Comparison

codetoimage vs ScreenshotOne

Both target developers, both have free tiers, both have a clean single-endpoint API. The two differences that matter: what you render, and whether your AI agent can invoke it natively.

TL;DR

  • ✅ Pick codetoimage if you render HTML/CSS you control (OG images, cards, templates), want an MCP server + npm CLI, want a $9 entry plan, or want more renders per dollar from Hobby up (prepaid packs from $5, no subscription).
  • ✅ Pick ScreenshotOne if you need to screenshot live URLs (real web pages), want 11 output formats including video/PDF/Markdown, need 7 SDKs out of the box, or run Zapier/Make/n8n automations today.
  • ⚖️ Different primary use cases – they screenshot, we render.

Side-by-side

FeaturecodetoimageScreenshotOne
Founded2026✓ 2022 (Dmytro Krasun)
Primary use caseRender arbitrary HTML/CSS to imageScreenshot live URLs
Free tier50/mo, recurring, no watermark✓ 100/mo, recurring
Starting paid✓ $9/mo (Starter) – 1,000 renders; prepaid packs from $5$17/mo (Basic) – 2,000 screenshots
Scale tier price✓ $149/mo (Scale) – 50,000 renders$259/mo – 50,000 screenshots
Output formatsPNG, JPEG, WebP✓ PNG, JPEG, WebP, GIF, AVIF, HEIF, JP2, TIFF, PDF, HTML, Markdown
Hosted URL outputYes – CDN-served, 24h TTLYes (via storage option)
Official CLI on npm✓ Yes – @codetoimage/cliNo
Official MCP server✓ Yes – stdio via npxNo
Listed in Anthropic MCP Registry✓ YesNo
Official SDKsNot available today✓ 7 (Node, Python, Ruby, PHP, Go, Java, .NET)
Integrations on landingREST + CLI + MCP✓ Zapier, Make, n8n, Airtable, Bubble, Clay
Video outputNo✓ Yes
Auth headerX-API-KeyX-Access-Key (or query param)
Agent-first positioning✓ Yes – MCP, CLI, free tier pathFooter link to AI Agents page (page is 404)

Where we win

MCP + CLI as native surfaces. ScreenshotOne markets to AI agents (footer link), but their dedicated page is 404 and they don't ship an MCP server or CLI. We're the only HTML-to-image stack in Anthropic's MCP Registry, with an npm CLI also officially maintained.

Lower sticker at entry, more renders per dollar as you grow. Starter is $9/mo for 1,000 renders vs their Basic at $17/mo for 2,000 – to be fair, their entry per-1,000 rate is slightly better ($8.50 vs $9.00), but you start at nearly half the price. From Hobby up the per-render math flips our way: $19/mo for 3,000 (~$6.33 per 1,000), and at 50,000/month our Scale is $149/mo vs their $259/mo. If you render only occasionally, prepaid packs start at $5 for 250 renders (one-time offer per account) – no subscription needed.

Render, not screenshot. For workloads where you have the HTML/CSS already (build-time OG images, template-driven cards, agent-generated UI), passing a URL to ScreenshotOne would mean publishing a stub page first. We skip that step entirely.

Where they win

11 output formats vs our 3. If you need GIF, AVIF, HEIF, JP2, TIFF, PDF, or Markdown output, they cover it today. We ship PNG, JPEG, WebP.

7 official SDKs vs ours not today. Node, Python, Ruby, PHP, Go, Java, .NET. We have a CLI; native SDKs aren't available today.

No-code integrations. Zapier, Make, n8n, Airtable, Bubble, Clay – they ship pre-built integrations for marketing/ops teams. We don't (yet).

Live-URL screenshot features. GDPR/cookie-banner removal, ad blocking, chat-widget hiding, stealth mode, dark-mode toggle, IP geo-routing. All useful if you're screenshotting third-party pages. Not applicable to code-to-image workloads.

Migration snippet (HTML-driven workloads only)

# before (ScreenshotOne – screenshotting a URL you control)
curl "https://api.screenshotone.com/take?\
access_key=KEY&url=https://example.com/og-card" \
  -o out.png

# after (codetoimage – render the HTML directly, no stub page)
curl -X POST https://api.codetoimage.app/v1/render \
  -H "X-API-Key: cti_live_…" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"html":"<h1>Hi</h1>","width":1200,"height":630}' \
  -o out.png

Try the difference

50 renders/month free, no credit card. Wire up MCP in 60 seconds, or curl from your terminal.

Get an API key →