Bulk Website Screenshot & PDF Generator

Capture full-page website screenshots or printable PDFs from public URLs in bulk. Enter one or up to 1,000 URLs, choose the output format, and receive one result row with a download link for every processed URL.

What this Actor does

This Actor opens public web pages, waits for the selected page state, and creates either a full-page PNG screenshot or an A4 PDF. It cleans common URL formatting mistakes, removes equivalent duplicates, preserves redirects and query strings, and records the result for each URL in the default Dataset.

You can wait for dynamic content, scroll pages to trigger lazy-loaded sections, hide page elements such as cookie banners or popups with CSS selectors, and protect a batch with configurable file-size and page-height limits.

Use cases

• Monitor website changes with repeatable visual captures.
• Review landing pages, layouts, and responsive designs.
• Create SEO, content, compliance, or client-report evidence.
• Archive public articles, documentation, and reports as images or PDFs.
• Collect visual proof for website issues and content approvals.
• Generate previews for large lists of public web pages.

How to use

1. Open the Actor in Apify Console.
2. Enter one or more public website URLs in the URLs field.
3. Select PNG or PDF and adjust the optional capture settings if needed.
4. Click Start and open the Dataset when the run finishes.

For the quickest test, use the prefilled https://example.com/ URL and the default PNG settings.

Input

urls is required and accepts one to 1,000 URL strings. The Actor accepts http://, https://, URLs without a scheme, and protocol-relative URLs. Spaces are trimmed, missing https:// is added, hostnames are normalized, unsafe spaces are encoded, and equivalent duplicates are processed only once.

The default output is a PNG screenshot. Set format to pdf for an A4 document. Dynamic pages can use waitUntil: "networkidle", an additional delay, or scrollToBottom: true. Use selectorsToHide for comma-separated CSS selectors such as .cookie-banner, #consent-modal.

The default file-size limit is 20 MiB and the default rendered page-height limit is 25,000 pixels. You can configure maxArtifactSizeMb from 1 to 50 MiB and maxPageHeightPx from 1,000 to 100,000 pixels. This is the exact input used for the real output item below:

{
  "urls": [
    "https://example.com/"
  ],
  "format": "png",
  "waitUntil": "load",
  "delay": 0,
  "viewportWidth": 1280,
  "scrollToBottom": false,
  "delayAfterScrolling": 2500,
  "waitUntilNetworkIdleAfterScroll": false,
  "waitUntilNetworkIdleAfterScrollTimeout": 30000,
  "selectorsToHide": "",
  "maxArtifactSizeMb": 20,
  "maxPageHeightPx": 25000,
  "proxyConfiguration": {}
}

Other available settings are waitUntil, delay, waitUntilNetworkIdleAfterScroll, waitUntilNetworkIdleAfterScrollTimeout, proxyConfiguration, maxArtifactSizeMb, and maxPageHeightPx. Their defaults and valid ranges are shown in the Apify input form and generated API examples.

Output

The default Dataset contains one item for every normalized, unique URL that the Actor processes. Successful captures include a direct screenshotUrl download link and a screenshotKey identifying the stored file. PNG captures are full-page images; PDFs use an A4 print layout and may paginate differently from a PNG. This is the complete Dataset item from a real successful run:

{
  "startUrl": "https://example.com/",
  "url": "https://example.com/",
  "screenshotUrl": "https://api.apify.com/v2/key-value-stores/D7ZccdBkT0dq85bgq/records/screenshot-example.com-b559c7edd3fb.png?signature=bDZoPhmifPuzQ4yprLML",
  "screenshotKey": "screenshot-example.com-b559c7edd3fb.png",
  "format": "png",
  "status": "success",
  "timestamp": "2026-08-23T21:36:19.192242+02:00",
  "errorMessage": null,
  "warnings": []
}

Important fields are:

• startUrl: the normalized URL used to start the capture.
• url: the final URL after redirects.
• screenshotUrl: the download link when a file was created.
• format: png or pdf.
• status: success, blocked, or error.
• errorMessage: the reason for an unsuccessful capture, when applicable.
• warnings: non-fatal notices such as detected access challenges or invalid selectors.

Navigation and capture problems are retried automatically. A failed URL is reported in the Dataset and does not stop the remaining URLs unless the run spending limit is reached.

Pricing

The Actor charges $0.001 for each processed URL, equivalent to $1 per 1,000 processed URLs.

One normalized, unique URL that is processed and receives a Dataset row creates one screenshot-result charge. Successful captures, blocked pages, navigation errors, and capture-limit errors are charged because the URL was processed. Duplicate URLs removed during normalization and invalid input rejected before processing are not charged. There is no separate start charge configured for this Actor.

API and integrations

The Apify Console generates ready-to-use examples for Python, JavaScript, cURL, and other supported clients directly from the Actor input schema. Because the other settings have defaults, the generated client example may contain only the required urls list. Apify applies the documented defaults when optional fields are omitted.

To send custom settings, include the optional fields you want to change. This Python example uses valid values for every available input:

run_input = {
    "urls": ["https://example.com/"],
    "format": "png",
    "waitUntil": "load",
    "delay": 0,
    "viewportWidth": 1280,
    "scrollToBottom": False,
    "delayAfterScrolling": 2500,
    "waitUntilNetworkIdleAfterScroll": False,
    "waitUntilNetworkIdleAfterScrollTimeout": 30000,
    "selectorsToHide": "",
    "maxArtifactSizeMb": 20,
    "maxPageHeightPx": 25000,
    "proxyConfiguration": {},
}

Runs can also be started from Apify schedules, webhooks, tasks, and external applications using the Apify API. Results are available through the run's default Dataset and the stored PNG or PDF files through their screenshotUrl links.

Related Actors

Actor	Best for
PDF Text Extractor - OCR, Markdown & JSON	Extract searchable text and structured content from public PDFs after creating document snapshots.
Favicon Extractor	Collect lightweight website icons from the same URL list for directories, previews, and brand-asset workflows.
Website Technology Lookup – CMS, Hosting & Tech Stack Data	Add CMS, hosting, and technology context to pages included in a visual website review.

Limits and data quality

• A run accepts up to 1,000 URLs.
• Equivalent normalized duplicates are removed before processing.
• URLs are processed in normalized input order.
• The Actor is intended for public pages and does not log in or access private content.
• CAPTCHA, access challenges, and automated-traffic blocks are reported as blocked; the Actor does not attempt to bypass them.
• Very long pages can exceed maxPageHeightPx, and oversized PNG or PDF files can exceed maxArtifactSizeMb. In either case, the URL receives an error row and the batch continues.
• Pages that load content after scrolling may need scrollToBottom, a longer delayAfterScrolling, or a network-idle wait.
• PDF pagination can differ from the visual PNG because websites may apply print-specific styles.
• For most public pages, the default direct connection is sufficient. An Apify Proxy configuration can be supplied when a target site requires one.

Frequently asked questions

What happens if I enter example.com without https://?

The Actor adds https:// automatically. It also trims surrounding spaces and keeps the path, query string, and fragment.

Can I capture pages with lazy-loaded content?

Yes. Enable scrollToBottom and, if necessary, increase delayAfterScrolling or enable the network-idle wait after scrolling.

How can I hide a cookie banner or popup?

Enter its CSS selector in selectorsToHide, for example .cookie-banner, #consent-modal.

What is the difference between PNG and PDF?

PNG is a full-page visual image. PDF is an A4 printable document and can split long pages across multiple pages.

What happens when one URL fails?

The Actor writes an error row with the reason and continues with the remaining URLs. The processed URL still counts toward the price.

Where are the generated files?

The files are stored with the run and can be downloaded from the screenshotUrl field in the Dataset.

Responsible use

Use this Actor only for lawful purposes and in accordance with applicable laws, privacy obligations, third-party rights, and the terms of the websites you access. Do not use it to access private content, bypass access controls, solve CAPTCHAs, or collect information without an appropriate purpose.

Support

If you need help, open an issue in the Actor's Issues tab and include a reproducible input, the run ID, and the relevant Dataset row or error message. Do not include API tokens, passwords, private URLs, or other sensitive information.