> **For coding agents and LLMs:** This is one Social Fetch marketing page (markdown export). For API orientation start with [`/llms.txt`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/llms.txt); for auth and crawl rules use [`/agents.txt`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/agents.txt); for every operation use [`/llms-endpoints.txt`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/llms-endpoints.txt). ## This page - **On-site (HTML):** - **Markdown (.mdx) URL:** --- # Social Fetch vs ScraperAPI ScraperAPI is a scraping infrastructure API — send a URL, get HTML (or parsed JSON helpers) through rotating proxies, JS rendering, and anti-bot handling. Social Fetch is a social data API — send a handle, get normalized profile fields. LinkedIn on ScraperAPI can cost 30 credits per request; on Social Fetch it is a first-class route at flat social pricing. ## At a glance | | Social Fetch | ScraperAPI | | --- | --- | --- | | What returns | Structured social JSON | HTML (plus optional parsing) via proxies | | Pricing entry | 100 free credits; $14 Starter pack (1,000 credits, one-time, never expire) | Hobby $49/mo for 100,000 credits | | LinkedIn request cost | Standard social credit (typically 1) | 30 credits per their domain guide | | Google / Bing SERP | Limited Google utilities — not a SERP farm | 25 credits per request (domain guide) | | Who maintains social parsers | Social Fetch | You (or their structured add-ons where available) | | Social catalog | 264 ops / 25 platforms | Any URL — credits vary by domain difficulty | ## Pricing (last verified 2026-07-21) **Domain multipliers vs flat social credits.** ScraperAPI Hobby $49/mo (100k credits). Standard page 1 credit; LinkedIn 30, Google/Bing 25, anti-bot +10. Credits reset monthly. Social Fetch: flat social credits at $1.64/1k on non-expiring packs. | | Social Fetch | ScraperAPI | Note | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1,000 LinkedIn profile pages (raw HTML path) | ~$1.64 as API lookups (structured) | 30,000 credits → burns a large share of Hobby | | | 1,000 generic easy pages | Use a scrape vendor — not our job | 1,000 credits on Hobby | | | Monthly reset | No on PAYG packs | Yes — unused credits expire each cycle | | | JS rendering / proxies | Handled on our social routes | Included — that is the product | | | Free trial | 100 credits, no card | 7-day trial with 5,000 credits (no card) | | ScraperAPI pricing from scraperapi.com/pricing (July 2026). Domain credit costs from their FAQ (LinkedIn 30, Google/Bing 25, Amazon 5, anti-bot +10). Always verify with their Domain Cost Estimator for your URLs. ## Feature matrix | Feature | Social Fetch | ScraperAPI | | --- | --- | --- | | Synchronous REST JSON (no actor run polling) | Yes | Yes | | One API key for all platforms | Yes | Yes | | Unified schema across platforms | Yes | No | | Public OpenAPI specification | Yes | Partial | | Official TypeScript SDK | Yes | Partial | | Interactive API playground | Yes | Partial | | TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook, Reddit, X in one vendor | Yes | No | | Pay-as-you-go without required monthly subscription | Yes | Partial | | PAYG credits never expire | Yes | No | | Web fetch (markdown/HTML) in same product | Yes | Yes | | Scheduled account / feed monitors | Yes | Partial | | Signed webhooks when watched accounts post | Yes | No | ## Proxy API vs social API ScraperAPI sells access to scraping infrastructure: IP rotation, rendering, retries, geotargeting. You bring the URL and the parser. That is the right purchase for e-commerce pages, SERPs, and long-tail sites where no vertical API exists. Social Fetch sells the parsed social object. Proxies and rendering still happen — on our side — but your contract is the OpenAPI schema, not the HTML. When Instagram changes markup, we patch extractors; your followerCount field stays put. Using ScraperAPI as a social API means you own breakage. Using Social Fetch as a general web scraper means you bought the wrong catalog. ## LinkedIn at 30 credits is the tell ScraperAPI is honest about hard domains costing more. LinkedIn at 30 credits means 3,333 LinkedIn fetches exhaust a 100,000-credit Hobby plan before you count failures and renders. For a product that enriches LinkedIn companies all day, that metering pushes you up the plan ladder quickly. Social Fetch prices LinkedIn as part of the social catalog at the same credit philosophy as TikTok for standard routes. You are paying for the social operation, not for how angry LinkedIn's bot defenses were that hour. ## Split by URL type Keep ScraperAPI for Amazon, Google results, and random marketing sites. Keep Social Fetch for TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook, Reddit, and the rest of our 25-platform catalog. When Instagram markup changes, ScraperAPI still returns HTML you must re-parse; we patch extractors so followerCount stays put. Many data teams already run both; the mistake is forcing one vendor across both URL classes. ## When ScraperAPI is the better choice - General web scraping across arbitrary domains - SERP and e-commerce extraction with proxy/anti-bot needs - You want HTML and will maintain parsers yourself ## When Social Fetch is the better choice - Structured social profiles and posts without HTML parsing - LinkedIn/social workloads where domain multipliers hurt - PAYG credits that never expire for bursty social traffic - One normalized envelope across social networks ## Verdict: Scraping infrastructure vs social data product ScraperAPI is a strong proxy scrape API. Social Fetch is a strong social data API. Domain credit multipliers make ScraperAPI expensive precisely where social platforms are hardest — which is where a vertical social API earns its keep. Use ScraperAPI for the open web; use Social Fetch when the resource is a social entity. ## FAQ ### Can ScraperAPI scrape Instagram for me? It can fetch URLs through proxies. You still parse HTML and absorb domain/anti-bot credit costs. Social Fetch returns structured Instagram resources on maintained routes. ### Why is LinkedIn 30 credits on ScraperAPI? Harder anti-bot domains cost more credits on their price list. That is expected for a general scrape API. A social API absorbs that complexity into a flat social credit where possible. ### Do ScraperAPI credits roll over? No — monthly plan credits reset. Social Fetch PAYG packs never expire. ### Which should startups pick first? If the feature is social data in the product, Social Fetch. If the feature is scraping many non-social sites, ScraperAPI. Startups often need both later; start with the dominant URL class.