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How to scrape website data without coding using Octoparse
Set up a free Octoparse task that types a list of zip codes into a search page, extracts every result, and exports the data to Excel, all without writing code.
By Nur Islam- 7:28 video
- 10 steps
- 41.3K views
Jump to a step (10)
When you need names, companies, phone numbers and emails from a directory website, copying each listing by hand takes hours, and repeating it for many searches takes longer. The page source is messy, so simple copy and paste does not give clean columns.
Octoparse loads the page in its built-in browser and lets you build a scraping workflow by clicking. In the video, the task enters each zip code from a list into a search box, clicks Search, selects all similar listing blocks on the results page, and captures the details and the distance.
The task runs on your own computer on the free plan, then exports the results to an Excel file you can clean up with formulas.
What you need
- A Windows or Mac computer with the Octoparse app installed
- A free Octoparse account
- The URL of the page you want to scrape and any search values (the video uses zip codes)
- Excel to open and clean the export
Step by step
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01
Install Octoparse and sign in
Download Octoparse from its website, install it and sign in (the video uses a Google account). The free plan covers everything in this tutorial.
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02
Create a custom task
Select New > Custom Task, paste the URL of the page you want to scrape and continue. Octoparse loads the page in its built-in browser.
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03
Loop through your search values
Click the search box on the page (the zip code field) and choose Enter text in loop. Enter your zip codes, one per line, and select Confirm. A loop appears in the workflow on the right.
Start with a few values to test. You can add the rest later.
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04
Click the search button
Click the page's Search button and choose Click button. Wait for the results page to load in the Octoparse browser.
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05
Select all the listings
Hover over a result block until it highlights, click it, and choose Select all similar elements. Octoparse selects every similar listing on the page and shows a preview of the output.
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06
Extract the HTML instead of plain text
Choose to extract the text first. The text output runs the name, company, phone and email together with no separator, so you cannot split it later.
Instead, open the field's More options and choose Inner HTML. The HTML keeps the tags between each value, so you can separate the name, company and other details in Excel.
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07
Add the distance field
Click the distance value on a listing and choose to extract its text. It is a short value, so text is enough. You can remove the word "distance" later.
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08
Add more search values and save
Select the loop in the workflow, choose Edit, and paste your full list of zip codes. Select Confirm and Apply, then save the task. It now appears in your dashboard.
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09
Run the task on your computer
Select Run and choose Standard Mode to run on your own device. Cloud runs need a premium plan.
Select Show browser if you want to watch each step. You can minimize the window and keep working while it goes through every zip code.
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10
Export to Excel and clean the data
When the run completes, choose to export the data. Octoparse offers to remove duplicates, which you can do here or later in Excel. Export as an Excel file and open it.
Use Excel formulas (or an AI formula tool) to split the HTML column into name, company, phone and email columns.
Tips and common problems
- Extract inner HTML rather than text when a block holds several values with no separator. The tags let you split the values later.
- Test the loop with a few values first, then edit the loop to add the full list.
- The free plan runs tasks on your computer in Standard Mode. Running in the cloud requires a premium plan.
- Remove duplicates during export if the same listing appears in several searches.
Questions
Can I scrape a website without coding?
Yes. Octoparse lets you build a scraper by clicking elements on the page in its built-in browser, including loops for search values and selecting all similar items.
Is Octoparse free?
It has a free plan that runs scraping tasks on your own computer. Cloud runs and some other features need a premium plan.
How do I export scraped data to Excel?
When a run completes, choose Export, optionally remove duplicates, and select Excel as the format. Octoparse saves an Excel file you can open and clean up.
