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cnvction/temu-ali-price-scout

v0.1.0

Budget-capped read-only product search and price comparison for Temu and AliExpress.

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Temu + AliExpress Price Scout

A read-only MCP plugin kit for ChatGPT Pro. It searches current public product listings through two Apify marketplace Actors, normalizes results, and reports item-plus-shipping prices only when a destination-matched shipping quote is actually present.

This project is not yet connected to your ChatGPT or Apify account. The source is prepared, but live searches require your own Apify token and a secure endpoint/tunnel. No marketplace searches or paid Actor runs were performed while building this package.

What it does

  • estimate_search_cost estimates published per-result Actor charges without running a scraper.
  • search_prices searches up to three related phrases on AliExpress and, for US searches, Temu.
  • Every live search requires confirmed_max_spend_usd; the server validates it against a configured ceiling and sends Apify per-run total-charge and result caps.
  • AliExpress is searched for the requested two-letter destination country, with product details, variants, shipping options, and coupons enabled.
  • Temu is currently configured for the US storefront only. Its chosen keyword-search Actor supplies listed prices but does not return a verified shipping quote, tax, selected variant, or coupon-adjusted checkout total.
  • Product titles and marketplace pages are treated as untrusted data. The server never buys anything or changes marketplace accounts.

Coverage, reliability, and costs

The configured Actors are omkar-cloud/aliexpress-scraper and crw/temu-products-scraper. Their Apify Store pages currently show estimated result charges of about $0.005 per AliExpress result and $0.01 per Temu result. Prices may change. Apify platform usage, retries, proxies, and account billing can add costs. The server applies maxTotalChargeUsd and maxItems per run; a run can return fewer items if it reaches a cap.

The selected AliExpress Actor exposes destination-specific SKU/shipping data, but it was very new at the time checked (four total users and no monthly active users). It has not been independently runtime-tested. A more-used alternative exists, but its public schema is listing-only and lacks the destination-specific shipping/detail fields needed by this implementation. Treat the AliExpress data connector as an early-stage provider choice that should be tested with a small approved budget before relying on it.

The default maximum approved search spend is $1.00 for the whole search request. This is an upper ceiling, not consent to spend: the user must explicitly approve a concrete maximum for each search in ChatGPT. If the destination is not US, this build skips Temu rather than pretending to compare local Temu prices.

“Best” means the lowest observed comparable offer in the returned sample. It does not guarantee every listing or checkout-specific deal. Match the same product model, quantity, size, color, plug type, and other important specifications. The reported price_plus_shipping excludes taxes, coupons, and any checkout-only discounts. Final checkout prices can differ.

Requirements

  • Node.js 22 or newer.
  • An Apify account and a private Apify API token. A free Apify plan is available; check current terms and usage before running Actors.
  • ChatGPT Pro on the web with Developer Mode enabled and access to custom MCP apps/connectors.
  • A private MCP tunnel or another secure HTTPS deployment. Do not expose an unauthenticated server publicly: anyone who can call it could consume your Apify allowance. ChatGPT Pro custom MCP access is read/fetch only, so this server exposes no marketplace write, purchase, or account-management tools.

Local setup

cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env locally and set APIFY_API_TOKEN. Never paste the token into ChatGPT.
npm install
npm test
npm start

The HTTP server binds to 127.0.0.1:8787 by default. Its MCP endpoint is /mcp; health check is /health. Keep it local and use OpenAI's Secure MCP Tunnel (or a private trusted tunnel) to make it available to ChatGPT. ChatGPT does not connect directly to localhost. If you deploy to a public HTTPS host, place it behind an OAuth 2.1-compatible authentication layer before connecting; the development server is not intended for public exposure.

In ChatGPT web, enable Developer Mode under Settings → Apps / Connected apps (wording can vary during rollout), then create an MCP app using the secure endpoint and select the available read/fetch tools. Pro users currently have read/fetch MCP access in Developer Mode; full MCP write/modify support is limited to Business/Enterprise/Edu.

The mcp.json file is a portable manifest template. Replace its placeholder URL with your secure endpoint before using it in a plugin marketplace or another compatible host.

Safe search flow

  1. Ask the user for must-have product specifications and destination country when missing.
  2. Run estimate_search_cost and show the per-result estimate plus the warning that Apify/platform usage may add costs.
  3. Obtain explicit user approval of a maximum USD spend for that one search.
  4. Only then call search_prices with the same cap. The server rejects missing, too-low, or over-limit caps before Actor execution.
  5. Report result timestamps, links, and whether the amount includes shipping. Do not state “absolute cheapest” where data is incomplete.

MAX_SEARCH_SPEND_USD in .env is an upper ceiling, not consent to spend. Lower it if desired. The search tool requires the user-approved amount on every search.

Development and tests

npm run check
npm test

Tests use local fixtures and do not contact Apify or scrape marketplace sites. Live execution is intentionally not tested without the user's token and explicit spending authorization.

References