# CoolStuffInc TCG Singles & Buylist Price Scraper (`lulzasaur/coolstuffinc-scraper`) Actor

Scrape CoolStuffInc TCG singles (MTG, Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh, Lorcana, One Piece & more) by keyword. Get retail price, buylist price (what they pay), and the retail-buylist spread per condition — key data for card dealers and arbitrage.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/lulzasaur/coolstuffinc-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [lulz bot](https://apify.com/lulzasaur) (community)
- **Categories:** E-commerce
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $5.00 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

## CoolStuffInc TCG Singles & Buylist Price Scraper

Scrape trading card prices from [CoolStuffInc.com](https://www.coolstuffinc.com) — one of the largest US TCG retailers. Get both the **retail price** (what they sell for) and the **buylist price** (what CoolStuffInc *pays* you for the card), plus the **retail-buylist spread** per condition.

The spread between retail and buylist is the single most important number for card dealers, arbitrageurs, and collectors deciding whether to buy, hold, or sell.

### Supported games

Magic: The Gathering, Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Lorcana, One Piece (OPTCG), Star Wars: Unlimited, Gundam, Riftbound.

### Input

| Field | Type | Description |
|-------|------|-------------|
| `searchQueries` | array | Card names / search terms (e.g. `["Lightning Bolt", "Black Lotus"]`). One run per query. |
| `game` | string | Game to scrape: `mtg`, `pokemon`, `yugioh`, `lorcana`, `optcg`, `swu`, `gundam`, `riftbound`. |
| `set` | string | Optional set/edition filter (substring match, e.g. `Return to Ravnica`). |
| `includeBuylist` | boolean | `true` (default) → scrape buylist + retail + spread. `false` → retail storefront only (price + stock, no buylist). |
| `maxResults` | integer | Max card rows per query. Default `50`. `0` = unlimited. |
| `proxyConfiguration` | object | Proxy settings. Apify Proxy recommended on cloud. |

#### Example input

```json
{
  "searchQueries": ["Lightning Bolt"],
  "game": "mtg",
  "includeBuylist": true,
  "maxResults": 50,
  "proxyConfiguration": { "useApifyProxy": true }
}
```

### Output

Each item is one card (per condition variant):

```json
{
  "name": "Lightning Bolt",
  "game": "Magic: The Gathering",
  "set": "Archenemy: Nicol Bolas",
  "condition": "Near Mint",
  "retailPrice": 1.99,
  "buylistPrice": 0.05,
  "creditPrice": 0.06,
  "spread": 1.94,
  "stock": null,
  "isFoil": false,
  "rarity": "Uncommon",
  "cardNumber": "054",
  "productId": "243512",
  "productUrl": "https://www.coolstuffinc.com/p/243512",
  "imageUrl": "https://res.cloudinary.com/csicdn/.../ANBLightningBolt.jpg",
  "searchQuery": "Lightning Bolt",
  "source": "buylist",
  "scrapedAt": "2026-06-24T00:00:00.000Z"
}
```

- `retailPrice` — CoolStuffInc selling price.
- `buylistPrice` — what CoolStuffInc pays you (cash). `creditPrice` is the store-credit equivalent (usually higher).
- `spread` — `retailPrice - buylistPrice`. The dealer margin / arbitrage signal.
- `source` — `buylist` (has both prices) or `retail` (retail-only mode, no buylist/spread).

### Notes

- Buylist mode is the recommended default — it returns retail **and** buylist in a single, clean request, with conditions and set names.
- Retail-only mode parses the public storefront search pages (Schema.org microdata) and includes stock; it does not include buylist or spread.
- Please respect CoolStuffInc's Terms of Service and use reasonable rate limits.

# Actor input Schema

## `searchQueries` (type: `array`):

List of card names / search terms to scrape (e.g., 'Lightning Bolt', 'Pikachu', 'Dark Magician'). Each query produces a separate set of results. Leave a single empty string ('') to browse a whole game's buylist (use the Game filter).

## `game` (type: `string`):

Trading card game to scrape. Filters results to a single game's catalog. Required for buylist mode.

## `set` (type: `string`):

Optional set/edition name to filter to (e.g., 'Return to Ravnica'). Matched against each card's set; leave blank to include all sets.

## `includeBuylist` (type: `boolean`):

If enabled (default), scrapes the CoolStuffInc buylist (what they PAY for cards) which also includes the retail price, and computes the retail-buylist spread — the key data for card dealers. If disabled, scrapes only the retail storefront (price + stock, no buylist/spread).

## `maxResults` (type: `integer`):

Maximum number of card rows to scrape per search query. Set to 0 for unlimited.

## `proxyConfiguration` (type: `object`):

Proxy settings. Recommended for Apify Cloud runs. Uses Apify Proxy by default.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "searchQueries": [
    "Lightning Bolt"
  ],
  "game": "mtg",
  "set": "",
  "includeBuylist": true,
  "maxResults": 50,
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": true
  }
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "searchQueries": [
        "Lightning Bolt"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("lulzasaur/coolstuffinc-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "searchQueries": ["Lightning Bolt"] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("lulzasaur/coolstuffinc-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print("💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/" + run["defaultDatasetId"])
for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "searchQueries": [
    "Lightning Bolt"
  ]
}' |
apify call lulzasaur/coolstuffinc-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "mcp-remote",
                "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=lulzasaur/coolstuffinc-scraper",
                "--header",
                "Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_API_TOKEN>"
            ]
        }
    }
}

```

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/wDpX0ZmldywPRV1IT/builds/aG6AHMBasFXfhgN6O/openapi.json