Apify vs Firecrawl:Which is more popular?
In September 2026, Apify had more branded searches than Firecrawl among web scraping APIs worldwide. Apify had about 368,000 branded searches, while Firecrawl had 135,000. Apify made up 64.2% of all web scraping API searches we track, and Firecrawl accounted for 23.5%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about web scraping APIs, Apify appeared in four of the five answers and Firecrawl in three. Firecrawl was mentioned before Apify in three out of five answers.
Who do people search for more?
Apify, about 3 searches for every 1 for Firecrawl
Who does AI mention more?
Apify, mentioned in 4 of 5 answers, Firecrawl in 3
Who does AI recommend more?
Firecrawl, named ahead of Apify in 3 of 5 answers
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Top web scraping APIs in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews
In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Apify was mentioned in four out of five: in all three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Firecrawl was mentioned in three out of five: in two of the three ChatGPT answers and in one of the two Google AI Overviews. Firecrawl was listed before Apify in three out of five answers.
Most recommended by AI
Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.
Bright Data1st
Zyte2nd- Firecrawl3rd
ScrapingBee4th- Apify5th
ScrapeGraphAI6th
Oxylabs7th- ZenRows8th
ScraperAPI9th
Mentioned by AI
Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.
- ScrapingBee5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- Zyte5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- Bright Data5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- Apify4 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
- Firecrawl3 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
- Oxylabs2 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
- ScrapeGraphAI2 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- ScraperAPI2 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
- ZenRows2 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
See every answer about web scraping APIs
5 answers
Asked ChatGPT
“Which web scraping API should I use?”
Asked ChatGPT
“What are the best web scraping APIs?”
Asked ChatGPT
“What's the best web scraping API for data at scale?”
Searched Google, AI Overview
“web scraping apis”
Searched Google, AI Overview
“website scraping api”
Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 21, 2026.
Is Apify or Firecrawl more popular in search?
This chart shows how often people search Google for Apify and Firecrawl by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all nine web scraping APIs we track, month by month, from English-language searches worldwide.
Share of searches by month for Apify, Firecrawl. The figures are in the table below the chart.
View monthly share of searches table
| Month | Apify | Firecrawl | Oxylabs | ScrapeGraphAI | ScrapingBee | Zyte | ScraperAPI | ZenRows | Bright Data |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 50.8% | 22.8% | 15.2% | 1.1% | 3% | 2% | 3% | 2% | <0.01% |
| Nov 2025 | 54.2% | 19.9% | 13.3% | 1.2% | 2.7% | 2.7% | 4% | 2.2% | <0.01% |
| Dec 2025 | 52.6% | 23.6% | 12.9% | 0.92% | 2.6% | 2.1% | 3.2% | 2.1% | <0.01% |
| Jan 2026 | 50.4% | 27.6% | 12.4% | 0.9% | 2.5% | 1.7% | 2.5% | 2% | <0.01% |
| Feb 2026 | 55.6% | 24.9% | 11.2% | 0.81% | 2.2% | 1.5% | 2.2% | 1.5% | <0.01% |
| Mar 2026 | 57.8% | 25.9% | 9.5% | 0.57% | 1.6% | 1.3% | 2.3% | 1% | <0.01% |
| Apr 2026 | 54.7% | 29.9% | 9% | 0.54% | 1.5% | 1.2% | 2.2% | 0.98% | <0.01% |
| May 2026 | 58.6% | 26.3% | 7.9% | 1.6% | 1.6% | 1.1% | 1.9% | 1.1% | <0.01% |
| Jun 2026 | 59% | 26.5% | 7.9% | 1.6% | 1.3% | 1.1% | 1.6% | 1.1% | <0.01% |
| Jul 2026 | 61.5% | 22.5% | 10.1% | 0.9% | 1.4% | 1.1% | 1.7% | 0.9% | <0.01% |
| Aug 2026 | 60.4% | 27% | 6.6% | 1.3% | 1.3% | 1.3% | 1.1% | 0.89% | <0.01% |
| Sep 2026 | 64.2% | 23.5% | 5.8% | 1.7% | 1.7% | 1.2% | 0.94% | 0.94% | <0.01% |
How has the Apify and Firecrawl comparison changed over the last 12 months?
3 findings
- Apify was ahead of Firecrawl in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Apify’s share of searches among web scraping APIs worldwide moved from 50.8% to 64.2%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 165K to 368K.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Firecrawl’s share of searches among web scraping APIs worldwide moved from 22.8% to 23.5%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 74K to 135K.
How did search popularity change for web scraping APIs worldwide in September 2026?
2 changes
In September 2026, Apify gained share of searches among web scraping APIs worldwide, from 60.4% to 64.2%.
In September 2026, Firecrawl lost share of searches among web scraping APIs worldwide, from 27% to 23.5%.
How are branded searches counted?
3 search terms
Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Apify’s and Firecrawl’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading.
Other head-to-heads among web scraping APIs
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