Cars.com API Documentation

First request

Endpoint

GET /carsdotcom/search

Cost

3 credits/request

curl "https://api.crawlora.net/api/v1/carsdotcom/search?radius=50&stock_type=used&zip=90210" \
  -H "x-api-key: $CRAWLORA_API_KEY"

How to use Cars.com endpoints

Crawlora's Cars.com endpoints return vehicle search and full listing detail as normalized JSON with one API key — search is anchored on geography rather than free text, so the workflow is narrow the area, then resolve the listings you care about.

1. Step 1

   Search by area, not by keyword

   /carsdotcom/search takes zip, radius, stock_type (new, used, cpo or all) and page. There is no make, model or free-text parameter — the search is geographic, and you filter to the make and model you want from the normalized results.

2. Step 2

   Read the result set honestly

   total_count is Cars.com's own reported match count for the applied filters, not the number of vehicles in your page, and it is capped at 10000 for very broad searches. Treat a flat 10000 as "at least this many", not as a real total.

3. Step 3

   Filter from the normalized summaries

   Each result already carries vin, year, make, model, trim, body_style, mileage, exterior_color, drivetrain, fuel_type, stock_type, price, seller and images — enough to narrow by make/model/mileage/price in your own code without a second request.

4. Step 4

   Resolve the full listing

   Pass a result's listing_id (a UUID, not a numeric id) to /carsdotcom/vehicle/{listing_id} for the full spec sheet: engine, transmission, fuel economy, a key-specs table, categorized equipment features, dealer info, an AutoCheck-style history summary, and Cars.com's own deal-fairness rating and predicted fair price.

5. Step 5

   Monitor over time

   Re-run the same geographic search on a schedule to track new inventory and price movement. A delisted or invalid listing_id returns a 404, which is the cleanest signal that a vehicle has sold or been pulled.

6. Step 6

   Treat a 10,000 total as a cap

   On 2026-10-30 /carsdotcom/search for used cars within 50 miles of 90210 reported total_count 10000 at 24 per page, a round figure that looks like a cap. A listing record carried vin, mileage 24,297 and drivetrain.

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