How to use external libraries in Zapier Python scripts

Other Questions Zapier
1

I’m working on a Zap in Zapier and need to incorporate a third-party Python library named ‘datasift’ within my code step. Unfortunately, every time I try to import it, I encounter an error stating that the module is not found.

Is there any way to add external libraries to the Python code environment in Zapier? I’ve followed the usual import syntax, but it doesn’t yield any results. Are there alternative approaches or techniques to make third-party libraries accessible in Zapier workflows?

Here is the code snippet I’m attempting to run:

# This results in a module not found error
import datasift

def process_data(input_data):
    client = datasift.Client('username', 'api_key')
    result = client.compile('interaction.content contains "example"')
    return {'output': result}

Any advice on how I can fix this import problem would be greatly appreciated.

2

Zapier’s environment is limited to the built-in libraries, which means third-party packages like datasift are unsupported. I faced similar challenges when transitioning scripts. A viable workaround is to utilize the requests module to directly implement the functionality you need from datasift. This involves managing API authentication and response parsing on your own, but it’ll allow you to achieve the desired outcomes. Their API documentation contains curl examples, which can be adapted into Python requests. Alternatively, if this seems cumbersome, consider hosting your Python script on a platform like AWS Lambda or Google Cloud Functions and invoke it via a Zapier webhook.

3

Zapier’s Python environment only has basic libraries - you can’t install custom packages like datasift. I hit this same wall trying to use specialized API libraries. My workaround? Skip the library and make direct HTTP requests instead. You’ll need to dig into datasift’s REST API docs and use Python’s built-in requests library. It’s more work than their official library, but it works within Zapier’s limits. Or use Zapier’s webhooks to call an external service where you control the Python environment and can install whatever you want.

4

yeah, zapier doesnt allow external libs - only the built-in ones. i faced the same issue with other packages too. you might wanna rewrite the datasift stuff using urllib or requests instead. take a look at their api docs for endpoints. or just set up a small flask app and use a webhook from zapier.