Best Pay-As-You-Go Scraping APIs (No Monthly Commitment Required)

The SaaS world loves subscriptions. "Only $49/month!"

But what if you are a developer with a side project? Or a startup with unpredictable traffic?

• Month 1: You scrape 10,000 pages.
• Month 2: You scrape 0 pages.

With a subscription, you lose money in Month 2. With Pay-As-You-Go, you pay $0.

In 2025, developers are demanding flexible pricing. Here are the best scraping APIs that let you buy credits that never expire.

1. SociaVault (Best for Social Media)

Pricing: $29 for 6,000 credits. Expiry: Never.

SociaVault is specialized for social platforms (TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn). Because these sites are hard to scrape social media data from, general-purpose scrapers often fail. SociaVault guarantees success or you don't pay.

Want free options? Check out free social media API options to test before buying.

• Pros: Specialized endpoints, high success rate, simple JSON.
• Cons: Only for social media/search (not general web).

2. ScraperAPI (Best for General Web)

Pricing: Has a PAYG plan (but pushes subscriptions).

ScraperAPI is a classic. It handles proxies and browsers for general websites. Great for scraping e-commerce sites or news articles.

• Pros: Huge pool of IPs, reliable.
• Cons: Can get expensive at scale compared to subs.

3. ScrapingBee

Pricing: Subscription focused, but custom plans available.

Known for great documentation and rendering capabilities.

• Pros: Great for JS-heavy sites.
• Cons: Credits expire monthly on standard plans.

4. Bright Data (The Enterprise Choice)

Pricing: Pay-as-you-go available (high CPM).

The biggest player in the game. They own the proxy networks.

• Pros: Unmatched scale and reliability.
• Cons: Complex dashboard, expensive, strict KYC (Know Your Customer).

Why Pay-As-You-Go Wins

1. No "Use it or Lose it": Keep credits for a year.
2. Scales Down: Perfect for MVP testing.
3. Scales Up: Bulk discounts usually apply to credit packs too.

Conclusion

If you are scraping social media, SociaVault offers the most developer-friendly pricing model. You buy a pack, you use it whenever. No recurring charges on your credit card.

Check out our pricing: SociaVault Pricing