In-Depth Guide to the Walmart API

Walmart, with its extensive network of stores and strong online, has transformed retail by delivering a comprehensive shopping experience to millions. Walmart provides its partners and developers detailed a suite of robust web APIs. These APIs provide accesss to operations for sellers, suppliers, advertisers, and developers and more within Walmart's digital ecosystem.

This guide delves into the various Walmart API offerings, exploring their functionalities, potential uses and how they can be leveraged to optimize business processes.

Legal Disclaimer and Precautions

This tutorial covers popular web scraping techniques for education. Interacting with public servers requires diligence and respect and here's a good summary of what not to do:

• Do not scrape at rates that could damage the website.
• Do not scrape data that's not available publicly.
• Do not store PII of EU citizens who are protected by GDPR.
• Do not repurpose the entire public datasets which can be illegal in some countries.

Scrapfly does not offer legal advice but these are good general rules to follow in web scraping
and for more you should consult a lawyer.

What is Walmart API?

Walmart's APIs are a collection of web tools that enable external applications to interact seamlessly with Walmart's systems. They allow for programmatic access to various functionalities, including item management, order processing, inventory control, and advertising. By integrating with these APIs, businesses can automate workflows, maintain real-time data synchronization, and enhance operational efficiency.

What Walmart APIs Are Available?

Walmart's API ecosystem is diverse, covering to different aspects of its operations. These APIs are designed to support various stakeholders, including third-party sellers, first-party suppliers, advertisers, and logistics partners.

Below is an in-depth overview of the primary APIs available and how they contribute to Walmart's digital ecosystem:

1. Partner APIs

Partner APIs enable businesses collaborating with Walmart to integrate and manage products and services. Tailored for third-party sellers and suppliers, these APIs support dynamic product listings, pricing optimization, streamlined order processing, and effective inventory management.

Marketplace API

The Marketplace API empowers third-party sellers to manage their products and operations on Walmart.com. This versatile API helps streamline workflows, optimize listings, and maintain competitiveness in a dynamic e-commerce space. Key features include:

• Item Management: Add, update, or remove products efficiently, with bulk uploads and detailed updates to keep the catalog current.
• Order Management: Automate order processes, including confirmation, shipping, cancellations, and returns, for faster, error-free service.
• Price Management: Set and adjust prices, including promotions, with dynamic pricing strategies based on inventory and competition.
• Inventory Management: Update stock levels in real-time to reflect availability, prevent stockouts, and aid restocking plans.
• Report Generation: Access sales, order, and inventory reports for performance tracking and strategy improvement.
• Promotional Management: Create and manage targeted promotions to drive traffic and increase sales.

To get access to Marketplace API, sellers need to apply for Walmart's Marketplace program and meet specific requirements.

Supplier API

The Supplier API streamlines interactions between Walmart’s first-party suppliers and its supply chain systems, supporting efficient product catalog management, order fulfillment, and inventory accuracy. It ensures seamless data exchange with Walmart for improved alignment and operational efficiency.

Key features include:

• Product Setup and Maintenance: Introduce new products and update existing details (descriptions, specifications, images) to keep data accurate and compliant. Supports bulk uploads for efficiency.
• Order Fulfillment: Automate receipt and processing of purchase orders, track order status, and reduce delays to improve response times and customer satisfaction.
• Inventory Updates: Provide real-time stock updates to prevent overselling and ensure availability. Essential for high-demand items, aiding in restocking and supply chain planning.

To get access to Supplier API, suppliers need to be part of Walmart's supplier network and meet specific criteria.

Walmart Commerce Technologies (WCT) APIs

WCT APIs support Walmart's clients and partners in managing store operations, order fulfillment, and logistics. Designed for seamless integration, these APIs enhance operational efficiency and streamline workflows.

Key services include:

• Store Assist: Optimizes in-store order fulfillment, helping associates efficiently prepare items for pickup or delivery, reducing errors, and speeding up the process.
• Ship From Store: Allows stores to act as fulfillment centers, shipping orders directly to customers to cut delivery times and costs while improving customer satisfaction.
• Marketplace Orders Hub: Centralizes order management for sellers, enabling monitoring and updates of order statuses for streamlined, organized workflows.
• Route Optimization: Enhances logistics by planning efficient delivery routes, reducing travel time, fuel costs, and overall expenses for timely deliveries.

These APIs are designed to integrate seamlessly with existing systems, enhancing operational efficiency.

To get access to WCT APIs, clients and partners need to be part of Walmart's network and meet specific requirements.

2. Advertising API

Walmart's Advertising API provides advertisers to effectively manage and optimize their campaigns on Walmart's platform. Key features include:

Campaign Management

The Advertising API streamlines campaign setup and management, enabling efficient creation, targeting, and budget optimization for better ad performance on Walmart’s platform.

• Creation and Configuration: Advertisers can programmatically create new campaigns including type, targeting, budgets, and schedules.
• Ad Group and Item Management: Within campaigns, advertisers can organize products into ad groups, assign items, and manage their bids and status.
• Keyword Management: Add, update, and remove keywords for precise targeting and improved ad relevance.

Optimization Tools

The Advertising API enables bid, budget, and targeting adjustments, allowing advertisers to enhance cost-efficiency and refine audience targeting for better campaign results.

• Bid Adjustments: Modify bids for keywords and items to optimize placements and costs.
• Budget Management: Adjust budgets dynamically for responsive scaling based on performance.
• Targeting Enhancements: Use features like Brand Term Targeting to refine audience reach.

Performance Metrics Retrieval

The Advertising API provides real-time metrics and detailed reports, enabling advertisers to monitor and analyze campaign performance effectively. This helps in making data-driven adjustments to optimize results.

• Real-Time Reporting: Access to up-to-date metrics like impressions, clicks, and sales data for continuous monitoring.
• Advanced Insights: Obtain detailed reports on retail data and consumer behavior for informed decision-making.
• Snapshot Reports: Generate summaries of campaign performance over set periods for trend analysis.

Advertisers can efficiently manage their advertising efforts on Walmart's platform, ensuring campaigns are well-targeted, cost-effective, and aligned with business objectives.

To get access to Advertising API, advertisers need to be part of Walmart's advertising network and meet specific criteria.

3. Walmart GoLocal APIs

Walmart's GoLocal APIs empower local delivery partners to seamlessly integrate and manage their delivery operations. Key features include:

• Order Integration: Partners can receive and process delivery orders directly through the API, ensuring timely and accurate order fulfillment.
• Communication Channels: The API facilitates real-time communication between delivery personnel and customers, enhancing coordination and customer satisfaction.
• Dispensing Management: Efficiently manage the pickup and delivery process, including tracking and handling of orders, to streamline operations.

These APIs are crucial for partners aiming to provide timely and reliable delivery services.

To get access to GoLocal APIs, delivery partners need to be part of Walmart's delivery network and meet specific requirements.

4. Transportation Carrier APIs

Walmart's Transportation Carrier APIs empower logistics partners to efficiently manage delivery operations through several key features:

• Load Bidding: Carriers can access available delivery loads and submit bids, facilitating a competitive and transparent process for securing transportation assignments.
• Shipment Tracking: The APIs provide real-time tracking capabilities, allowing carriers to monitor the status of shipments throughout the delivery process, enhancing visibility and operational efficiency.
• Documentation Management: Carriers can handle necessary shipping documents electronically, streamlining administrative tasks and reducing paperwork.

Transportation carriers can optimize their logistics processes, improve service reliability, and strengthen their partnership with Walmart.

To get access to Transportation Carrier APIs, logistics partners need to be part of Walmart's logistics network and meet specific criteria.

Walmart Product API: Does It Exist?

Walmart does not offer a standalone Walmart Product API for public use. A true product API would allow developers to access product details like descriptions, prices, and stock levels programmatically. While Walmart provides APIs for partners and sellers, such as the Marketplace API, these are meant for managing product listings and orders, not for public product data access.

Without a dedicated product API, businesses often resort to web scraping for data. This presents challenges like compliance with terms of service, handling dynamic content, and bypassing anti-bot measures.

Get Access to Walmart APIs

Unfortunately all of the Walmart APIs are not public and require you to be a partner or supplier to get access to them. Here are the steps required to get access to Walmart APIs:

For Marketplace API:

1. If you're an existing Walmart Seller you can login to Walmart Developer Portal and generate your API kes there
2. If you're not a seller you can still get access as solution provider by filling out an solution provider application form. Then proceed to the developer portal to generate your API keys.

For Walmart 1P Suppliers:

1. Apply to become a supplier on Walmart's supplier network through the Walmart supplier application form
2. Complete supplier registration & onboarding process to receive Walmart Retail-Link credentials.
3. Use Retail-Link credentials to access Walmart APIs through the Walmart Developer Portal.

For remaining APIs like Advertising API, GoLocal APIs and Transportation Carrier APIs you need to be Walmart's partner directly and there are no public application forms.

If you do not fall into any of the above categories, you can still access public Walmart data through web scraping. Let's take a look at that next!

Web Scraping Walmart: An Alternative Approach

In the absence of a public product API, web scraping becomes a practical way to collect product data from Walmart.com. This method involves programmatically navigating and extracting information from web pages while adhering to ethical guidelines and Walmart's terms of service.

Scrape Walmart with Scrapfly

For those seeking efficient solutions, Scrapfly offers advanced tools for web scraping, tackling challenges like IP blocking, CAPTCHA, and dynamic content. Scrapfly’s Walmart scraper code provides a practical example of scraping using Python.

Below are key excerpts from walmart.py, demonstrating how Scrapfly simplifies the process of web scraping Walmart's product data using Python:

import os
import json
from scrapfly import ScrapeConfig, ScrapflyClient

# Initialize Scrapfly client with API key
SCRAPFLY = ScrapflyClient(key=os.environ["SCRAPFLY_KEY"])

# Base configuration to handle Walmart's anti-scraping measures
BASE_CONFIG = {
    "asp": True,  # Anti-scraping protection bypass
    "country": "US",  # Set proxy country
}

# Function to parse product data from a product page response
def parse_product(response):
    sel = response.selector
    data = json.loads(sel.xpath('//script[@id="__NEXT_DATA__"]/text()').get())
    product_data = data["props"]["pageProps"]["initialData"]["data"]["product"]
    # Extract only the necessary fields
    product = {k: v for k, v in product_data.items() if k in ["name", "priceInfo", "brand"]}
    return product

# Function to scrape multiple product URLs concurrently
async def scrape_products(urls):
    to_scrape = [ScrapeConfig(url, **BASE_CONFIG) for url in urls]
    results = []
    async for response in SCRAPFLY.concurrent_scrape(to_scrape):
        results.append(parse_product(response))
    return results

This example highlights how Scrapfly's tools facilitate seamless web scraping by handling anti-scraping mechanisms, enabling efficient data extraction, and supporting concurrent scraping for faster processing.

You can learn more about how to scrape Walmart.com in our dedicated article:

How to Scrape Walmart.com Product Data (2024 Update)

Explain how to scrape Walmart product data with Python. We'll start by reverse engineering the website to find products using sitemaps, category links and the search API.

FAQ

To wrap up this guide, here are answers to some frequently asked questions about Walmart api.

Does Walmart offer a general product API for non-partner access?

Walmart does not provide a public Walmart Product API that allows non-partner users to access comprehensive product data. Access is primarily reserved for partners and suppliers with specific needs catered to by the Marketplace API and Supplier API.

Is there Walmart Price API?

No, Walmart does not offer a public API for product price data. To extract this walmart pricing data web scraping can be used as long as product prices are listed publicly and scraping of Walmart is compliant with their terms of service.

Is web scraping legal on Walmart’s platform?

Web scraping legality depends on following to Walmart's terms of service and compliance with local laws. It's important to respect website terms and use data in a responsible manner though generally scraping public data is, like walmart product data, is considered legal in most countries.

Summary

Walmart’s array of APIs caters to partners, sellers, suppliers, advertisers, and logistics providers, offering a comprehensive toolkit for managing e-commerce operations. While a standalone Walmart Product API for public use does not exist, businesses can turn to web scraping as a viable alternative for accessing product data.

As an alternative, Scrapfly’s web scraping platform provides a reliable, compliant solution for data extraction, enabling developers and businesses to harness the power of Walmart’s vast product catalog for analysis, price monitoring, and competitive insights.