Crawlee vs Shields
Same instrument, two spec sheets — measured, not claimed.
Crawlee vs Shields: common questions
Which is more reliable, Crawlee or Shields?
Both are neck-and-neck — Crawlee and Shields each measure 100% uptime over 90 days on our probe schedule. Reliability here is verified from our own scheduled checks; use the 30-day bars above to see which has been steadier lately.
Which is faster, Crawlee or Shields?
Shields has the lower median latency in our checks — Crawlee responds in 480 ms versus Shields at 30 ms (P50). Tail latency (P95) is in the table above; for most workloads the median is the number that shapes how the API feels.
Do Crawlee and Shields need an API key?
Neither needs a paid key — Crawlee is callable with no signup, and Shields is callable with no signup. Both are quick to prototype with; rate limits still apply.
Can I call Crawlee and Shields from the browser?
Only Shields is browser-friendly — it returns CORS headers over HTTPS. Crawlee needs a server-side call or proxy, so factor that into which one fits a front-end project.
Are Crawlee and Shields free for commercial use?
Crawlee has unclear commercial terms, and Shields has unclear commercial terms. We track service terms and the data license as separate fields — see the Commercial use and Data license rows above, and confirm both before shipping either in a paid product.