# Reddit SaaS Leads Scraper — Find Startup Pain Points (`makework36/reddit-leads-saas`) Actor Find people on Reddit actively looking for SaaS tools, software alternatives or automation solutions. Scrapes r/startups, r/entrepreneur, r/SaaS and more. Perfect for B2B lead generation and product research. - **URL**: https://apify.com/makework36/reddit-leads-saas.md - **Developed by:** [deusex machine](https://apify.com/makework36) (community) - **Categories:** Social media, AI, Automation - **Stats:** 10 total users, 3 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks - **User rating**: No ratings yet ## Pricing Pay per usage This Actor is paid per platform usage. The Actor is free to use, and you only pay for the Apify platform usage, which gets cheaper the higher subscription plan you have. Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-usage ## What's an Apify Actor? Actors are a software tools running on the Apify platform, for all kinds of web data extraction and automation use cases. 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. In JavaScript/TypeScript projects, use official [JavaScript/TypeScript client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js.md): ```bash npm install apify-client ``` In Python projects, use official [Python client library](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python.md): ```bash pip install apify-client ``` In shell scripts, use [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): ````bash # MacOS / Linux curl -fsSL https://apify.com/install-cli.sh | bash # Windows irm https://apify.com/install-cli.ps1 | iex ```bash In AI frameworks, you might use the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp.md). If your project is in a different language, use 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 ## Reddit SaaS Leads Scraper Find potential SaaS customers on Reddit by searching for people asking for tool recommendations, looking for alternatives, or complaining about existing software. Monitors r/startups, r/entrepreneur, r/SaaS, r/smallbusiness, r/indiehackers, and r/nocode. ### What data does it extract? | Field | Description | |-------|-------------| | `title` | Post title (often a question or request) | | `subreddit` | Source subreddit | | `author` | Reddit username of the potential lead | | `score` | Net upvotes | | `numComments` | Number of comments | | `url` | Reddit permalink | | `selftext` | Full post body with context (up to 2000 chars) | | `created` | Post creation date (ISO 8601) | | `keyword` | Which pain-point keyword matched | | `flair` | Post flair text | ### Use cases - **SaaS lead generation** -- Find people actively looking for tools in your category and reach out at the right moment - **Competitor intelligence** -- See which products people are switching away from and why - **Product validation** -- Discover unmet needs and feature requests before building ### How to use Default pain-point keywords: ```json { "maxResults": 100, "sortBy": "new" } ```` Custom keywords for your niche: ```json { "keywords": ["alternatives to notion", "need a CRM", "tired of paying for hubspot"], "maxResults": 200, "sortBy": "hot", "includeComments": true } ``` ### Input parameters | Parameter | Type | Default | Description | |-----------|------|---------|-------------| | `keywords` | string\[] | `["looking for a tool", "need a saas", "recommend software", "alternatives to", "tired of paying"]` | Pain-point search terms | | `maxResults` | integer | `50` | Max posts to return (1-500) | | `sortBy` | string | `"new"` | Sort order: `new`, `hot`, or `top` | | `includeComments` | boolean | `false` | Include top-level comments (useful to find more leads in the discussion) | **Subreddits searched:** r/startups, r/entrepreneur, r/SaaS, r/smallbusiness, r/indiehackers, r/nocode ### Output example ```json { "id": "t3_1k5def", "subreddit": "SaaS", "title": "Looking for a simple invoicing tool - Freshbooks is too expensive for what I need", "author": "solo_founder_22", "score": 38, "upvoteRatio": 0.95, "numComments": 27, "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/SaaS/comments/1k5def/...", "selftext": "I run a small consulting business and just need basic invoicing...", "created": "2026-03-26T14:20:00.000Z", "keyword": "looking for a tool", "scrapedAt": "2026-03-28T10:00:00.000Z" } ``` ### Performance & cost - Runs in 1-3 minutes depending on the number of keywords - Uses another actor internally (reddit-scraper) so costs include that actor's compute time - Each keyword triggers a separate search run ### FAQ **What kind of leads does this find?** People asking for software recommendations, complaining about tools they use, looking for alternatives, or describing a problem that software could solve. **Should I enable comments?** Yes, if you want to find leads hidden in discussions. Often the best leads are people replying "I have the same problem" in comments. **How do I use the results for outreach?** Filter by recent posts (`sortBy: "new"`), check the `selftext` for context, and respond helpfully on Reddit. Avoid spamming -- genuine help converts better. # Actor input Schema ## `keywords` (type: `array`): Pain-point keywords to search on Reddit. Each keyword is searched within every subreddit. ## `subreddits` (type: `array`): Subreddits to search in. You can customize this list to target your niche (without the r/ prefix). ## `sort` (type: `string`): How to sort Reddit search results. ## `timeFilter` (type: `string`): Time range for results (only applies when sort is 'top'). ## `maxResults` (type: `integer`): Maximum total number of posts/leads to return across all keywords and subreddits. ## `includeComments` (type: `boolean`): Fetch top comments for each post. Useful to find more leads in the discussion. ## `maxCommentsPerPost` (type: `integer`): Maximum number of top comments to fetch per post (only used when Include Comments is enabled). ## `proxyConfig` (type: `object`): Proxy settings. Recommended for larger scrapes to avoid rate limiting. ## Actor input object example ```json { "keywords": [ "looking for a saas", "need help automating", "alternatives to notion" ], "subreddits": [ "webdev", "digitalnomad", "freelance" ], "sort": "new", "timeFilter": "all", "maxResults": 100, "includeComments": false, "maxCommentsPerPost": 10, "proxyConfig": { "useApifyProxy": false } } ``` # Actor output Schema ## `dataset` (type: `string`): All scraped items in the default dataset (JSON). ## `csv` (type: `string`): Default dataset formatted as CSV for spreadsheets (Google Sheets, Excel). # 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 '' with your token const client = new ApifyClient({ token: '', }); // Prepare Actor input const input = { "keywords": [ "looking for a tool", "need a saas", "recommend software", "alternatives to", "tired of paying" ], "subreddits": [ "startups", "entrepreneur", "SaaS", "smallbusiness", "indiehackers", "nocode" ], "maxResults": 100, "maxCommentsPerPost": 10 }; // Run the Actor and wait for it to finish const run = await client.actor("makework36/reddit-leads-saas").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 '' with your token. client = ApifyClient("") # Prepare the Actor input run_input = { "keywords": [ "looking for a tool", "need a saas", "recommend software", "alternatives to", "tired of paying", ], "subreddits": [ "startups", "entrepreneur", "SaaS", "smallbusiness", "indiehackers", "nocode", ], "maxResults": 100, "maxCommentsPerPost": 10, } # Run the Actor and wait for it to finish run = client.actor("makework36/reddit-leads-saas").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 '{ "keywords": [ "looking for a tool", "need a saas", "recommend software", "alternatives to", "tired of paying" ], "subreddits": [ "startups", "entrepreneur", "SaaS", "smallbusiness", "indiehackers", "nocode" ], "maxResults": 100, "maxCommentsPerPost": 10 }' | apify call makework36/reddit-leads-saas --silent --output-dataset ``` ## MCP server setup ```json { "mcpServers": { "apify": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=makework36/reddit-leads-saas", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer " ] } } } ``` ## OpenAPI specification ```json { "openapi": "3.0.1", "info": { "title": "Reddit SaaS Leads Scraper — Find Startup Pain Points", "description": "Find people on Reddit actively looking for SaaS tools, software alternatives or automation solutions. Scrapes r/startups, r/entrepreneur, r/SaaS and more. Perfect for B2B lead generation and product research.", "version": "1.0", "x-build-id": "16jGHHAXyJiT44wxt" }, "servers": [ { "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2" } ], "paths": { "/acts/makework36~reddit-leads-saas/run-sync-get-dataset-items": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-makework36-reddit-leads-saas", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for its completion, and returns Actor's dataset items in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } }, "/acts/makework36~reddit-leads-saas/runs": { "post": { "operationId": "runs-sync-makework36-reddit-leads-saas", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor and returns information about the initiated run in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK", "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/runsResponseSchema" } } } } } } }, "/acts/makework36~reddit-leads-saas/run-sync": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-makework36-reddit-leads-saas", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for completion, and returns the OUTPUT from Key-value store in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } } }, "components": { "schemas": { "inputSchema": { "type": "object", "properties": { "keywords": { "title": "Search Keywords", "type": "array", "description": "Pain-point keywords to search on Reddit. Each keyword is searched within every subreddit.", "items": { "type": "string" } }, "subreddits": { "title": "Subreddits", "type": "array", "description": "Subreddits to search in. You can customize this list to target your niche (without the r/ prefix).", "items": { "type": "string" } }, "sort": { "title": "Sort By", "enum": [ "hot", "new", "top", "rising" ], "type": "string", "description": "How to sort Reddit search results.", "default": "new" }, "timeFilter": { "title": "Time Filter", "enum": [ "hour", "day", "week", "month", "year", "all" ], "type": "string", "description": "Time range for results (only applies when sort is 'top').", "default": "all" }, "maxResults": { "title": "Max Results", "minimum": 1, "maximum": 500, "type": "integer", "description": "Maximum total number of posts/leads to return across all keywords and subreddits.", "default": 100 }, "includeComments": { "title": "Include Comments", "type": "boolean", "description": "Fetch top comments for each post. Useful to find more leads in the discussion.", "default": false }, "maxCommentsPerPost": { "title": "Max Comments Per Post", "minimum": 1, "maximum": 50, "type": "integer", "description": "Maximum number of top comments to fetch per post (only used when Include Comments is enabled).", "default": 10 }, "proxyConfig": { "title": "Proxy Configuration", "type": "object", "description": "Proxy settings. Recommended for larger scrapes to avoid rate limiting.", "default": { "useApifyProxy": false } } } }, "runsResponseSchema": { "type": "object", "properties": { "data": { "type": "object", "properties": { "id": { "type": "string" }, "actId": { "type": "string" }, "userId": { "type": "string" }, "startedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "finishedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "status": { "type": "string", "example": "READY" }, "meta": { "type": "object", "properties": { "origin": { "type": "string", "example": "API" }, "userAgent": { "type": "string" } } }, "stats": { "type": "object", "properties": { "inputBodyLen": { "type": "integer", "example": 2000 }, "rebootCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "restartCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "resurrectCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "computeUnits": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "options": { "type": "object", "properties": { "build": { "type": "string", "example": "latest" }, "timeoutSecs": { "type": "integer", "example": 300 }, "memoryMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 1024 }, "diskMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 2048 } } }, "buildId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultKeyValueStoreId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultDatasetId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultRequestQueueId": { "type": "string" }, "buildNumber": { "type": "string", "example": "1.0.0" }, "containerUrl": { "type": "string" }, "usage": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 1 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "usageTotalUsd": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "usageUsd": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } } } } } } } } } ```