PixShot vs Urlbox
Urlbox is one of the most established screenshot APIs on the market, running since 2014. PixShot is newer but takes a different approach to browser rendering and pricing. Here's how they compare.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | PixShot | Urlbox |
|---|---|---|
| URL screenshot (PNG/JPEG/WebP) | Yes | Yes (+ PDF, SVG, HTML) |
| HTML input rendering | Yes | Yes |
| OG image generation | Built-in endpoint | No dedicated endpoint |
| Anti-detect browser | Camoufox (Firefox engine-level) | No |
| Bot-protected sites | Cloudflare, PerimeterX, DataDome | Fails on protected sites |
| Video/GIF capture | No | Yes (MP4, GIF, WebM) |
| PDF generation | Not yet | Yes |
| Cookie banner blocking | Via CSS injection | Built-in |
| S3/cloud storage upload | Not yet | Yes (S3, GCS) |
| Webhook callbacks | Not yet | Yes |
| Free tier | 500 screenshots/mo | No free tier (7-day trial) |
Pricing Comparison
| Plan | PixShot | Urlbox |
|---|---|---|
| Free / Trial | 500 screenshots/mo (free forever) | 7-day trial only |
| Entry | $19/mo — 5,000 screenshots | $19/mo — 2,000 screenshots |
| Mid | $49/mo — 25,000 screenshots | $99/mo — 10,000 screenshots |
| High | $99/mo — 100,000 screenshots | $249/mo — 50,000 screenshots |
| Cost per 1K screenshots (Mid) | $1.96 | $9.90 |
Key takeaway: Urlbox is a feature-rich, mature platform with video and PDF support. PixShot is 3-5x cheaper per screenshot and offers anti-detect capabilities Urlbox lacks entirely.
Where Urlbox Wins
- Feature breadth — Video capture (MP4, GIF, WebM), PDF generation, SVG output, S3 upload, webhook callbacks. Urlbox is the most feature-complete screenshot API on the market.
- Maturity — Running since 2014. Over a decade of edge-case handling for web rendering quirks.
- Enterprise features — Proxy support, custom headers, authenticated page captures, retina screenshots.
Where PixShot Wins
- Anti-detect browser (Camoufox) — Engine-level Firefox anti-detect. Captures pages that Urlbox returns as blank or blocked. This is PixShot's biggest differentiator.
- Price per screenshot — 3-5x more screenshots per dollar. At 25,000 screenshots/month, PixShot costs $49 vs Urlbox at $99-249.
- Free tier — 500 screenshots/month, forever free. Urlbox offers only a 7-day trial.
- OG image generation — Dedicated endpoint for generating social preview cards from templates.
Bottom Line
Urlbox is the right choice if you need video captures, PDF generation, or cloud storage uploads. It's the most full-featured option available.
PixShot is the right choice if you need to capture bot-protected sites, want a free tier to start with, or need the best price per screenshot at scale.
Try PixShot free
500 screenshots/month on the free tier. No credit card required.
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