Core Concepts
Extralt organizes extraction around five entities. Understanding how they relate is key to using the platform effectively.
Robot
A robot is an AI-generated crawler compiled to Rust, built for a specific host and country combination. Robots understand a site's structure: how to navigate pages, find products, and extract structured product data.
Getting a robot starts with a robot build. You provide a URL and country. If Extralt already has a production crawler for that site, you get instant access. Otherwise, the AI analyzes the site, generates extraction logic, and compiles it in a few minutes. Either way, a robot appears in your robot list.
- One robot per host + country combination
- Robots are reusable across multiple runs
- Extralt monitors extraction quality and rebuilds crawlers automatically when sites change
See Robots for build lifecycle and management.
Schedule
A schedule automates recurring extractions. You link a schedule to a robot with a cadence (e.g. every hour, every day, every week), and Extralt automatically creates runs on that schedule.
- Schedules can be paused and resumed at any time
- If your credits run out, active schedules auto-pause until credits are available
- Each run created by a schedule costs credits the same way as a manual run
See Schedules for creation and management.
Run
A run is an extraction job. You select a robot, provide start URLs (optional), and set a budget (maximum Captures to produce, optional). The robot crawls the site and produces captures from product pages.
Run lifecycle:
- Pending -> queued for execution
- Starting -> run is starting
- Running -> actively crawling and extracting
- Completed -> finished successfully
- Failed -> encountered an unrecoverable error
- Stopped -> manually stopped by the user
Each successful product-page Capture in a run costs 2 credits. Category, search, collection, and other discovery pages do not consume credits.
See Running Extractions for run creation and monitoring.
Import
An import is an Extract job that turns uploaded catalog data into captures. Runs crawl ecommerce pages. Imports ingest product data you already have.
Use imports when you want your own catalog inside the same pipeline as open-web observations. A valid import produces captures that can be enriched, extended, and explored like captures from a run.
Import lifecycle:
- Pending -> queued for processing
- Running -> validating and converting the source file
- Completed -> finished successfully
- Validation failed -> the source file did not contain enough clean product data
- Failed -> encountered an unrecoverable error
See Imports for dashboard upload and validation behavior.
Capture
A capture is a single structured product data record from a run or import. You can browse and export captures in the dashboard, or fetch them programmatically via the API.
{
"id": "019d3ec3-cf96-7520-bc31-1474206e06ed",
"url": "https://www.nike.com/t/dna-mens-dri-fit-basketball-shorts-hVGm16/HV1878-350",
"extracted_at": 1774874512106,
"product_id": "HV1878-350",
"handle": "dna-mens-dri-fit-basketball-shorts-hVGm16",
"group_id": "hVGm16",
"title": "Nike DNA",
"subtitle": "Men's Dri-FIT Basketball Shorts",
"brand": "Nike",
"breadcrumbs": "Men > Basketball > Shorts",
"description": "Built for the court, ready for anywhere. These lightweight-yet-durable basketball shorts help keep you cool with our sweat-wicking Dri-FIT technology.",
"release_date": "2025-10-02T07:00:00.000Z",
"gender": "MEN",
"age_group": "Adult",
"ratings_average": null,
"ratings_count": 0,
"ratings_scale": 5,
"min_price": 41.97,
"max_price": 41.97,
"currency": "USD",
"available": true,
"sku_count": 7,
"image_url": "https://static.nike.com/a/images/t_default/326dc2d4-a16d-4433-93d7-8d6f8313d4d0/M+NK+DF+DNA+8IN+SHORT+AOP.png",
"categories": [
"Men",
"Basketball",
"Shorts"
],
"tags": [
"Basketball",
"Dri-FIT",
"Shorts",
"Men"
],
"images": [
{
"url": "https://static.nike.com/a/images/t_default/326dc2d4-a16d-4433-93d7-8d6f8313d4d0/M+NK+DF+DNA+8IN+SHORT+AOP.png",
"position": 1,
"sku_ids": [
"HV1878-350"
]
},
{
"url": "https://static.nike.com/a/images/t_default/e2c6c1aa-6d12-46b9-9385-d76bd4fa30e0/M+NK+DF+DNA+8IN+SHORT+AOP.png",
"position": 3,
"sku_ids": [
"HV1878-350"
]
},
{
"url": "https://static.nike.com/a/images/t_default/38d8c21c-c8dd-466b-949c-92fdfcd0320b/M+NK+DF+DNA+8IN+SHORT+AOP.png",
"position": 4,
"sku_ids": [
"HV1878-350"
]
},
{
"url": "https://static.nike.com/a/images/t_default/79d907aa-1763-4af7-a1bf-99f5fc30acc4/M+NK+DF+DNA+8IN+SHORT+AOP.png",
"position": 5,
"sku_ids": [
"HV1878-350"
]
},
{
"url": "https://static.nike.com/a/images/t_default/1cd3d1a3-fea9-4295-bf8a-f3d6d59f2d47/M+NK+DF+DNA+8IN+SHORT+AOP.png",
"position": 6,
"sku_ids": [
"HV1878-350"
]
},
{
"url": "https://static.nike.com/a/images/t_default/3cf19355-4f26-4faf-b658-581297b87e9c/M+NK+DF+DNA+8IN+SHORT+AOP.png",
"position": 7,
"sku_ids": [
"HV1878-350"
]
}
],
"videos": null,
"properties_dict": {
"Style": "HV1878-350",
"Shown": "Chlorophyll/Black"
},
"properties_list": [
"Recycled Materials",
"Designed for Basketball",
"Unlined",
"Lightweight, sweat-wicking fabric with mesh and smooth interior",
"Side pockets and zippered utility pocket large enough for a phone",
"Elastic waistband with drawcord",
"Body: 100% polyester. Pocket bags: 100% polyester.",
"Machine wash",
"Imported",
"Shown: Chlorophyll/Black",
"Style: HV1878-350"
],
"options": {
"opt1": {
"name": "Color",
"values": [
"Chlorophyll/Black"
]
},
"opt2": {
"name": "Size",
"values": [
"S",
"M",
"L",
"XL",
"2XL",
"3XL",
"4XL"
]
},
"opt3": null
},
"skus": [
{
"id": "90c9f2c2-d984-5cc2-a2a0-89deac668eb3",
"title": null,
"identifiers": {
"gtin": "00198482162061",
"mpn": "HV1878-350"
},
"opt1": "Chlorophyll/Black",
"opt2": "S",
"opt3": null,
"offers": [
{
"price": {
"amount": 41.97,
"full_amount": 60,
"currency": "USD"
},
"availability": {
"in_stock": true,
"quantity": "In stock"
},
"condition": "new",
"seller": "Nike",
"seller_type": "1p"
}
]
},
{
"id": "032621f4-8f17-5716-932d-a93b0d1dfc4a",
"title": null,
"identifiers": {
"gtin": "00198481839179",
"mpn": "HV1878-350"
},
"opt1": "Chlorophyll/Black",
"opt2": "M",
"opt3": null,
"offers": [
{
"price": {
"amount": 41.97,
"full_amount": 60,
"currency": "USD"
},
"availability": {
"in_stock": true,
"quantity": "In stock"
},
"condition": "new",
"seller": "Nike",
"seller_type": "1p"
}
]
},
{
"id": "a73069dc-17b2-5dc7-b5cc-e78c9674d8cd",
"title": null,
"identifiers": {
"gtin": "00198481982455",
"mpn": "HV1878-350"
},
"opt1": "Chlorophyll/Black",
"opt2": "L",
"opt3": null,
"offers": [
{
"price": {
"amount": 41.97,
"full_amount": 60,
"currency": "USD"
},
"availability": {
"in_stock": true,
"quantity": "In stock"
},
"condition": "new",
"seller": "Nike",
"seller_type": "1p"
}
]
},
{
"id": "417e97e7-c31c-5ac0-999c-5b6779ba831d",
"title": null,
"identifiers": {
"gtin": "00198482264932",
"mpn": "HV1878-350"
},
"opt1": "Chlorophyll/Black",
"opt2": "XL",
"opt3": null,
"offers": [
{
"price": {
"amount": 41.97,
"full_amount": 60,
"currency": "USD"
},
"availability": {
"in_stock": true,
"quantity": "In stock"
},
"condition": "new",
"seller": "Nike",
"seller_type": "1p"
}
]
},
{
"id": "42484108-e343-520f-9ed1-1ca72a301174",
"title": null,
"identifiers": {
"gtin": "00198481731473",
"mpn": "HV1878-350"
},
"opt1": "Chlorophyll/Black",
"opt2": "2XL",
"opt3": null,
"offers": [
{
"price": {
"amount": 41.97,
"full_amount": 60,
"currency": "USD"
},
"availability": {
"in_stock": true,
"quantity": "Limited stock available"
},
"condition": "new",
"seller": "Nike",
"seller_type": "1p"
}
]
},
{
"id": "179d2b07-b59e-5a7d-912f-cebf81b1d13f",
"title": null,
"identifiers": {
"mpn": "HV1878-350",
"gtin": "00198482258597"
},
"opt1": "Chlorophyll/Black",
"opt2": "3XL",
"opt3": null,
"offers": [
{
"price": {
"amount": 41.97,
"full_amount": 60,
"currency": "USD"
},
"availability": {
"in_stock": false,
"quantity": "Out of stock"
},
"condition": "new",
"seller": "Nike",
"seller_type": "1p"
}
]
},
{
"id": "fad73aae-e6b1-58ac-83a3-f17125c0b3b2",
"title": null,
"identifiers": {
"gtin": "00198482211318",
"mpn": "HV1878-350"
},
"opt1": "Chlorophyll/Black",
"opt2": "4XL",
"opt3": null,
"offers": [
{
"price": {
"amount": 41.97,
"full_amount": 60,
"currency": "USD"
},
"availability": {
"in_stock": false,
"quantity": "Out of stock"
},
"condition": "new",
"seller": "Nike",
"seller_type": "1p"
}
]
}
],
"recommended_products": [
"https://www.nike.com/t/mens-dri-fit-basketball-t-shirt-WPpZO1IN/HV1772-010",
"https://www.nike.com/t/victory-sunglasses-PP0tbC/DV2138-010",
"https://www.nike.com/t/brasilia-95-training-backpack-medium-24l-zz5tL7/DH7709-068",
"https://www.nike.com/t/ja-2-basketball-shoes-mkEicYoS/HQ8513-001",
"https://www.nike.com/t/mens-basketball-t-shirt-MRuIhbgt/IO9764-133",
"https://www.nike.com/t/dri-fit-club-structured-swoosh-cap-kxvJ3j/FB5625-222",
"https://www.nike.com/t/22oz-big-mouth-water-bottle-2VjPJW/N0000042-968",
"https://www.nike.com/t/lebron-witness-9-basketball-shoes-h9SkAFPT/II7520-100",
"https://www.nike.com/t/primary-mens-dri-fit-short-sleeve-versatile-top-XK77j1/DV9831-097",
"https://www.nike.com/t/utility-speed-backpack-27l-QnNg7P/FN4106-010",
"https://www.nike.com/t/everyday-playground-8-panel-basketball-gcWDgD/N1003082-816",
"https://www.nike.com/t/precision-7-easyon-mens-basketball-shoes-779glM/FN0324-101"
]
}See Working with Captures for the full schema reference.
How they relate
| Step | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1. You provide | A URL and country |
| 2. Robot Build | Instant access for covered sites, or AI builds a new crawler in minutes |
| 3. Robot | A reusable crawler ready to extract data |
| 4. Schedule (optional) | Automate recurring extractions on a cadence |
| 5. Run | The robot crawls start URLs and extracts products (manual or via schedule) |
| 6. Import (optional) | Upload catalog data you already have |
| 7. Captures | Structured data records produced by runs or imports |
Quickstart
Extract your first ecommerce product data with Extralt in minutes by creating a robot, running product URLs, and inspecting structured captures.
Account Setup
Create an Extralt account, set up your organization, choose a credit plan, and generate an org-scoped API key for dashboard and API workflows.