Google Maps Grid-Based Market Saturation Scanner: MCP config, n8n workflow and API

{
  "searchQuery": "coffee shops",
  "boundingBox": {
    "north": 40.77,
    "south": 40.73,
    "east": -73.97,
    "west": -74.01
  },
  "zoomLevel": 15,
  "maxPlacesPerCell": 5,
  "maxPagesPerCell": 13,
  "maxTotalResults": 5,
  "deduplicateResults": true,
  "enrichDetails": false
}

---
name: google-maps-grid-based-market-saturation-scanner
description: "Cover a bounding box, circle, or custom polygon with a search grid to collect every business Google Maps exposes for a query, well beyond the usual 120-result cap on a single search. Runs the Apify Actor dataspryva/google-maps-grid-based-market-saturation-scanner. Use when the user needs Google Maps data with fields such as recordType, name, categoryName, totalScore, reviewsCount, address and an Apify token is available."
compatibility: "Needs network access, curl, and an APIFY_TOKEN environment variable. Runs are billed to the token owner's Apify account."
metadata:
  actor: "dataspryva/google-maps-grid-based-market-saturation-scanner"
  store-url: "https://apify.com/dataspryva/google-maps-grid-based-market-saturation-scanner"
---

# Google Maps Grid-Based Market Saturation Scanner

Use this skill to fetch Google Maps data with the Apify Actor `dataspryva/google-maps-grid-based-market-saturation-scanner` and work with the returned rows.

## Before running

1. Check that `APIFY_TOKEN` is set in the environment. Never print it or write it to a file.
2. Build `input.json` from the user's request using the fields below. Keep limits small for a first run.
3. Confirm the search terms or URLs with the user if the request is ambiguous.

## Input fields

| Field | Type | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `searchQuery` | string, required | Type of business to search for (e.g., 'pharmacy', 'restaurant', 'dentist'). |
| `boundingBox` | object | Geographic bounding box defining the scan area. Provide north/south/east/west coordinates. |
| `zoomLevel` | integer | Controls grid cell granularity. Higher = smaller cells, more thorough coverage. |
| `maxPlacesPerCell` | integer | Maximum businesses to collect from each grid cell (1–260; Google's ranked window for one cell reaches roughly 136–213 places). |
| `maxPagesPerCell` | integer | How many 20-result pages to read per cell. Deeper pages surface more businesses — page 1 finds about 20% of a cell's places, page 9 finds all of them. |
| `maxTotalResults` | integer | Maximum total businesses to extract across all cells. Stops scanning when reached. |
| `deduplicateResults` | boolean | Remove duplicate businesses that appear in multiple adjacent grid cells. |
| `enrichDetails` | boolean | Open each place's page for extra fields (price level, Plus Code, photo sample, rating histogram, open/closed status). Slower; leave off for large exports since listing fields are always collected. |

Example `input.json` (the Actor's published prefill):

```json
{
  "searchQuery": "coffee shops",
  "boundingBox": {
    "north": 40.77,
    "south": 40.73,
    "east": -73.97,
    "west": -74.01
  },
  "zoomLevel": 15,
  "maxPlacesPerCell": 5,
  "maxPagesPerCell": 13,
  "maxTotalResults": 5,
  "deduplicateResults": true,
  "enrichDetails": false
}
```

## Run

```bash
curl -sS -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/dataspryva~google-maps-grid-based-market-saturation-scanner/run-sync-get-dataset-items" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d @input.json > results.json
```

The call waits for the run to finish and returns the dataset items as a JSON array. If the run needs more than 300 seconds the API answers with HTTP 408; then start the run with `POST /v2/acts/dataspryva~google-maps-grid-based-market-saturation-scanner/runs`, poll `GET /v2/actor-runs/{runId}` until `SUCCEEDED`, and read `GET /v2/datasets/{defaultDatasetId}/items`.

## Output

Each item is one record. Published fields include: `recordType`, `name`, `categoryName`, `totalScore`, `reviewsCount`, `address`, `phone`, `website`, `placeId`, `featureId`, `kgmid`, `googleMapsUrl`, `location`, `rankInCell`, `sourceUrl`, `scrapedAt`, `categories`, `plusCode`, `timezone`, `countryCode`.

Summarise what was found, cite the record URLs when present, and say how many items came back. Do not invent values for empty fields.