Is scraping Zillow legal?

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Disclaimer
Introduction
What is scraping?
Is scraping legal?
Is Zillow Data Exporter a scraping tool?
How to export data from Zillow safely?
My preferred list of quality scraping services
Conclusion

Disclaimer

This is not legal advice. I am not a lawyer.

This article is for informational purposes only. You should consult with a lawyer before using any of the information in this article. Zillow Data Exporter and myself, the author of this article are not responsible for any legal issues that may arise from using the information in this article.

Introduction

This is a short guide on the legality of scraping Zillow. It is not a comprehensive guide on the entire process of scraping Zillow.

Scraping is an art and a science at the same time. It is a skill that takes time to master. It is not a simple process. Most of the time, scraping is done by hand with the help of a tool to retrieve the raw data.

The raw data is then processed and cleaned to get the desired data. The process by which you extract the desired data from Zillow is called scraping. The tool that you use to extract the data is called a scraping tool.

You can process the raw data any way you see fit. You can even outsource it if you don't have the time or the skills to do it yourself.

What is scraping?

Scraping is the process of extracting data from a website. It is a process that is done by hand or with the help of a tool. One tool that I personally use is ScrapingBee.

I use ScrapingBee for my own needs because the interface makes it easy to retrieve the raw HTML from a webpage. It also has a generous trial period that allows you to test the tool before you buy it.

You can then write scripts in any languages you like to extract the data you need.

This is usually what takes the longest time. Once the data has been cleaned, it is ready to be presented to your users or to be used in your own applications.

NOTE: I am not affiliated with ScrapingBee and don't get paid any commission if you sign up to their services. I just like their product.

Is scraping legal?

In short Yes and No. It depends on the website you are scraping and the country you are in. If you search for the legality of scraping on Google, you will find a lot of conflicting information.

For example, in the United States, it is legal to scrape a website if you are not using the data for commercial purposes. In the United Kingdom, it is legal to scrape a website if you are not using the data for commercial purposes and you are not using it to harm the website.

In the interest of not repeating the same information that has already been published on many other websites and blogs, I will not go into the details of the legality of scraping in each country.

However if you wish to learn more about the legality of scraping in your country, I recommend you read the following articles:

The list of articles above is by no means exhaustive. There are many more articles on the subject.

Is Zillow Data Exporter a scraping tool?

Yes, Zillow Data Exporter is a scraping tool.

It is a tool that is used to extract data from Zillow.

It is probably the least harmful tool that can be used to extract data from Zillow. You need to manually navigate to the webpage and click on the button to export the data.

It is not a tool that can be used to extract data from Zillow automatically. If it was, then some safeguards would have been put in place to prevent it.

That being said, if you navigate between the web pages too fast, Zillow will block you from accessing the website. This is to prevent you from extracting data from Zillow at scale. It is also done so that the website can still function properly when there is a lot of traffic.

How to export data from Zillow safely?

To export data safely from Zillow, you need to use a scraping tool that is not harmful to the website. The best tool in my opinion is Zillow Data Exporter.

I am the creator of Zillow Data Exporter and I am obviously biased, but I think it is the best tool for the job.

When using Zillow Data Exporter, you don't have to worry about cleaning the data. It already comes in a clean format. You can even choose to export the data in multiple formats such as CSV and XLSX.

The extension is updated frequently to keep up with the changes made to Zillow. I take great pride in my work and I am always looking for ways to improve Zillow Data Exporter.

Feel free to give it a try and let me know what you think.

My preferred list of quality scraping services

I have used and tested many scraping services and I have compiled a list of the ones that I think are the best:

NOTE: Once again, I am not affiliated with any of the services listed above and don't get paid any commission if you sign up to their services. I just like their products.

I make no promises outright that these services will work for you. I am just sharing my experience with them.

Zillow Data Explorer and myself, are not responsible for any damages that may occur if you use these services.

Conclusion

Extracting data from Zillow is not illegal. However, it is not legal to extract data from Zillow at scale. If you are extracting data from Zillow for commercial purposes, you should consult with a lawyer before doing so.

If you are extracting data from Zillow for personal use, then you should be ok as long as you do not sell this data afterwards.

Using a dedicated scraping service such as those mentioned in this article will give you the most flexibility but it will come at the cost of figuring out how to extract the data yourself from the raw HTML files.

If you are not comfortable with writing scripts to extract the data from the raw HTML, this is where Zillow Data Exporter comes in handy.

Zillow Data Exporter already knows how to extract the data from the raw html. All you need to do is to navigate to the webpage and click on the button to export the data.