RSS by Zapier allows you to trigger Zaps with new RSS feed items, as well as add items to your own RSS feed. An RSS (really simple syndication) feed is a way to get content from a frequently updated source—such as a blog or news site—with just the key information.
Limitations
- For the "Create Item in Feed" action, Zapier can only handle about 10 KB of data. If your data exceeds the 10 KB limit, the action will error. In the Automatically Truncate Messages Over 10KB field, you can set it to automatically truncate the data, or not truncate the data and stop the Zap.
- At this time, there are no RSS actions to edit your RSS feed and remove items. If you want to start with a fresh feed, change the feed URL. Old entries will clear out if no items are added for 14 days.
- Zapier only stores the most recent 50 items in the feed. Also, all items are removed if no new items are added for 14 days.
- Craigslist blocks connections to their RSS feed from servers like the ones that Zapier uses, so Zapier is unable to access Craigslist RSS feeds in a Zap.
- Only letters, numbers, and hyphens will be accepted in the URL field. Spaces and other characters must be removed.
Adding enclosures to RSS items
When setting up a Zap, the editor provides fields for "Media URL", "Media MIME Type", and "Media Length." These fields are used to create an enclosure, so if you want to provide a link to other media types besides audio files or images, you can use these three fields to do so.
1. Add an RSS action
- In the Zap editor, click the Action step or click the plus icon + to add a step to your Zap.
- Search for and select RSS by Zapier.
- Click the Event dropdown menu and select Create Item in Feed.
- Click Continue.
2. Set up your Zapier RSS feed URL
Create a RSS URL. You can use a combination of letters, numbers, and hyphens.
3. Add items to your RSS feed
- Add fields to the item that will be added to the RSS feed.
- Required fields:
- Feed URL: this is the URL that you will use to subscribe to the RSS feed.
- Item Title: this is the name of the item added to the RSS feed.
- Source URL: this is the URL for the site that the RSS feed pulls new items from.
- Content: this is the body of the item.
- Click Continue.
Once you’ve set up your RSS feed, you’re ready to continue setting up the rest of your Zap.
For inspiration on how to use RSS feeds, check out this blog post.
To learn how to filter, combine, and customize your RSS feeds, check out this blog post.