ParseForge
BetaList Startups Scraper
parseforge/betalist-startups-scraper
Developer toolsLead generationOther
Scrapes BetaList startup profiles from the main feed or a specific topic. Returns each startup as a flat row with its name, tagline, description, makers, and topics.
- Total users
- 2
- Monthly active
- 1
- Total runs
- 55
- Bookmarked
- 0
- Rating
- Not rated yet
- Last modified
- 12 days ago
Overview
BetaList Startups Scraper
Scrape BetaList startups from any topic or the main feed, up to a million per run. Every startup comes with its name, tagline, description, topics, makers, and featured date. No login or API key. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.
BetaList's public startup directory is a goldmine for new products, but manually browsing topics and copying data is slow. This Actor reads the public BetaList feeds directly, filtered by topic slug, and returns each startup in one fixed schema. No API key, no rate limits, no manual work.
| Who uses it | What they scrape BetaList for |
|---|---|
| Market researchers | Which new products are launching in a specific niche this week |
| Venture capitalists | A daily list of fresh startups in their investment thesis areas |
| Founders | Competitor monitoring for new entrants in their space |
| Sales teams | Lead lists of newly launched companies that match their ICP |
| Journalists | Story ideas from the latest startup launches |
What it does
This Actor collects BetaList startup listings by topic or from the main upcoming-startups feed, and returns each one as a flat row.
- 🏷️ Topic filter: pass a topic slug like artificial-intelligence, productivity, or developer-tools to scrape only that category.
- 📊 Main feed: leave the topic empty to scrape the default upcoming-startups feed.
- 🔢 Max items: set how many startups to collect per run, from 1 to 1,000,000.
- 📦 Structured output: each startup is returned as a flat row with consistent fields.
- 📅 Featured date: know when each startup was featured on BetaList.
Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.
What you can do with BetaList data
📈 Track new AI startups.
A market researcher runs the Actor with topic=artificial-intelligence every Monday to get a list of the week's new AI startups for a trend report.
🧲 Build a lead list.
A sales team scrapes the productivity topic to find newly launched tools that match their ICP and adds them to their CRM.
🕵️ Monitor competitors.
A founder runs the Actor daily on their own category to see when a new competitor appears on BetaList.
📰 Find story ideas.
A tech journalist scrapes the main feed to discover fresh startups worth covering.
💼 Source deal flow.
A VC analyst runs the Actor across several topics to build a weekly pipeline of new companies.
Why choose this scraper
| What you get | |
|---|---|
| No API key | BetaList has no official API, so this Actor reads the public feeds directly. |
| Topic filtering | Focus on one category instead of the whole firehose. |
| Scalable | Collect up to a million startups per run. |
| Fixed schema | Every row has the same fields, so downstream processing is predictable. |
How it compares
This Actor focuses on simple, fast scraping of BetaList startup listings with topic filtering, while other BetaList scrapers may offer additional fields like contacts or different output options.
| Feature | ParseForge | BetaList Scraper | Betalist Scraper with Contacts | $4 / 1k | BetaList Startup Scraper |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Topic filtering | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Main feed scraping | Yes | Not listed | Not listed | Yes |
| Contact data (emails, social profiles) | Not listed | Not listed | Yes | Not listed |
| Makers data | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Featured date | Yes | Not listed | Not listed | Yes |
| No proxy needed | Yes | Not listed | Not listed | Yes |
Configure the run
Drive the Actor with an optional topic slug and a maximum item count. The topic filter runs as each startup is read, so only matches reach your dataset. The Input tab lists every parameter.
A first run with the defaults:
{
"maxItems": 10
}
A larger pull:
{
"maxItems": 200
}
Pricing
Pay-per-result: $0.0085 per result collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.
| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $0.85 |
| 1,000 results | $8.50 |
| 10,000 results | $85.00 |
New Apify accounts start with $5 in free credit.
Free users
Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. Upgrade your Apify plan to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.
Run it
- Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit.
- Open the BetaList Startups Scraper.
- Set your inputs and any filters, then click Start.
- Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the Dataset tab.
Run it programmatically through the Apify API (run-sync-get-dataset-items) or the ApifyClient for JavaScript and Python.
Use with AI agents (MCP)
Give an AI agent live access to BetaList through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:
claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com?tools=parseforge/betalist-startups-scraper"
Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.
Troubleshooting
Why am I getting no results?
Check that the topic slug is correct. If you leave it empty, the Actor scrapes the main feed, which should have results. Also make sure maxItems is at least 1.
Why did the run stop before reaching maxItems?
BetaList may have fewer startups in that topic than your maxItems value. The Actor stops when there are no more items to scrape.
Why are some fields empty?
Not every startup fills in every field on BetaList. Empty fields mean the data was not present on the page.
Can I scrape multiple topics in one run?
This Actor accepts one topic per run. To scrape multiple topics, run the Actor multiple times with different topic inputs, or use Apify's task scheduling.
Why did I get a timeout error?
BetaList may be slow or blocking requests. Try increasing the timeout in the Actor's run options, or reduce maxItems.
FAQ
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Do I need a BetaList account or API key? | No. The Actor reads the public BetaList pages directly, so no login or key is required. |
| How do I filter by topic? | Set the topic input to the topic slug, for example artificial-intelligence or productivity. Leave it empty to scrape the main feed. |
| What is a topic slug? | It is the part of the BetaList URL that identifies a topic, like artificial-intelligence in betalist.com/topics/artificial-intelligence. |
| How many startups can I scrape in one run? | You can set maxItems from 1 to 1,000,000. The Actor will stop after collecting that many. |
| What data do I get for each startup? | Each row includes the startup name, tagline, description, topics, makers, and featured date, among other fields. |
| Can I schedule this Actor to run automatically? | Yes, you can schedule it in Apify to run daily, weekly, or on any cron schedule. |
| What export formats are supported? | You can export the results to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML. |
| Does this Actor use proxies? | It uses Apify's default proxy configuration, which works for BetaList. You can adjust proxy settings if needed. |
| Is this Actor affiliated with BetaList? | No, this is an independent scraper built by the Apify community. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by BetaList. |
| Can I scrape a specific startup's page? | This Actor scrapes listing feeds, not individual startup pages. For individual pages, you would need a different scraper. |
Related actors
Browse the full ParseForge collection for more scrapers.
🆘 Need help? Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.
⚠️ Disclaimer. This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by BetaList. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.
Input
| Field | Type | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| topic | string | Optional. A BetaList topic slug to filter by, for example artificial-intelligence, productivity, developer-tools. Leave empty to scrape the main upcoming-startups feed. | not set |
| maxItems | integer | How many startups to collect per run. | 10 |
Pricing
from $7.69 per 1,000 results
| Charged for | What it is | Price each |
|---|---|---|
| result | Single result in the default dataset. | $0.00769 to $0.0085 |
Tiered: the lower figure is the price on a higher Apify plan. Billing and the free credit live on Apify.
API
One POST returns the dataset directly. Same shape for every scraper in the library, so swapping the slug is the only change.
curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/parseforge~betalist-startups-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=$APIFY_TOKEN" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"helloWorld": 123
}' Examples
Input that runs as-is.
{
"helloWorld": 123
} Reviews
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Issues
We build and maintain this scraper, so a problem with it comes to us. Report it on the Apify listing and the thread stays attached to the scraper where the next person can find it: open an issue.
Broken and urgent, or you would rather not post in public? Write to parseforge@protonmail.com and it reaches the people who wrote it.