A web scraping API takes a URL and gives you back the page, or the data on it, while handling proxies, JavaScript rendering, retries and blocks for you. Some go further and offer ready-made scrapers for particular sites. Below is our ranking of the best web scraping APIs for 2026. Each review explains how its score was reached, and no provider can pay to change its position. If you only need IP addresses for your own scraper, see our proxy provider rankings instead.
Bright Data
★ Top PickThe broadest scraping toolkit: Web Unlocker from $1.50 per 1,000 successful requests, a SERP API, a Scraping Browser and per-site Web Scraper APIs, on a 400M+ IP network.
Apify
A marketplace of thousands of ready-made scrapers, plus hosting, scheduling, storage and proxies for your own crawlers, and a free plan with $5 of monthly usage. Scored from its published pricing and docs.
Oxylabs
A Web Scraper API with built-in search and e-commerce scraping and AI-powered parsing, from $0.50 per 1,000 results on the $30 Starter plan.
Scrape.do
A scraping API with a dedicated Google Search endpoint that returns parsed JSON, success-only billing, and 1,000 free successful credits a month.
ZenRows
Anti-bot-first scraping API for sites behind Cloudflare, DataDome, PerimeterX and Akamai, with JS rendering, premium proxies and HTML, JSON or Markdown output.
ScraperAPI
One GET request handles proxies, rendering and retries, with structured data endpoints for Amazon and Google and free API credits every month.
ScrapingBee
One endpoint for fetching, rendering and extracting pages, with browser actions, AI extraction, dedicated Google, Amazon and Walmart APIs, and billing only for successful requests. Scored from its published pricing and docs.
Best Web Scraping API by Use Case
| Need | Our pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Best overall | Bright Data | Unlocker, SERP API, Scraping Browser and per-site scrapers from one account |
| Best ready-made scrapers | Apify | Thousands of ready-made scrapers in Apify Store, plus hosting for your own crawlers |
| Best for enterprise data collection | Oxylabs | Web Scraper API with built-in search and e-commerce scraping and AI-powered parsing |
| Best for Google SERP scraping | Scrape.do | Google Search endpoint with parsed JSON, ads as separate blocks, success-only billing |
| Best for hard targets | ZenRows | Cloudflare, DataDome, PerimeterX and Akamai bypass behind one endpoint |
| Easiest to integrate | ScraperAPI | One GET request, structured data endpoints, free credits every month |
| Best for page actions and extraction | ScrapingBee | Clicks, scrolling, CSS and AI extraction in the same request, billed only on success |
| Best unblocker for your own scraper | Bright Data Web Unlocker | Proxy-style integration with CAPTCHA solving, from $1.50 per 1,000 successful requests |
How Scraping APIs Charge
Prices aren't comparable at a glance, because each provider charges in different units:
- Per successful request. Bright Data's Web Unlocker charges per 1,000 successful requests. Scrape.do and ScrapingBee also bill only successful requests, using credits.
- Credits with multipliers. ScrapingBee, ScraperAPI and ZenRows sell monthly credits, and options such as JavaScript rendering and premium proxies use several credits per request. On ScrapingBee, a request costs from 1 credit to 75.
- Per result. Oxylabs' Web Scraper API and many Apify Store scrapers charge per 1,000 results.
- Per compute. Some Apify scrapers charge only for the platform resources a run uses, which is cheap for light pages but harder to predict.
To compare, estimate your cost per 1,000 pages for the request type your targets actually need. Our scraping cost calculator helps with the per-GB and per-request maths.
How to Choose a Scraping API
- What do your targets block? Lightly protected sites work with almost any API. For Cloudflare, DataDome and similar, compare anti-bot-first options such as ZenRows and the Bright Data Web Unlocker.
- Do you want HTML or data? If a structured endpoint or ready-made scraper exists for your site, as with Google, Amazon and many Apify Store scrapers, you skip writing parsers.
- Does the page need a browser? JavaScript rendering usually costs more per request. Turn it on only for pages that need it.
- How steady is your volume? Monthly credits that don't roll over suit steady work. Per-request and pay-as-you-go pricing suit bursts.
- Do you need raw proxies too? Bright Data and Oxylabs sell both, under one account. See the proxy provider rankings for proxy-only providers.
For head-to-heads, see Apify vs ScrapingBee, ZenRows vs ScraperAPI, Bright Data vs ZenRows and Scrape.do vs the Bright Data SERP API.
How We Rank Scraping APIs
Our rankings weigh unblocking and reliability, breadth of tools and ready-made scrapers, pricing and value, transparency and ease of use. Each review explains how its score was reached: most come from our editorial assessment, and Apify's and ScrapingBee's are based on the provider's published pricing and docs rather than hands-on testing. We update the order as providers change their products and prices. See how we test.
FAQ
What is the best web scraping API?
Bright Data ranks first in our scraping API rankings, for the breadth of its toolkit: Web Unlocker, a SERP API, a Scraping Browser and per-site scrapers. Apify ranks second, for its marketplace of ready-made scrapers, and Oxylabs third, for its enterprise Web Scraper API. The best fit depends on your targets and how much you want to build.
What is the difference between a scraping API and a proxy?
A proxy only changes the IP address your scraper uses; you still handle browsers, retries and CAPTCHAs. A scraping API takes a URL and returns the page or parsed data, handling proxies, JavaScript rendering and retries for you. Proxies are cheaper per request at volume, and APIs save engineering time.
Which scraping APIs charge only for successful requests?
Bright Data's Web Unlocker, Scrape.do and ScrapingBee all say they bill only successful requests. ScrapingBee counts 200, 404 and 410 responses as successful. Check each provider's terms, because the definition of success varies.
Is there a free web scraping API?
Several have free tiers. Scrape.do gives 1,000 successful credits a month, ScraperAPI gives free credits every month, and Apify's free plan includes $5 of usage a month. ScrapingBee and ZenRows offer free trial credits rather than an ongoing free plan.
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