Free ApiFlash Alternative: Screenshot API That Works Without Signup
Free ApiFlash Alternative: Screenshot API That Works Without Signup
ApiFlash is a popular AWS Lambda-based screenshot API. Their free tier gives you 100 screenshots per month, but you need to create an account and get an API key before you can take your first screenshot.
What if you could skip all that and just get a screenshot?
Try It Right Now
curl "https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com&format=webp" -o screenshot.webp
No account. No API key. No waiting. The screenshot is returned immediately.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | ApiFlash | This API |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | 100/month (account required) | Unlimited (rate-limited to 2/min) |
| Signup required | Yes | No |
| Dark mode | No | Yes |
| Ad blocking | No | Yes (25+ domains) |
| Custom viewport | Yes | Yes |
| PDF export | No | Yes |
| WebP format | Yes | Yes (49% smaller than PNG) |
| Full page capture | Yes | Yes |
| Custom JS injection | No | Yes |
| Element selector | No | Yes (CSS selectors) |
| Retina scaling | Yes (up to 3x) | Yes (up to 3x) |
| Cookie banner blocking | No | Yes |
| HTTP Basic Auth | No | Yes |
| wait_for selector | No | Yes |
| Custom delay | Yes | Yes (up to 30s with API key) |
Where This API Wins
Several features that ApiFlash doesn't offer: - Dark mode: Capture sites in dark theme - Ad blocking: Clean screenshots with 25+ ad/tracking domains blocked - PDF export: Full-page PDF generation - Custom JavaScript: Inject JS before capture (hide elements, click buttons) - CSS element selection: Capture specific page elements - HTTP Basic Auth: Screenshot password-protected pages - wait_for selector: Wait for dynamic elements before capture
When to Use ApiFlash Instead
- You need the AWS Lambda infrastructure guarantee
- You need more than ~7,200 screenshots per day
- You're already integrated and it works for your use case
Pricing
| Tier | ApiFlash | This API |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 100/month | Unlimited (2/min) |
| Paid | $7/month (1K) | $9.99/month (1000/day) |
| Mid | $35/month (10K) | $29.99/month (5000/day) |
ApiFlash's $7 starter is slightly cheaper, but their free tier is capped at 100 screenshots. Our free tier is unlimited — just rate-limited. For prototyping and side projects, the difference matters.
Quick Examples
WebP with Ad Blocking
curl "https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://cnn.com&format=webp&block_ads=true" -o clean.webp
Dark Mode Dashboard
curl "https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://app.example.com&dark_mode=true&delay=5000" -o dashboard.png
Specific Element Only
curl "https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://github.com&selector=.js-repo-pjax-container" -o repo.png
Get Started
No signup. Just use the URL:
https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=YOUR_URL&format=webp
Or try the interactive tool to experiment with all parameters.