Screenshotapi

The primary API pattern is a GET request: GET /api?token=TOKEN&url=TARGET_URL[&options]. Optional parameters include full_page (boolean), width, height, delay (seconds to wait before capture), css (injected CSS), block_ads, block_cookie_banners, output (image or json). Returns the screenshot file directly or, with output=json, a JSON object with a screenshot URL. POST requests are also supported for complex CSS injection. The surface is minimal. No pagination or batch API documented.

Returns appropriate HTTP status codes: 200 with the image for success, 400 for missing or invalid parameters, 401 for invalid tokens, 429 for rate limit exceeded. Error bodies include a message field. Rendering failures (unreachable URLs, JavaScript errors) return a screenshot of the error state or a service error — not always clearly distinguished from successful renders. Timeout behavior is configurable via the delay parameter. Rate limit headers are included in responses.

ScreenshotAPI is a cloud screenshot service that renders URLs using Chromium and returns PNG or JPEG screenshots via a REST API. The API design is simple enough for direct GET request use: an agent can capture a full-page screenshot with a single HTTP GET call including the target URL and API token. The service supports custom viewport dimensions, rendering delays, full-page vs viewport captures, CSS injection, and resource blocking (ads, cookies). A free tier provides 100 screenshots/month. Paid plans scale up. Good fit for agents that need visual captures of web pages without managing a headless browser. Confidence is docs-derived.

Authentication uses a token passed as a query parameter (?token=TOKEN) or header. API tokens are generated in the ScreenshotAPI dashboard. No OAuth. Token rotation is manual. Passing the token in the query string is convenient but means it appears in server logs — agents should prefer header-based auth where supported. No per-domain or per-request scoping documented.

Documentation at screenshotapi.net/documentation covers all GET parameters with examples in curl, Python, JavaScript, and PHP. The documentation is concise but complete for the core API. No SDK required — the API is simple enough that direct HTTP calls are the standard pattern. Community support is via email. Documentation quality is adequate; advanced use cases (dynamic content, authentication-gated pages) receive minimal coverage.