Credits & limits

The ScrapeLLM API uses a credit-based billing system with per-account rate limits enforced at the API gateway.

Credits system

How credits work

Each successful API request consumes credits based on the scraper used
Credits are deducted when requests complete with HTTP 200
Failed requests (4xx errors) do not consume credits
Async jobs that fail after all retry attempts restore credits automatically
Most scrapers cost 3 credits per request

Credit cost per scraper

Scraper	Credits
ChatGPT	3
Perplexity	3
Grok	3
Copilot	3
Gemini	3
Google AI Mode	3
Amazon Rufus	3

Rate limits

Rate limits are enforced per API key. When you exceed a limit, you receive HTTP 429:

{
  "detail": "Rate limit exceeded. Retry after a moment."
}

Limits vary by plan. Implement retry with exponential backoff on 429 responses. See Error handling for a code example.

Monitoring usage

Dashboard

Your dashboard shows:

Current credit balance
Credits used this billing cycle
Usage history and trends

Track credit consumption in code

import requests

resp = requests.get(
    "https://api.scrapellm.com/scrapers/chatgpt",
    headers={"X-API-Key": "YOUR_API_KEY"},
    params={"prompt": "Best CRM?", "country": "US"},
)

data = resp.json()
credits_used = data.get("credits_used", 0)
print(f"Credits used for this request: {credits_used}")

Handling credit exhaustion

When credits run out (HTTP 429), implement graceful handling:

import requests

resp = requests.get(
    "https://api.scrapellm.com/scrapers/chatgpt",
    headers={"X-API-Key": "YOUR_API_KEY"},
    params={"prompt": "Best CRM?"},
)

if resp.status_code == 429:
    print("Credit limit reached. Upgrade your plan or wait for next billing cycle.")
elif resp.status_code == 200:
    data = resp.json()
    print(data["result"])

Common questions

Why was I charged for a failed request?

You’re only charged for successful requests (HTTP 200). 4xx errors and async jobs that fail after all retries do not consume credits.

How do I know how many credits I have left?

Check the credits_used field in each response, or log into your dashboard for your current balance.

What happens at the rate limit?

You receive HTTP 429. Implement exponential backoff and retry - the window resets shortly. For sustained high-volume workloads, use async job mode which handles queuing server-side.

Can I get notified when credits are running low?

Contact [email protected] to discuss credit alerts. We’ll notify you by email when you approach your limit.

Introduction

Guides

Credits system

How credits work

Credit cost per scraper

Rate limits

Monitoring usage

Dashboard

Track credit consumption in code

Handling credit exhaustion

Common questions

Why was I charged for a failed request?

How do I know how many credits I have left?

What happens at the rate limit?

Can I get notified when credits are running low?

​Credits system

​How credits work

​Credit cost per scraper

​Rate limits

​Monitoring usage

​Dashboard

​Track credit consumption in code

​Handling credit exhaustion

​Common questions

​Why was I charged for a failed request?

​How do I know how many credits I have left?

​What happens at the rate limit?

​Can I get notified when credits are running low?

Credits system

How credits work

Credit cost per scraper

Rate limits

Monitoring usage

Dashboard

Track credit consumption in code

Handling credit exhaustion

Common questions

Why was I charged for a failed request?

How do I know how many credits I have left?

What happens at the rate limit?

Can I get notified when credits are running low?