Pexels Scraper — Free Stock Photos & Videos

Use this Pexels photo scraper and Pexels video scraper to search public media and export reusable metadata with direct asset URLs. No Pexels account or API key is required.

Why use this Actor

Build a practical stock-media dataset instead of manually copying result pages. Search photos, videos, curated photos, or exact photo IDs, then export consistent rows for content planning, design research, editorial workflows, and automation.

Each row includes a canonical Pexels page, dimensions, public creator details, direct asset URLs, and request provenance. The Actor returns metadata and links; it does not download media files.

Who is it for

• Content teams building a shortlist of visuals for campaigns, articles, or social posts.
• Design and research teams comparing public stock-media results by dimensions, orientation, and creator.
• Developers and analysts who need a structured Pexels dataset for an app, spreadsheet, or workflow.
• AI and automation builders that need direct image or video URLs as inputs to an approved downstream workflow.

Example inputs and input recipes

Search photos

{
  "mode": "search",
  "query": "forest",
  "mediaType": "photos",
  "maxItems": 20,
  "orientation": "landscape"
}

Search videos

{
  "mode": "search",
  "query": "ocean",
  "mediaType": "videos",
  "maxItems": 20,
  "minDuration": 5
}

Fetch exact photo IDs

{
  "mode": "photoId",
  "photoIds": ["12377231"],
  "maxItems": 1
}

Browse curated photos

{
  "mode": "curated",
  "maxItems": 20,
  "orientation": "portrait"
}

Input settings

What data you get

Photo-only and video-only fields are null or empty arrays when they do not apply. This is intentional: the Actor does not infer missing media attributes.

Example output

{
  "recordType": "photo",
  "id": "12377231",
  "pageUrl": "https://www.pexels.com/photo/12377231/",
  "width": 4000,
  "height": 2667,
  "orientation": "landscape",
  "photographerName": "Example creator",
  "downloadUrl": "https://images.pexels.com/photos/example.jpeg",
  "sourceMode": "search",
  "sourceQuery": "forest"
}

API usage

Use the Actor from the Apify Console, API, SDK, MCP, or an automation platform. The completed default dataset can be exported to JSON, CSV, Excel, Google Sheets, or a downstream workflow.

Node.js

import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: process.env.APIFY_TOKEN });
const run = await client.actor('fetch_cat/pexels-scraper').call({
  mode: 'search', query: 'forest', mediaType: 'photos', maxItems: 20,
});
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
console.log(items);

Python

from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN")
run = client.actor("fetch_cat/pexels-scraper").call(run_input={
    "mode": "search", "query": "forest", "mediaType": "photos", "maxItems": 20,
})
items = client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).list_items().items
print(items)

cURL

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/fetch_cat~pexels-scraper/runs?token=$APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"mode":"search","query":"forest","mediaType":"photos","maxItems":20}'

MCP and automation

Add this Actor to your Apify MCP tools with mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch_cat/pexels-scraper. For Claude Code, add the server with:

claude mcp add apify -- npx -y @apify/mcp-server --tools fetch_cat/pexels-scraper

Or add an MCP server configuration:

{"mcpServers":{"apify":{"command":"npx","args":["-y","@apify/mcp-server","--tools","fetch_cat/pexels-scraper"]}}}

Example prompts: “Search Pexels for 20 landscape forest photos” or “Export ten ocean video records with direct URLs.” For no-code workflows, run it through Apify integrations and pass the resulting dataset to your preferred destination.

Tips for better results

• Start with a specific visual phrase such as aerial forest or ocean waves.
• Use mediaType: "all" when a single dataset can include both photos and videos.
• Use orientation and minimum dimensions to avoid a later filtering step.
• Use exact IDs when you need stable lookups for known Pexels photos.
• Keep dedupe enabled when combining result types or repeated searches.

Limitations

The Actor uses public data only. It does not accept cookies, Pexels credentials, or API keys. Collection pages, photographer portfolios, similar-media lookup, account-only data, EXIF details, reactions, and media-file downloading are not supported in this release.

Respect Pexels terms and the rights applicable to each asset before using a result in your own project. Direct URLs may change or become unavailable on the source site.

Support

Need help with an input or exported dataset? Contact support through the Actor's Issues tab with a redacted input and run ID.