vs
Scrapfly
ScraperAPI vs Scrapfly
ScraperAPI and Scrapfly are both credit-based scraping APIs with overlapping core feature sets. ScraperAPI is the established, high-volume reliability play with automatic CAPTCHA solving, a structured Google SERP API and AI extraction. Scrapfly is the modern, developer-experience-focused challenger with a lower entry price, strong anti-bot bypass, confirmed per-success billing and pay-as-you-go overflow from the Pro tier onward.
Key differences.
Cost, side by side.
| Pricing model | ScraperAPI | Scrapfly |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 5,000 credits, no card required | 1,000 credits, no card required, no time limit |
| Entry | $49/mo (100K credits) | $30/mo (200K credits) |
| Mid | $149/mo (1M credits) | $100/mo (1M credits) |
| Business | $299/mo (3M credits) | $250/mo (2.5M credits) |
| Top tier | $475/mo (5M credits) | $500/mo (5.5M credits) |
Both bill in credits, with JS rendering and premium proxies costing more per request. ScraperAPI offers pay-as-you-go overage only on its Scaling plan and above; lower tiers must upgrade or contact support when credits run out. Scrapfly uses prepaid credit pools with pay-as-you-go overflow auto-activated on Pro and above; the entry Discovery plan caps at quota with no overflow. Failed requests are never charged on Scrapfly. Compare on your real workload.
Feature by feature.
| Feature | ScraperAPI | Scrapfly |
|---|---|---|
| JavaScript rendering | Yes | Yes |
| CAPTCHA solving | Yes | Yes |
| Google SERP API | Yes | Yes |
| AI extraction | Yes | Yes |
| Screenshots | Yes | Yes |
| Proxy geotargeting | Yes | Yes |
| Per-success billing | Unknown | Yes (failed requests not charged) |
| PDF output | Unknown | No |
| Pay-as-you-go overflow | Yes (Scaling and above) | Yes (Pro and above) |
| Free tier credits | 5,000 | 1,000 |
| Entry plan credits | 100,000 at $49/mo | 200,000 at $30/mo |
An honest look at each.
- Larger free tier: 5,000 credits with no card required
- Automatic CAPTCHA solving included
- Structured Google SERP API
- AI extraction built in
- High-volume plans up to 21.5M credits per month
- Pay-as-you-go overflow available on Scaling and above
- Higher entry price ($49 vs $30) with fewer entry credits (100K vs 200K)
- PDF output status is unconfirmed
- Per-success billing status is unconfirmed
- Pay-as-you-go overflow only unlocks at the Scaling tier; lower plans hard-cap at quota
Scrapfly- Lower entry price ($30/mo) with more entry credits (200K)
- Failed requests are never charged on any plan
- Pay-as-you-go overflow available from Pro tier onward
- CAPTCHA solving, SERP API and AI extraction all included
- Per-success billing confirmed
- Smaller free tier: only 1,000 credits vs ScraperAPI's 5,000
- No PDF output
- No pay-as-you-go overflow on the entry Discovery plan; caps at quota
- Top-tier Enterprise plan (5.5M credits at $500/mo) is slightly pricier than ScraperAPI's comparable Scaling tier (5M credits at $475/mo)
We do our best to keep this comparison accurate and up-to-date. If you notice any discrepancies, please let us know.
Our take: ScraperAPI for free-tier volume and high-scale plans, Scrapfly for entry value and billing transparency
Both ScraperAPI and Scrapfly offer CAPTCHA solving, a Google SERP API and AI extraction, so the real differentiators come down to pricing structure and billing transparency. ScraperAPI wins on the free tier with 5,000 credits versus Scrapfly's 1,000, and its high-volume plans scale further in absolute credit terms, reaching 21.5M credits per month before custom pricing. Scrapfly wins at the entry paid tier with 200K credits for $30 versus ScraperAPI's 100K for $49, and its confirmed per-success billing means failed requests never cost you. Scrapfly confirms no PDF output; ScraperAPI's PDF support is unconfirmed. Choose ScraperAPI if you want a larger free tier to prototype or need massive monthly credit volumes; choose Scrapfly if entry-level cost efficiency and transparent failed-request protection matter most.