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Ozor
Ozor

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5 Free Screenshot APIs for Developers in 2026 (Compared)

#webdev #javascript #api #tools

Need to capture screenshots of URLs in your app? I've been building a screenshot API as part of a developer toolkit, and I've tested most of the existing options. Here's what I found.

Why Developers Need Screenshot APIs

Automated screenshots come up constantly in real projects:

  • OG image generation for link previews
  • Visual regression testing
  • PDF/report generation from web pages
  • Monitoring website changes
  • Building portfolio tools that preview websites

Most developers reach for Puppeteer first. Then they realize hosting headless Chrome costs money and is a pain to maintain.

The Options

1. Roll Your Own with Puppeteer

Cost: Free to build, ~$5-20/mo to host (Chromium is RAM-hungry)

const puppeteer = require('puppeteer');
const browser = await puppeteer.launch();
const page = await browser.newPage();
await page.goto('https://example.com');
await page.screenshot({ path: 'screenshot.png' });
await browser.close();
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Pros: Full control, no rate limits
Cons: Maintenance burden, hosting costs, cold starts, memory leaks

2. ScreenshotOne

Cost: $19/mo for 10,000 screenshots
Pros: Reliable, good API
Cons: Not free, requires card signup

3. URLbox

Cost: $19/mo
Pros: Fast, lots of options
Cons: Same price point as ScreenshotOne

4. apiflash

Cost: Free tier (100 screenshots/mo), paid plans from $9/mo
Pros: Free tier available
Cons: 100 is not a lot for testing

5. Robocular API Gateway (the one I built)

Cost: Free for 50 requests/day (no signup), $0.005/request after that

# No API key needed for first 50 requests
curl "https://agent-gateway-kappa.vercel.app/v1/agent-screenshot/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com" \
  --output screenshot.png
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Or in JavaScript:

const url = 'https://example.com';
const endpoint = `https://agent-gateway-kappa.vercel.app/v1/agent-screenshot/api/screenshot?url=${encodeURIComponent(url)}`;
const response = await fetch(endpoint);
const buffer = await response.arrayBuffer();
// buffer contains the PNG screenshot
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Pros:

  • Zero friction — no signup, no credit card for first 50 requests
  • Part of a larger API gateway with 40+ tools (crypto prices, DNS, geo, code execution, etc.)
  • Pay-per-request with USDC on Base — no subscription needed
  • Returns full-page screenshots by default

Cons:

  • Crypto payment only right now (credit card support coming)
  • Newer service, less proven track record

Quick Comparison

Service Free Tier Starting Price Card Signup
Puppeteer DIY Free ~$5/mo hosting N/A
ScreenshotOne 0 $19/mo Required
URLbox 0 $19/mo Required
apiflash 100/mo $9/mo Required
Robocular Gateway 50/day $0.005/req Not required

Which One Should You Use?

  • Heavy production use: ScreenshotOne or URLbox — they're reliable and battle-tested
  • Prototyping / low volume: Robocular Gateway (zero friction to start)
  • Full control: Roll your own Puppeteer (but budget for the ops burden)
  • Budget: apiflash's free tier if 100/mo is enough, otherwise Robocular's pay-per-use

Try It Now

No signup. No credit card. 50 free requests per day:

curl "https://agent-gateway-kappa.vercel.app/v1/agent-screenshot/api/screenshot?url=https://news.ycombinator.com&viewport=desktop" \
  --output hn-screenshot.png && open hn-screenshot.png
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The gateway also exposes:

  • Crypto price feeds (/v1/crypto-feeds/api/prices)
  • DNS lookup (/v1/agent-dns/api/all/example.com)
  • IP geolocation (/v1/agent-geo/geo/ip)
  • Web scraping (/v1/agent-scraper/api/scrape)
  • Code execution (/v1/agent-coderunner/api/run/python)

Check out the full API catalog if you need more than screenshots.

Have a better option I missed? Drop it in the comments.

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