When Zyte API fits
A collector that needs to choose between raw HTTP retrieval, rendered content and structured extraction while retaining request-level controls.
Check before integrating
httpResponseBody is Base64-encoded. Browser and extraction options change work performed and pricing; they are not equivalent to a plain HTTP request.
Provider endpoint reference
This is Zyte API's documented interface. Its credentials and response format are separate from an All Them APIs account.
POST https://api.zyte.com/v1/extract
Authentication: HTTP Basic auth with API key as username and an empty password
Inputs: JSON url plus httpResponseBody, browserHtml or extraction fields
Output: Requested response fields; httpResponseBody requires Base64 decoding.| Capability | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Primary workflow | HTTP/browser retrieval and extraction in one request schema |
| Returned content | Base64 HTTP body, browser HTML or structured fields |
| Rendering/control | Explicit HTTP/browser options and browser actions |
| Job model | Synchronous extract requests |
| Integration boundary | Decode and validate the selected output field |
| Cost driver | Request tier, HTTP/browser mode and extraction |
Pricing model and production access
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.
Migration notes
Decode httpResponseBody before parsing. Do not label a missing browserHtml field as an empty page when the request asked only for an HTTP body.
Keep provider-specific authentication and response mapping inside an adapter. Preserve source timestamps and identifiers so changing a provider does not silently change the meaning of stored records.
Zyte API alternatives
| Alternative | When to evaluate it |
|---|---|
| Zyte API vs Firecrawl | An agent or retrieval pipeline that wants main-content documents without building a separate HTML-to-Markdown stage. |
| Zyte API vs Bright Data | An authorized retrieval workload needing an explicit zone configuration and a clear boundary between page access and structured platform-specific extraction. |
| Zyte API vs ScrapingBee | A team that wants to start with page retrieval and add explicit wait conditions or selector-based extraction. |
| Zyte API vs ScraperAPI | An existing HTTP collection pipeline that wants managed page retrieval while retaining its own parsing and validation. |
| Zyte API vs Apify | A recurring or site-specific collection job that benefits from an existing Actor or a custom hosted scraper. |
A fair evaluation
- 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.
A common integration contract
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.