API-Based Scraping
API-based scraping is a data extraction technique that involves programmatically accessing and retrieving data from web services through their official Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), rather than parsing HTML from web pages. It leverages structured endpoints provided by platforms to fetch data in formats like JSON or XML, offering a more reliable and efficient alternative to traditional web scraping. This approach is commonly used for gathering data from social media, e-commerce sites, or other services that expose public or private APIs.
Developers should use API-based scraping when they need to extract data from platforms that provide official APIs, as it ensures compliance with terms of service, reduces the risk of being blocked, and yields cleaner, structured data. It is ideal for applications requiring real-time data updates, such as monitoring social media trends, aggregating product information from e-commerce sites, or building integrations with third-party services. Compared to HTML scraping, it is more maintainable and less prone to breaking due to website layout changes.