Apify Alternative
Switch from Apify to AlterLab
One endpoint, zero configuration. No Actors to choose from, no platform lock-in.
0%
Cheaper than Apify
Based on average usage across all tiers
One API endpoint vs 19,000+ Actors
No monthly subscriptions
Credits never expire
No platform lock-in or vendor SDK
Built-in anti-bot bypass across all tiers
Start with $10 instead of $49/month
Pricing Comparison
Same features. Dramatically different pricing.
Winner
AlterLab
Simple Scrape
$0.0002
JS Rendering—
$0.004
Apify
Simple Scrape
$0.0035
+94% more expensive
JS Rendering—
$0.0035
Same price
Annual cost at 1 million requests/year
AlterLab
$200
vs
Apify
$3,500+
Save $3,300+ annually
Feature-by-Feature
Complete Feature Comparison
See exactly how AlterLab compares to Apify across all key features
Developer Experience
| Feature | AlterLab Winner | Apify |
|---|---|---|
Getting started Time to first scrape | 2 minutes (POST a URL) | 15+ minutes (find Actor, configure, run) |
API complexity Integration approach | 1 REST endpoint | 19,000+ Actors with different configs |
SDK dependency Required client libraries | Any HTTP client (curl, fetch, requests) | Apify SDK required for full features |
Vendor lock-in Can you switch easily | Standard REST API | Actor ecosystem lock-in |
Pricing & Billing
| Feature | AlterLab Winner | Apify |
|---|---|---|
Pricing model How you pay | Pay-as-you-go per request | Subscription + compute units |
Minimum commitment Smallest purchase | $10 one-time | $49/month |
Credits expire Do unused credits expire | Never | Monthly |
Free tier Free credits to start | 5,000 requests | $5 free compute (~200 scrapes) |
Anti-Bot & Performance
| Feature | AlterLab Winner | Apify |
|---|---|---|
Anti-bot bypass Built-in protection bypass | 5 intelligent tiers (auto-escalation) | Depends on which Actor you pick |
CAPTCHA solving Automatic CAPTCHA resolution | Built-in ($0.02/solve) | Varies by Actor |
Proxy rotation Residential proxy management | Built-in, automatic | Built-in with Proxy Manager |
JavaScript rendering Full browser automation | Yes | Yes |
Features
| Feature | AlterLab Winner | Apify |
|---|---|---|
Marketplace / Actors Pre-built scraping tools | No | 19,000+ Actors |
Scheduling Recurring scrape jobs | Coming soon | Built-in scheduler |
PDF extraction Extract text from PDFs | Yes | No |
OCR Extract text from images | Yes | No |
Interactive Calculator
Calculate Your Savings
See exactly how much you'll save by switching to AlterLab
100K
Best Price
AlterLab
$20.00
$0.0002 per request
Apify
$350.00
$0.0035 per request
Your Monthly Savings
$0.00
Save 94% every month with AlterLab
That's $0.00 saved annually
Start Saving Today
No credit card
5,000 free requests
2-min setup
Migration Time: 10 minutes
Switch from Apify in 10 minutes
Simple easy migration process. No downtime, no complex setup.
Migration Steps
1
Create AlterLab account
Sign up and get 5,000 free requests. No credit card required.
2
Identify your use case
Most Apify users need web scraping — AlterLab covers that with one endpoint. If you use a specific Actor for a niche task, check if our API supports it.
3
Replace Apify calls
Swap out the Apify SDK for a simple HTTP request.
4
Test and deploy
Run test requests to verify results, then deploy. No SDK dependencies to manage.
Code Migration Example
Before (Apify)
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';
const client = new ApifyClient({ token: 'YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN' });
// Find the right Actor, read its docs, configure inputs...
const run = await client.actor('apify/web-scraper').call({
startUrls: [{ url: 'https://example.com' }],
pageFunction: async function pageFunction(context) {
return { title: document.title };
}
});
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();After (AlterLab)
// AlterLab — one endpoint, zero configuration
const response = await fetch('https://api.alterlab.io/v1/scrape', {
method: 'POST',
headers: {
'X-API-Key': 'YOUR_ALTERLAB_KEY',
'Content-Type': 'application/json'
},
body: JSON.stringify({
url: 'https://example.com',
render_js: true
})
});
const data = await response.json();Compatibility Notes
- •AlterLab replaces Apify's web scraping Actors with a single API endpoint
- •No SDK needed — any HTTP client works (curl, fetch, requests, etc.)
- •Actor-specific features (scheduling, storage) have different solutions in AlterLab
- •For complex workflows, use AlterLab's batch API for parallel requests
Ready to make the switch?
Start with 5,000 free requests. No credit card required.
Frequently Asked Questions
Your first scrape.
Sixty seconds.
$1 free credit. No credit card. No SDK.
Just a POST request.
terminal
curl -X POST https://api.alterlab.io/v1/scrape \
-H "X-API-Key: YOUR_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"url": "https://example.com", "formats": ["markdown"]}'
No credit card required · Up to 5,000 free scrapes · Credits never expire