SociaVault vs Bright Data: Which is Better for Social Media Scraping?

Bright Data (formerly Luminati) is one of the biggest names in web scraping. They offer proxy networks, browser automation, and data collection services used by Fortune 500 companies.

But if your goal is specifically social media data extraction, is Bright Data the right choice? For a complete overview of social media scraping options, see our guide.

Looking for the best option? Check our best social media APIs comparison.

Let's compare.

What is Bright Data?

Bright Data is an enterprise-grade web data platform. They provide:

• Residential and datacenter proxies (72M+ IPs)
• Web scraping APIs
• Browser automation (Scraping Browser)
• Ready-made datasets

It's a comprehensive solution for companies that need to scrape the entire internet.

What is SociaVault?

SociaVault is a specialized API for social media scraping. We focus exclusively on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, and 20+ others.

One API. Simple pricing. Social media only.

Head-to-Head Comparison

1. Pricing

Bright Data:

• Minimum commitment: ~$500/month
• Pay for proxies, bandwidth, and compute
• Complex pricing calculator
• Enterprise sales process

SociaVault:

• Start free (50 credits)
• Pay-as-you-go: $0.001 per request
• No monthly minimum
• Self-serve signup

Winner: SociaVault (90% cheaper for social media use cases)

2. Setup Time

Bright Data:

• Account approval process
• Choose proxy type and configure
• Set up scraping scripts or use their IDE
• Learn their SDK/API
• Time: Days to weeks

SociaVault:

• Sign up, get API key
• Make your first request
• Time: 5 minutes

Winner: SociaVault

3. Social Media Coverage

Bright Data:

• General-purpose scrapers
• Need to build or configure for each platform
• Results vary by platform

SociaVault:

• 25+ social platforms built-in
• TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Reddit, Threads
• Optimized endpoints for each platform

Winner: SociaVault

4. Data Output

Bright Data:

• Raw HTML or custom parsing
• You define the schema
• Requires data transformation

SociaVault:

• Structured JSON
• Consistent schema per endpoint
• Ready to use immediately

Winner: SociaVault

5. Enterprise Features

Bright Data:

• SOC2, GDPR, CCPA compliant
• Dedicated account managers
• Custom SLAs
• Massive scale (billions of requests)

SociaVault:

• 99.9% uptime
• Priority support for Pro users
• Growing enterprise features

Winner: Bright Data (for Fortune 500 requirements)

When to Choose Bright Data

• You need to scrape non-social media sites (e-commerce, real estate, etc.)
• You have a $500+/month budget
• You need enterprise compliance and support
• You have engineering resources to manage the complexity

When to Choose SociaVault

• Your focus is social media data
• You want to start small and scale
• You need fast time-to-value (minutes, not weeks)
• You prefer simple, predictable pricing

Code Comparison

Bright Data (with their SDK):

const { BrightData } = require('bright-data');

const client = new BrightData({
  auth: 'USER:PASS',
  zone: 'social_media'
});

// Configure proxy, target, parsing...
const result = await client.scrape({
  url: 'https://tiktok.com/@username',
  // ... complex configuration
});

SociaVault:

const response = await fetch('https://api.sociavault.com/tiktok/profile', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    'Authorization': 'Bearer YOUR_API_KEY',
    'Content-Type': 'application/json'
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({ username: 'charlidamelio' })
});

const data = await response.json();
console.log(data.followers); // 155000000

The Bottom Line

Bright Data is a powerful, enterprise-grade platform for scraping the entire web. But that power comes with complexity and cost.

If you specifically need social media data, SociaVault is purpose-built for that job. You'll get better results, faster setup, and 90% lower costs.

---

Ready to try SociaVault? Start free with 50 credits - no credit card required.