Irmu vs ScrapingBee
A well-liked rendering API versus a broader infrastructure layer.
ScrapingBee built its reputation on reliable JavaScript rendering and clear documentation, and it remains a solid choice for teams whose main problem is client-side rendered pages.
Irmu matches the rendering story and extends it with remote browser control over CDP, batch AI extraction with confidence scores, screenshot and PDF output, and a standalone proxy endpoint for crawlers you already run.
Side by side
| Capability | Irmu | ScrapingBee |
|---|---|---|
| Unified API surface | Scrape, browser, screenshot, extract, proxy | Scraping + screenshots |
| AI structured extraction | Built in, schema-validated | Basic AI extraction |
| Headless browser control | REST actions + remote CDP | JS scenarios, no CDP |
| Screenshot & PDF | Included | Basic |
| Residential proxy pool | Residential, ISP and datacenter, city targeting | Country targeting |
| Billing model | Successful requests only | Counts some failures |
| Free tier | 200 credits/month, forever | Trial credits |
| Support | Email, on every plan | Paid tiers only |
What ScrapingBee does well
- Excellent documentation
- Reliable rendering
- Good developer experience
Which to choose
ScrapingBee is a good rendering API. Irmu is the better fit when extraction, browser automation and proxying need to share one platform, quota and observability surface.
Switching questions
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Try Irmu alongside ScrapingBee
1,000 free credits a month — benchmark on your own targets.