PageCapture
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Puppeteer build vs API

Keep Puppeteer when browser control is core. Use an API when the artifact is.

The migration is not about replacing every Puppeteer API. It is about moving a bounded screenshot job when Chromium operations no longer belong in your product service.

Run the live demoConfigure the live request
Capture settings
Enter the source, choose your options, then run the capture.
Result
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waiting

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Complete the settings and run the tool. Images, PDFs, text, and video all preview in this panel.

Send this exact request
cURL, TypeScript and Python are generated from the same configuration as the demo.
curl --fail-with-body "https://api.pagecapture.dev/v1/take" \
  -H "X-Access-Key: $PAGECAPTURE_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{"url":"https://example.com","format":"png","full_page":true}' \
  -o capture.png

A bounded migration

Map navigation, wait, viewport and screenshot options; keep custom browser workflows in Puppeteer.

No Chromium in your service

Browser executable compatibility, upgrades and process recovery move out of the application image.

Same output test

Run both paths against a controlled fixture and compare the artifacts before switching traffic.

DIY remains valid

Low-volume, controlled pages and unrestricted CDP interaction can be better served by your current script.

Use this when
  • The screenshot code works but browser deployment and recovery consume product time.
  • The workload maps to a documented capture request.
Do not use this when
  • A small local Puppeteer script is already reliable and cheap to own.
  • The job needs arbitrary page evaluation or a long interactive session.
Workflow

From input to verified artifact

  1. 01

    Map options

    Translate goto, viewport, wait and screenshot options into one request body.

  2. 02

    Remove browser ownership

    The application stops launching, pooling and upgrading Chromium.

  3. 03

    Verify bytes

    Compare the API artifact against the controlled fixture before migrating traffic.

Edge cases and common errors

networkidle vocabulary

The public contract distinguishes networkidle0 and networkidle2 by in-flight request count.

Custom evaluate logic

Keep Puppeteer when the interaction cannot be expressed by the public action contract.

DIY in hours and operational risk

Keep the browser when that is the simpler system.

This is a transfer of operational responsibility, not a claim that an HTTP call is more flexible than Puppeteer.

DIY is a good fit when

  • • The browser is core product infrastructure with dedicated owners.
  • • The application needs unrestricted DOM and CDP access.

No default is supplied: we do not invent engineering-hour savings.

Responsibility and risk transferred
Executable compatibility
Puppeteer and Chromium revisions can fail at startup after a deploy.
Process recovery
A crashed browser can strand concurrent jobs or leak capacity.
Workload pricing

5,000 migrated Puppeteer jobs

This is an editable scenario, not a savings claim. Only successful captures that miss cache are billable.

Billable successes
4,410
Smallest included plan
Growth
Published monthly price
$47.00
Tested and reviewed

Written by PageCapture Engineering. Reviewed by PageCapture API maintainers. Last tested 2026-08-11.

cURL, TypeScript and Python executed against controlled fixtures; request contract and artifact format verified.

Questions this raises

Is an API more flexible than Puppeteer?

No. Puppeteer exposes unrestricted browser control. The API is useful when the job fits its contract and you prefer not to operate the browser.

Do networkidle0 and networkidle2 still work?

Yes. The public vocabulary is implemented by counting in-flight requests because Playwright's single networkidle behavior is different.

Can I migrate gradually?

Yes. Shadow a sample of jobs, compare bytes and metadata, then move only the workloads that match the contract.

Related

Playwright operations
Move screenshot jobs out of your Playwright serverless function
Screenshot API
A screenshot API that returns the file, not a job to poll
Full page
Full-page screenshots that survive lazy loading

Guides that cover this in depth

how to take a full-page screenshot with Puppeteer
Full-page screenshots with Puppeteer — and where they break

The output has blank image slots below the first fold, a sticky header repeated through the image, or a blank/truncated tail on a very tall document.

Ready to try it against your own page?

Return to the configured demo