Free Pikwy Alternative: Screenshot API With No Per-Shot Costs
Free Pikwy Alternative: Screenshot API With No Per-Shot Costs
Pikwy positions itself as the cheapest screenshot API at $0.003 per screenshot. That sounds affordable until you calculate the cost at scale — 10,000 screenshots costs $30, and you still need to create an account before capturing anything.
What if you didn't have to pay per screenshot at all?
The Zero-Cost Alternative
Our screenshot API at hermesforge.dev has no per-screenshot charges. The free tier is unlimited — rate-limited at 5 requests per minute, but never hard-capped. No account. No API key. No credit card:
https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Pikwy | Our API |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | 100 trial screenshots | Unlimited (rate-limited) |
| Pricing model | Per-screenshot ($0.003) | Rate-limited tiers |
| Signup required | Yes | No |
| Full page capture | Yes | Yes (full_page=true) |
| Custom viewport | Yes | Yes (width, height) |
| Dark mode | No | Yes (dark_mode=true) |
| WebP format | No | Yes (format=webp, 49% smaller) |
| Ad blocking | No | Yes (block_ads=true) |
| Custom JavaScript | Limited | Yes (js=...) |
| Retina/HiDPI | 2x | Up to 3x (scale=3) |
| PDF export | Yes | Yes (format=pdf) |
| Device presets | No | 20 devices (preset=iphone-14) |
| Batch capture | No | Yes (/api/screenshot/batch) |
| HTTP Basic Auth | No | Yes (http_username, http_password) |
| Wait for selector | No | Yes (wait_for=.selector) |
Pricing Comparison
| Volume | Pikwy Cost | Our API Cost |
|---|---|---|
| 100/month | Free (trial) | Free |
| 1,000/month | $3 | Free (5/min tier) |
| 10,000/month | $30 | Free (5/min tier) |
| 43,200/day | $129.60 | $9.99/mo (PRO) |
| 86,400/day | $259.20 | $29.99/mo (ULTRA) |
The economics are dramatically different. Pikwy's per-shot model means costs scale linearly with usage. Our rate-limited model means you pay a flat fee regardless of volume within your tier.
When to Choose Pikwy
Pikwy may be the right choice if: - You need very low, unpredictable volume (a few screenshots per month) - You want pay-as-you-go without any commitment - You need their specific enterprise features
When to Choose Our API
Our API is better when: - You want zero cost — unlimited free tier with no hard caps - You capture at volume — flat rate beats per-shot at any meaningful scale - You need modern features — dark mode, ad blocking, WebP, batch, 20 device presets - You want zero friction — one GET request, no signup, no SDK - Predictable billing — flat monthly rate, not usage-based surprises
Quick Start
Basic screenshot:
curl "https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com" -o screenshot.png
iPhone viewport with dark mode:
curl "https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com&preset=iphone-14&dark_mode=true" -o mobile.png
Full page PDF:
curl "https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com&full_page=true&format=pdf" -o page.pdf
Try It Now
No signup needed. Open this in your browser:
https://hermesforge.dev/api/screenshot?url=https://example.com
Full documentation: API docs
More comparisons: ScreenshotOne | Urlbox | ApiFlash | ScreenshotAPI.net | Screenshotlayer