Apify Alternatives — Simpler Web Scraping APIs Without the Complexity

Apify Alternatives: Simpler Web Scraping APIs Without the Complexity

If you've spent time evaluating web scraping tools, you've likely run into Apify. It's a powerful platform — 1,500+ pre-built Actors, a massive community, and $25M+ in funding. But power comes with trade-offs. Complex compute-unit pricing, a steep learning curve, and community-maintained Actors of inconsistent quality make Apify overkill when all you need is a clean, reliable scraping API.

This guide walks through the best Apify alternatives for developers who want to extract data without the overhead. Whether you need a simple REST endpoint, headless browser support, or structured data extraction, there's a simpler option on this list.

For more on choosing the right tool, see /blog/how-to-choose-a-scraping-api.

---

Key Takeaways

• Apify's complexity — compute-unit pricing, Actor management, and platform overhead — is unnecessary for most scraping use cases.
• The best Apify alternatives focus on API simplicity: send a URL, get structured data back.
• ScrapeForge (by SearchHive) offers the most developer-friendly experience with predictable per-request pricing and a generous free tier.
• Some alternatives (Scrapy, Octoparse) are better suited for self-hosted or non-developer workflows respectively.
• If you need AI-powered extraction, Diffbot and SearchHive's DeepDive are the standouts.
• Always check the free tier before committing — several tools here give you meaningful usage without a credit card.

---

1. ScrapeForge (by SearchHive) — The Simplest Apify Alternative

ScrapeForge is SearchHive's dedicated web scraping API, and it's built around one idea: send a URL, get clean data. No Actors to configure, no compute-unit math, no platform lock-in.

ScrapeForge handles JavaScript rendering, proxy rotation, and CAPTCHA solving out of the box. You call a REST endpoint and receive structured JSON. That's it.

Why it's simpler than Apify:

• Predictable pricing — pay per request, not per compute unit. No surprises on your invoice.
• No credit card required for the free tier — start scraping immediately.
• Generous free tier — enough requests to prototype and test before committing.
• Unified API — ScrapeForge is part of the SearchHive suite alongside SwiftSearch (search API) and DeepDive (structured extraction), so one API key covers multiple data needs.

Python Example: Scraping a Product Page

import requests

API_KEY = "your_searchhive_api_key"
url = "https://example.com/product/12345"

response = requests.get(
    "https://api.searchhive.io/scrape",
    headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {API_KEY}"},
    params={
        "url": url,
        "format": "json",
        "render_js": True
    }
)

data = response.json()
print(data["title"])
print(data["price"])
print(data["description"])

Python Example: Batch Scraping

import requests

API_KEY = "your_searchhive_api_key"
urls = [
    "https://example.com/product/1",
    "https://example.com/product/2",
    "https://example.com/product/3",
]

response = requests.post(
    "https://api.searchhive.io/scrape/batch",
    headers={
        "Authorization": f"Bearer {API_KEY}",
        "Content-Type": "application/json"
    },
    json={"urls": urls, "format": "json"}
)

results = response.json()
for item in results:
    print(f"{item['url']}: {item['title']}")

Best for: Developers who want a clean API-first experience without platform complexity. /compare/apify-vs-scrapeforge

---

2. ScrapingAnt — Lightweight Proxy-Based Scraping

ScrapingAnt offers a straightforward scraping API with built-in proxy rotation and JavaScript rendering. It's a solid Apify alternative if you want minimal setup.

Strengths:

• Simple REST API — one endpoint, multiple parameters.
• headless browser support via Puppeteer-based rendering.
• Pay-as-you-go pricing starting at free.

Weaknesses:

• Limited structured data extraction — you get raw HTML unless you parse it yourself.
• Smaller community and fewer integrations than larger platforms.

Best for: Quick HTML scraping with proxy support. /compare/apify-vs-scrapingant

---

3. Crawlbase — Built for Large-Scale Crawling

Crawlbase (formerly ProxyCrawl) focuses on crawling at scale. Their API handles proxies, retries, andCAPTCHAs automatically, making it one of the more battle-tested Apify alternatives for high-volume use cases.

Strengths:

• Dedicated crawling API with automatic data-center and residential proxy rotation.
• Leads API for scraping search engine results.
• Structured data APIs for specific sites (Google, Amazon).

Weaknesses:

• Pricing can get expensive at scale — request-based but with premium tiers.
• Documentation is thorough but not as developer-friendly as newer tools.

Best for: Teams that need to crawl thousands or millions of pages reliably.

---

4. ScraperAPI — The OG Proxy Scraping API

ScraperAPI has been around since 2017 and focuses on one thing: rotating proxies with automatic retry logic. Send any URL, and it handles the rest.

Strengths:

• Dead-simple API — scraperapi.com scrape?url=...
• Handles proxies, CAPTCHAs, and JavaScript rendering.
• Well-documented with SDKs for Python, Node.js, Ruby, and more.

Weaknesses:

• Returns raw HTML — no built-in structured extraction.
• Rendering requests cost 5x more than standard requests.
• Pricing tiers jump significantly at higher volumes.

Best for: Developers who want raw HTML from JavaScript-heavy sites with minimal code. /compare/apify-vs-scraperapi

---

5. ZenRows — Modern API with Anti-Bot Bypass

ZenRows is a newer entrant that positions itself as a scraping API with advanced anti-bot bypass capabilities. It handles DataDome, Cloudflare, PerimeterX, and other bot-protection systems.

Strengths:

• Strong anti-bot bypass — one of the best for protected sites.
• Clean REST API with optional scraping parameters.
• Python, Node.js, and PHP SDKs.

Weaknesses:

• Anti-bot features come at a premium price.
• Free tier is limited (1,000 API credits).
• Structured extraction is limited compared to AI-powered tools.

Best for: Scraping sites with aggressive bot protection like Cloudflare or Akamai. /compare/apify-vs-zenrows

---

6. Octoparse — No-Code Desktop Scraper

Octoparse takes a completely different approach from the API-based Apify alternatives on this list. It's a visual, no-code scraping tool with a desktop application and cloud execution.

Strengths:

• Point-and-click workflow builder — no coding required.
• Can handle pagination, login, and dynamic content visually.
• Cloud scheduling for automated runs.

Weaknesses:

• Desktop application required — not ideal for server or CI/CD workflows.
• Pricing is task-based, which can be confusing.
• Not developer-friendly if you want programmatic access.

Best for: Non-technical users, analysts, and small teams who need scraping without writing code.

---

7. Scrapy + Scrapy-Playwright — The Open-Source Powerhouse

Scrapy is Python's most popular web scraping framework. Combined with Scrapy-Playwright for JavaScript rendering, it becomes a fully capable Apify alternative — with one major difference: you host and maintain everything yourself.

Strengths:

• Completely free and open-source (BSD license).
• Full control over request scheduling, pipelines, and data storage.
• Massive ecosystem of middleware and extensions.
• Scrapy-Playwright adds headless browser support seamlessly.

Weaknesses:

• Requires significant Python expertise.
• You manage proxies, CAPTCHA solving, and infrastructure yourself.
• No hosted cloud execution — you need to set up your own.
• Steeper time-to-first-scrape than API solutions.

Best for: Teams with Python expertise who need full control and don't want vendor lock-in. See /blog/scrapy-vs-hosted-scraping-apis.

---

8. Diffbot — AI-Powered Structured Extraction

Diffbot uses computer vision and NLP to automatically extract structured data from any web page. Instead of writing selectors, you describe what you want, and Diffbot figures it out.

Strengths:

• Automatically identifies articles, products, discussions, and other page types.
• Returns clean, normalized JSON without CSS selectors.
• Knowledge Graph for entity extraction across pages.
• Enterprise-grade with strong accuracy.

Weaknesses:

• Expensive — enterprise pricing starts high.
• Extraction quality varies on non-standard page layouts.
• Less flexible for custom scraping logic than code-based tools.

Best for: Teams that need structured data extraction at scale without writing parsers. SearchHive's DeepDive product offers similar AI extraction with simpler pricing — /compare/diffbot-vs-deepdive.

---

Comparison Table: Apify Alternatives at a Glance

---

Which Apify Alternative Should You Choose?

The right choice depends on what's actually slowing you down with Apify:

If compute-unit pricing is the problem: ScrapeForge, ScraperAPI, and ZenRows all use straightforward per-request pricing. You know exactly what each scrape costs before you run it. ScrapeForge stands out here because it doesn't require a credit card to start — you can test thoroughly before spending anything.

If the Actor ecosystem is the problem: You probably don't need 1,500 pre-built tools. Most scraping tasks come down to: fetch a URL, render JavaScript, extract data. ScrapeForge, ScrapingAnt, and ScraperAPI all handle this in a single API call.

If you need full control: Scrapy with Scrapy-Playwright is unbeatable for teams willing to manage their own infrastructure. Total control, zero vendor lock-in, and free forever.

If you need no-code scraping: Octoparse is the only real option here. It's visual, it works, and it's designed for people who don't write code.

If AI extraction matters: Diffbot leads in this category, but SearchHive's DeepDive is a strong contender with more accessible pricing and the same API-key access as ScrapeForge and SwiftSearch.

Our Recommendation

For most developers evaluating Apify alternatives, ScrapeForge hits the sweet spot: simple API, predictable pricing, no credit card to start, and enough power for the vast majority of scraping tasks. Pair it with SwiftSearch for search data and DeepDive for AI extraction, and you've got a complete data stack with one integration.

Ready to scrape without the complexity? Get started with SearchHive's free tier — no credit card required. Sign up, grab your API key, and make your first request in under five minutes.