The short answer
ScrapingBee offers query options and selector rules around its HTML API. Zyte uses a JSON request to choose HTTP, browser and extraction output. Recheck wait behavior, body decoding and failure detection when moving between them.
| Provider | A good reason to choose it | Important caveat |
|---|---|---|
| ScrapingBee | A team that wants to start with page retrieval and add explicit wait conditions or selector-based extraction. | Rendering, proxy options and extraction features affect credits. Define what counts as a valid page instead of assuming a returned body is usable. |
| Zyte API | A collector that needs to choose between raw HTTP retrieval, rendered content and structured extraction while retaining request-level controls. | httpResponseBody is Base64-encoded. Browser and extraction options change work performed and pricing; they are not equivalent to a plain HTTP request. |
Side-by-side differences
| Requirement | ScrapingBee | Zyte API |
|---|---|---|
| Primary workflow | HTML retrieval with optional extraction rules | HTTP/browser retrieval and extraction in one request schema |
| Returned content | HTML, text/Markdown options and selector extraction | Base64 HTTP body, browser HTML or structured fields |
| Rendering/control | render_js, wait conditions and JavaScript scenarios | Explicit HTTP/browser options and browser actions |
| Job model | Synchronous request interface | Synchronous extract requests |
| Integration boundary | Choose render/proxy/extraction configuration | Decode and validate the selected output field |
| Cost driver | Credits multiplied by selected options | Request tier, HTTP/browser mode and extraction |
Pricing: make the units comparable
| Provider | Billing model | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| ScrapingBee | Credit allowances with configuration-dependent costs | Use the documented cost of the selected render/proxy/extraction mode. The number of HTTP requests alone does not determine credit consumption. |
| Zyte API | Usage pricing by request tier and selected capabilities | Keep HTTP, browser and automatic extraction costs separate. Use the target workload and current pricing rules rather than one headline cost per thousand requests. |
For 1,000 accepted pages, record attempted URLs, render mode, retries and schema failures. A low HTML-request price can require separate parsing; an extraction credit can include work that another vendor bills separately. Do not rank cost until the output passes the same acceptance check.
For a buying decision, calculate total spend divided by accepted outputs at your expected volume. Keep free evaluation access, paid production access, annual commitments and overages separate. We have not measured a cost or speed winner for this pair.
What changes in the integration?
| ScrapingBee | Zyte API | |
|---|---|---|
| Method and URL | GET https://app.scrapingbee.com/api/v1 | POST https://api.zyte.com/v1/extract |
| Authentication | Bearer token or api_key parameter | HTTP Basic auth with API key as username and an empty password |
| Inputs | url, API credentials; optional render_js, extract_rules and wait settings | JSON url plus httpResponseBody, browserHtml or extraction fields |
| Output | Page content, extracted data or a JSON wrapper according to requested options. | Requested response fields; httpResponseBody requires Base64 decoding. |
ScrapingBee: migration check
Translate selector rules and wait conditions, and URL-encode the target correctly. Keep the upstream page status distinct from the extraction service's response status.
Zyte API: migration check
Decode httpResponseBody before parsing. Do not label a missing browserHtml field as an empty page when the request asked only for an HTTP body.
How to test them fairly
- Build an authorized test set spanning static HTML, JavaScript-rendered pages, tables and long articles. Save expected fields and the permitted access conditions.
- Use the same URLs, country, device settings and freshness window. Keep cache hits separate from fresh fetches.
- Mark challenge pages, empty main content and invalid structured fields as failures even if the HTTP status is 200.
- Measure time to a usable document or completed dataset, not only time to job creation. Include polling, retries and client-side parsing.
- Report total billed credits, browser time, proxy charges and actor fees per accepted document. Respect site terms, privacy, robots guidance and access controls; do not test bypassing protected accounts.
Record the plan, request settings, time window and acceptance rules with every run. That makes a later result interpretable when a vendor changes a model, source set or pricing tier.
Prefer a common request format?
POST /api/v1/web-scraping/extractReview the request contract and tell us the coverage you need. Access requires enablement; this endpoint does not execute or bill requests yet.
View endpoint and request accessSources and review dates
Documentation reviewed October 28, 2026. These are integration and plan comparisons, not measured speed or accuracy rankings. Availability, licensing and prices should be confirmed for the chosen plan.
Corrections: email faizank@docsalot.dev with an official source.