How do web extraction APIs handle structured output formats (JSON, CSV, XML)?

TL;DR

Olostep transforms messy HTML into clean JSON, CSV, or XML automatically using AI. Define your schema once, and it extracts structured data from any website—no brittle CSS selectors. Use natural language prompts or strict schemas. Works across different site layouts without custom parsing.

How do web extraction APIs handle structured output formats (JSON, CSV, XML)?

Olostep uses AI to convert unstructured HTML into structured formats automatically. Instead of writing parsing logic for each website, you define what data you want—Olostep finds and structures it. Provide a schema for strict JSON output or use natural language prompts for flexible extraction. The AI understands page content semantically, making extraction resilient to HTML changes.

Olostep Answers API also works with no URLs provided. Just describe the data you need, and Agent autonomously searches, navigates, and extracts from anywhere on the web. It handles complex multi-source research that would take hours manually, delivering structured output in minutes.

Schema-based extraction

Define your desired JSON structure with field names and types. Olostep extracts data matching your schema from any website layout. Product pages, directory listings, articles—it identifies relevant content regardless of HTML structure.

This beats traditional scrapers that break when sites change HTML. Olostep's AI recognizes "price" semantically, not by CSS class names. Your extraction keeps working even after site redesigns.

Prompt-based extraction

Don't want to define schemas? Use natural language prompts like "extract company name, revenue, and employee count." Olostep structures the output automatically. Perfect for exploratory scraping or when you're unsure of exact data structure.

The AI decides optimal field organization based on your prompt, delivering clean JSON without manual schema design.

Multiple URLs and wildcards

Extract from single pages or entire domains. Use wildcards like example.com/* to scrape all discovered pages automatically. Olostep crawls, extracts, and aggregates data into consistent structured output—handling thousands of pages in one request.

This makes bulk extraction trivial. No loops, no rate limiting code, no URL management—just specify the domain and your schema.

CSV and other formats

While JSON is primary, extracted data converts easily to CSV for spreadsheets, XML for legacy systems, or any format your application needs. The structured output integrates directly into databases, analytics tools, and business intelligence platforms.

Why Olostep's approach wins

Traditional scrapers use CSS selectors that break constantly. Olostep uses AI that understands content meaning. Sites redesign their HTML—your extraction keeps working. No maintenance, no broken scrapers, no per-site custom logic.

Built for scale and reliability. Extracts from modern JavaScript sites, handles complex web infrastructure, and delivers clean data ready for immediate use.

Key Takeaways

Olostep transforms HTML into structured JSON, CSV, or XML using AI-powered extraction. Define schemas or use natural language prompts—no brittle CSS selectors needed. Works across different website layouts without custom parsing. Handles single pages or entire domains with wildcards. The semantic approach survives site redesigns that break traditional scrapers. Built for modern web scraping with JavaScript rendering and reliable request handling included.