TikTok has exploded in popularity over the last few years, becoming one of the most influential social media platforms across the globe. With over 1 billion monthly active users, TikTok contains a vast amount of valuable data for businesses and individuals who know how to harness it.
While TikTok does not provide an official API for data access, third-party scraper tools make it possible to extract information from TikTok profiles and videos at scale. Whether you need TikTok data for social listening, competitive analysis, influencer marketing or more, scrapers can automate the collection process.
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore the top 8 TikTok scraping tools available in 2023 and how they compare across key factors like features, pricing, proxies, and more.
What Can You Scrape from TikTok?
Before diving into the tools, let‘s look at the types of data that can be extracted from TikTok through web scraping:
- User Profiles: Name, bio, follower/following counts, likes, video view counts, etc.
- Video Data: Comments, captions, hashtags, video metadata like duration and dimensions.
- Audio Tracks: The music or sounds used in TikTok videos.
- Hashtags & Trends: Top hashtags and trending sounds.
- Influencer Profiles: Data on top creators for influencer marketing.
- Competitor Content: Your competitors‘ videos and engagement metrics.
This data can provide valuable insights for social listening, audience research, content strategy and more. Now let‘s look at the top tools available for scraping this data from TikTok at scale.
1. ScraperAPI
ScraperAPI is one of the most popular tools for TikTok data extraction thanks to its reliable proxies, easy-to-use interface, and affordable pricing.
Founded in 2018, ScraperAPI aims to make web scraping accessible for non-developers. The tool provides pre-built scrapers, Clean URLs, and integrated proxies to help users extract data from any website without writing code.
For TikTok, ScraperAPI supports scraping profile info, posts, comments, hashtags, captions, and more. Some key features include:
- Rotating Proxies: Over 2M residential IPs to avoid detection.
- Built-in Browser: Scrape directly within the tool‘s browser using CSS selectors.
- Custom Scrapers: Build and export your own scrapers for specialized data.
- Affordable Plans: Starts at $49/month for 5K requests.
ScraperAPI is easy to use even for beginners while still providing advanced functionality for more complex scraping jobs. They offer a 7-day free trial to test the tool out.
2. Octoparse
Octoparse is a visual web scraping tool that makes it easy to extract data without coding. It provides click-and-drag functionality to build TikTok scrapers using their intuitive interface.
Founded in 2015, Octoparse aims to empower non-technical users with easy web data extraction. Beyond TikTok, the tool can scrape data from most major websites.
Some key features of Octoparse for TikTok scraping include:
- Pre-Built Scrapers: Templates for common TikTok data types to save setup time.
- Export Options: Extracted data can be exported to Excel, JSON, databases and more.
- Visual Interface: No coding required; build scrapers by selecting page elements.
- Free Trial: 500 scraping tasks available to test the tool.
- Affordable Pricing: Starts at $89/month for the Starter plan.
Octoparse is great for individuals and teams that want an intuitive scraper tool with little to no learning curve. They offer free email support as well as documentation.
3. Phantombuster
Phantombuster provides an API-based approach to TikTok scraping powered by an army of Phantoms—headless browsers that drive automation.
Founded in 2015, Phantombuster aims to simplify web automation and scraping for non-developers. The tool‘s core capability is providing instant access to an API instead of requiring users to build their own scrapers.
For TikTok, Phantombuster lets you scrape data by calling predefined endpoints rather than configuring a scraper. Benefits include:
- Phantom API: Make API calls to extract TikTok data without any scraping setup.
- Cloud-Based: Phantoms run in the cloud, so no local installation needed.
- Pre-Built Scripts: Entrypoints available for common TikTok data.
- Rotation: Regularly rotates IPs to avoid bans.
- Affordable: Starts at $48/month for 5hr of use.
Phantombuster’s API approach minimizes the learning curve. They offer new users 250 free credits to try the tool.
4. Dexi.io
Dexi.io provides instant access to scraped TikTok data through their Haskell-based scraping engine. Instead of configuring and running your own scraper, Dexi handles the extraction for you and delivers the output via API.
Founded in 2021, Dexi aims to make web data accessible through a developer-friendly API. Their scalable scraping infrastructure removes the need to build and maintain scrapers.
For TikTok, Dexi lets you pull data by calling their API endpoints. Key features include:
- Instant Access: Get TikTok data immediately through API instead of running your own scraper.
- Pre-Scraped Data: Dexi scrapes and indexes TikTok data continuously.
- Affordable Pricing: Starts at $50/month for 50K calls.
- Data Dashboards: Charts and graphs for saved queries to visualize scraped data.
- Developer Docs: REST API endpoints and client libraries for all major languages.
For programmers, Dexi provides the quickest way to integrate TikTok data into your application via their API.
5. BrightData
BrightData provides enterprise-grade tools for large-scale web data extraction. Their Smart Proxy Manager delivers reliable IPs with automatic rotation for smooth TikTok scraping.
Founded in 2014, BrightData caters to data-driven companies with their advanced web scraping infrastructure. In addition to proxies, they also offer hosted scrapers, but at a higher cost.
Some key features for TikTok scraping include:
- Reliable Proxies: Millions of IPs with regular rotation and minimal bans.
- High Success Rates: Industry-leading scrape accuracy.
- Real-Time Monitoring: Dashboard to track scrape status, quotas, bans, etc.
- High Scalability: Tools made for large, high-volume scraping.
- Knowledgeable Support: Dedicated reps for complex projects.
BrightData starts at $500/month for 5M queries, so is geared more toward enterprise needs. But they offer the best results for large-scale TikTok scraping.
6. Oxylabs
Similar to BrightData, Oxylabs focuses on advanced scraping tools for businesses. Their Web Scraper API provides industrial-grade proxies and handles captcha solving for smooth data extraction.
Founded in 2015, Oxylabs builds tools for large-scale web data extraction. In addition to proxies and scrapers, they also offer VPNs, email verification, and more.
For TikTok, Oxylabs‘ key features include:
- Reliable Proxies: Backconnect rotating proxies with 95%+ uptime.
- Captcha Solving: Automatically handles captchas during scraping.
- Real-Time Monitoring: Dashboard tracks all scraping metrics.
- Knowledgeable Support: Technical expertise for complex jobs.
- High Scalability: Build for enterprise-level data extraction.
Like BrightData, Oxylabs is best suited for sizable scraping projects and experienced users. Plans start at $100/month.
7. ParseHub
ParseHub offers an easy-to-use visual interface for building scrapers without coding. The tool automatically structures and exports extracted data to various formats.
Founded in 2013, ParseHub aims to empower non-developers to leverage web scraping. The company focuses on building structured data sets from websites.
For TikTok, ParseHub lets you quickly configure scrapers and automatically collects the data. Key features include:
- Visual Editor: Click-based scraper builder for non-coders.
- Structures Data: Auto-organizes scraped data into columns.
- Export Options: Exports to JSON, CSV, Excel, etc.
- Free Tier: Up to 200 pages/month for free.
- Affordable Pricing: Starts at $99/month for larger projects.
ParseHub is one of the most affordable and beginner-friendly tools on this list in terms of ease of use. Their free tier lets you test the platform.
8. Mozenda
Mozenda offers enterprise-level scraping tools for large companies, complete with technical support services to handle complex projects. Their web scraper can extract huge amounts of data from TikTok.
Founded in 2005, Mozenda provides heavy-duty scraping solutions for data-driven businesses. The platform is capable of large-scale automated crawling across thousands of sites.
Some key capabilities for TikTok include:
- Powerful Crawler: Extracts huge amounts of TikTok data.
- Technical Support: Assistance building and maintaining scrapers.
- Data Integration: Seamlessly feed data into other apps.
- Real-Time Monitoring: Optimization to prevent bans.
- Customization: Tailored solutions based on your needs.
Mozenda starts around $6,000/year for 1 million pages scraped. The platform is overkill for individuals but powerful for enterprise users.
Key Factors for Selecting a TikTok Scraper
With an overview of the top tools, let‘s discuss key factors to weigh when choosing the right scraper for your needs:
- Budget: Cost varies wildly from $50 to $500+ per month. Assess how much you can invest.
- Scale: Some tools work better for small vs. large scraping projects.
- Technical Expertise: Select based on your ability to configure custom scrapers.
- Proxy Quality: Critical for avoiding bans.
- Support Availability: Look for documentation or live support.
- Data Export: Ensure it connects to apps you want to analyze data in.
- Ease of Use: Pick a tool aligned with your technical comfort level.
Use Case Recommendations:
- Individuals: ScraperAPI, Octoparse, ParseHub
- Small Teams: ScraperAPI, Octoparse, Phantombuster
- Developers: Dexi, ScraperAPI, Mozenda, Oxylabs
- Enterprises: BrightData, Mozenda, Oxylabs
Scraping TikTok Ethically
While TikTok scraping can provide valuable insights, it‘s important to use these tools responsibly by following a few ethical guidelines:
- Only scrape public data to respect user privacy.
- Avoid scraping at high frequencies that may overload TikTok‘s servers.
- Use proxies and random delays to minimize detection.
- Don‘t violate TikTok‘s ToS such as scraping usernames/passwords.
- Don‘t use scraped data for harmful purposes like cyberbullying.
Scraping within reasonable limits for legitimate purposes poses no significant ethical concerns. Just be sure to use the data responsibly.
Get Scraping!
TikTok contains a wealth of data for those who know how to extract it. The scraper tools covered in this guide make the process seamless.
Whether you need data for social listening, content research or analytics, these scrapers have you covered. Find the one that aligns with your use case, budget and technical needs to tap into TikTok‘s data goldmine.
Just be sure to scrape ethically, and you‘ll gain valuable insights without any trouble. With the right scraper in hand, you‘ll be ready to harvest TikTok‘s immense data resources.
