#1 Bright Data Alternative
Scrape, crawl, map, and search the web for 1 credit per page, with rendering and anti-bot included. Bright Data bills each product its own way: Web Unlocker per 1,000 requests, Browser API per GB, scrapers per record. At $8 per GB and 2.5 MB a page, 1,000 Browser API pages cost $19.53; Context.dev Pro charges $0.79.
1,000 product pages, rendered in a browser
Pay-as-you-go vs Pro, October 2026 prices
Assumes 2.5 MB per page (1 GB = 1,024 MB); 1 MB pages cost $7.81 per 1,000. Web Unlocker is $1.50 per 1,000. Bright Data’s pre-built scraper records, at $1.50 per 1,000, cost less than Context.dev JSON extraction at $3.96.
Powering agents and products with the world's data.
Why switch
Bright Data and Context.dev both fetch protected, JavaScript-heavy pages. Context.dev charges 1 credit per page whatever the page weighs, with no zones, per-GB browser billing, or separate price ladders per product.
- Key difference
One price per page, not per GB or per product
Bright Data bills each product in its own unit: Web Unlocker per 1,000 requests, pre-built scrapers per record, and Browser API per GB of traffic, including every image, script, and font a page loads. Its own agent docs send JavaScript rendering and multi-step tasks to Browser API, where $8 per GB puts 1,000 pages at 2.5 MB at about $19.53 pay-as-you-go, 25 times Context.dev Pro’s $0.79. Even Web Unlocker, at $1.50 per 1,000 requests, costs about twice as much. Context.dev includes rendering, managed proxies, and anti-bot handling in every 1-credit scrape, whatever the page weighs.
- Plans
Volume pricing without a $499 monthly commitment
Bright Data’s committed plans start at $499 a month, and each product page lists its own ladder: $499 buys 383,000 Web Unlocker requests or 71 GB of Browser API traffic. Below that you pay $1.50 per 1,000 requests or $8 per GB. Context.dev has plans at $19, $99, and $299 a month, one credit balance covers scrape, crawl, map, search, and monitors, and yearly billing gives two months free.
- Extraction
JSON in your schema from any URL
Bright Data returns structured records where one of its 1,280 pre-built scrapers covers the site, or after you build a scraper in Scraper Studio; its MCP extract tool runs on your own model and tokens. Context.dev takes your JSON Schema with the scrape request and returns a typed object for 5 credits, $3.96 per 1,000 pages on Pro. Markdown, HTML, and a screenshot can come back from the same request.
- Search
Search results with page content in one call
Bright Data’s SERP API returns result lists, and reading each result is another Web Unlocker request, so 10 results with their pages cost $16.50 per 1,000 searches pay-as-you-go. Context.dev Web Search returns ten ranked results with full-page Markdown for 11 credits, $8.71 per 1,000 searches on Pro. If you only need the passages that answer your query, highlights from all ten pages cost 2 credits, $1.58 per 1,000.
- Workflows
Monitors, documents, and 100,000-URL batches built in
Context.dev watches pages for changes and sends webhooks for 1 credit per run, with failed runs free, and parses PDFs, DOCX, PPT, and XLSX for 1 credit plus 1 per OCR page. Batches take up to 100,000 URLs with any scrape output, including JSON extraction, refund failed pages when they settle, and keep results for 180 days. Bright Data schedules scraper runs but has no change monitoring or document parsing endpoint.
- Logins
Saved logins for signed-in pages, and SDKs in five languages
Context.dev browser profiles sign in once with a username and password and reuse the saved session on paid plans. Bright Data’s Browser API blocks password entry by default, and Web Unlocker does not allow login cookies. Both ship a CLI and an MCP server; Context.dev adds Ruby, Go, and PHP SDKs to TypeScript and Python.
What one request really costs
What 1,000 requests cost on Context.dev Pro and on Bright Data pay-as-you-go, its only option under $499 a month. Bright Data’s price depends on which product fetches the page; Context.dev’s does not.
| Request | Context.dev | Bright Data | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Web Unlocker requestOne page, with rendering and CAPTCHA solving included | $0.79 | $1.50 (1 request) | 1.9x more |
| Page rendered in Browser API2.5 MB per page, billed at $8 per GB | $0.79 | $19.53 (2.44 GB) | 25x more |
| Page with clicks or scrolls firstBrowser actions before capture, 2.5 MB page | $1.58 (2 credits) | $19.53 (2.44 GB) | 12x more |
| 10 search results with full pagesRanked results plus each page as Markdown | $8.71 (11 credits) | $16.50 (11 requests) | 1.9x more |
| JSON extraction against your schemaA typed object from any URL | $3.96 (5 credits) | Not offered | Bring an LLM |
| Record from a pre-built scraperSites in Bright Data’s 1,280-scraper library | $3.96 (5 credits) | $1.50 (1 record) | 2.6x less |
Derived from Context.dev Pro ($99 for 125,000 credits) at monthly billing and Bright Data pay-as-you-go list prices: $1.50 per 1,000 Web Unlocker, SERP API, or Scraper API requests and records, and $8 per GB on Browser API. Browser API pages assume 2.5 MB each and 1 GB = 1,024 MB.
Full comparison
| Feature | Context.dev | Bright Data |
|---|---|---|
| Scraping & Crawling | ||
| Scrape to Markdown or HTML | Yes | Yes |
| JavaScript rendering | Always included | Unlocker, or per GB |
| Residential proxies and anti-bot handling | Always included | Included in Unlocker |
| Screenshots | Yes | Yes |
| JSON extraction against your schema | 5 credits | Build a custom scraper |
| Pre-built site scrapers | 13 parsers | 1,280 site scrapers |
| Ready-made datasets | No | From $250 per 100K |
| Crawl a site | 1 credit/page | URL lists (Fetch API) |
| Map site URLs | Yes | No |
| Async batch scraping | Up to 100,000 URLs | 1 GB input per job |
| Change monitoring with webhooks | Yes | Scheduled runs only |
| Parse PDFs and office documents | Yes | No |
| Geotargeting | Country | Country, city, ZIP |
| Signed-in scraping with saved logins | Browser profiles | Off by default |
| Interaction & Search | ||
| Browser actions before capture | Up to 5 actions | Playwright, per GB |
| Long scripted browser sessions | No | Up to 60 minutes |
| Web search with page content | Yes | SERP + Unlocker calls |
| Research answers with sources | 10 credits | No |
| SERP API with parsed results | No | 5 engines, $1.50/1K |
| Pricing & Billing | ||
| Billing units | Credits only | GB, requests, records |
| Per-domain surcharges | None | Yes, rates unpublished |
| Paid plans under $499 a month | $19, $99, $299 | Pay as you go only |
| Failed requests free | Yes | Default, 3 exceptions |
| Concurrency on paid plans | 10 to 500 | Unlimited |
| Free plan | 1,000 credits/mo | 5,000 credits/mo |
| Setup per product | One key, no zones | A zone per product |
| Self-serve yearly billing | Yes | Monthly only |
| Deployment | ||
| Managed scraping API | Yes | Yes |
| Raw proxy network | No | 400M+ residential IPs |
| Zero data retention | On request | Not documented |
| Developer Experience | ||
| Public OpenAPI spec | Yes | Yes |
| TypeScript SDK | Yes | Yes |
| Python SDK | Yes | Yes |
| Go, PHP, and Ruby SDKs | Yes | No |
| CLI | Yes | Yes |
| MCP server | Yes | Yes |
| Also Included: Brand & Company Data | ||
| Brand profile by domain, name, email, or ticker | Yes | No |
| Logo CDN for direct embedding (Logo Link) | Yes | No |
Cost per 1,000 pages
Public list prices on both sites, broken down to the cost of 1,000 pages at each tier. Bright Data prices each product separately, so both its Browser API rate (per GB) and its Web Unlocker rate (per request) are shown.
| Tier | Context.dev | Bright Data |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free $0/mo 1,000 credits 1 concurrent request $0 per 1K pages, any page | Free tier $0/mo 5,000 credits 1,000 requests/min 400 Browser API pages a month 5,000 Unlocker requests a month |
| Entry | Developer $19/mo 7,500 credits 10 concurrent requests $2.11–$2.53 per 1K pages, any page | Pay as you go $1.50/1K requests $19 buys 12,666 requests Unlimited concurrency $19.53 per 1K Browser API pages $1.50 per 1K Unlocker requests |
| Mid | Pro $99/mo 125,000 credits 100 concurrent requests $0.66–$0.79 per 1K pages, any page | Pay as you go $1.50/1K requests $99 buys 66,000 requests Unlimited concurrency $19.53 per 1K Browser API pages $1.50 per 1K Unlocker requests |
| Growth | Growth $299/mo 500,000 credits 250 concurrent requests $0.50–$0.60 per 1K pages, any page | No plan between pay-as-you-go and $499 |
| High volume | Scale $499/mo 1,000,000 credits 500 concurrent requests $0.42–$0.50 per 1K pages, any page | Scale $499/mo 383,000 Unlocker requests Unlimited concurrency $17.09 per 1K Browser API pages $1.30 per 1K Unlocker requests |
- Cost per 1,000 pages assumes 1 credit per page on Context.dev, where JavaScript rendering, managed proxies, and anti-bot handling are always on. For Bright Data, the first figure is Browser API at 2.5 MB per page and 1 GB = 1,024 MB (the HTTP Archive’s 2025 median page weighs 2.0 MB for inner pages and 2.9 MB for home pages), and the second is Web Unlocker per request, rendering included. Context.dev ranges run from yearly to monthly billing; Bright Data publishes monthly prices only.
- Bright Data plans are set per product. The $499 Web Unlocker tier includes 383,000 requests and the $499 Browser API tier includes 71 GB; the $999 and $1,999 tiers include 908,000 and 2,000,000 requests, or 166 GB and 399 GB. Below $499 a month, Bright Data is pay-as-you-go ($1.50 per 1,000 requests, $8 per GB) with a $10 minimum top-up.
- Bright Data’s free tier gives 5,000 credits a month, 1 per Web Unlocker request and 5 per MB of Browser API traffic, and it stops when you move to a committed plan.
- Bright Data prices are from brightdata.com/pricing/web-unlocker, brightdata.com/pricing/scraping-browser (including the tiers behind each page’s plan slider), and docs.brightdata.com, accessed October 18, 2026. Premium-domain rates, which Bright Data does not publish, are excluded.
Prices and plans checked on .
Which one fits
Both fetch protected, JavaScript-heavy pages. These are the cases where the choice is clear. For formats, pricing, and code, see the Context.dev web scraping API.
Choose Context.dev if
- You scrape JavaScript-heavy pages and want one price per page, not a Browser API bill that grows with every MB a page loads.
- You need JSON in your own schema from any URL, not a pre-built scraper or a Scraper Studio project per site.
- Your budget is under $499 a month. Pro is $99 for 125,000 pages with 100 concurrent requests.
- You want scrape, crawl, map, search, document parsing, and change monitoring on one key and one credit balance.
Choose Bright Data if
- You need a raw proxy network: 400M+ residential IPs in 195 countries plus ISP and datacenter IPs, billed per GB or per IP. Context.dev has no proxy product.
- A pre-built scraper or dataset already covers your target. Bright Data lists 1,280 scrapers on 1,188 domains at $1.50 per 1,000 records, less than Context.dev JSON extraction, and sells datasets from $250 per 100,000 records.
- You need a SERP API with parsed Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, Yandex, and Baidu results, unlimited concurrency, or scripted Playwright sessions of up to 60 minutes.
- Procurement asks for ISO 27001, 27017, and 27018 certificates, which Bright Data publishes, or a vendor that won summary judgment against Meta over scraping public data.
A few things to know.
More details in the API documentation.
What is the best Bright Data alternative?
Context.dev is a Bright Data alternative for teams that want page content without buying and wiring up separate proxy and browser products. Scrape returns Markdown, rendered HTML, screenshots, or JSON against your schema for 1 credit per page with rendering and anti-bot handling included, and the same key covers crawl, map, search, batches, and monitors. If you need raw residential proxies, ready-made datasets, or a SERP API, Bright Data is the better fit.
How does Bright Data pricing compare to Context.dev?
Bright Data prices each product in its own unit. Web Unlocker is $1.50 per 1,000 successful requests pay-as-you-go, Browser API is $8 per GB of traffic, pre-built scrapers are $1.50 per 1,000 records, and committed tiers start at $499 a month on each product’s price list. At 2.5 MB a page, 1,000 Browser API pages cost about $19.53, or $7.81 for lighter 1 MB pages. Context.dev Pro is $99 for 125,000 credits, $0.79 per 1,000 pages whatever they weigh.
Does Bright Data charge for failed requests?
By default, Web Unlocker, SERP API, and Scraper API bill only successful results. Turning on custom headers, cookies, or expect elements on a zone bills 100% of requests, including failures, and Scraper API still bills records that fail because of bad input. Context.dev does not charge when every output of a scrape fails, except that a target 404 keeps the base credit, and it does not charge for 429, 408, or 5xx errors.
Do I need KYC to use Bright Data?
For residential proxies, yes. Every Residential zone created since July 7, 2026 goes through a human-reviewed KYC check, and only registered companies with a corporate email qualify. Web Unlocker and Browser API work without KYC, but then they refuse paths a site’s robots.txt disallows, and government sites need approval. Browser API also blocks password entry unless KYC and a compliance review approve an exception.
Can I migrate from Bright Data to Context.dev?
Yes, for page fetching. Web Unlocker calls map to Scrape with Markdown, HTML, or screenshot output and a country parameter, with rendering always on. Browser API flows with a few clicks or scrolls map to Scrape with up to five browser actions on paid plans, and SERP-plus-fetch loops map to one Web Search call. Scraper API jobs over URL lists map to Batches of up to 100,000 URLs with JSON extraction. Raw proxy traffic, parsed SERPs, and dataset purchases have no Context.dev equivalent.
Can Context.dev replace Bright Data’s pre-built scrapers?
Partly. Context.dev returns JSON against any schema you send for 5 credits per page, a product object (name, price, availability) for 1 extra credit, and prebuilt parsers for Google Maps, Maps reviews, Google Play, the App Store, G2 reviews, and Instagram. Where one of Bright Data’s 1,280 scrapers already covers a site, its records cost $1.50 per 1,000, less than Context.dev JSON extraction at $3.96. Context.dev does not sell ready-made datasets.
When is Bright Data the better choice?
Choose Bright Data when you need the proxy layer itself: 400M+ residential IPs plus ISP and datacenter IPs for your own browsers, with city and ZIP targeting. It is also the better fit when one of its pre-built scrapers or datasets already covers your site, when you need parsed SERP results, unlimited concurrency, or Playwright sessions of up to 60 minutes, and when procurement asks for its published ISO 27001 certificate.
Does Context.dev have a proxy network or a SERP API?
No. Context.dev is a managed scraping API: proxies, rendering, and anti-bot handling run inside each request, and there is no proxy port, IP pool, or per-GB plan to buy. Web Search returns ranked results with page content, not parsed Google SERPs with ads and features. If you need either, Bright Data covers both.
More comparisons
Other proxy & unblocker APIs that teams compare with Context.dev, or see every comparison.
- Context.dev vs OxylabsOxylabs’ $0.50 per 1,000 is Amazon without JavaScript. Rendered pages elsewhere cost more than on Context.dev Pro.
- Context.dev vs DecodoFour rates per request on Decodo’s Web Data API. Rendered pages on its premium pool cost more than here.
- Context.dev vs NimbleHalf Nimble’s $1.00 per 1,000 pages at a million pages a month, with crawl, batches, and monitors on one key.
Ready to switch from Bright Data?
Replace Web Unlocker and Browser API calls with one Scrape request at 1 credit per page, and start on the free plan with 1,000 credits a month.