Browserbase vs rtrvr.ai (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, rtrvr.ai grades higher than Browserbase: 2.8 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Browserbase grades higher on features. rtrvr.ai grades higher on value for money, the free plan and ease of use. They get the same grade on platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Browserbase
Cloud browsers and APIs for agents that use the web
rtrvr.ai
Browser agent for Chrome and cloud, with an ad-supported free mode
Which one is for you
Pick Browserbase if
- Fits if you run browser agents in code and need hosted browsers
- Works for a developer who wants sessions observed and replayed
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay on Free: 1 browser hour, 15-minute sessions and 7-day retention
- Watch out: usage past the allowance is billed at the plan's rate, so the bill grows with hours and proxies
- Not for you if you need on-prem, which the FAQ says it does not offer
- Skip it if you need HIPAA or SSO on a self-serve plan
Pick rtrvr.ai if
- Fits if you want a browser agent running inside Chrome for scraping and repeat tasks
- Works for people who can live with sponsored cards on the free plan
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you object to sponsored cards, since ad-free runs need a paid plan and credits
- Not for you if you need the cloud API, MCP or WhatsApp on a free plan
- Watch out: unused monthly credits do not roll over
- Tight if you run browsers all day: a cloud browser uses about 60 credits, roughly 60 cents, an hour
How we grade them
| 2.2GPABrowserbaseFair | 2.8GPArtrvr.aiGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CDeveloper is $20 a month for 25 concurrent browsers, about the category's middle, with hours, proxies and calls billed past the allowance. | A$9.99 a month, under 60% of the category's cheaper quarter of $19. Credits cost a cent each and a cloud browser burns about 60 an hour. |
| Free plan and trial | CFree is 3 concurrent browsers and 1 browser hour, with 15-minute sessions and no captcha solving. | BFree Mode covers supported models and cloud browser time with a daily fair-use allowance and one daily schedule, shown with sponsored cards. |
| Features | BCloud browsers, search and fetch, agent identity, a model gateway and observability; HIPAA and SSO are enterprise only. | CExtension and cloud browsers, scraping and enrichment, schedules, API, MCP, CLI and WhatsApp. Cloud API calls, MCP tools and WhatsApp tasks are not on Free. |
| Ease of use | DNo store rating on record. It is used through an SDK and code, with sessions and proxies to configure. | CNo store rating on record. You set up tasks and schedules, and may connect keys or an API. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with six integrations and APIs; no desktop or phone app. | BChrome extension and web, with Claude, Codex, Slack, WhatsApp and Google Sheets listed. No desktop or phone app. |
| Best for | cloud browsers for AI agents | browser agent as an extension and cloud |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Browserbase and rtrvr.ai. How we grade
Price against what you get
Browserbase starts at $20 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. rtrvr.ai starts at $9.99 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and rtrvr.ai starts $10.01 a month lower. Of the other AI agents on the chart, 13 score higher than Browserbase for less, and 1 scores higher than rtrvr.ai for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- rtrvr.ai also covers web browser.
At a glance
| Browserbase | rtrvr.ai | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $20 per month | $9.99 per month (billed monthly) |
| Free plan | 3 concurrent browsers, 1 browser hour, 3 agent runs, 1,000 search and 1,000 fetch calls, and $5 in model tokens. | Free Mode: supported AI models and cloud browser time at no cost, with sponsored cards and a daily fair-use allowance; one daily schedule. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Browserbase | Retriever AI |
| Price read from | browserbase.com | rtrvr.ai |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Browserbase
- Plans scale past included usage at the plan's rate, so the bill grows with browser hours, proxies and API calls.
- Free has no captcha solving and stops sessions at 15 minutes.
- HIPAA (BAA) and SSO are listed for enterprise customers, not the self-serve plans.
- The FAQ says it does not offer on-prem deployment; hybrid setups come through consulting.
rtrvr.ai
- The free plan shows sponsored cards with results; ad-free runs need a paid plan and credits.
- Cloud API calls, cloud MCP tools and WhatsApp tasks are not on the free plan.
- One credit equals one cent, and a cloud browser uses about 60 credits an hour; unused monthly credits do not roll over.
Key features
Browserbase
- Cloud browsers
- Fleets of headless browsers that agents control through Playwright, Puppeteer, Selenium or Stagehand.
- Search and Fetch APIs
- Search returns relevant sites from one query; Fetch returns pages as HTML, JSON or markdown for agents.
- Agent identity
- Captcha solving on paid plans, plus stealth mode (basic on Developer and Startup, advanced on Scale).
- Runtime and model gateway
- Browserbase Functions run deployed agents on its servers, and one API key reaches major models through Stagehand.
- Observability
- Session recordings, logs and prompts for debugging an agent, with data kept 7 to 30+ days by plan.
rtrvr.ai
- Chrome extension and cloud browsers
- Run tasks on the page you are signed into in Chrome, or in cloud browsers that keep working after you leave.
- Scraping and enrichment
- Pull listings or profiles into a sheet. Enrichment costs 0.25 credits per returned record, and live scraping 0.15 credits per successful record.
- Schedules and triggers
- Paid plans run schedules as often as every few minutes and respond to webhooks or page changes, with no tab open.
- API, MCP, CLI and WhatsApp
- The agent can be called from code, an MCP client such as Claude, a terminal or WhatsApp. Cloud API calls need a paid plan.
- Choice of AI model
- Use rtrvr credits, ChatGPT, Claude, your own API key or a local model. Your own provider avoids model-credit charges.
Plans
Browserbase
Free$0
3 concurrent browsers, 1 browser hour, 15-minute sessions and 7-day data retention; no captcha solving.
Developer$20
per month
25 concurrent browsers, 100 browser hours then $0.12/hour, 1 GB of proxies then $12/GB, captcha solving.
Startup$99
per month
100 concurrent browsers, 500 browser hours then $0.10/hour, 5 GB of proxies then $10/GB.
ScaleCustom
250+ concurrent browsers, usage-based hours and proxies, advanced stealth mode and verified agents.
rtrvr.ai
Free$0
Free Mode with sponsored cards, a renewing daily allowance, 100 one-time welcome credits and one schedule a day or less often.
Starter$9.99
per month, billed monthly
1,000 credits each month, every reasoning level in Free Mode, more schedules, triggers, API, MCP and WhatsApp access.
Pro$29.99
per month, billed monthly
3,000 credits each month with 1 seat included; extra seats $9.99 each.
Team$99.99
per month, billed monthly
10,000 credits each month, 3 seats included (extra seats $9.99) and Private Mode with zero data retention.
Scale$499.99
per month, billed monthly
50,000 credits each month, 10 seats included (extra seats $9.99) and Private Mode, for cloud and API workloads.
Ways to pay less
Browserbase
No public discounts listed.
rtrvr.ai
- Annual discount
Annual billing: 2 months free
The pricing page has a Monthly/Annual toggle labeled 2 months free for annual billing; annual prices were not shown in the page text.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Browserbase or rtrvr.ai?
As of Nov 13, 2026, rtrvr.ai is cheaper to start with: $9.99 a month, against $20 a month for Browserbase. Browserbase starts at $20 per month, and rtrvr.ai starts at $9.99 per month (billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Browserbase or rtrvr.ai?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Browserbase and rtrvr.ai have a free plan.
Which platforms do Browserbase and rtrvr.ai run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only rtrvr.ai lists a browser extension. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.