--- title: "Bright Data API: pricing, rate limits & MCP | ONEGTMLAB" description: "Bright Data API: Web data platform: proxy networks, unblocking/SERP/browser APIs, vendor-maintained scraper APIs for big sites (LinkedIn, Amazon…" canonical: https://www.onegtmlab.dev/tool-directory/research-and-scraping/brightdata --- # Bright Data API: pricing, rate limits & MCP | ONEGTMLAB [](/) [ Book a call ](/book) ![](/_astro/brightdata.D3o9R6mQ_FegdY.webp) API review # Bright Data API review Web data platform: proxy networks, unblocking/SERP/browser APIs, vendor-maintained scraper APIs for big sites (LinkedIn, Amazon, Instagram...), a dataset marketplace, a beta people/company search API and an MCP server. Best for structured records from big platforms via maintained Scraper APIs, pay only per delivered record. Verified 25 Oct 2026 · 17 endpoints listed · Official MCP server [ See pricing ](#pricing)[ Bright Data API docs ](https://docs.brightdata.com/api-reference/authentication) At a glance Category Scraping, Data platform, Sourcing, Research Pricing model Usage-based Free tier 5,000 credits/month (~$7.50) shared across Web Unlocker, SERP, Web Scraper API… Entry price $499/mo, billed monthly ISP proxies pay per GB Auth API key Official MCP Yes Best for Structured records from big platforms via maintained Scraper APIs, pay only per delivered record [brightdata.com ↗](https://brightdata.com)[Pricing page ↗](https://brightdata.com/pricing/web-scraper) ## What a call costs The actions you pay for, as Bright Data prices them. Action Cost Per Web Scraper API record (PAYG) $1.5 1K records Web Unlocker request (PAYG) $1.5 1K requests SERP request (PAYG) $1.5 1K requests Crawl API request (PAYG) $1.5 1K requests Browser API traffic (PAYG) $8 GB Business Search (ludicrous/instant) $2 1K searches (up to 100 results each) Business Search (smart) $3 1K searches (up to 10 results each) Residential proxy PAYG $8 list ($4 with promo) GB Show all 12 priced actionsHide the rest Action Cost Per ISP proxy shared $1.8 (10 IPs) to $1.3 (1,000 IPs) IP/month ISP proxy dedicated $3.5 (10 IPs) to $2.5 (1,000 IPs) IP/month ISP proxy pay per GB $8 GB Marketplace dataset records from $2.5; monthly refresh saves 80% 1K records ## Pricing, plan by plan US dollars, as Bright Data's pricing page shows them on 25 Oct 2026. Monthly and annual billing are shown apart. Free tier 5,000 credits/month (~$7.50) shared across Web Unlocker, SERP, Web Scraper API (1 credit per request/record), Scraper Studio (1 credit per page load) and Browser API (5 credits per MB, ~1 GB); MCP draws from the same pool; no rollover; resets on the 1st. Proxies excluded: one-time $2 trial credit (7 days) plus a $5 bonus when a payment method is added (30 days). Not issued on custom-PAYG or pre-commit plans. Prepaid wallet, hard stop when unfunded. ### Web Scraper API PAYG One-off pack $1.5 per 1K records API includedPlan details n/a ### Web Scraper API Scale $499/mo billed monthly 384,000 records API includedPlan details $1.3 per 1K records ### Web Unlocker Scale $499/mo billed monthly 383K requests API includedPlan details $1.3 per 1K requests ### SERP API Scale $499/mo billed monthly 380K requests API includedPlan details $1.3 per 1K requests ### Browser API Scale $499/mo billed monthly 71 GB API included ### Crawl API tiers $499/mo billed monthly 380K requests ($999 = 900K, $1,999 = 2M) API includedPlan details $1.3 / $1.1 / $1 per 1K Show all 9 plansShow fewer plans ### Residential proxies $499/mo billed monthly 141 GB ($999 = 332 GB, $1,999 = 798 GB) API includedPlan details $7 / $6 / $5 per GB list; with code RESIGB50 (50% off) $4 / $3 / $3 per GB. PAYG $8/GB list, $4 with code ### Enterprise Custom quote custom API included ### ISP proxies pay per GB $499/mo billed monthly 71 GB ($999 = 166 GB, $1,999 = 399 GB); PAYG $8/GB API includedPlan details $7 / $6 / $5 per GB ## Rate limits Scraper API: 5,000 running jobs per dataset, 1-minute sync wait (then HTTP 202 + snapshot\_id), 1 GB input per job, and 25 HTTP 429 responses within 5 minutes blocks your IP on every API call until support clears it. More on limitsLess Paid products advertise unlimited concurrency. Unfunded free-tier accounts: 1,000 requests/min across SERP, Unlocker and proxies. ## How to get an API key Bright Data uses API key. The steps below follow Bright Data's own docs. 1. Create a Bright Data account. API access starts on the Web Scraper API Scale plan. 2. A default API key is created at signup. More: Control panel > Account settings > Users and API keys > Add API key (admins only; each user can have only one key, total keys cannot exceed account users; every key is shown only once; set user, permission Admin/Finance/Ops/Limit/User, and an expiry or Unlimited) 3. Send it with every request: header Authorization: Bearer ; proxies use native username/password (billed the same). MCP accepts ?token= in the URL. 4. Make a first call: Web Scraper API async job: collect by URL or discover (by keyword, user\_name, search filters) using a pre-built scraper. Keep the key in an environment variable, never in the command. ``` curl -X POST "https://api.brightdata.com/datasets/v3/trigger?dataset_id=..." \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $BRIGHTDATA_API_KEY" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{}' ``` ## Where the docs live What Where Documentation [docs.brightdata.com](https://docs.brightdata.com) API reference [docs.brightdata.com/api-reference/authentication](https://docs.brightdata.com/api-reference/authentication) OpenAPI spec [docs.brightdata.com/api-reference/openapi.json](https://docs.brightdata.com/api-reference/openapi.json) llms.txt [docs.brightdata.com/llms.txt](https://docs.brightdata.com/llms.txt) Changelog [docs.brightdata.com/release-notes](https://docs.brightdata.com/release-notes) Base URL `https://api.brightdata.com` MCP server `https://mcp.brightdata.com/mcp` SDKs Python SDK (brightdata), JavaScript SDK (@brightdata/sdk), CLI (@brightdata/cli, bdata) ## Strengths and limits ### Where it fits - Structured records from big platforms via maintained Scraper APIs, pay only per delivered record ($1.5/1K PAYG) - Fetching blocked pages (Web Unlocker) and live SERPs at scale - Proxies: residential (400M+ IPs), ISP static, datacenter; fixed IPs for browser profiles - Buying pre-collected datasets (LinkedIn people/company, Crunchbase, Google Maps, jobs) instead of scraping - Agents via a hosted MCP with 32 tools and 5,000 free requests/month ### Where it falls short - Small one-off scrapes where an Apify Store Actor is cheaper or already exists - Teams wanting a simple flat subscription; billing is a prepaid wallet with per-product PAYG rates - LinkedIn post history beyond what a profile shows publicly (about 10 posts) ### Worth knowing - 25 HTTP 429 responses within 5 minutes from one IP blocks that IP on every API request until support clears it; batch inputs into one /trigger instead of many small jobs (docs/products/scrapers/limits). - Snapshots are deleted 30 days after completion; deliver to storage/webhook to keep them (same page). - Sync /scrape waits only 1 minute, then returns HTTP 202 + snapshot\_id; your code must handle polling (same page). - Instagram media URLs expire 24 hours after collection; LinkedIn returns only ~10 public posts per profile (same page). - Business Search bills per requested block, not per returned result: limit 40 costs the same as 100, and zero-match searches are billed (docs/products/business-search/pricing). 8 moreShow fewer - Free 5,000 credits/month are one shared pool across Unlocker, SERP, Scraper API, Studio, Browser API and MCP; no rollover; proxies excluded (free-tier doc). - Pricing pages carry stacking promos (deposit match up to $500, RESIGB50, APIS25); list prices differ from checkout prices. - Only admins can create API keys; each user can hold only one key and every key is shown only once (authentication doc). - ISP zones can target country only, not city; pin a specific IP with the -ip- username suffix. - An OpenAPI file exists but covers only the Account Management API (35 paths: zones, IPs, balance, costs); Scraper, Unlocker, SERP and Business Search are documented only in the Mintlify pages / llms-full.txt (docs.brightdata.com/api-reference/openapi.json, fetched 2026-10-25). - 'Crawl API' was renamed Fetch API and now runs on the Scraper API (/datasets/v3/scrape with dataset\_id gd\_m6gjtfmeh43we6cqc), priced per record; the old /pricing/crawl-api page with its own tiers is still live (docs products/scrapers/fetch-api/introduction vs brightdata.com/pricing/crawl-api, 2026-10-25). - Immediate-access Residential and Mobile proxies were retired effective 19 Oct 2026; existing ones are deleted 9 Nov 2026; switch to ISP proxies or Web Unlocker (docs.brightdata.com/release-notes, Oct 19 and 24 2026). - Live account vs pricing page: our 5 dedicated ISP IPs bill at $4/IP/month; the public page only lists tiers from 10 IPs ($3.5/IP). Below 10 IPs the live price is higher. ## Who should use it Use Bright Data for Structured records from big platforms via maintained Scraper APIs, pay only per delivered record ($1.5/1K PAYG) Look elsewhere for Small one-off scrapes where an Apify Store Actor is cheaper or already exists ## If Bright Data is not the answer Other Research and scraping tools in this directory, each with its own review. [ ![](/_astro/apify.BGdNuL2e.svg) Apify Research and scraping Free planOfficial MCP Best for scraping sites that have no API via pay-per-result Store Actors. Apify API review →](/tool-directory/research-and-scraping/apify)[ ![](/_astro/firecrawl.BlOy6k5j_ZIB9lf.webp) Firecrawl Research and scraping Free planOfficial MCP Best for full-site URL inventories. Firecrawl API review →](/tool-directory/research-and-scraping/firecrawl) ## Before you build Four things to settle first, each read off Bright Data's own pages. - **Confirm the API is on your plan**API access starts on the Web Scraper API Scale plan. Free tier: 5,000 credits/month (~$7.50) shared across Web Unlocker, SERP, Web Scraper API (1 credit per request/record), Scraper Studio (1 credit per…. - **Keep the key out of your code**API key. It is sent as: header Authorization: Bearer ; proxies use native username/password (billed the same). MCP accepts ?token= in the URL.. - **Design around the rate limit**Scraper API: 5,000 running jobs per dataset, 1-minute sync wait (then HTTP 202 + snapshot\_id), 1 GB input per job, and 25 HTTP 429 responses within 5 minutes blocks your IP on every API call until support clears it. - **Know the catch before you scale**25 HTTP 429 responses within 5 minutes from one IP blocks that IP on every API request until support clears it; batch inputs into one /trigger instead of many small jobs (docs/products/scrapers/limits). ## Want us to build it for you? Tell us what you want Bright Data to do in your stack. We will show you how we would wire it into your data, outbound or CRM, and what we would check first. [ Book a call ](/book)[ See case studies ](/case-studies) Read from [brightdata.com/pricing/web-scraper](https://brightdata.com/pricing/web-scraper), [docs.brightdata.com/api-reference/authentication](https://docs.brightdata.com/api-reference/authentication) and [docs.brightdata.com/products/scrapers/limits](https://docs.brightdata.com/products/scrapers/limits). Verified 25 Oct 2026. All 17 endpointsFor developers: method, path, what it does and what it costs. **Base URL:** `https://api.brightdata.com` **Bulk and async:** async /trigger with many inputs (up to 1 GB), snapshot download in parts, streamed or storage delivery **Webhooks:** pass endpoint= (and auth\_header=) on /datasets/v3/trigger; Unlocker webhooks; must return 200 within 30 s, payload up to 1 GB Filter endpoints 17 endpoints Method Path What it does Cost POSTasync `/datasets/v3/trigger?dataset_id=...` Web Scraper API async job: collect by URL or discover (by keyword, user\_name, search filters) using a pre-built scraper $1.5/1K records PAYG; $1.3/1K on Scale ($499/mo, 384K records); billed per delivered record POST `/datasets/v3/scrape?dataset_id=...` Web Scraper API synchronous request: data in the response same as trigger GET `/datasets/v3/progress/{snapshot_id}` Monitor job status (starting/running/ready/failed) free GET `/datasets/v3/snapshot/{snapshot_id}` Download snapshot results (JSON/NDJSON/CSV), in parts via batch\_size/part included POSTasync `/datasets/v3/deliver/{snapshot_id}` Deliver a snapshot to storage (S3, GCS, Azure, etc.) or webhook included GET/POST `snapshot management: list snapshots, cancel, pause, resume, rerun, get input, delivery parts, monitor delivery` Manage Web Scraper API jobs free POST `/request` Web Unlocker API (and SERP API via a SERP zone): fetch any URL with unblocking, CAPTCHA solving, JS rendering; output raw HTML, JSON or markdown Unlocker $1.5/1K requests PAYG, $1.3/1K on $499 Scale (383K); SERP $1.5/1K PAYG, $1.3/1K on $499 Scale (380K); success only POST/GETasync `/unblocker/req, /unblocker/get_result, /serp/req` Asynchronous Unlocker and SERP requests (submit, then fetch result) same as sync GET `/unblocker/success_rate/{domain}` Check Unlocker success rate for a domain free POST `/search/company, /search/people` Business Search (Beta): entity search over 700M+ people and companies, structured (ludicrous) or plain-language (instant/smart) $2/1K searches ludicrous or instant (100 results), $3/1K smart (10 results); billed per requested block, zero-match searches billed POST/GETasync `/datasets/filter, /datasets/list, /datasets/{dataset_id}/metadata, /datasets/snapshots/{id}/download` Marketplace Dataset API: filter a pre-collected dataset and buy matching records as a snapshot from $2.5/1K records (dataset pricing page); compute + record cost WSS / GET `Browser API (CDP over WebSocket via brd.superproxy.io) ; /browser_sessions` Cloud Chromium with built-in unblocking for Puppeteer/Playwright/Selenium; session inspection $8/GB PAYG; Scale $499/mo with 71 GB; free tier 5 credits per MB POST `/datasets/v3/scrape (sync) or /datasets/v3/trigger (async) with dataset_id=gd_m6gjtfmeh43we6cqc` Fetch API (formerly Crawl API): any public URL returned as one record with Markdown, plain text, raw HTML and JSON-LD Docs: pay per successful record at Web Scraper API rates ($1.5/1K PAYG). The separate brightdata.com/pricing/crawl-api page still lists Crawl API at $1.5/1K PAYG, $499/mo 380K at $1.3, $999 900K at $1.1, $1,999 2M at $1 (both fetched 2026-10-25) POST/GETasync `/dca/trigger, /dca/trigger_immediate, /dca/crawl (sync real-time, one URL), /dca/get_result, /dca/collector..., /dca/jobs/{job_id}/...` Scraper Studio (custom/AI-built scrapers) triggers and results 1 credit per page load (free tier note) GET/POST/DELETE `/zone, /zone/get_active_zones, /zone/ips, /zone/whitelist, /zone/cost, /customer/balance, /pricing_plans, /costs/export/json` Account management: zones, IPs, allowlists, balance, costs free HTTP PROXY `brd.superproxy.io: with username brd-customer--zone-[-country-xx][-ip-]` Residential / ISP / datacenter / mobile proxy networks Residential $8/GB PAYG (promo $4), $499/mo 141 GB; ISP shared $1.8/IP at 10 IPs... dedicated $3.5/IP at 10 IPs, or $8/GB MCP `https://mcp.brightdata.com/mcp?token= (also /sse)` Hosted MCP: search, scrape, run pre-built scrapers, browser automation, GEO prompts draws from the shared 5,000 free credits/month, then PAYG product rates [](/) © 2026 ONEGTMLAB Private Limited. 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