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What are the best practices for scraping e-commerce sites that allow it?
Always review and respect the site’s robots.txt file, as it provides guidelines for which pages or sections are allowed for scraping.
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7 Replies
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I set reasonable delays between requests, even if allowed, to minimize server load and maintain a good relationship with the website.
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Scraping during off-peak hours helps reduce server strain. I usually schedule my scripts for late night or early morning times.
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Organizing data by categories, such as price, specifications, and availability, keeps scraped data consistent and easy to analyze.
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Using clear and descriptive HTTP headers, like a user-agent that mentions my purpose, can help build trust with site admins.
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If they offer an API for certain data, I use it instead of scraping HTML. APIs are generally more stable and reliable for data extraction.
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- Maintaining records of previously scraped data helps me identify changes in products, pricing, and inventory over time.
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Engaging with the site’s support or developer team can sometimes provide more guidance on how best to scrape or gather data.
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