All articles

5 Best Web Scraping APIs in 2026 (Fast, Scalable & Easy to Use)

Published Date Jan 23, 2026
Read 7 min
5 Best Web Scraping APIs in 2026 (Fast, Scalable & Easy to Use)

TL;DR

  • Scrapingdog: 1,000 free credits; $0.0002 per request.

  • Performance: 100% success on Amazon, Idealista, Glassdoor in 2.6–5.6s.

  • Other APIs: ScraperAPI slower (22–40s), ZenRows failed two sites, ScrapingAnt & ScrapingBee slower.

  • Conclusion: Scrapingdog leads in speed, reliability, and cost.

  • Extras: Python benchmark script included; clear docs and 24/7 support.

When it comes to web scraping, choosing the right Web Scraping API can make all the difference, especially when dealing with dynamic content, anti-bot systems, or large-scale data extraction. In this article, we put five popular web scraping APIs to the test across various real-world websites.

From performance and reliability to ease of use and pricing, we compare how each API handles common scraping challenges so you can pick the one that fits your project best.

What are the best web scraping APIs to try in 2026

Below is a quick comparison of the top web scraping APIs based on their performance, pricing, and success rate.

Provider

Avg Response Time*

Starting Price subscriptions

Success Rate (Key Sites)

Best For

Scrapingdog

4.56s

$40 / month

100% (Amazon, Idealista, Glassdoor)

High-scale scraping, stability, price-performance

ScraperAPI

27.80s

$49 / month

100% (All tested sites)

Reliability over speed

ZenRows

6.58s (Amazon only)

$69/month

Failed on 2/3 sites

JS-heavy or experimental scraping

ScrapingAnt

8.80s

$19/month

Partial (Glassdoor failed)

Budget-friendly scraping

ScrapingBee

4.85s

$49/month

Partial (Idealista & Glassdoor failed)

Developer-friendly APIs

Criteria

We are going to judge each API based on:

  • Success Rate

  • Speed

  • Pricing

  • Developer friendly

  • Scalability

We will test each API on these target websites.

1 IhhQiZoMvEFb6Jez8cdfWg

We are going to use this Python code to test different APIs. The websites that are selected can easily be scraped without using JS rendering or premium proxies, so we won’t be using any API's JS rendering feature.

1import requests
2import time
3import random
4import urllib.parse
5 
6# List of search terms
7amazon_urls = ["https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CVSJ8YBX/","https://www.amazon.es/s?k=monitores","https://www.amazon.com.br/dp/B0DGXR6FRP/","https://www.amazon.in/s?k=air+conditioner","https://www.amazon.es/s?k=rigoberta+bandini"]
8 
9idealista_urls = ["https://www.idealista.com/inmueble/103157156/","https://www.idealista.com/venta-viviendas/barcelona/sarria-sant-gervasi/sant-gervasi-galvany/","https://www.idealista.com/venta-viviendas/torrelavega/inmobiliaria-barreda/","https://www.idealista.com/venta-viviendas/segovia-segovia/","https://www.idealista.com/venta-viviendas/torrelavega/inmobiliaria-barreda/"]
10 
11glassdoor_urls = ["https://www.glassdoor.com/Job/new-york-python-jobs-SRCH_IL.0%2C8_IC1132348_KO9%2C15.htm?clickSource=searchBox","https://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Glassdoor-Reviews-E100431.htm","https://www.glassdoor.com.au/Salary/Reserve-Bank-of-Australia-Salaries-E8214.htm","https://www.glassdoor.com/Job/texas-us-data-engineer-jobs-SRCH_IL.0%2C8_IS1347_KO9%2C22.htm?includeNoSalaryJobs=true","https://www.glassdoor.co.in/Overview/Working-at-Eni-Spa-EI_IE3164.11,18.htm"]
12 
13# Replace with your actual API endpoint
14# Make sure it includes {url} where the search term should be inserted
15base_url = "https://api.example.com/scrape"
16 
17total_requests = 10
18success_count = 0
19total_time = 0
20 
21for i in range(total_requests):
22    try:
23        search_term = random.choice(amazon_urls)
24 
25        params = {
26        "api_key": "your-api-key",
27        "dynamic":"false",
28        "url": search_term
29        }
30 
31        # url = base_url.format(query=search_term)
32 
33        start_time = time.time()
34        response = requests.get(base_url,params=params)
35        end_time = time.time()
36 
37        request_time = end_time - start_time
38        total_time += request_time
39 
40        if response.status_code == 200:
41            success_count += 1
42        print(f"Request {i+1}: '{search_term}' took {request_time:.2f}s | Status: {response.status_code}")
43 
44    except Exception as e:
45        print(f"Request {i+1} with '{search_term}' failed due to: {str(e)}")
46 
47# Final Stats
48average_time = total_time / total_requests
49success_rate = (success_count / total_requests) * 100
50 
51print(f"\n🔍 Total Requests: {total_requests}")
52print(f"✅ Successful: {success_count}")
53print(f"⏱️ Average Time: {average_time:.2f} seconds")
54print(f"📊 Success Rate: {success_rate:.2f}%")

Scrapingdog

Scrapingdog offers powerful Web Scraping APIs that make it easy to extract data from almost any website.

1 xUAyW2dy1Nb9lIZ5GUr3BA

Details

  • Once you sign up, you get 1000 free credits for testing.

  • Per scrape cost starts from $0.0002 and drops below $0.000063 with a higher volume.

  • Scrapingdog provides clear documentation, and any developer can integrate the API very easily into their working environment. New video tutorials and blogs are regularly published to support you along the way.

  • Customer support is available 24*7 to help you resolve any query related to the services offered.

Testing the API with Amazon

1 bAN7V5ao mSf0odJHRzCjQ

Testing the API with Idealista

1 vag9yUcuXo6RHAjwW87qOw

Testing the API with Glassdoor

1 8X4EgqdEUHVEqAJgC1vUCg

Test Summary

  • The average response time while scraping Amazon is 5.48 seconds, and the success rate was 100%.

  • The response time for Idealista was 2.64 seconds, and for Glassdoor, it was 5.57 seconds, with a 100% success rate in both cases.

ScraperAPI

ScraperAPI is one of the oldest players in this industry and provides robust solutions for scraping websites.

1 gLk6NiK5H4yiEoWHrA2U0A

Details

  • ScraperAPI provides 5000 free credits on signup.

  • Per scrape cost starts from $0.00049 and drops below $0.000095 with a higher volume.

  • Documentation is very clear and can be easily integrated.

  • Support is available through email only.

Testing the API with Amazon

1 MuUZX2oplc7VmWgMjs1BYA

Testing the API with Idealista

1 FNth94p83bVLnSTArN66Wg

Testing the API with Glassdoor

1 mQL1PTdD9UVAnXbo7ZugeQ

Test Summary

  • The average response time while scraping Amazon is 40.65 seconds, which is too high, and the success rate was 100%.

  • The response time for Idealista was 22.28 seconds, and for Glassdoor, it was 20.48 seconds, with a 100% success rate in both cases.

Know Why: Scrapingdog is A Better Alternative To ScarperAPI

Zenrows

Zenrows is another comprehensive web scraping solution that bypasses common scraping barriers.

1 KB3mM95 mH1g IlbgUMpwg

Details

  • They provide 100 credits on signup.

  • Per scrape cost starts from $0.000276 and drops below $0.0000832 with a higher volume.

  • While the documentation isn’t very clear, their dashboard lets you generate ready-to-use code snippets that can be easily integrated into your local environment.

  • Support is available through email only.

Testing the API with Amazon

1 GGvICaZRlkRiojb5jeK1GQ

Testing the API with Idealista

1 l9 Si gVSEjfKeOR7e4LPA

Testing the API with Glassdoor

1 DDhZJ J9ttN2Ki8 A8lKOg

Test Summary

  • The average response time while scraping Amazon is 6.58 seconds, and the success rate was 20%.

  • The response time for both Idealista and Glassdoor was 0 seconds and 0% success rate.

Read More: Zenrows vs Scrapingbee vs Scrapingdog: Which One To Choose & Why

ScrapingAnt

1 8MW86e OSflGdC96Wj7BWw

Details

  • It provides 10000 API credits on signup.

  • Per scrape cost starts from $0.00019 and drops below $0.000083 with a higher volume.

  • Documentation is clear, and the API can be easily integrated.

  • Support is available through chat and email.

Testing the API with Amazon

1 bjdhFailMkGghyq2aer1SA

Testing the API with Idealista

1 kV2fAGf70G8bsAWPuY76g

Testing the API with Glassdoor

1 0GpaXEqRsdNKbJ0WCI1K7g

Test Summary

  • The average response time while scraping Amazon is 5.05 seconds, and the success rate was 100%.

  • The response time for Idealista was 9.03 seconds with a success rate of 100%.

  • For Glassdoor, it was 12.32 seconds, with a 0% success rate.

Scrapingbee

1 K5 WdYBmoyaLo81b1H C2A

Details

  • They also provide 1000 free credits on signup.

  • Per scrape cost starts from $0.000196 and drops below $0.000075 with a higher volume.

  • Documentation is very clear and developer-friendly.

  • Support is only available through email.

Testing the API with Amazon

1 6ApHggmZkfqI2eq8TsHNJg

Testing the API with Idealista

1 0IOE3 cH wJLEZc3VFKIDQ

Testing the API with Glassdoor

1 9igjl 82OM3azEt clNqew

Test Summary

  • The average response time while scraping Amazon is 4.96 seconds, and the success rate was 100%.

  • The response time for Idealista was 4.59 seconds with a success rate of 30%.

  • For Glassdoor, it was 4.99 seconds, with a 0% success rate.

Speed Comparison

1 iuydt4 4uCJ7ZuFYq6oFIw

Let’s visualize this data based on response time for each website.

1 pABkb2mpJ6 FezI9d9 JNg
1 E CG0mTrkFUwacNsq1HryQ
1 oh8sHenPwqRop22OFsw3Vw

  • Amazon — ScraperAPI is significantly slower than the others.

  • Idealista — ZenRows failed (0s due to error), while Scrapingdog was the fastest successful response.

  • Glassdoor — Again, ZenRows and ScrapingAnt failed; Scrapingdog remained consistent.

Price Comparison

1 Gs9iu5nSuD1qCiBy9jNNYA

  • Scrapingdog has the lowest possible price per 1K ($0.063) at scale.

  • ScraperAPI is the most expensive at the entry level.

  • ScrapingAnt offers a strong entry-level price and matches ZenRows at scale.

  • ScrapingBee has a competitive balance between starting and scaled pricing.

1 2x9IE7q8cQxkUa00OqLuDQ

Conclusion

Since each of the APIs mentioned here offers a free plan, you can test each one out and see what better fits your needs. I have concluded my results below ⬇️

  • Best Overall Performance:
    Scrapingdog consistently delivered fast response times and 100% success rates across all test sites — Amazon, Idealista, and Glassdoor.

  • Most Cost-Efficient:
    Scrapingdog also offers the lowest price per 1K calls at scale ($0.063), making it ideal for both small and high-volume scraping needs.

  • Stability Over Hype:
    While other APIs like ScrapingBee and ScraperAPI had decent results, they either failed on tougher targets or came with significantly higher costs. ZenRows, despite promising features, failed on 2 out of 3 tests.

FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

1. What are the top web scraping APIs and how do they differ?

The top APIs include Scrapingdog, ScraperAPI, ZenRows, ScrapingAnt, and ScrapingBee. They differ in speed, reliability, and pricing.

2. Can I try web scraping APIs for free before paying?

Yes, all of them offer free credits or trial plans so you can test features before subscribing.

3. What's the best web scraping API for beginners?

For beginners, Scrapingdog, ScrapingBee, and ZenRows are easy to use and well-documented, making them ideal for first-time users.

4. What should I consider when choosing a web scraping API?

Look for speed, reliability, ease of use, pricing, and good support to fit your project needs. And that’s what we have tested in this article. The best web scraping API will still depend on your specific use case.

Additional Resources

Here are some more listicle articles you can find interesting if comparing other tools with Scrapingdog.

Try Scrapingdog for Free!

Get 200 free credits to spin the API. No credit card required!

Start Your Free Trial Read Documentation