--- title: "ScrapingBee Alternative for Web Scraping" description: "A ScrapingBee alternative: the same credit-based scraping API from $29/mo, with a lower entry price, cheaper stealth proxies, and 7 official SDKs." url: https://webscraping.ai/scrapingbee-alternative markdown_index: https://webscraping.ai/llms.txt --- SCRAPINGBEE ALTERNATIVE # A ScrapingBee alternative that costs less The same credit-based HTML, proxy, and rendering API you already know — at a lower entry price, with cheaper stealth proxies, 7 official SDKs, and transparent published pricing. [Start Free Trial](https://webscraping.ai/auth/sign_up)[View Documentation](https://webscraping.ai/docs) 2,000 free API credits · No credit card required ## WebScraping.AI vs ScrapingBee at a glance An honest, side-by-side comparison. Verify the numbers — this is a market where you should. | | WebScraping.AI | ScrapingBee | | --- | --- | --- | | Entry plan (250k credits) | **$29/mo** | $49/mo (Freelance) | | 1M-credit plan | $99/mo (Plus) | $99/mo (Startup) | | Pay-as-you-go | **Yes** — prepaid credits from $20, no subscription | No — subscription only, credits expire monthly | | JS (Chromium) rendering | 5 credits | 5 credits | | Residential proxies | 10–25 credits | Premium, 25 credits | | Stealth proxies (hardest targets) | **50 credits** | 75 credits | | AI extraction | Yes (`/ai/question`, `/ai/fields`) | Yes | | MCP server for AI agents | Yes | Yes (hosted) | | Official SDKs | **7** (Python, JS, Ruby, PHP, Go, Java, C#) | Python, Node.js | | Google search results as JSON | Yes ([`/serp`](https://webscraping.ai/google-serp-api), 15 credits/search — organic results, related searches, pagination) | Yes (Google Search API — also parses People Also Ask, knowledge graph, ads; news, maps, images) | | Screenshot API | — | Yes | | Bills only successful requests | Yes | Yes | Pricing and credit costs last checked July 2026. Sources: [ScrapingBee pricing](https://www.scrapingbee.com/#pricing) · [WebScraping.AI pricing](https://webscraping.ai/#pricing). ## What ScrapingBee does well No tool is right for everyone. ScrapingBee is a capable product, and these are the areas where it genuinely shines — worth weighing before you switch. **Dedicated Screenshot API** — a first-party endpoint WebScraping.AI doesn't offer — and a **Google Search API** that parses richer SERP features (People Also Ask, knowledge graph, ads) and news, maps, and image search. **Hosted MCP server and AI data extraction** for agent workflows, so it's a capable choice for LLM tooling too. **High concurrency on entry tiers** — Freelance already includes 50 concurrent requests (vs 10 on our Personal plan). **Backed by Oxylabs' proxy network** since 2025, with a mature feature set and solid documentation. ## Why developers look for a ScrapingBee alternative The most common reasons teams evaluate a switch. #### Higher price for the same credits ScrapingBee's Freelance plan is **$49/mo for 250,000 credits**. WebScraping.AI gives you the **same 250,000 credits for $29/mo** — an identical credit model at a lower entry price. And if you'd rather not commit to a plan at all, WebScraping.AI sells **prepaid credits from a $20 top-up** with no subscription; ScrapingBee has no pay-as-you-go option. #### Protected sites cost more Premium and stealth proxies on hard targets cost up to **75 credits** per request on ScrapingBee. WebScraping.AI's stealth proxies are **50 credits** , and every per-request cost is published up front. #### Fewer official SDKs ScrapingBee ships Python and Node libraries. WebScraping.AI maintains **7 hand-written SDKs** (Python, JS/TS, Ruby, PHP, Go, Java, C#) plus an MCP server, CLI, and n8n node. ## Transparent, published pricing Every request type has a fixed, published credit cost — no surprises, and you only pay for successful requests. Request type No JS + JS render Datacenter proxies 1 credit 5 credits Residential proxies 10 credits 25 credits Stealth proxies 50 credits 50 credits AI extraction add-on +5 credits Google SERP ([`/serp`](https://webscraping.ai/google-serp-api), parsed JSON) 15 credits per search Structured site data ([`/data`](https://webscraping.ai/docs#data), e.g. YouTube, LinkedIn, Reddit) 15 credits per page (50 for Reddit), incl. empty parses Plans from **$29/mo** (250k credits) · **$99/mo** (1M) · **$249/mo** (3M) · or **pay-as-you-go** from $20 (100k credits, no subscription, valid 12 months). Failed requests are always free. [See full pricing](https://webscraping.ai/#pricing). ### Same credit model, lower price WebScraping.AI and ScrapingBee work almost identically: one API, credit-based billing, JavaScript rendering, rotating proxies, and you only pay for successful requests. The difference is what you pay to get in. At the same 250,000-credit tier, ScrapingBee charges **$49/mo** and WebScraping.AI charges **$29/mo**. Both bill 5 credits for a JS-rendered request, so the cheaper credits flow straight through to a lower effective cost per page. And because every request type has a **published, fixed credit cost** — 1 for datacenter, 5 with JS, 10–25 for residential, 50 for stealth — you can predict a job's cost before you run it. ### The same modern toolkit, including AI and MCP WebScraping.AI matches ScrapingBee on the essentials that matter today — JavaScript rendering, rotating proxies, AI extraction (`/ai/question` for plain-English answers, `/ai/fields` for structured data on any page), and an MCP server so Claude, Cursor, and agent frameworks can scrape the live web. Where it pulls ahead is **cost and language coverage** : a lower entry price, cheaper stealth proxies for protected sites, and **7 official SDKs** versus ScrapingBee's Python and Node libraries. ## Switching is one API call Point your requests at WebScraping.AI — here's the equivalent call in your language. **cURL** ```bash curl -G "https://api.webscraping.ai/ai/question" \ --data-urlencode "api_key=YOUR_API_KEY" \ --data-urlencode "url=https://news.ycombinator.com" \ --data-urlencode "question=What are the titles of the top 3 stories?" # Response: # "1. ... 2. ... 3. ..." ``` **Python** ```python # pip install webscraping_ai # https://pypi.org/project/webscraping-ai/ from webscraping_ai import Client client = Client(api_key="YOUR_API_KEY") answer = client.question( "https://news.ycombinator.com", question="What are the titles of the top 3 stories?", ) print(answer) # Response: # "1. ... 2. ... 3. ..." ``` **JavaScript** ```javascript // npm install webscraping-ai // https://www.npmjs.com/package/webscraping-ai import { WebScrapingAI } from 'webscraping-ai'; const client = new WebScrapingAI({ apiKey: 'YOUR_API_KEY' }); const answer = await client.question({ url: 'https://news.ycombinator.com', question: 'What are the titles of the top 3 stories?', }); console.log(answer); // Response: // "1. ... 2. ... 3. ..." ``` **PHP** ```php question( 'https://news.ycombinator.com', 'What are the titles of the top 3 stories?', ); echo $answer; // Response: // "1. ... 2. ... 3. ..." ``` **Ruby** ```ruby # gem install webscraping_ai # https://rubygems.org/gems/webscraping_ai require 'webscraping_ai' client = WebScrapingAI::Client.new(api_key: 'YOUR_API_KEY') answer = client.question( 'https://news.ycombinator.com', question: 'What are the titles of the top 3 stories?' ) puts answer # Response: # "1. ... 2. ... 3. ..." ``` **Go** ```go // go get github.com/webscraping-ai/webscraping-ai-go/v4 // https://pkg.go.dev/github.com/webscraping-ai/webscraping-ai-go/v4 package main import ( "context" "fmt" webscrapingai "github.com/webscraping-ai/webscraping-ai-go/v4" ) func main() { client, _ := webscrapingai.NewClient(&webscrapingai.Config{APIKey: "YOUR_API_KEY"}) answer, _ := client.Question(context.Background(), &webscrapingai.QuestionOptions{ URL: "https://news.ycombinator.com", Question: "What are the titles of the top 3 stories?", }) fmt.Println(answer) } // Response: // "1. ... 2. ... 3. ..." ``` **Java** ```java // Maven: ai.webscraping:webscraping-ai:4.2.0 // https://central.sonatype.com/artifact/ai.webscraping/webscraping-ai import ai.webscraping.Client; import ai.webscraping.Config; import ai.webscraping.option.QuestionOptions; Client client = new Client(Config.builder().apiKey("YOUR_API_KEY").build()); String answer = client.question(QuestionOptions.builder() .url("https://news.ycombinator.com") .question("What are the titles of the top 3 stories?") .build()); System.out.println(answer); // Response: // "1. ... 2. ... 3. ..." ``` **C#** ```csharp // dotnet add package WebScrapingAI // https://www.nuget.org/packages/WebScrapingAI using WebScrapingAI; var client = new WebScrapingAIClient(new WebScrapingAIClientOptions { ApiKey = "YOUR_API_KEY" }); var answer = await client.QuestionAsync(new QuestionRequest { Url = "https://news.ycombinator.com", Question = "What are the titles of the top 3 stories?", }); Console.WriteLine(answer); // Response: // "1. ... 2. ... 3. ..." ``` ### Switch to WebScraping.AI if… You want the same credit-based scraping API at a **lower entry price** ($29 vs $49 for 250k credits). You scrape **protected sites** and want stealth proxies at a lower, published cost (50 vs 75 credits). You want **7 official SDKs** across languages, plus an MCP server, CLI, and n8n node. You want **transparent, published per-request pricing** you can predict before you run a job. ### Stick with ScrapingBee if… You depend on ScrapingBee's **Screenshot API** (WebScraping.AI has none), or need its **Google Search API**'s extra SERP features and search types — WebScraping.AI's `/serp` covers Google web results only. You need **very high concurrency on the entry tier** (ScrapingBee starts at 50 concurrent requests). You want ScrapingBee's **Oxylabs-backed proxy network** or have already built around its extract rules. ## Frequently asked questions Is WebScraping.AI a good ScrapingBee alternative? Yes. It's the closest like-for-like alternative — a credit-based scraping API with JavaScript rendering, rotating proxies, AI extraction, and an MCP server — at a lower entry price ($29 vs $49 for 250k credits), with cheaper stealth proxies and more official SDKs. How does WebScraping.AI pricing compare to ScrapingBee? Both use credits. WebScraping.AI starts at $29/mo for 250,000 credits versus ScrapingBee's $49/mo for the same amount. Per-request costs are published: 1 credit (datacenter), 5 (with JS), 10–25 (residential), 50 (stealth), +5 for AI extraction. Does WebScraping.AI offer pay-as-you-go pricing? Yes — prepaid credits with no subscription, from a $20 minimum top-up ($0.0002 per credit, so $20 buys 100,000 credits). Credits stay valid for 12 months, and every new top-up extends your entire balance for another 12 months. ScrapingBee has no pay-as-you-go option; if you do have a monthly plan with us, pay-as-you-go credits are only consumed after the plan quota runs out. Does WebScraping.AI support JavaScript rendering like ScrapingBee? Yes — full Chromium rendering, billed at 5 credits per request, the same as ScrapingBee. Can I extract structured data the way I do with ScrapingBee? Yes. Use /ai/fields with a natural-language description of each field, or keep using CSS selectors via the /selected endpoint. The AI approach means you don't have to rewrite selectors when a site's layout changes. Does WebScraping.AI have an MCP server for AI agents? Yes — WebScraping.AI ships an MCP server and CLI. ScrapingBee also offers a hosted MCP server, so both support agent workflows; the practical difference comes down to pricing, SDK coverage, and per-request cost. ## Compare other alternatives [ScraperAPI Alternative](https://webscraping.ai/scraperapi-alternative): See how WebScraping.AI compares to ScraperAPI. [Firecrawl Alternative](https://webscraping.ai/firecrawl-alternative): See how WebScraping.AI compares to Firecrawl. [Bright Data Alternative](https://webscraping.ai/bright-data-alternative): See how WebScraping.AI compares to Bright Data. [Apify Alternative](https://webscraping.ai/apify-alternative): See how WebScraping.AI compares to Apify. [SerpApi Alternative](https://webscraping.ai/serpapi-alternative): See how WebScraping.AI compares to SerpApi. [ScrapingBee vs ScraperAPI](https://webscraping.ai/scrapingbee-vs-scraperapi): Head-to-head comparison of the two APIs. [All comparisons](https://webscraping.ai/alternatives): Browse every WebScraping.AI alternative comparison. ## Try WebScraping.AI as your ScrapingBee alternative Get started with 2,000 free API credits. No credit card required. [Start Free Trial](https://webscraping.ai/auth/sign_up)[View API Documentation](https://webscraping.ai/docs)