Free Microlink Alternative: Screenshot and PDF API with No Signup
Free Microlink Alternative: Screenshot and PDF API with No Signup
Microlink is a well-known developer tool for link previews, screenshots, and PDF generation. It's popular in documentation sites, link preview components, and developer tooling. But their screenshot and PDF endpoints require an API key, and the free tier is limited to 50 requests per day.
If you need screenshot or PDF API calls right now — without creating an account — here's a direct alternative.
Try It Instantly
# Screenshot
curl "https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com&format=webp" -o screenshot.webp
# Full-page PDF
curl "https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com&format=pdf&full_page=true" -o page.pdf
No account. No API key. No trial signup. Works immediately.
What Microlink Does (and What This Covers)
Microlink is a multi-function API: link metadata extraction (title, description, og:image), screenshots, PDF generation, and audio/video scraping. If you're specifically using Microlink for screenshots or PDF generation, this API covers that use case entirely.
For link metadata extraction (og:title, og:image, og:description from a URL), you'd need a different tool — that's outside the scope of a screenshot API.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Microlink | This API |
|---|---|---|
| Signup required | Yes | No |
| Free tier | 50/day (with key) | Unlimited (rate-limited, no key) |
| PNG screenshots | Yes | Yes |
| WebP screenshots | Yes | Yes |
| JPEG screenshots | Yes | Yes |
| PDF export | Yes (Pro) | Yes (free) |
| Full page capture | Yes | Yes |
| Custom viewport | Yes | Yes (width, height, scale up to 3x) |
| Dark mode | Yes | Yes |
| Ad blocking | Yes | Yes (25+ domains) |
| Custom delay | Yes | Yes |
| wait_for selector | Yes | Yes (up to 15s) |
| Custom JavaScript | Yes | Yes (2KB) |
| Element selector | Yes | Yes (CSS selectors) |
| Retina (2x/3x) | Limited | Yes (up to 3x) |
| HTTP Basic Auth | No | Yes (with API key) |
| Link metadata | Yes | No |
| Audio/video scraping | Yes | No |
| Open source | Yes (core) | No |
Common Microlink Screenshot Patterns — Replicated
Basic Screenshot (Microlink)
curl "https://api.microlink.io?url=https://example.com&screenshot=true&embed=screenshot.url"
Equivalent (This API)
curl "https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com&format=png" -o screenshot.png
PDF Export (Microlink Pro)
# Microlink requires Pro subscription for PDF
PDF Export (This API — free)
curl "https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com&format=pdf&full_page=true" -o page.pdf
Dark Mode + WebP
curl "https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://github.com&dark_mode=true&format=webp" -o github-dark.webp
Embed in HTML (no JavaScript required)
<img src="https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com&width=1280&format=png&scale=1">
Embed in Google Sheets
=IMAGE("https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com&width=1280&format=png")
When to Use Which
Microlink is better if you need: - Link metadata extraction (og:title, og:description, og:image parsing) - Audio and video scraping - An open-source SDK with active community - Guaranteed SLA for production workloads
This free alternative is better if you need: - Screenshots or PDFs without creating an account - Testing parameters before committing to a paid plan - Side projects that don't justify a monthly fee - PDF export without a Pro subscription - Higher retina scaling (up to 3x vs Microlink's 2x) - HTTP Basic Auth for capturing password-protected pages
Pricing Comparison
| Tier | Microlink | This API |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 50/day (API key required) | Unlimited (2/min, no key) |
| Free with account | 50/day | 50/day (free API key) |
| Starter paid | $29/month | $4 / 30 days |
| Pro | $79/month | $9 / 30 days |
Microlink pricing is a subscription. This API uses one-time purchasing — buy 30 days of access when you need it, not a recurring charge.
Integration Example: Link Preview Cards
One common Microlink use case is generating preview cards for links. Here's a simple implementation using this API for the screenshot component:
<!-- Fetch og:meta yourself, use the screenshot API for the image -->
<div class="link-preview">
<img src="https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=ENCODED_URL&width=1200&height=630&format=webp">
<div class="meta">
<h3>Page Title</h3>
<p>Description from og:description or meta</p>
</div>
</div>
For the metadata part (title, description, favicon), fetch them server-side from the page's HTML — or use Microlink specifically for metadata while using this API for screenshots.
Getting Started
No signup needed. Test with any URL:
https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com&format=webp
Or use the interactive screenshot tool to try parameters visually before writing code.
For higher volume, get a free API key — 50 requests/day, still no payment required.