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It's a split decision.
Pick YepAPI when one key for SEO/SERP, scraping, social and commerce data, and AI models is more useful than a web-focused stack, and you prefer per-call billing with no monthly minimum. Pick Firecrawl when your workload centers on web search, scraping, page interaction and document parsing, and you want a free monthly allowance, language SDKs, CLI or open-source code. Firecrawl publishes concurrency tiers; YepAPI says it has no rate limits.
01Side by side
| YepAPI | Firecrawl | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Per-call usage billing; no monthly fees or minimums | Monthly or annual credit plans; paid add-on credits |
| Free tier | $5 signup credit; no recurring free plan | 1,000 credits monthly; 2 concurrent requests |
| Open source and license | Open-source status not stated by vendor | Open source; license name not specified |
| API and SDKs | Shared API key; consistent JSON responses | API with Python and Node.js integrations |
| CLI and docs | API docs and llms.txt for agents | CLI, docs, Python and Node.js examples |
| Integrations | Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, MCP and agent skills | OpenAI, Claude, Cursor, Windsurf and MCP clients |
| Limits and scaling | No rate limits; failed calls are not charged | Tiered concurrency; free tier has low rate limits |
| Platforms | Web | Web |
YepAPI Choose YepAPI if
- Choose YepAPI if one API key should cover SEO, scraping, social data and AI models.
- Choose YepAPI if you prefer per-call charges over monthly credit plans.
- Choose YepAPI if you need its listed SEO, SERP, social or e-commerce endpoints.
Firecrawl Choose Firecrawl if
- Choose Firecrawl if your app needs web search, scraping and page interaction.
- Choose Firecrawl if you want a free monthly credit allowance and published concurrency tiers.
- Choose Firecrawl if its open-source code, CLI or Python and Node.js integrations fit your stack.
02Pricing at real usage
YepAPI bills per call or other metered unit, with no subscription or monthly minimum. The pricing page lists a $5 signup credit, Google SERP calls from $0.01, and no charge for failed calls. Its homepage lists scraping at $0.01 per call and some SEO calls from $0.03. Firecrawl has a free tier with 1,000 credits per month, equivalent to 500 searches or 1,000 scraped pages, and two concurrent requests. Paid plans start with Hobby at $19 monthly, or $16 per month billed annually, for 5,000 credits. Standard costs $99 monthly or $83 annually per month for 100,000 credits; Growth is $399 or $333 for 500,000; Scale is $749 or $599 for 1,000,000. Extra credits cost $5 in plan-specific increments. Firecrawl's credit model is predictable by tier, while YepAPI's total depends on the endpoints and calls used.
03API, SDKs and integration
YepAPI is a multi-category API: its examples use POST endpoints for keyword overviews, Google SERPs, scraping and media generation. One API key works across endpoints and models, with JSON responses. The docs provide an llms.txt file intended for AI agents to read, and the homepage names Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, an MCP server and agent skills. Firecrawl exposes web search, scraping and page interaction. Its examples show Python and Node.js integrations, plus cURL and a CLI; the Python example installs firecrawl-py and initializes a Firecrawl client with an API key. The homepage also shows scraping followed by interaction calls that can click or search a page. Firecrawl's integration examples name OpenAI, Claude, Cursor, Windsurf and MCP clients. Choose based on endpoint coverage and language support: YepAPI brings SEO and social data into the same API, while Firecrawl's documented flow is centered on web content.
04Open source, self-hosting and lock-in
Firecrawl describes itself as open source, but its homepage does not name the license. YepAPI does not state whether its code is open source. Neither vendor publishes self-hosting options or a distinct data-export and migration path in the cited product pages, so teams with those requirements should ask before adopting either service. Both products return formats that your application can store or transform: YepAPI returns JSON, while Firecrawl supports Markdown, JSON and screenshots. Those response formats do not establish a vendor-managed export feature. Integration lock-in depends on how much application logic you build around each API's endpoints, models and response shapes. Keep an internal adapter around vendor calls and persist the fields your product needs if you want to reduce the work of switching providers.
Questions people ask
Which should I choose for SEO data?
YepAPI is the closer fit if you need keyword, backlink, domain, Google results or local listing data through an API. Firecrawl's listed core functions are web search, scraping and page interaction; its product pages do not position it as an SEO data API.
Can Firecrawl replace YepAPI?
Not for the full set of YepAPI categories. Firecrawl covers web search, scraping, interaction and document parsing. YepAPI also lists SEO and SERP, social and e-commerce data, and 285 AI models. A replacement depends on which of those endpoints your application actually calls.
How do the free allowances compare?
YepAPI offers a $5 signup credit, with usage charged per call and no monthly subscription. Firecrawl's free plan renews at 1,000 credits per month and lists 500 searches or 1,000 scraped pages, with two concurrent requests. The allowances use different billing units.
Which publishes more scaling limits?
Firecrawl lists concurrent-request limits by plan, from two on Free to 100 on Scale, and describes Free rate limits as low. YepAPI says it has no rate limits and that failed calls are not charged. Check current operational limits with each vendor before setting production throughput expectations.