Comparison
Shotkiln vs CaptureAPI
CaptureAPI has the same three outputs and the same $9 entry price, plus cookie-banner removal, batch requests and EU hosting. Shotkiln costs less at 10,000 and 50,000 a month and has a remote MCP server.
- CaptureAPI free tier
- 200 screenshots/month (no PDF), 1 request a second
- CaptureAPI paid plans
- Starter $9 for 2,000 ($4.50 per 1,000); Pro $29 for 15,000 ($1.93 per 1,000); Business $79 for 50,000 ($1.58 per 1,000)
- CaptureAPI overage
- none; 429 at the limit, with a burst allowance of up to 10%
- Shotkiln free tier
- 100 renders a month, watermarked
- Shotkiln paid plans
- Starter $9 for 2,000 ($4.50 per 1,000); Pro $19 for 10,000 ($1.90 per 1,000); Scale $49 for 50,000 ($0.98 per 1,000)
- Shotkiln overage
- none; requests return 429 at the limit
Monthly cost by volume
Cheapest published plan that covers each volume, before overage.
| Renders a month | 2,000 | 10,000 | 15,000 | 50,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shotkiln | $9 Starter | $19 Pro | $49 Scale | $49 Scale |
| CaptureAPI | $9 Starter | $29 Pro | $29 Pro | $79 Business |
Features
| Feature | Shotkiln | CaptureAPI |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | 100/month, watermarked | 200/month, PDF on paid plans |
| URL or HTML to PDF | yes | yes (Starter and up) |
| Render raw HTML to an image | PDF only | PDF only |
| Built-in OG card templates | 3 templates | yes (templates) |
| Remote MCP server | yes | not listed |
| Ad and cookie-banner blocking | no | yes (cookie banners and chat widgets, on by default) |
| Upload to S3 or webhooks | no | webhooks for batch jobs; no hosted storage |
| Proxies or geo-targeting | no | not listed |
| Official SDKs | no (plain HTTP) | no (plain REST) |
Choose CaptureAPI if
- You capture commercial sites and want cookie banners and chat bubbles removed by default.
- You need batch requests, visual diff or EU data residency.
- You render between 10,000 and 15,000 a month, where its $29 Pro plan is cheaper than Shotkiln Scale.
Choose Shotkiln if
- You render about 10,000 a month ($19 against $29) or 50,000 a month ($49 against $79).
- You want a remote MCP server for AI agents, usable without a key.
- You want signed OG image URLs that go straight into an og:image tag without exposing your API key.
Parameter mapping
CaptureAPI parameter on the left, Shotkiln equivalent on the right.
| CaptureAPI | Shotkiln |
|---|---|
X-API-Key header | x-api-key header (or api_key) |
url | url |
width | width |
height | height |
fullPage or full_page | full_page |
format | format (png, jpeg, webp) |
quality | quality |
delay | delay |
device_scale_factor | device_scale_factor |
selector | not supported |
block_cookie_banners | not supported |
json=true | not supported (binary only) |
Sources: CaptureAPI pricing and docs (October 2026). Prices change, so check the vendor's page before deciding.
Frequently asked questions
- Is Shotkiln cheaper than CaptureAPI?
- Yes, at 10,000 and 50,000 renders a month, on published list prices. Shotkiln starts at $9 for 2,000 renders and never bills overage.
- What does CaptureAPI do that Shotkiln does not?
- Cookie-banner and chat-widget removal, batch requests, visual diff and EU hosting. Shotkiln has none of these: it captures public pages as a first-time visitor sees them.
- How do I switch from CaptureAPI to Shotkiln?
- Change the base URL, send your key in the x-api-key header and rename parameters with the table above. Check your captures before moving production traffic, since features like banner blocking have no equivalent.
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