Reddit Search Media API
Returns up to 25 Reddit posts that carry an image, video or gallery, with the media at content.media_urls plus title, score, comment count and subreddit.
GET /v1/reddit/search/mediaLast updated November 2026Maintained by the SocialCrawl team
When to use the Reddit Search Media API
Use it for visual posts on a topic without filtering a mixed page yourself. subreddit:name terms scopes it to one community; timeframe has no effect on sort=new.
From the API reference
Searches Reddit's media-scoped index: the posts a keyword search would return, filtered to those that actually carry an image, a video or a gallery. Use it when you want visual content for a topic and do not want to filter a mixed page yourself. Up to 25 posts per page, each with the title, the score, the comment count, the subreddit, the upvote ratio, the flair, the author avatar, the thumbnail and the media at content.media_urls — an array on a gallery post and a single-element array otherwise. Reddit's operators work in query here too, so subreddit:name terms scopes the sweep to one community. timeframe applies on sort=relevance, sort=top and sort=comment_count; it has no effect on sort=new, which is already newest-first. Paginate with cursor. When the main source is down, a backup serves the first page and offers a cursor on sort=top only, for one more page of 25; on other sorts that page carries no cursor. A query that matches nothing still returns loosely-related media posts rather than an empty list, which is Reddit's own search behaviour.
Searching 69 platforms in parallel
What can you do with the Search Media API?
The Search Media endpoint gives you structured Reddit data with computed fields in a single request. No scraping infrastructure to build or maintain.
Example Request
# GET /v1/reddit/search/media: 1 credit per page. Cache hits are free and failed calls are refunded.
# Check the price first for 0 credits: add dry_run=1 to the query. Nothing is fetched or charged.
# --max-time 60: the API's own time limit for this endpoint.
# --retry 3: retries timeouts, 429 and 5xx, honoring Retry-After.
# -o response.json keeps only the final attempt's body.
# One Idempotency-Key per request, reused on every retry, so a retried call is never charged twice.
# Next page: send pagination.next_cursor back as cursor until pagination.has_more is false.
IDEMPOTENCY_KEY=$(od -An -N16 -tx1 /dev/urandom | tr -d ' \n')
curl -sS --max-time 60 --retry 3 -o response.json \
-H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
-H "Idempotency-Key: $IDEMPOTENCY_KEY" \
"https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/reddit/search/media?query=mechanical+keyboard+build" && cat response.json# GET /v1/reddit/search/media: 1 credit per page. Cache hits are free and failed calls are refunded.
# Check the price first for 0 credits: add dry_run=1 to the query. Nothing is fetched or charged.
import os
import random
import time
import uuid
import requests
API_KEY = os.environ.get("SOCIALCRAWL_API_KEY", "YOUR_API_KEY")
TIMEOUT_S = 60 # the API's own time limit for this endpoint.
MAX_RETRIES = 3
URL = "https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/reddit/search/media"
def backoff(attempt):
# Exponential backoff with jitter: about 1 s, 2 s, then 4 s.
return 2 ** attempt * (0.5 + random.random() / 2)
def socialcrawl(params):
# One Idempotency-Key per request, reused on every retry, so a retried call is never charged twice.
idempotency_key = str(uuid.uuid4())
for attempt in range(MAX_RETRIES + 1):
try:
res = requests.get(
URL,
params=params,
headers={"x-api-key": API_KEY, "Idempotency-Key": idempotency_key},
timeout=TIMEOUT_S,
)
body = res.json()
except (requests.RequestException, ValueError):
# A timeout, a dropped connection or a non-JSON gateway page: retry with the same key.
if attempt == MAX_RETRIES:
raise
time.sleep(backoff(attempt))
continue
if body["success"]:
return body
error = body["error"]
# Branch on error["type"], never on the message text.
if error["type"] == "RESOURCE_NOT_FOUND":
return None # refunded: nothing to read
retry_after = res.headers.get("Retry-After")
# SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE without Retry-After is a withdrawn endpoint: permanent.
permanent = error["type"] == "SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE" and retry_after is None
if not error.get("retryable") or permanent or attempt == MAX_RETRIES:
raise RuntimeError(f"{error['type']}: {error['message']} (request_id {body['request_id']})")
# Retry-After (seconds) wins; otherwise back off.
time.sleep(float(retry_after) if retry_after else backoff(attempt))
params = {
"query": "mechanical keyboard build",
}
# Walk the list: send pagination.next_cursor back as cursor until has_more is false.
MAX_PAGES = 10 # each page is one call
items = []
for _ in range(MAX_PAGES):
body = socialcrawl(params)
if body is None:
break
items.extend(body["data"]["items"])
page = body.get("pagination") or {}
if not page.get("has_more") or not page.get("next_cursor"):
break
params["cursor"] = page["next_cursor"]
print(f"{len(items)} items")// GET /v1/reddit/search/media: 1 credit per page. Cache hits are free and failed calls are refunded.
// Check the price first for 0 credits: add dry_run=1 to the query. Nothing is fetched or charged.
const API_KEY = process.env.SOCIALCRAWL_API_KEY ?? "YOUR_API_KEY";
const TIMEOUT_MS = 60_000; // the API's own time limit for this endpoint.
const MAX_RETRIES = 3;
type Page = { next_cursor: string | null; has_more: boolean };
type SocialCrawlResponse =
| { success: true; data: any; pagination?: Page; credits_used: number; request_id: string }
| { success: false; error: { type: string; message: string; retryable: boolean }; request_id: string };
const sleep = (ms: number) => new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, ms));
// Exponential backoff with jitter: about 1 s, 2 s, then 4 s.
const backoffMs = (attempt: number) => 2 ** attempt * 1000 * (0.5 + Math.random() / 2);
async function socialcrawl(url: URL) {
// One Idempotency-Key per request, reused on every retry, so a retried call is never charged twice.
const idempotencyKey = crypto.randomUUID();
for (let attempt = 0; ; attempt++) {
let res: Response;
let body: SocialCrawlResponse;
try {
res = await fetch(url, {
headers: {
"x-api-key": API_KEY,
"Idempotency-Key": idempotencyKey,
},
signal: AbortSignal.timeout(TIMEOUT_MS),
});
body = (await res.json()) as SocialCrawlResponse;
} catch (error) {
// A timeout, a dropped connection or a non-JSON gateway page: retry with the same key.
if (attempt >= MAX_RETRIES) throw error;
await sleep(backoffMs(attempt));
continue;
}
if (body.success) return body;
// Branch on error.type, never on the message text.
if (body.error.type === "RESOURCE_NOT_FOUND") return null; // refunded: nothing to read
const retryAfter = res.headers.get("Retry-After");
// SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE without Retry-After is a withdrawn endpoint: permanent.
const permanent = body.error.type === "SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE" && retryAfter === null;
if (!body.error.retryable || permanent || attempt >= MAX_RETRIES) {
throw new Error(`${body.error.type}: ${body.error.message} (request_id ${body.request_id})`);
}
// Retry-After (seconds) wins; otherwise back off.
await sleep(retryAfter ? Number(retryAfter) * 1000 : backoffMs(attempt));
}
}
const url = new URL("https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/reddit/search/media");
url.searchParams.set("query", "mechanical keyboard build");
// Walk the list: send pagination.next_cursor back as cursor until has_more is false.
const MAX_PAGES = 10; // each page is one call
const items: unknown[] = [];
for (let page = 0; page < MAX_PAGES; page++) {
const body = await socialcrawl(url);
if (!body) break;
items.push(...body.data.items);
const next = body.pagination?.next_cursor;
if (!body.pagination?.has_more || !next) break;
url.searchParams.set("cursor", next);
}
console.log(`${items.length} items`);Parameters
| Parameter | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| query | Yes | Search phrase. Reddit's operators work here: `subreddit:name terms` scopes the sweep to one community, and quotes force an exact phrase. |
| sort | No | Sort by (relevance | new | top | comment_count) |
| timeframe | No | Only return posts from this window. Applied on sort=relevance, sort=top and sort=comment_count. It has no effect with sort=new, which is already ordered newest-first. (all | day | week | month | year) |
| cursor | No | Cursor to get more results. Get 'cursor' from the previous response. |
| since | No | Only rows published on or after this date: YYYY-MM-DD (midnight UTC) or an ISO 8601 timestamp. Rows older than it are left off each page. This list is not in date order, so the walk does not stop at the date: keep following `next_cursor`, and each page costs what a page costs even when every row on it is filtered out. A row with no date is kept. `published_after`, `start_date`, `from_date`, `publish_time` (`yesterday`, `this-week`, `this-month`, `last-3-months`, `last-6-months`) and `max_age_days` are accepted and applied as `since`. |
| until | No | Only rows published on or before this date: YYYY-MM-DD (that whole UTC day is included) or an ISO 8601 timestamp. Newer rows are left off each page and the walk does not stop, so older pages follow. A row with no date is kept. `published_before`, `end_date` and `to_date` are accepted and applied as `until`. |
| max_pages | No | 1 to 50 (default 1, or 50 when `max_items` or `max_credits` is sent). Walk up to this many pages in one call and return the rows from all of them. Each page walked is billed exactly as one call to this endpoint (a cached page is free) and counts against your rate limit; its charge and any refund are recorded under the page's own request id, listed in `data.walk.request_ids`. The walk stops early at the last page, or when the request's time budget runs low; `data.walk.stopped` says why (`end`, `max_pages`, `max_items`, `max_credits`, `time_budget`, `page_error`) and `pagination.next_cursor` continues from where it stopped. |
| max_items | No | 1 to 5000. Get more in one call: keep walking pages until the response holds at least this many rows, then stop with `data.walk.stopped: "max_items"`. The last page is returned whole (it was billed), so `data.items` can hold up to one page more than this, and `pagination.next_cursor` resumes right after it without skipping a row. Walks up to 50 pages unless `max_pages` says fewer; each page is billed as one call (a cached page is free). Add `max_credits` to cap the spend. A long walk can stop on the time budget first (`"time_budget"`): send the returned cursor with the same params to continue. |
| max_credits | No | 1 to 100000. The most this call may spend, across every page it walks. A page starts only while the credits already spent plus that page's price (or, when higher, the most any page of this walk has cost) still fit, so the call never goes past it; the walk then stops with `data.walk.stopped: "max_credits"` and the cursor to resume. Sent alone, it walks as far as the budget goes (up to 50 pages). A value below the price of one page is a free 400 whose `error.details.page_credits` names that price. Credits a row join (`include=`) adds are known only once a page has run, so page 1 is checked against its own price. |
What does the Reddit Search Media API return?
Every response follows one unified schema. Here is a real, unmodified response body, so you can see the exact fields you get back before spending a credit.
Example response
{
"success": true,
"platform": "reddit",
"endpoint": "/v1/reddit/search/media",
"data": {
"items": [
{
"post": {
"id": "1ngfk3g",
"url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalKeyboards/comments/1ngfk3g/first_mechanical_keyboard_build/",
"content": {
"text": "Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted).",
"media_urls": null,
"thumbnail_url": "https://external-preview.redd.it/aC06lsnm94suYvrULw2iQltZ2_ovR5qIGUaeYU_BteI.jpeg?width=140&height=105&crop=140%3A105%2Csmart&auto=webp&s=8dfab828105abd379922fd79d0c89f3bf1992db9",
"duration_seconds": null
},
"author": {
"username": "user_ac34d4",
"display_name": "user_b158a1",
"avatar_url": "https://example.com/avatars/user_b6536c.png",
"verified": null
},
"engagement": {
"views": null,
"likes": 4,
"comments": 4,
"shares": null,
"saves": null
},
"flags": {
"nsfw": false,
"spoiler": null,
"pinned": null,
"deleted": false
},
"published_at": "2025-09-14T02:25:25.370Z",
"ext": {
"subreddit": "MechanicalKeyboards",
"title": "Sample comment text (redacted).",
"selftext": "[Link.](https://youtu.be/zBGOtffghuI)\n\n\n\n\\- M87 kit\n\n\\- Akko Dracula Linears\n\n\\- Aliexpress Marshmallow Keycaps",
"upvote_ratio": 1,
"flair": "Builds",
"content_language": "en",
"published_at_epoch": 1757816725
}
},
"computed": {
"engagement_rate": null,
"language": "es",
"content_category": "other",
"estimated_reach": null
}
},
{
"post": {
"id": "1thgcsn",
"url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/PHMechanicalKeyboard/comments/1thgcsn/first_custom_mechanical_keyboard_deep_and_thocky/",
"content": {
"text": "Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted). Sample comment text (redacted).",
"media_urls": "https://packaged-media.redd.it/fyj7uj0dz12h1/dl/m2-res_640p.mp4?m=DASHPlaylist.mpd&v=1&e=1790942400&s=970aee631ebf965e8cd4560b36a7c312ca728c68",
"thumbnail_url": "https://external-preview.redd.it/dm9obHhhMWR6MTJoMcVzbRvxSScrHpvLL-i-_QQ7KNVKs99YMYhdGobkPhqs.png?format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e88f686059330a0b9d358e9a47532cd86ff451a0",
"duration_seconds": 31
},
"author": {
"username": "user_52cea8",
"display_name": "user_c74a65",
"avatar_url": "https://example.com/avatars/user_497e68.png",
"verified": null
},
"engagement": {
"views": null,
"likes": 11,
"comments": 7,
"shares": null,
"saves": null
},
"flags": {
"nsfw": false,
"spoiler": null,
"pinned": null,
"deleted": false
},
"published_at": "2026-05-19T08:16:29.529Z",
"ext": {
"subreddit": "PHMechanicalKeyboard",
"title": "Sample comment text (redacted).",
"selftext": "Hello, everyone! I've sorta been in the keyboard rabbit hole this month and decided to build my first customized mx board, trying to find and build the deepest and thockiest boi. After weeks of planning and ordering stuff, here is what I have achieved. I had fun experimenting with different mods and configurations on this. I'm also very much satisfied with the final build.\n\nBoard: PMO Aurora80 - Cheese White\n\nGasket: Customized Gasket-structure (Top: Poron Sandwich Cotton Foam + IXPE Switch Padding+ PET Film Sheet) & (Bottom: Poron Bearing Base Foam + Poron Base Cotton + Protective PET Film Sheet)\n\nPlate: White POM Plate\n\nSwitches: Keygeek Y2 (Hand-lubed, and spring swapped to 22mm, 62g Double-Stage Springs)\n\nStabilizers: Stock Stabilizers (Hand-lubed and Re-tuned)\n\nKeycaps: Ceramic Keycaps\n\nMods: Force Break Mod (w/ O-Ring Dampeners)",
"upvote_ratio": 0.9230769230769232,
"flair": "Flexing My Board",
"content_language": "en",
"published_at_epoch": 1779178589
}
},
"computed": {
"engagement_rate": null,
"language": "en",
"content_category": "other",
"estimated_reach": null
}
}
],
"next_cursor": "MjQ=",
"total": null,
"dropped": 0
},
"credits_used": 1,
"request_id": "req_example000000",
"cached": false,
"pagination": {
"next_cursor": "sc.eyJ2IjoyLCJjIjoiTWpRPSIsImUiOiJyZWRkaXQvc2VhcmNoL21lZGlhIiwicCI6ImN1cnNvciJ9",
"has_more": true,
"page_size": 25
},
"credits_remaining": 9999,
"source": "captured",
"captured_at": "2026-10-02T07:33:23.757Z",
"redacted": true
}Live sample illustrating the unified response shape. Field values reflect the record you query.
How does the Reddit Search Media API work?
Send a GET request with your API key and get back clean, structured JSON in our unified schema. Supported computed fields are populated when the source provides the required inputs.
Method
GET
Response
JSON
How do you scrape social media data in seconds?
The fastest social media scraping API for developers. Scrape profiles, posts, comments, and analytics from 69 platforms covering 10B+ monthly active users.
One schema, every platform
Query 69 platforms with identical response structures. Write your integration once.
Computed fields, not just scraped
When an endpoint supports these metrics and the source provides the required inputs, the normalized record includes engagement_rate, estimated_reach, content_category, and language. Ready to use.
See your data before you code
Visual Data Explorer. Paste any URL, get rich result cards, sortable tables, CSV export.
import requests
response = requests.get(
'https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/tiktok/profile',
params={'handle': 'charlidamelio'},
headers={'x-api-key': 'sc_YOUR_API_KEY'}
)
data = response.json(){
"success": true,
"platform": "tiktok",
"data": {
"author": {
"username": "charlidamelio",
"followers": 152400000
},
"engagement": {
"likes": 12400000000,
"engagement_rate": 0.087
},
"metadata": {
"language": "en",
"content_category": "lifestyle"
}
}
}Have a question? We got answers
Find answers to frequently asked questions about SocialCrawl's API, pricing, and capabilities.
Contact usHow do I search Reddit for posts with images or video?
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Can I scope the search to one community?
Does the timeframe filter always apply?
How much does the Reddit Image Search API cost?
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