return to Appify to copy your dataset’s API URL. Find this under the Data Set tab by selecting Export and choosing JSON format.

Paste this URL into the HTTP Request node’s URL field in N8N. For authentication, you’ll need your Appify API token. Access this by clicking your profile icon in Appify and selecting Integrations.

In N8N, create a new HTTP credential, paste your API token as a bearer token in the Authorization field, and connect this credential to your HTTP Request node.

Testing and Expanding Your Workflow

Test your connection by clicking Execute Node. If successful, you’ll see your scraped data appear in the output section.

From here, the possibilities expand dramatically. You can add processing nodes to filter specific fields, connect to Google Sheets to store your data, or set up notifications through email or Slack. You might even connect to a database for permanent storage.

The Power of No-Code Automation

This integration between Appify and N8N demonstrates how powerful web scraping can be without requiring programming knowledge. By combining these platforms, you create automated workflows that regularly collect, process, and distribute web data according to your specific needs.