---
source_url: "https://alterlab.io/?utm_source=openai"
title: "AlterLab | Web Scraping API — Scrape Any Website, Get Clean Data"
mirrored_at: 2026-08-07T03:38:51.052Z
host: alterlab.io
cited_in_42a: true
mirror_canonical: "https://index.42a.ai/alterlab.io/index__q__utm_source_openai"
---

> **Original source:** https://alterlab.io/?utm_source=openai

Trusted by developers worldwide

## Transform the Web Into Data

AlterLab turns any URL into clean data: markdown, structured JSON, or plain text. JavaScript rendering and automatic website compatibility handle the hard parts.  
Ship your data pipeline in minutes.

99.9% uptime

195+ proxy countries

No credit card

From $0.0002/request

<2s

Avg Latency

LLM-Ready

Structured Output

$1 Free Credit

Up to 5,000 Scrapes on Sign Up

Developer Experience

## Simple API, Powerful Results

Get started in minutes with our intuitive API. One request gives you structured data, screenshots, PDFs, and more. No browser management, no infrastructure headaches.

### Multi-Format Output

Markdown, JSON, HTML, text

### Adaptive Rendering

JS, SPAs, shadow DOM

### 3 Lines to Integrate

Any language, any stack

Up to 5,000 free scrapes included. No credit card required.

## AlterLab vs Building Your Own

Why teams choose an API over maintaining a custom scraping stack.

Factor

AlterLab

Playwright / Puppeteer (DIY)

Scrapy (Open-Source)

Time to first scrape

< 5 minutes

Hours — install, configure, debug

Hours — spiders, pipelines, settings

Website compatibility

✓ Included — automatic tier escalation

✗ Manual fingerprint management

✗ Blocked by most modern sites

JavaScript rendering

✓ Included from $0.004/request

✓ Built-in, but you manage infra

Requires Scrapy-Splash or Playwright plugin

Cost per 1,000 requests

From $0.20 (pay-as-you-go)

$5–$50 server + engineering time

Near-zero tool cost, high engineering cost

Proxy coverage

195+ countries, residential + datacenter

Separate proxy service required ($$$)

Separate proxy service required ($$$)

Ongoing maintenance

✓ Zero — managed infrastructure

High — site changes break selectors regularly

High — spider maintenance + server ops

Uptime SLA

99.9% target

Your responsibility

Your responsibility

## Quick Answers

Direct answers to the most common questions about AlterLab.

### Is AlterLab free?

Yes. AlterLab's free tier includes 5,000 API requests at signup — no credit card required. After that, you pay only for successful requests starting at $0.0002 per page. There is no monthly subscription and your balance never expires.

### Does AlterLab work with Python?

Yes. AlterLab provides an official Python SDK installable with pip install alterlab. It supports async/await, batch scraping, and automatic tier selection. You can also call the REST API directly from any Python HTTP library using your API key in the X-API-Key header.

### How does AlterLab handle Cloudflare-protected sites?

AlterLab's Protected tier ($0.002/request) handles Cloudflare Bot Management, TLS fingerprinting checks, and JavaScript challenges automatically. The Fortress tier ($0.02/request) resolves interactive challenges. No manual configuration is required.

### Does AlterLab handle JavaScript rendering?

Yes. AlterLab's Dynamic tier ($0.004/request) launches a full Chromium browser, executes JavaScript, waits for React, Vue, and Angular SPAs to load, then returns the final HTML. Set render\_js: true in your request to enable it.

### How much does AlterLab cost?

AlterLab pricing: $0.0002/request (static HTML), $0.0003/request (TLS fingerprinting), $0.002/request (anti-bot protection), $0.004/request (JavaScript rendering), $0.02/request (challenge resolution). The minimum deposit is $10 with no subscription. Balance never expires.

## Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about our web scraping API, pricing, and capabilities.