ParseForge
Flathub Linux Apps Scraper
parseforge/flathub-apps-scraper
Developer toolsAutomationOther
Scrapes Flathub Linux apps by keyword search or from the popular listings. Returns each Flatpak application as a flat row with its name, description, developer, and category.
- Total users
- 2
- Monthly active
- 1
- Total runs
- 45
- Bookmarked
- 0
- Rating
- Not rated yet
- Last modified
- 12 days ago
Overview
Flathub Linux Apps Scraper
Scrape Flathub Linux apps by keyword or browse the most popular Flatpak applications, up to a million per run. Every app comes with its name, description, developer, and category. No login or API key. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.
Flathub is the central app store for Linux, but manually browsing thousands of Flatpak applications to find what you need is slow. This actor reads the public Flathub catalog directly, letting you search by keyword or pull the most popular apps, and returns each match in one fixed schema.
| Who uses it | What they scrape Flathub for |
|---|---|
| Linux enthusiasts | Discover new Flatpak applications available for their distribution. |
| Software curators | Build a catalog of Linux apps filtered by a specific keyword or category. |
| Market researchers | Track which types of Linux desktop applications are gaining popularity. |
| System integrators | Generate a list of available Flatpak apps for pre-installation scripts. |
What it does
This Actor collects Flathub Linux apps by keyword search or from the popular listings, and returns each one as a flat row.
- 🔍 Keyword search: Find apps by name or term, such as blender, gimp, or video.
- 📈 Popular apps: Leave the search empty to collect the most popular apps on Flathub right now.
- 📊 Flat output: Each app is returned as a single row with its metadata, ready for spreadsheets.
Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.
What you can do with Flathub data
🔍 Find Linux software alternatives.
A Linux user searches for video editor on Flathub to find Flatpak alternatives to proprietary software, collecting the top 50 results for comparison.
📋 Build a curated app catalog.
A community manager scrapes the most popular apps weekly to maintain a recommended list of Flatpak applications for new Linux users.
📈 Monitor Linux app trends.
A market analyst runs the actor monthly with an empty search to track which new apps enter the Flathub popular list and identify growing categories.
🖥️ Prepare system images.
A system integrator scrapes apps by keyword like office or education to generate a Flatpak install manifest for a custom Linux distribution.
Why choose this scraper
| What you get | |
|---|---|
| No API key needed | Reads the public Flathub catalog with no registration or authentication. |
| Flexible input | Search by any keyword or pull the trending list of Flatpak applications. |
| Scalable collection | Collect up to a million apps in a single run. |
| Structured output | Returns a clean dataset in JSON, CSV, Excel, or XML. |
How it compares
This actor focuses on keyword search and popular app discovery with a simple input schema, while other Flathub scrapers offer category browsing or ID-based pulls.
| Feature | ParseForge | Flathub Linux App Store Scraper | Flathub Scraper - Linux Flatpak Apps, Categories & Licenses | Flathub Apps Scraper - Linux Application Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keyword search | Yes | Yes | Yes | Not listed |
| Popular apps collection | Yes | Yes | Yes | Not listed |
| Category filter input | Not listed | Yes | Yes | Not listed |
| Pull by app ID list | Not listed | Not listed | Yes | Not listed |
| App identifiers export | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed | Yes |
| License information | Not listed | Yes | Yes | Not listed |
Configure the run
Drive the Actor with a keyword search or leave it empty to get the most popular apps, and set a maximum number of apps to collect per run. The Input tab lists every parameter.
A first run with the defaults:
{
"searchQuery": "blender",
"maxItems": 10
}
A larger pull:
{
"searchQuery": "blender",
"maxItems": 200
}
Pricing
Pay-per-result: $0.011 per result collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.
| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $1.10 |
| 1,000 results | $11.00 |
| 10,000 results | $110.00 |
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 Flathub Linux Apps 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 Flathub 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/flathub-apps-scraper"
Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.
Troubleshooting
Why am I getting no results for my search query?
Check the spelling of your keyword. Flathub search requires an exact term. Try a shorter or more common word, or leave the search empty to confirm the actor is working by pulling popular apps.
The actor returns fewer apps than my maxItems setting.
Flathub only has a finite number of apps matching your query or in its popular list. The actor stops when it has collected all available matches, even if that number is below your maximum.
The run takes a long time for a large number of apps.
Collecting thousands of apps requires many page requests. Reduce the maxItems value or run the actor with a higher memory allocation in your Apify settings.
Some app fields are empty in the output.
Not every Flathub listing fills in all metadata fields. If a developer left the description blank, that field will be empty in your dataset.
I get an error when trying to export to Excel.
Large datasets with special characters can sometimes cause Excel export issues. Try exporting to CSV first, or reduce the number of apps collected.
FAQ
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Do I need a Flathub account or API key to use this scraper? | No. This actor reads the public Flathub website directly and requires no registration, API key, or authentication. |
| What data does the scraper return for each app? | It returns the app name, description, developer, category, and other metadata available on the Flathub listing page, all in a flat row. |
| Can I scrape all Flathub apps? | You can collect up to one million apps per run. Use an empty search query to pull the most popular apps, or a keyword to target a specific subset. |
| How do I search for a specific Linux application? | Enter the app name or a keyword like blender or video into the searchQuery field. The actor will return matching Flatpak apps from Flathub. |
| What export formats are supported? | You can export your dataset in JSON, CSV, Excel, or XML format from the Apify platform. |
| Is this scraper faster than using the Flathub website manually? | Yes. It automates the collection of hundreds or thousands of app listings in one run, saving you from clicking through pages manually. |
| Can I filter by Flathub category? | The current version searches by keyword or returns popular apps. Category filtering is not a direct input, but you can use a keyword that matches a category name. |
| Does this actor scrape app versions or download sizes? | It returns the metadata visible on the Flathub listing, which typically includes the app description and developer. Check the sample output for the exact fields returned. |
| Can I run this on a schedule? | Yes. You can set up a recurring schedule in Apify to run the actor daily or weekly and track new or updated Flatpak apps automatically. |
| What is the maximum number of apps I can scrape? | You can set the maximum apps input up to 1,000,000 per run. |
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 Flathub. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| searchQuery | string | Optional. Keyword to search Flathub apps (for example blender, gimp, video). Leave empty to return the most popular apps. | blender |
| maxItems | integer | How many apps to collect per run. | 10 |
Pricing
from $9.95 per 1,000 results
| Charged for | What it is | Price each |
|---|---|---|
| result | Single result in the default dataset. | $0.00995 to $0.011 |
Tiered: the lower figure is the price on a higher Apify plan. Billing and the free credit live on Apify.
API
One POST returns the dataset directly. Same shape for every scraper in the library, so swapping the slug is the only change.
curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/parseforge~flathub-apps-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=$APIFY_TOKEN" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"helloWorld": 123
}' Examples
Input that runs as-is.
{
"helloWorld": 123
} Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first.
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.