Migration guide
From an Apify Twitter scraper to one request.
An Apify actor run starts a container, scrapes, and writes a dataset you read afterwards. Here the same search is a single HTTP request that returns tweets as JSON in the response, 20 at a time, for $0.0006 a call.
Below: each Tweet Scraper V2 input field and what replaces it, the same job in cURL and Python, and what it costs.
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Every input field, mapped.
Most fields of the actor are X search operators under another name, so they go straight into the query of the advanced search endpoint. Each operator was tested against the live API.
| Apify input | cheapxapi | Example | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
searchTerms | query=bitcoin | ["bitcoin"] | One request per term, or join terms with OR. |
sort | queryType=Latest / Top | "Latest" / "Top" | “Latest + Top” is two requests. |
twitterHandles | /twitter/user/last_tweets?userName=NASA | ["NASA"] | Or from:NASA in a search. |
author | from:NASA | "NASA" | |
inReplyTo | to:NASA | "NASA" | |
mentioning | @NASA | "NASA" | |
conversationIds | conversation_id:2118841460791644434 | ["2118841460791644434"] | Or /twitter/tweet/replies?tweetId=… |
start / end | since:2026-10-01 until:2026-11-01 | "2026-10-01" / "2026-11-01" | until: is exclusive. |
tweetLanguage | lang:es | "es" | |
minimumRetweets | min_retweets:50 | 50 | |
minimumFavorites | min_faves:1000 | 1000 | |
minimumReplies | min_replies:100 | 100 | |
onlyImage / onlyVideo | filter:images / filter:videos | true | |
onlyQuote | filter:quote | true | |
onlyVerifiedUsers / onlyTwitterBlue | filter:verified / filter:blue_verified | true | |
startUrls (tweet URL) | /twitter/tweets?tweet_ids=2118841460791644434 | [".../status/2118841460791644434"] | Comma-separate several IDs. |
maxItems | Stop paging yourself | 1000 | 20 tweets a page; follow next_cursor. |
geocode / geotaggedNear / withinRadius | No equivalent | "51.5,-0.12,10km" | Geo operators returned no tweets in our test. |
customMapFunction, connectors | Your own code | The response is plain JSON; map it after the request. |
Field names from the actor’s published input schema, November 2026. More operators: Twitter search API guide.
The same job, without the run.
This run input becomes one query string. The Python version takes the input object as it is, builds the query and pages through results until it reaches maxItems.
{
"searchTerms": ["bitcoin"],
"tweetLanguage": "es",
"minimumRetweets": 50,
"sort": "Latest",
"maxItems": 200
}curl -G "https://api.cheapxapi.com/twitter/tweet/advanced_search" \
-H "x-api-key: $CHEAPXAPI_KEY" \
--data-urlencode "query=bitcoin lang:es min_retweets:50" \
--data-urlencode "queryType=Latest"Set your key as CHEAPXAPI_KEY. Fields of each tweet: id, url, text, createdAt, likeCount, retweetCount, author.userName and more.
What 1,000 tweets cost.
The actor bills per tweet in the dataset. cheapxapi bills per request, and a search request holds up to 20 tweets.
- Apify Tweet Scraper V2
- $0.40
- $0.0004 per tweet, Apify Store listing
- cheapxapi
- $0.03
- 50 requests at $0.0006, full pages
Questions.
Apify is a trademark of its owner. cheapxapi is not affiliated with Apify.
How do I move from the Apify Tweet Scraper to an API?
Translate the run input into one search query: searchTerms become the query text, and the filter fields become X search operators such as from:, lang:, since: and min_faves:. Send it to the advanced search endpoint with your API key and follow next_cursor until you have as many tweets as maxItems asked for. The table on this page maps each field.
Do I still have to wait for a run to finish?
No. There is no run, container or dataset: each request returns up to 20 tweets in its response, with a cursor for the next page. Requests can time out on slow searches, so keep a timeout of about a minute and retry.
What does it cost compared with the Apify actor?
At list price, 100,000 tweets from search cost $40.00 with Apify Tweet Scraper V2 ($0.40 per 1,000 results on its Store listing) and $3.00 on cheapxapi at $0.0006 per call of up to 20 tweets. Pages can hold fewer tweets when X leaves posts out, which raises the cost per tweet.
Is there anything the actor does that cheapxapi does not?
Geo filters (geocode, near, within) returned no tweets when we tested them, so treat them as unsupported. Scheduling, custom map functions and connectors to other apps are Apify platform features: run your own cron job and transform the JSON yourself.