--- title: Run Actors url: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running.md parents: - [Apify documentation](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) - [Actors](https://docs.apify.com/actors.md) children: - [Actors in Store](https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md) - [Input and output](https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/input-and-output.md) - [Runs and builds](https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/runs-and-builds.md) - [Usage and resources](https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/usage-and-resources.md) - [Permissions](https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/permissions.md) - [Tasks](https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/tasks.md) - [Standby mode](https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/standby.md) - [Schedules](https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/schedules.md) - [Monitoring](https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/monitoring.md) previous: [Overview](https://docs.apify.com/actors.md) next: [Actors in Store](https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md) --- > ## Documentation index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Run Actors You can run Actors manually in Apify Console, with the Apify API, programmatically from your own applications, or from AI agents. To run your first Apify Actor, we recommend trying one of the existing Actors from [Apify Store](https://apify.com/store). For details on building your own, see [Actor development](https://docs.apify.com/actors/development.md). In all cases, you need an Apify account - [sign up for free](https://console.apify.com/sign-up) if you don't have one yet. ## Run Actors manually in Apify Console This tutorial covers a complete first run without any code, by choosing an Actor in [Apify Store](https://apify.com/store) and running it. ### 1. Choose an Actor To find an Actor in Apify Store: 1. Sign in to [Apify Console](https://console.apify.com). 2. Go to [Apify Store](https://console.apify.com/store). 3. Use the search bar or browse by categories. For this tutorial, let's choose [Website Content Crawler](https://console.apify.com/actors/aYG0l9s7dbB7j3gbS/information/version-0/readme). ### 2. Configure and run the Actor Once you select the Actor, you will be taken to the Actor's detail page. In the **Input** tab, you can customize the Actor's behavior. Website Content Crawler is pre-configured to run without extra input, so you don't need to change anything. To run the Actor, click **Start**. ![Website Content Crawler in Apify Console. Input tab is open and the Start button is highlighted](/assets/images/configure-and-run-actor-ad32be8b3ff4710df7ab3917cd0ca93d.svg) ### 3. Wait for the results The Actor might take a while to gather results and finish its run. While waiting, let's explore the remaining options: * Check the tabs where you can find more information about the Actor run. For example, its logs or storage. * Use the **API** button to view the related API endpoints. ![Website Content Crawler in Apify Console. Output tab is open and the API and Export buttons are highlighted](/assets/images/results-of-actor-run-ae3f6aeeef07bc0858d2758d8eac09df.svg) ### 4. Save the results The results of the Actor run appear in the **Output** tab. To save the data, click **Export**. You can choose from multiple formats. And that's it! You've run your first Actor! Now you can go back to the **Input** tab and try again with different settings, run other [Apify Actors](https://apify.com/store), or [build your own](https://docs.apify.com/actors/development.md). ## Run Actors with the Apify API To invoke Actors with the [Apify API](https://docs.apify.com/api.md), send an HTTP POST request to the [Run Actor](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2/actors-runs-post.md) endpoint. For example: ```text https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/compass~crawler-google-places/runs?token= ``` An Actor's input and its content type can be passed as a payload of the POST request, and additional options can be specified using URL query parameters. To learn more, see [Run an Actor and retrieve data via API](https://docs.apify.com/academy/api/run-actor-and-retrieve-data-via-api.md). ## Run Actors programmatically You can also invoke Actors programmatically from your own applications or from other Actors. To start an Actor from your own application, we recommend using Apify API client libraries for [JavaScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/reference/class/ActorClient#call) or [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/reference/class/ActorClient#call). **JavaScript** ```javascript import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client'; const client = new ApifyClient({ token: 'MY-API-TOKEN', }); // Start the Google Maps Scraper Actor and wait for it to finish. const actorRun = await client.actor('compass/crawler-google-places').call({ queries: 'apify', }); // Fetch scraped results from the Actor's dataset. const { items } = await client.dataset(actorRun.defaultDatasetId).listItems(); console.dir(items); ``` **Python** ```python from apify_client import ApifyClient apify_client = ApifyClient('MY-API-TOKEN') # Start the Google Maps Scraper Actor and wait for it to finish. actor_run = apify_client.actor('compass/crawler-google-places').call( run_input={ 'queries': 'apify' } ) # Fetch scraped results from the Actor's dataset. dataset_items = apify_client.dataset(actor_run['defaultDatasetId']).list_items().items print(dataset_items) ``` The newly started Actor runs under the account associated with the provided `token`, so all consumed resources are charged to this user account. Internally, the `call()` function invokes the [Run Actor](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2/actors-runs-post.md) API endpoint, waits for the Actor to finish, and reads its results from the default dataset using the [Get dataset items](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2/dataset-items-get.md) API endpoint. ## Run Actors from AI agents AI agents can discover and run Actors on their own. Connect your agent to the platform through the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md), call the [Apify API](https://docs.apify.com/api.md) directly, or add [Apify Agent Skills](https://docs.apify.com/get-started/agent-onboarding.md#agent-skills) for pre-built workflows. For a complete guide, see [Apify for AI agents](https://docs.apify.com/get-started/agent-onboarding.md).