Scrapingdog vs SerpApi (2026): which should you pick?
As of Oct 23, 2026, Scrapingdog and SerpApi share a 2.4 GPA, and only SerpApi has a free plan.
Checked Oct 23, 2026 · graded Oct 23, 2026 by ToolGPA
They get the same grade on all five counts.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Scrapingdog
Web scraping and Google SERP APIs on one shared credit plan
SerpApi
Real-time search results API for Google and dozens of other engines
Which one is for you
Pick Scrapingdog if
- Fits if you need Google results and general page scraping from the same account
- Works for projects mixing search data with Amazon, YouTube or LinkedIn data
Look elsewhere if
- Watch out: a full Google search costs 10 credits, so Lite's 200,000 credits is about 20,000 searches
- Tight if you run out mid-month, as requests are refused until the next billing date, with no pay-per-use
- Skip it if you want unused credits kept on Lite, as rollover starts at Standard and plan changes aren't prorated
- Not for you if you want a free plan that renews, as the 100 credits come once
Pick SerpApi if
- Fits if you need Google AI Overviews, AI Mode and other engines in one response format
- Works for low volumes that fit in 250 free searches or 1,000 paid ones a month
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you search in volume, at $25 per 1,000 on Starter where Serper charges $1
- Tight if you're on Free, with 250 searches a month and at most 50 an hour
- Skip it if you want the U.S. Legal Shield on a small plan, as it starts on Production at $150 a month
- Watch out: plans are month to month, and yearly billing is only set up by request
- Watch out: Ludicrous Speed costs twice the price, and refunds stop after 7 days or 20% of a plan's searches
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAScrapingdogFair | 2.4GPASerpApiFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CLite is $40 a month for 200,000 credits, this category's middle. A full Google search is 10 credits, so that's about 20,000 searches, $2 per 1,000. Yearly billing gives two months free. | CStarter is $25 a month, on the line of this category's cheaper quarter, but it buys 1,000 searches: $25 per 1,000, where most rivals here charge $1 to $4. Developer is $75 for 5,000, still $15 per 1,000. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo lasting free plan: 100 credits on sign-up with no card, about 10 full Google searches. The pricing page shows a Free plan but doesn't say the credits renew. | CA free plan for good: 250 searches a month, at most 50 an hour. Enough to build against, not to run anything on. |
| Features | BGoogle search, AI Mode, Maps, News, Shopping, Scholar, Trends and more, Bing and Brave search, a general scraper and scrapers for Amazon, YouTube and LinkedIn, all on one credit pool. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core job. | BGoogle Search, AI Mode, AI Overviews, Maps, Shopping, Scholar and Trends, plus Bing, DuckDuckGo, Yahoo, Baidu, YouTube, Amazon and Walmart, each run in a full browser near the location you set. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core job. |
| Ease of use | CJudged on how fast a developer gets a first result: Python and Node.js SDKs and a Google Sheets add-on. No rating on record, and each API costs a different number of credits, so you work out what a search really costs. | CJudged on how fast a developer gets a first result: client libraries in eight languages, and cached or failed searches don't count against you. No rating on record. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, with an API, Python and Node.js SDKs, an MCP server, an n8n node, a Google Sheets add-on, LangChain and LlamaIndex. No desktop or phone app, so B is the top. | BWeb, with an API, libraries for Python, JavaScript, Ruby, Go, PHP, Java, Rust and .NET, and an MCP server. No desktop or phone app, so B is the top. |
| Best for | Google results and web scraping on one plan | Google plus many other engines from one key |
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: Scrapingdog and SerpApi. How we grade
Price against what you get
Scrapingdog starts at $40 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. SerpApi starts at $25 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and SerpApi starts $15 a month lower. Of the other SERP and SEO data APIs on the chart, none scores higher than Scrapingdog for less, and none scores higher than SerpApi 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
At a glance
| Scrapingdog | SerpApi | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $40 per month for 200,000 credits, billed monthly | $25 per month for 1,000 searches, billed monthly |
| Free plan | None | 250 searches a month, up to 50 successful searches an hour. No U.S. Legal Shield. |
| Free trial | 100 free credits on sign-up with access to every API, no credit card required | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | OpenData Labs Private Limited | SerpApi, LLC |
| Price read from | scrapingdog.com | serpapi.com |
| Checked | Oct 23, 2026 | Oct 23, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Scrapingdog
- A full Google search costs 10 credits and a light one 5, so plan credit counts overstate the number of searches.
- When credits run out, requests are refused until the next billing date unless you upgrade; there is no pay-per-use overage.
- Unused credits roll over only from the Standard plan up, and plan changes are not prorated.
- The pricing page lists a Free plan at $0 but describes the 100 credits as a sign-up allowance, without saying they renew.
SerpApi
- Plans are month to month; the FAQ says yearly billing can only be set up by request while an official yearly plan is in the works.
- The U.S. Legal Shield is not included on the Free, Starter or Developer plans.
- Bigger self-serve plans run from Searcher at $725 for 100,000 searches a month to Cloud plans of 1 million searches and up from $3,750.
- Refunds are offered within 7 days of subscribing, unless more than 20% of the plan's searches have been used.
Key features
Scrapingdog
- Google APIs
- Google SERP Light at 5 credits a request and SERP Advance at 10, plus AI Mode, Images, Shopping, Maps, News, Scholar, Trends, Jobs, Hotels, Lens, Finance, Videos and Patents.
- Other search engines
- Bing and Brave search APIs at 5 credits a request, and a Universal Search API at 20.
- General web scraper
- Rotating proxies at 1 credit a request, JavaScript rendering at 5, premium proxies or geotargeting at 10, and an AI Parser at 10.
- Site-specific scrapers
- APIs for Amazon, Walmart, eBay, YouTube, LinkedIn, X (Twitter), TikTok, Yelp, Indeed and the Apple App Store, all drawing on the same credits.
- Failed requests refunded
- Failed, blocked and timed-out requests are credited back to the balance automatically.
- SDKs and no-code tools
- Python and Node.js SDKs, an MCP server, an n8n node and a Google Sheets add-on.
SerpApi
- Google and many other engines
- Endpoints for Google Search, AI Mode, AI Overview, Maps, Shopping, Scholar, Trends, Flights and Hotels, plus Bing, DuckDuckGo, Yahoo, Yandex, Baidu, Naver, YouTube, Amazon, eBay and Walmart.
- Full browser and CAPTCHA solving
- Each request runs immediately in a full browser through a proxy near the chosen location, and results come back as JSON or Markdown.
- Only successful searches counted
- Cached, errored and failed searches do not count against the monthly allowance, and a response with 100 results counts as one search.
- Ludicrous Speed
- An option on every paid plan that sends parallel requests for faster responses, at twice the price; Ludicrous Speed Max is four times the price.
- U.S. Legal Shield
- From the Production plan up, SerpApi says it takes on liability for the lawful collection of public search data, with up to $2 million in coverage.
- Teams and client libraries
- Unlimited team members with admin, developer, billing and viewer roles, and libraries for Python, JavaScript, Ruby, Go, PHP, Java, Rust and .NET, plus an MCP server.
Plans
Scrapingdog
Lite$40
per month for 200,000 credits, billed monthly
5 concurrent requests, geotargeting and email support; about 20,000 full Google searches at 10 credits each.
Standard$90
per month for 1 million credits, billed monthly
50 concurrent requests and priority email support. Unused credits roll over from this plan up.
Pro$200
per month for 3 million credits, billed monthly
100 concurrent requests, priority email support and team support.
Premium$350
per month for 6 million credits, billed monthly
150 concurrent requests, with team support.
Business$500
per month for 9 million credits, billed monthly
200 concurrent requests, with team support.
Business Plus$1,000
per month for 19 million credits, billed monthly
250 concurrent requests. Plans continue up to Nova Pro at $30,000 a month for 1.1 billion credits.
SerpApi
Free$0
250 searches a month with a throughput of 50 an hour.
Starter$25
per month for 1,000 searches, billed monthly
Throughput of 200 successful searches an hour. No U.S. Legal Shield.
Developer$75
per month for 5,000 searches, billed monthly
Throughput of 1,000 successful searches an hour. No U.S. Legal Shield.
Production$150
per month for 15,000 searches, billed monthly
Throughput of 3,000 an hour, and the U.S. Legal Shield with up to $2 million in coverage.
Big Data$275
per month for 30,000 searches, billed monthly
Throughput of 6,000 an hour, with the U.S. Legal Shield.
EnterpriseCustom
Custom volume and throughput, ZeroTrace mode, which stores no search data, and priority support. Sold through sales.
Ways to pay less
Scrapingdog
- Annual discount
Two months free with annual billing
Scrapingdog prices annual billing at ten months for twelve on every plan, the equivalent of two months free.
SerpApi
- Education
Special pricing for students and educators
SerpApi's FAQ says universities, students and educators can email about their project and budget to arrange special pricing.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Scrapingdog or SerpApi?
As of Oct 23, 2026, SerpApi is cheaper to start with: $25 a month, against $40 a month for Scrapingdog. Scrapingdog starts at $40 per month for 200,000 credits, billed monthly, and SerpApi starts at $25 per month for 1,000 searches, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Scrapingdog or SerpApi?
As of Oct 23, 2026, only SerpApi has a free plan. Scrapingdog does not, though it has a free trial.
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.