Ceki vs Browserless: Real Browsers vs Headless API

Real browsers from human hosts vs headless cloud API. No subscription, authentic fingerprints.

Feature Comparison

Feature	Ceki	Browserless
Pricing model	Per-minute, no subscription	Unit-based, $50-200/mo
Browser type	Real browsers of real people	Headless cloud browsers
Fingerprints	Hardware-authentic (genuine)	Limited (headless detection common)
MCP support	Native	Yes
Crypto payments	Yes (USDT, USDC)	No
CAPTCHA solving	Human-in-the-loop	Automated
Self-hosting	No (P2P marketplace)	Yes (Docker)
Minimum commitment	None	$50/month
Geo coverage	Worldwide (residential IPs)	Cloud datacenter IPs
Puppeteer/Playwright	Via SDK	Native

Why switch to Ceki

✓ Real fingerprints vs headless detection — sites increasingly block headless Chrome
✓ No monthly fee — pay only per-minute for active sessions
✓ Human CAPTCHA solving for sites that require human interaction
✓ Residential IPs worldwide — no datacenter IP blocks
✓ Crypto payments for anonymous, instant settlement

When Browserless is better

We believe in honest comparisons. Here's where Browserless has an edge:

Native Puppeteer/Playwright integration — drop-in replacement for local headless Chrome
Self-hosting option for full infrastructure control
Lower cost for bulk headless scraping where anti-bot evasion is not needed
Established developer community and extensive documentation

When to Use Each

PDF generation and screenshots

Browserless excels at headless rendering — PDF generation, screenshots, HTML-to-image. Unit-based pricing is predictable for these short tasks. Ceki is overkill for simple rendering — you don't need a real browser for HTML-to-PDF.

Verdict: Browserless wins for headless rendering tasks.

Scraping anti-bot protected sites

Browserless runs headless Chrome in the cloud. No residential IPs, no real fingerprints. Built-in CAPTCHA solving costs 10 units ($0.27) per solve. Ceki passes anti-bot natively — CAPTCHAs are solved by human hosts at $0.10 each.

Verdict: Ceki wins. Real browsers + cheaper human CAPTCHA solving.

AI agent browser automation

Browserless provides Puppeteer/Playwright API — traditional browser automation. No MCP, no agent-native tools. Ceki provides MCP-native browser tools — your agent uses browser as naturally as any other tool.

Verdict: Ceki wins for AI agents. Browserless wins for traditional Puppeteer scripts.

Migration Guide: Browserless → Ceki

Replace the Browserless WebSocket endpoint with Ceki's SDK. No token management needed — API key handles authentication.

Before

# Browserless + Playwright:
browser = await pw.chromium.connect_over_cdp(
    "wss://chrome.browserless.io"
    "?token=YOUR_TOKEN"
)
page = await browser.new_page()
await page.goto("https://example.com")

After (Ceki)

# Ceki (Python):
from ceki_sdk import CekiClient
ceki = CekiClient(api_key="ag_...")
session = ceki.rent(geo="US")
session.goto("https://example.com")

Cost Comparison

200 tasks/day, 2 min each, mixed protection levels

	Ceki	Browserless
Monthly tasks	6,000	6,000
Total minutes	12,000 min	12,000 min
Units consumed	N/A	24,000 units (4 per 2 min)
Cost	12,000 × $0.05 = $600/mo	$140/mo + overages
CAPTCHA cost	$0.10/solve (human)	$0.27/solve (10 units)
Anti-bot pass rate	~99%	~65-80%

Verdict: Browserless is cheaper for tasks without anti-bot. For protected sites, Ceki's higher pass rate and cheaper CAPTCHA solving reduce total cost of ownership.

Try Ceki

Per-minute pricing, no contracts. See for yourself.

Get Started →

Pricing·API Docs·For AI Agents

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can sites detect Browserless headless browsers?

Is Browserless cheaper?

Can I use Puppeteer with Ceki?

Browserless vs. Real Browser Sessions: Headless API vs. Authentic Automation

Show Less

Browserless is a headless browser API — it runs Chrome (or Chromium) in the cloud and gives you Puppeteer/Playwright access. Ceki gives you access to real Chrome sessions on real people's computers. They serve different ends of the automation spectrum.

Headless vs. real

Browserless runs headless (or headed) Chrome in containers. It's fast, scalable, and integrates natively with Puppeteer and Playwright. But headless Chrome is the most commonly detected automation method in 2026. Anti-bot systems specifically look for headless browser signatures.

Real browser sessions don't have headless signatures because they aren't headless. They're real Chrome windows on real computers. The browser was installed normally, used normally, and has all the characteristics of a normal browser.

Use case overlap

Browserless excels at: high-volume scraping of unprotected sites, PDF generation, screenshot services, and internal tool automation where detection isn't a concern. Ceki excels at: protected site automation, social media management, form filling with CAPTCHA, geo-targeted tasks, and any scenario where the target site actively tries to detect and block bots.

If your targets don't have anti-bot protection, Browserless is cheaper and faster. If they do, Ceki is more reliable.

Native Puppeteer/Playwright vs. custom SDK

Browserless's selling point is zero-code-change integration: point your existing Puppeteer/Playwright scripts at the Browserless endpoint and they work. Ceki uses its own SDK (Python, TypeScript, CLI, MCP). This means porting existing automation code requires some rewriting. However, for new AI agent workflows (especially with MCP), Ceki's native integration is simpler — no Puppeteer/Playwright knowledge needed.