They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. It may be a cliche, but that doesn’t make it any less true, especially when it comes to your website.
In fact, because of the high demand for images and visual content, Web developers, bloggers, and website owners frequently need to capture screenshots. They use them for a variety of purposes – from recording a problem or bug to creating a tutorial, or just posting a meme discovered on another page. Unfortunately, getting a good-quality screenshot isn’t always that easy. Even if you manage to get a quality screenshot, you will probably need some additional software to process it.
This is where tools like Thum.io and Screenshotlayer can help you out. They can get you high-quality screenshots of any website you want. They also offer post-processing tools to customize that snapshot according to your needs. While both these APIs are excellent, they differ in the features they offer.
In this post, we will examine the features of both Thum.io and Screenshotlayer and try to figure out which API is better.
Ease of Use
Both Thum.io and Screenshotlayer provide high-quality screenshots from any website. You just have to enter the URL of the website and leave it to these amazing tools to get the screenshot for you. Thum.io only needs you to paste a small bit of code on your website and you can start using it to get screenshots.
The Thum.io code for Google.com (Credit: thum.io)
Screenshotlayer, on the other hand, requires you to install slightly more complex code on your website to enable screenshot generation. Incorporating it into your website can be a little difficult – especially if you want to use all of the service’s features.
The Screenshotlayer code for Apple.com (Credit:screenshotlayer.com)
Features
While Screenshotlayer might be a bit difficult to integrate, it offers a larger variety of options when it comes to capturing screenshots. You can use it to capture thumbnails as well as full-length snapshots. It also allows you to choose your preferred width and format. Screenshotlayer also lets you specify a time delay when capturing a screenshot and the viewport dimensions you prefer. There is also an option available to inject your own CSS to customize the image just the way you want it.
Thum.io also offers additional features that enable you to resize your screenshots and decide the cropped number of pixels you capture. However, when comparing features, Screenshotlayer certainly comes out on top.
Documentation
Thum.io provides you all the documentation you need to use its API. It is both simple and easy to follow. You will find detailed descriptions explaining each image modifier. The language used for these descriptions is kept simple so anyone can understand them. If you are still having difficulty understanding what these modifiers do, you can see a preview of them in action too.
Screenshotlayer offers comprehensive documentation for its advanced features too. You are given examples in addition to descriptions to ensure that you understand what each of them can be used for.
Pricing
Screenshotlayer has multiple plans that cater to the needs of various types of users. For casual users, there is a free plan that costs nothing, but has a limit of 100 snapshots. So, essentially, you can use it for free, albeit for only a little while. The other subscription plans include basic, professional, and enterprise. These plans have varying incentives (higher screenshot limits) and prices as shown below. The good thing about the service is that it offers full customization features across all package types.
| Plan | Screenshot Limit | Pricing |
| Free | 100 | Free |
| Basic | 10,000 | $19.99/mo |
| Professional | 30,000 | $59.99/mo |
| Enterprise | 75,000 | $149.99/mo |
Thum.io, on the other hand, has three plans — Good, Better, and Enterprise. The details of the enterprise plan, however, are only provided if you send them an email. This is because the service offers different packages depending on your requirements. As for the regular plans, they cost a small monthly fee in addition to a small fee for every 10,000 screenshots.
| Plan Type | Features | Pricing |
| Good | Animated Render, Branded Loader | $1/mo + $2 per 10,000 screenshots |
| Better | Animated Render, Branded Loader, Full-Page screenshots, Customizable viewport width | $20/mo + $1 per 10,000 screenshots |
In comparison, Thum.io’s ‘good’ plan is cheaper than Screenshotlayer’s basic plan. However, it does come with fewer features. The ‘better’ plan that comes with more features is relatively expensive in comparison to the basic Screenshotlayer package but could prove cheaper if you have a screenshot requirement of over 10,000.
So, Which One is Better?
Thum.io and Screenshotlayer are on par with each other when it comes to documentation. However, Screenshotlayer has a considerable advantage when it comes to features and pricing for up to 10,000 screenshots per month.
The platform also supports a greater number of payment methods and this leads to a more comfortable financial relationship. On the other hand, Thum.io is slightly easier to use than Screenshotlayer and offers more competitive pricing for users with snapshot requirements above 10,000.
In conclusion, the comparison of the two APIs reveals that Screenshotlayer is the better option. If you are looking for an economical solution and access to more features, then Screenshotlayer is the one to go with.
Sign up for any of the Screenshotlayer plans and get amazing screenshots of any website you want.
