# Better Business Bureau API

> Better Business Bureau workflow and API: business profile and business complaints. Returns phone, address, website and bbb alerts as JSON.

Better Business Bureau data from bbb.org: business profile and business complaints.

- Page: https://fous.com/tools/better-business-bureau
- Handle: `@better-business-bureau`
- Category: [Commerce](https://fous.com/tools/category/commerce)
- Source website: https://bbb.org
- Last verified: Sep 29, 2026

## Methods

### Get business complaints

Operation `get_business_complaints`, version 1. 1 credit per completed call. Failed calls without a completed billing receipt are free; completed work can remain charged if delivery is interrupted.

Find a business near a city or ZIP code and read its published BBB complaints, newest first. The three-year total may exceed the publicly displayed complaint details.

**Input**

| Field | Type | Required | Example | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| `business` | string | yes | `"East Coast Spas, Inc"` | Business name, for example Comcast. |
| `location` | string | yes | `"Horsham, PA"` | City and state or ZIP code, for example Philadelphia, PA or 19103. |
| `max_results` | integer | no | `2` | Maximum published complaints to return, for example 20. |

**Input schema**

```json
{
  "type": "object",
  "required": [
    "business",
    "location"
  ],
  "properties": {
    "business": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "Business name, for example Comcast.",
      "examples": [
        "East Coast Spas, Inc",
        "Comcast",
        "LUXURYSOCALREALTY"
      ]
    },
    "location": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "City and state or ZIP code, for example Philadelphia, PA or 19103.",
      "examples": [
        "Horsham, PA",
        "Philadelphia, PA",
        "La Jolla, CA"
      ]
    },
    "max_results": {
      "type": "integer",
      "default": 20,
      "maximum": 100,
      "minimum": 1,
      "description": "Maximum published complaints to return, for example 20.",
      "x-fous-developer": true,
      "examples": [
        2,
        5
      ]
    }
  },
  "additionalProperties": false,
  "examples": [
    {
      "business": "East Coast Spas, Inc",
      "location": "Horsham, PA",
      "max_results": 2
    },
    {
      "business": "Comcast",
      "location": "Philadelphia, PA"
    },
    {
      "business": "LUXURYSOCALREALTY",
      "location": "La Jolla, CA",
      "max_results": 5
    }
  ]
}
```

**Output**

| Field | Type | Example | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| `complaints` | array |  |  |
| `complaints[].status` | string or null | `"Answered"` |  |
| `complaints[].page_link` | string | `"https://www.bbb.org/us/pa/horsham/profile/hot-tub-dealers/east-coast-spas-inc-0241-235984874/complaints"` |  |
| `complaints[].date_filed` | string or null | `"2025-02-25"` |  |
| `complaints[].complaint_text` | string or null |  |  |
| `complaints[].complaint_type` | string or null | `"Billing Issues"` |  |
| `complaints[].customer_final_reply` | string or null | `"[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may up` |  |
| `complaints[].business_response_text` | string or null |  |  |
| `profile_link` | string | `"https://www.bbb.org/us/pa/horsham/profile/hot-tub-dealers/east-coast-spas-inc-0241-235984874"` |  |
| `business_name` | string | `"East Coast Spas, Inc"` |  |
| `total_complaints_last_3_years` | integer | `2` |  |

**Example input**

```json
{
  "business": "East Coast Spas, Inc",
  "location": "Horsham, PA",
  "max_results": 2
}
```

**Example output**

```json
{
  "complaints": [
    {
      "status": "Answered",
      "page_link": "https://www.bbb.org/us/pa/horsham/profile/hot-tub-dealers/east-coast-spas-inc-0241-235984874/complaints",
      "date_filed": "2025-02-25",
      "complaint_text": "On January 5th we went to spa expo in ********* to purchase a spa. The floor model we selected was previously purchased. We were told by sales person that he could get us one in about 3 weeks, they wo…",
      "complaint_type": "Billing Issues",
      "customer_final_reply": null,
      "business_response_text": "Hello *** *******, This is *****, we spoke on the phone last week. If you happen to have that phone call that you told me you were recording last week it would be great if you could upload that for fu…"
    },
    {
      "status": "Answered",
      "page_link": "https://www.bbb.org/us/pa/horsham/profile/hot-tub-dealers/east-coast-spas-inc-0241-235984874/complaints",
      "date_filed": "2025-01-23",
      "complaint_text": "I am filing a formal complaint against East Coast Spas regarding a misleading sales transaction and failure to provide agreed-upon products and services.On 8/16/24, I purchased two hot tubs from East …",
      "complaint_type": "Product Issues",
      "customer_final_reply": "[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered] ****** ******Complai…",
      "business_response_text": "Dear Mr. ******************* take these complaints very seriously and would like to reach an agreement amicable to both parties. It must be stated first, that upon review of both contracts for the ord…"
    }
  ],
  "profile_link": "https://www.bbb.org/us/pa/horsham/profile/hot-tub-dealers/east-coast-spas-inc-0241-235984874",
  "business_name": "East Coast Spas, Inc",
  "total_complaints_last_3_years": 2
}
```

### Get business profile

Operation `get_business_profile`, version 1. 1 credit per completed call. Failed calls without a completed billing receipt are free; completed work can remain charged if delivery is interrupted.

Find the best-matching BBB business profile by name and location, including its rating, accreditation, reviews, complaints and alerts. BBB ratings are not customer review scores.

**Input**

| Field | Type | Required | Example | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| `business` | string | yes | `"Stanley Steemer"` | Business name, for example Comcast. |
| `location` | string | yes | `"Dublin, OH"` | City and state or ZIP code, for example Philadelphia, PA or 19103. |

**Input schema**

```json
{
  "type": "object",
  "required": [
    "business",
    "location"
  ],
  "properties": {
    "business": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "Business name, for example Comcast.",
      "examples": [
        "Stanley Steemer",
        "Comcast"
      ]
    },
    "location": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "City and state or ZIP code, for example Philadelphia, PA or 19103.",
      "examples": [
        "Dublin, OH",
        "Philadelphia, PA"
      ]
    }
  },
  "additionalProperties": false,
  "examples": [
    {
      "business": "Stanley Steemer",
      "location": "Dublin, OH"
    },
    {
      "business": "Comcast",
      "location": "Philadelphia, PA"
    }
  ]
}
```

**Output**

| Field | Type | Example | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| `phone` | string or null | `"(800) 783-3637"` |  |
| `address` | string or null | `"5800 Innovation Dr, Dublin, OH, 43016-3271"` |  |
| `website` | string or null | `"https://www.stanleysteemer.com"` |  |
| `bbb_alerts` | string or null |  |  |
| `bbb_rating` | string or null | `"A+"` |  |
| `profile_link` | string | `"https://www.bbb.org/us/oh/dublin/profile/carpet-and-rug-cleaners/stanley-steemer-international-inc-corporately-owned-br` |  |
| `business_name` | string or null | `"Stanley Steemer International, Inc. & Corporately Owned Branch Locations"` |  |
| `bbb_accredited` | boolean | `true` |  |
| `rating_meaning` | string or null | `"A+ is BBB’s highest letter grade. It reflects BBB’s opinion of the business’s interactions with customers, not its cust` |  |
| `business_category` | string or null | `"Carpet and Rug Cleaners"` |  |
| `years_in_business` | integer or null | `79` |  |
| `accredited_since_year` | integer or null | `2017` |  |
| `customer_review_count` | integer or null | `2510` |  |
| `complaints_last_3_years` | integer or null | `155` |  |
| `average_customer_review_rating` | number or null | `4.87` |  |
| `complaints_closed_last_12_months` | integer or null | `37` |  |

**Example input**

```json
{
  "business": "Stanley Steemer",
  "location": "Dublin, OH"
}
```

**Example output**

```json
{
  "phone": "(800) 783-3637",
  "address": "5800 Innovation Dr, Dublin, OH, 43016-3271",
  "website": "https://www.stanleysteemer.com",
  "bbb_alerts": null,
  "bbb_rating": "A+",
  "profile_link": "https://www.bbb.org/us/oh/dublin/profile/carpet-and-rug-cleaners/stanley-steemer-international-inc-corporately-owned-branch-locations-0302-2984",
  "business_name": "Stanley Steemer International, Inc. & Corporately Owned Branch Locations",
  "bbb_accredited": true,
  "rating_meaning": "A+ is BBB’s highest letter grade. It reflects BBB’s opinion of the business’s interactions with customers, not its customer review score.",
  "business_category": "Carpet and Rug Cleaners",
  "years_in_business": 79,
  "accredited_since_year": 2017,
  "customer_review_count": 2510,
  "complaints_last_3_years": 155,
  "average_customer_review_rating": 4.87,
  "complaints_closed_last_12_months": 37
}
```

## Quick start

Replace `YOUR_API_KEY` with a Fous API key. To create one, open Developers at the bottom of Fous Studio, turn on Developer mode, then go to API keys (https://app.fous.com/keys). Change the values in `input` to run the same tool on new data.

```bash
curl 'https://api.fous.com/v1/query' \
  --fail-with-body --silent --show-error --max-time 180 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data-raw '{
  "api": "@better-business-bureau",
  "visibility": "public",
  "operation": "get_business_complaints",
  "version": 1,
  "input": {
    "business": "East Coast Spas, Inc",
    "location": "Horsham, PA",
    "max_results": 2
  },
  "response": {
    "format": "json"
  }
}'
```

```python
# Save as fous.py and run with python3 fous.py. No packages needed.
import json
import urllib.error
import urllib.request

api_key = "YOUR_API_KEY"

body = json.loads("{\n  \"api\": \"@better-business-bureau\",\n  \"visibility\": \"public\",\n  \"operation\": \"get_business_complaints\",\n  \"version\": 1,\n  \"input\": {\n    \"business\": \"East Coast Spas, Inc\",\n    \"location\": \"Horsham, PA\",\n    \"max_results\": 2\n  },\n  \"response\": {\n    \"format\": \"json\"\n  }\n}")
request = urllib.request.Request(
    "https://api.fous.com/v1/query",
    data=json.dumps(body).encode("utf-8"),
    headers={
        "Authorization": f"Bearer {api_key}",
        "Content-Type": "application/json",
    },
    method="POST",
)
try:
    with urllib.request.urlopen(request, timeout=180) as response:
        result = json.load(response)
except urllib.error.HTTPError as error:
    raise RuntimeError(f"HTTP {error.code}: {error.read().decode('utf-8', errors='replace')}") from error
if result.get("success") is False:
    raise RuntimeError(result.get("error", {}).get("message", "Request failed"))
print(json.dumps(result["data"]["output"], indent=2))
```

```typescript
// Save as fous.mts and run with npx tsx fous.mts.
const apiKey = "YOUR_API_KEY";

const response = await fetch("https://api.fous.com/v1/query", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: {
    "Authorization": `Bearer ${apiKey}`,
    "Content-Type": "application/json",
  },
  signal: AbortSignal.timeout(180_000),
  body: JSON.stringify({
  "api": "@better-business-bureau",
  "visibility": "public",
  "operation": "get_business_complaints",
  "version": 1,
  "input": {
    "business": "East Coast Spas, Inc",
    "location": "Horsham, PA",
    "max_results": 2
  },
  "response": {
    "format": "json"
  }
}),
});
type ApiResult = { success: boolean; data?: { output: unknown }; error?: { message: string } };
const result: ApiResult = await response.json();
if (!response.ok || result.success === false) {
  throw new Error(result.error?.message ?? `HTTP ${response.status}`);
}
if (!result.data) throw new Error("Missing API response data");
console.log(result.data.output);
```

## Use from an AI assistant

Connect this tool to Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code, Codex and any MCP client as its own MCP server. Each method is a typed tool whose arguments are the method’s input.

- Server URL: `https://api.fous.com/mcp/tools/better-business-bureau`
- Authorization: `Authorization: Bearer <Fous API key>`

**Tools**

- `get_business_complaints`: Get business complaints. 1 credit per completed call. Failed calls without a completed billing receipt are free; completed work can remain charged if delivery is interrupted.
- `get_business_profile`: Get business profile. 1 credit per completed call. Failed calls without a completed billing receipt are free; completed work can remain charged if delivery is interrupted.
- `fous_get_run`: the result of a run that was still going, by its `request_id`. Free.

Claude Code:

```bash
claude mcp add --scope user --transport http fous-better-business-bureau https://api.fous.com/mcp/tools/better-business-bureau --header "Authorization: Bearer ${FOUS_API_KEY:?Set FOUS_API_KEY to your Fous API key}"
```

To give the assistant every tool, connect `https://api.fous.com/mcp`: it finds one with `fous_search_tools` and runs it with `fous_run_tool`. Setup for other clients: https://fous.com/llms-full.txt.

## FAQ

### Can I run it with my own inputs?

Yes. Change the inputs in Studio and press Run, or send new inputs from your code, or ask a connected AI assistant.

### Can I call this Better Business Bureau tool as an API?

Yes. Send a POST request to /v1/query with your Fous API key and the inputs, and get JSON back.

### How much does it cost?

Each completed run costs 1 credit. Failed runs without a completed receipt are free; completed work can remain charged if delivery is interrupted. With pay as you go, a credit costs 1¢. Monthly plans cost less per credit.

### Do I need a Better Business Bureau account?

No. You only need a Fous account.

### How current is the data?

Fous gets the data from bbb.org when you run it. Some results are reused for up to 24 hours, and results that use your account or key are never reused. It was last verified on Sep 29, 2026.

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