Scraping API PricesBrowserbase vs ZenRows
The browser-hour boundary between included cloud-browser hours and a scraping balance with browser time.
Browserbase
ZenRows
The difference
Both paths, one ruler
Browserbase
Successes you want
200 browser hours
Your stated workload. Every vendor on this site is priced against this same number.
- ÷ 1
Attempts you are billed for
200 browser hours
Browserbase bills failed fetches. This workload assumes none fail, so nothing is added here.
- × 1
What the meter counts
200 browser_hours
One attempt is one billed unit for this workload.
- =
Cash per month
$32.00 /mo
Developer. Cheapest of every eligible purchase option, not the first plan that fits.
Bars share one linear scale across the 3 counted stages, so a multiplier shows as length. Units differ by stage and are labelled. Cash is not on that scale.
ZenRows
Successes you want
200 browser hours
Your stated workload. Every vendor on this site is priced against this same number.
- × 1
Attempts you are billed for
200 browser hours
ZenRows does not bill failed fetches, so failures cost nothing here.
- × 1
What the meter counts
200 browser_hours
One attempt is one billed unit for this workload.
- =
Cash per month
$69.99 /mo
Developer. Cheapest of every eligible purchase option, not the first plan that fits.
Bars share one linear scale across the 3 counted stages, so a multiplier shows as length. Units differ by stage and are labelled. Cash is not on that scale.
Both ladders share one linear scale, topping out at 200 counted units, so a longer bar means more billed work rather than a different drawing.
These figures are for one stated workload: 200 metered browser-session hours a month, excluding separate proxy and model charges. The comparison below names where the answer changes.
The boundary
After Browserbase’s recurring free hour and ZenRows’ one-time trial are excluded, Browserbase is lower for managed browser time before proxy bandwidth through 516 paid browser hours a month. At 517 hours, ZenRows’ published browser-time meter becomes lower and remains lower through the tested 5,000-hour range. The first hundreds of hours favor Browserbase because its paid plans include browser-hour allowances and publish overage. At sustained volume, ZenRows’ time meter crosses below the Browserbase path. This boundary is only valid if both products can use the same proxy class and the workload does not consume material extra bandwidth. (Browserbase pricing, retrieved 2026-07-26; ZenRows pricing documentation, retrieved 2026-07-26)
Session shape matters. Browserbase applies a one-minute minimum to a created session and caps normal session duration at a published maximum. ZenRows publishes browser time together with plan-specific bandwidth economics, but the reviewed pricing documentation does not expose an equivalent minimum-session rule. A thousand seconds spread across a thousand sessions is not safely assumed to bill like one continuous session on both services. (Browserbase cost optimization, retrieved 2026-07-26; Browserbase timeout documentation, retrieved 2026-07-26; ZenRows pricing documentation, retrieved 2026-07-26)
How the billing models differ
Browserbase has separate allowances for browser time, agent runs, Search, Fetch, Extract, and proxy bandwidth. Browser-hour and proxy overage rates vary by paid plan. ZenRows uses a hybrid account balance shared by Universal Scraper API, Scraping Browser, and residential proxy use. Scraping Browser charges time and uses plan-specific bandwidth rates, while Universal Scraper API uses result credits for basic, JavaScript, premium, and protected page modes. (Browserbase pricing, retrieved 2026-07-26; ZenRows pricing documentation, retrieved 2026-07-26)
Elapsed browser time is not success-only page billing. Browserbase says a session continues to accrue time until it is closed or reaches timeout, including keep-alive sessions that are not explicitly released. ZenRows’ success-only statements apply to Universal Scraper API requests, not as a promise that failed interactive browser work erases elapsed session time. The browser-hour comparison therefore uses time requested, not successful page outcomes. (Browserbase keep-alive documentation, retrieved 2026-07-26; ZenRows pricing documentation, retrieved 2026-07-26)
What each offers that the other does not
Browserbase publishes integrated Agent, Search, Fetch, and Extract allowances in addition to remote browsers, plus distinct retention periods and enterprise identity controls. ZenRows publishes Universal Scraper API in the same commercial account as Scraping Browser, including explicit capacities for basic, JavaScript, premium-proxy, and protected results. Browserbase is built for applications that treat browser sessions and agent utilities as infrastructure. ZenRows can switch a job between request-based unblocking and browser control without buying a separate vendor. (Browserbase pricing, retrieved 2026-07-26; ZenRows pricing documentation, retrieved 2026-07-26)
Who should pick which
Pick Browserbase below 517 hours when its included hours, concurrency, and separate platform allowances match the job. Pick ZenRows at or above 517 hours when browser time is the dominant cost and the same account’s Universal Scraper path is valuable. Add expected proxy gigabytes before committing because bandwidth can move the crossover. If the job only needs page delivery, compare the request APIs instead of paying for browser control. (Browserbase pricing, retrieved 2026-07-26; ZenRows pricing documentation, retrieved 2026-07-26)
Browserbase’s page contains a conflicting Fetch overage figure, and ZenRows’ largest named plan differs across first-party sources. Neither discrepancy changes the hour-only boundary, but both matter once the workload includes Fetch or the largest published ZenRows tier. (Browserbase pricing, retrieved 2026-07-26; ZenRows pricing page, retrieved 2026-07-26; ZenRows pricing documentation, retrieved 2026-07-26)