# Cheapest screenshot API: what 1,000 to 50,000 a month cost

> The cheapest screenshot APIs at 1,000, 2,000, 10,000 and 50,000 captures a month, from each vendor's public plans. Dated, sourced, ours included.

Published 2026-11-08 · https://shareglint.com/en/cheapest-screenshot-api

At 2,000 screenshots a month the cheapest full-featured screenshot APIs cost **Shareglint, SnapRender ($9)** a month, with full page, PDF and ad and cookie-banner blocking on every plan. At 10,000 a month it is Shareglint, SnapRender, CaptureKit, ScreenshotAPI.net ($29), and at 50,000 Shareglint, SnapRender ($79). Thum.io costs less ($1 for 2,000 image views), but it bills every view of a streamed thumbnail and keeps full page for a higher plan.

We make Shareglint, so check the numbers yourself: each vendor's row links its pricing page, read on **2026-11-08**, and every cost below is computed from those published plans with one rule, the same one our [pricing page](https://shareglint.com/en/pricing) uses.

## What each API costs at four volumes

| Tool (pricing page) | Free tier | 1,000 / mo | 2,000 / mo | 10,000 / mo | 50,000 / mo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| **Shareglint** | 100 a month, watermarked | $9 ($9/1k) | $9 ($4.50/1k) | $29 ($2.90/1k) | $79 ($1.58/1k) |
| [Thum.io](https://www.thum.io/) — billed per image hit, $1 minimum | 1,000 a month | $1 ($1/1k) | $1 ($0.50/1k) | $2 ($0.20/1k) | $10 ($0.20/1k) |
| [SnapRender](https://snap-render.com/pricing) | 200 a month | $9 ($9/1k) | $9 ($4.50/1k) | $29 ($2.90/1k) | $79 ($1.58/1k) |
| [CaptureKit](https://www.capturekit.dev/pricing) | 100 credits, renewal not stated | $7 ($7/1k) | $16 ($8/1k) | $29 ($2.90/1k) | $89 ($1.78/1k) |
| [ScreenshotOne](https://screenshotone.com/pricing/) | 100 a month | $17 ($17/1k) | $17 ($8.50/1k) | $79 ($7.90/1k) | $259 ($5.18/1k) |
| [Screenshotlayer](https://screenshotlayer.com/pricing) | 100 a month, non-commercial | $19.99 ($19.99/1k) | $19.99 ($10/1k) | $19.99 ($2/1k) | $149.99 ($3/1k) |
| [ScreenshotAPI.net](https://www.screenshotapi.net/pricing) | 7-day trial | $9 ($9/1k) | $29 ($14.50/1k) | $29 ($2.90/1k) | $175 ($3.50/1k) |
| [ApiFlash](https://apiflash.com/) | 100 a month | $7 ($7/1k) | $35 ($17.50/1k) | $35 ($3.50/1k) | $180 ($3.60/1k) |
| [Urlbox](https://urlbox.com/pricing) — Hi-Fi and up; Lo-Fi (own sites only) left out | Trial only | $49 ($49/1k) | $49 ($24.50/1k) | $99 ($9.90/1k) | $645 ($12.90/1k) |

How the numbers are made: for each volume, the cheapest public monthly plan that covers it, or a smaller plan plus its published overage, whichever costs less. Monthly billing, before tax. "Not on public plans" means the vendor publishes no self-serve way to buy that many. Our row counts viewport screenshots; a full page uses 2 units of quota, so 2,000 full pages need a plan for 4,000.

The cheapest at each volume, among APIs with full page, PDF and blocking on every plan:

- **1,000 a month:** CaptureKit ($7)
- **2,000 a month:** Shareglint, SnapRender ($9)
- **10,000 a month:** Shareglint, SnapRender, CaptureKit, ScreenshotAPI.net ($29)
- **50,000 a month:** Shareglint, SnapRender ($79)

## What happens when you go over

The price at the limit matters as much as the plan price, because a busy month is when you find out:

- **[ScreenshotOne](https://screenshotone.com/pricing/)** charges extra per screenshot ($0.009 on Basic, less on bigger plans), "only if enabled and is capped by your monthly hard limit".
- **[CaptureKit](https://www.capturekit.dev/pricing)** keeps working and bills extra credits at the plan's rate ($0.009 on Starter, $0.008 on Pro, $0.0075 on Ultimate), which is why 2,000 a month on its $7 plan costs less than its next plan.
- **[Screenshotlayer](https://screenshotlayer.com/pricing)** charges about $0.008 for each call past the allowance.
- **[Urlbox](https://urlbox.com/pricing)** never cuts you off: "We'll automatically upgrade you to the next tier".
- **[ApiFlash](https://apiflash.com/faq)** stops with an HTTP 402 error until the next month.
- **[SnapRender](https://snap-render.com/pricing)** returns "a clear quota message with the date your allowance resets, and nothing is charged automatically".
- **[ScreenshotAPI.net](https://www.screenshotapi.net/pricing)** says "All overages are charged according to your plan" but publishes no rate, so the table cannot use one.
- **[Thum.io](https://www.thum.io/)** is metered per image hit, with a monthly minimum.
- **Shareglint** stops at the quota; you can buy a top-up pack by hand ($8 for 1,000, valid 12 months), and nothing is charged automatically.

## Free tiers, compared

If your volume is small, the free tier may be the whole answer:

- **[SnapRender](https://snap-render.com/pricing):** "200 captures a month with every feature, and no credit card".
- **[ScreenshotOne](https://screenshotone.com/pricing/):** "up to 100 screenshots of any URL for free per month, including rendering HTML and PDF".
- **[ApiFlash](https://apiflash.com/):** "100 screenshots per month for free, no credit card required".
- **[Thum.io](https://www.thum.io/):** "up to 1000 impressions per month completely free, without even signing up".
- **[Screenshotlayer](https://screenshotlayer.com/pricing):** 100 snapshots a month, for non-commercial use, with no support.
- **[CaptureKit](https://www.capturekit.dev/pricing):** 100 credits; its plan table says monthly, its FAQ says "on signup".
- **Urlbox** and **ScreenshotAPI.net:** a 7-day trial, no free plan.
- **Shareglint:** 100 a month with a small badge on each screenshot.

## Cheap is not the same everywhere

Two prices that look alike can buy different things:

- **Thum.io** is not a screenshot-per-request API in the usual sense. It is an embed: an image URL that "stream[s] screenshots as soon as you request them", billed per hit, with full page only on the Better plan ($20 monthly minimum) and no PDF output.
- **Screenshotlayer** is cheap at 10,000 a month but lists no PDF output and, in our check, no ad or cookie-banner blocking; its free tier is for non-commercial use only.
- **ApiFlash**'s $7 plan holds 1,000 screenshots, and it outputs "Either jpeg, png or webp" — no PDF.
- **Urlbox** has a $19 Lo-Fi plan for 2,000 renders, but only for "websites you own"; other sites come back as thumbnails, so the table starts at its Hi-Fi plan.
- **SnapRender** matches our prices at every volume and gives 200 free captures a month without a watermark — a better free tier than ours.

Features beyond price — country proxies, upload to S3, video, MCP — are compared on [best screenshot API](https://shareglint.com/en/best-screenshot-api).

## What you get from us at that price

A screenshot from Shareglint is real Chrome with cookie banners, ads and trackers blocked, full page up to 16,000 px, device presets, element screenshots, PNG, JPEG, WebP or PDF, and a smooth scroll video. The same quota renders [Open Graph images](https://shareglint.com/en/og-image-generator) and [HTML to image](https://shareglint.com/en/html-to-image), so one plan covers both. A failed page returns its quota, and the same URL with the same options within 24 hours is free. On the Free plan screenshots carry a small badge. The [screenshot API page](https://shareglint.com/en/screenshot-api) has the parameters and code, and the [free screenshot tool](https://shareglint.com/en/tools/website-screenshot) takes one without an account.

## FAQ

### What is the cheapest screenshot API?

At 2,000 screenshots a month the cheapest APIs with full page, PDF and ad and cookie-banner blocking on every plan cost Shareglint, SnapRender ($9) a month; at 10,000, Shareglint, SnapRender, CaptureKit, ScreenshotAPI.net ($29). Thum.io is cheaper still because it bills per image view, but it streams thumbnails and full page needs its $20-minimum Better plan. Prices from each vendor's pricing page, read on 2026-11-08; we make Shareglint.

### Is there a free screenshot API?

Several have a monthly free tier: SnapRender 200 captures, ScreenshotOne and ApiFlash 100, Screenshotlayer 100 for non-commercial use, Thum.io 1,000 image views, and Shareglint 100 with a watermark. CaptureKit gives 100 credits; whether they renew is unclear on its own pages. Urlbox and ScreenshotAPI.net offer trials only.

### Does a full-page screenshot cost more?

With us, yes: a viewport screenshot uses 1 unit of quota and a full page 2, so the table's prices are for viewport captures. Check how each vendor counts a long page before you compare.

### Are cached screenshots free?

On most of these APIs, yes. ScreenshotOne, Urlbox, ApiFlash, CaptureKit, SnapRender and ScreenshotAPI.net say cached hits do not count; with us the same URL and options within 24 hours return the same file and use no quota. Thum.io bills per image hit, so every view counts.