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It's a split decision.
Octoparse is a no-code scraping platform with templates, a desktop app and local or managed cloud runs. ScrapingBee is a hosted API for teams that want to send requests from their code and leave proxy rotation and browser rendering to the service. Choose Octoparse for visual task building and local execution; choose ScrapingBee for API-driven pipelines, CLI workflows and published concurrency tiers. Compare usage carefully: their task, process and credit limits measure different things.
01Side by side
| Octoparse | ScrapingBee | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Tasks, cloud processes and add-ons; annual equivalents listed | Monthly API-credit plans; credits expire monthly |
| Free tier | 10 tasks, 50,000 export rows monthly | 1,000 free API credits; no card required |
| API and SDKs | REST Search APIs, MCP and Data Export API | Hosted scraping API; SDK languages not listed |
| CLI and docs | Desktop app and AI task builder; no CLI named | CLI workflows and MCP Server |
| Integrations | Sheets, Drive, Dropbox, S3, Zapier, databases, AI tools | AI coding tools, Make, n8n, Zapier, MCP agents |
| Deployment model | Run locally or on Octoparse managed cloud | Hosted API manages browsers and proxies |
| Platforms | Web, desktop app and cloud | Web |
| Limits and scaling | Professional: up to 20 concurrent cloud processes | Enterprise 120: 900 concurrent requests |
Octoparse Choose Octoparse if
- Choose Octoparse if you want to build tasks visually without coding.
- Choose Octoparse if local runs or managed cloud execution fit your workflow.
- Choose Octoparse if templates and data-export integrations are useful.
ScrapingBee Choose ScrapingBee if
- Choose ScrapingBee if your application should call a scraping API.
- Choose ScrapingBee if you need headless Chrome rendering and proxy rotation.
- Choose ScrapingBee if CLI and MCP workflows fit your AI tooling.
02Pricing at real usage
Octoparse's free plan includes 10 tasks, one device and user, two concurrent local runs, and 50,000 data-export rows per month. Standard is listed at $69 per month on annual billing and includes up to three concurrent cloud processes; Professional is $249 per month on annual billing and includes up to 20. The pricing page says annual billing saves 16%, but doesn't list monthly-billing prices. Residential proxies cost $3 per GB, with other paid add-ons available.
ScrapingBee has 1,000 free API credits, then Hobby costs $19 per month for 75,000 credits and 25 concurrent requests. Higher tiers range up to Enterprise 120 at $5,799 per month for 120 million credits and 900 concurrent requests. JavaScript rendering costs five credits per successful request; premium proxies use 10 or 25 depending on rendering. Credits expire monthly without rollover, and prices exclude VAT.
03API, SDKs and integration
Octoparse provides a visual route into scraping: start with a template, use its AI assistant, or build in the desktop app with Auto-detect and drag-and-drop tools. The homepage also lists Octoparse Search APIs over REST and MCP. Standard includes a Data Export API. Named integrations include Google Sheets, Google Drive, Dropbox, S3, Zapier, databases and AI tools. The vendor doesn't list SDK languages on its homepage, so teams planning a typed client should check the API documentation before choosing a language-specific integration.
ScrapingBee centers on a hosted scraping API. Its documented feature set includes headless Chrome rendering, selector waits, browser events, custom scenarios and structured JSON or Markdown extraction. A CLI supports workflows with ChatGPT, Claude, Codex, Cursor, Claude Code and Gemini; the homepage also lists MCP, Make, n8n and Zapier. SDK languages aren't listed there. Check the API docs for request parameters and credit costs, then test extraction success for target sites before estimating workload.
04Open source, self-hosting and lock-in
Neither vendor states an open-source licence or offers a self-hosted server in the product details. Octoparse does let users run scrapers locally on a computer, as well as on its managed cloud; local execution is not the same as hosting the Octoparse platform yourself. Octoparse lists exports and connections including Sheets, Drive, Dropbox, S3 and databases, and Standard includes unlimited data export and a Data Export API.
ScrapingBee is a hosted API that manages browser rendering and proxies. Its homepage claims zero data retention, and its extraction features return structured JSON or Markdown. It doesn't list a comparable data-export product. For either service, migration effort depends on how much logic sits in templates, extraction rules and downstream workflows. Keep outputs in your own storage and treat requests, parsing rules and integrations as code you may need to replace.
Questions people ask
Which is cheaper for a small project?
Octoparse has a free plan with 10 tasks and 50,000 monthly export rows; ScrapingBee offers 1,000 free API credits, then starts at $19 per month. They meter different things, so estimate task runs and export needs for Octoparse, or successful requests and rendering or proxy credit costs for ScrapingBee.
Can both scrape JavaScript-heavy websites?
Yes. Octoparse says it can scrape dynamic sites, navigate pages, fill forms and authenticate. ScrapingBee offers JavaScript rendering in headless Chrome, with selector waits, browser events and custom scenarios. The right choice depends on whether you want to build a visual task or send API requests.
Does Octoparse offer an API?
Octoparse lists Search APIs over REST and MCP, and its Standard plan includes a Data Export API. ScrapingBee's core product is a hosted scraping API. Check each vendor's API documentation for the endpoints and response formats your application needs.
Can I self-host either product?
Neither vendor states that its scraping platform can be self-hosted. Octoparse supports running scrapers locally on your computer, alongside managed cloud runs; that is local execution, not a self-hosted server. ScrapingBee is described as a hosted API.