ScrapeIO vs PhantomBuster for social data
PhantomBuster is an automation platform. Its "Phantoms" are agents that run in the cloud to extract leads and take actions, mostly on LinkedIn, and you pay for the time they run.
| PhantomBuster | ScrapeIO | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Start $69 a month (20 hours of runtime), Grow $159 (80 hours), Scale $439 (300 hours); less billed yearly PhantomBuster, July 2026 | Packs: $47 for 25,000 credits ($1.88 per 1K) or $497 for 500,000 ($0.99 per 1K). Most calls cost 1 credit; list calls return a page of items |
| Billing | Subscription by execution time. Credits reset monthly and don't roll over | Credits never expire. No subscription |
| Free tier | Free plan: 30 minutes a month, exports capped at 10 rows. 14-day trial, no card | 100 credits on signup, no card |
| Platforms | LinkedIn and Sales Navigator, Instagram, Facebook, X, YouTube, Reddit, Google Maps and more | 33 platforms: TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, X, Facebook, Reddit, LinkedIn, Threads, Pinterest and more |
| Output | Each Phantom has its own CSV or JSON format | Yes. handle, followers, plays, likes, created_at are the same everywhere |
| Request flow | Launch an agent, then poll for its output source | One GET, JSON back |
| Actions | Yes: connect, message, follow, enrich | Read-only public data |
| MCP | Hosted MCP server to launch Phantoms and fetch results source | Hosted MCP server, agent skill, llms.txt |
When PhantomBuster is the better choice
Outreach. If the goal is to send LinkedIn connection requests and messages on a schedule, or run multi-step lead workflows without code, PhantomBuster does things a data API does not.
When ScrapeIO is the better choice
Data on demand. A profile, a post's comments or a transcript comes back in one call, in seconds, with the same fields on every platform. You pay per call, not per hour, and nothing resets at the end of the month.
Sources
Prices and limits checked on 8 November 2026 from each vendor's own pages. They change; follow the source links before you decide.
- https://phantombuster.com/blog/ai-automation/phantombuster-pricing-explained/
- https://hub.phantombuster.com/reference/launchagent-1
- https://hub.phantombuster.com/docs/mcp-server
100 free credits, no card. Credits never expire.
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