Getting Started with FineData API

Welcome to FineData. This guide will walk you through setting up your account and making your first web scraping request in under 5 minutes.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure you have:

• A FineData account (sign up free)
• Python 3.8+ or Node.js 18+
• Your API key from the dashboard

Step 1: Get Your API Key

After creating your account, navigate to the API Keys section in your dashboard. Click Create New Key and give it a descriptive name like “Development”.

Keep your API key secure. Never commit it to version control or share it publicly.

Step 2: Install the SDK

Python

pip install finedata

Node.js

npm install finedata

Step 3: Make Your First Request

Here’s a minimal example that scrapes a webpage and returns structured data:

Python

from finedata import FineData

client = FineData(api_key="your-api-key")

result = client.scrape(
    url="https://example.com",
    options={
        "render_js": True,
        "wait_for": "networkidle"
    }
)

print(result.content)      # Page HTML content
print(result.status_code)  # HTTP status
print(result.metadata)     # Extracted metadata

Node.js

import { FineData } from 'finedata';

const client = new FineData({ apiKey: 'your-api-key' });

const result = await client.scrape({
  url: 'https://example.com',
  options: {
    renderJs: true,
    waitFor: 'networkidle',
  },
});

console.log(result.content);
console.log(result.statusCode);
console.log(result.metadata);

Step 4: Handle Anti-Bot Protection

FineData automatically handles common anti-bot measures. For sites with stronger protection, enable advanced bypass:

result = client.scrape(
    url="https://protected-site.com",
    options={
        "render_js": True,
        "bypass_level": "advanced",
        "tls_profile": "chrome124",
        "residential_proxy": True
    }
)

Step 5: Parse Structured Data

Extract specific data points using CSS selectors:

result = client.scrape(
    url="https://example.com/products",
    extract={
        "title": "h1.product-title",
        "price": ".price-current",
        "description": ".product-description p",
        "images": ["img.product-image @src"]
    }
)

for item in result.extracted:
    print(f"{item['title']}: {item['price']}")

Understanding Token Usage

Each request consumes tokens based on the features used:

Feature	Token Cost
Base request	1 token
JavaScript rendering	+5 tokens
Anti-bot bypass	+2 tokens
Residential proxy	+3 tokens
Captcha solving	+10 tokens

Monitor your usage in the dashboard or via the API:

usage = client.get_usage()
print(f"Tokens used: {usage.tokens_used}/{usage.tokens_limit}")

What’s Next?

Now that you’ve made your first request, explore these resources:

• API Reference — Complete endpoint documentation
• Proxy Configuration — TLS profiles and proxy options
• Batch Scraping — Process multiple URLs efficiently
• Webhooks — Async scraping with callbacks

Need help? Reach out to our support team or join the community on Discord.