Instead of Steel
Steel alternatives
Steel gives developers an open-source API for running browser fleets in the cloud, with sessions started on demand and browser automation through Puppeteer, Playwright, and Selenium. It also offers one-call tools for scraping, screenshots, and PDFs, plus saved browser context, session viewing and replay, managed proxies, and CAPTCHA solving. Its free Launch plan includes $30 in one-time credits; paid Scale starts at $250 per month, and Scale and Enterprise include enterprise SSO and a HIPAA-ready BAA.
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Browserless
by BrowserlessFree plan Open source WebCloud browser automation with BrowserQL and regional endpoints — Browserless adds BrowserQL, regional endpoints, and WebSocket browser sessions, with a $25 annual-billing starting price versus Steel's $250 per month.
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Kameleo
by KameleoFree plan AndroidAPIExtension+6Multi-account work and fingerprint-masked browsing — Kameleo focuses on anti-detect browsing and fingerprint masking for Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari profiles, rather than Steel's cloud browser API.
Free plan · paid from €45/mo (annual) Visit site - 3
CodeceptJS
Free plan AndroidAPIiPhone+5Free end-to-end tests across browser and mobile engines — CodeceptJS is a free testing framework with browser, mobile, and API helpers, rather than Steel's managed cloud browser sessions and API.
Open source Visit site - 4
Katalon Studio
Free plan AndroidAPIExtension+6Teams authoring web, mobile, API, and desktop tests — Katalon Studio offers no-code through AI-assisted test authoring across web, mobile, API, and desktop, unlike Steel's browser API focus.
30-day trial Visit site - 5
Nightwatch
Free plan AndroidiPhoneLinux+3Node.js teams testing web, mobile, and APIs — Nightwatch combines end-to-end browser tests with Node.js service, API, mobile, visual regression, and accessibility testing, rather than managed sessions.
Free plan Visit site - 6
TestCafe
Free plan Open source AndroidAPIiPhone+5Free browser and API testing with JavaScript or TypeScript — TestCafe is a free end-to-end testing framework with browser recording, API tools, and request mocking, rather than Steel's browser-session API.
Free plan Visit site - 7
TestMu AI Web Automation (formerly LambdaTest Web Automation)
Free plan AndroidAPIiPhone+5Large-scale cross-browser and real-device test execution — TestMu AI focuses on scaled test execution across browsers and real devices, adding natural-language test authoring and automatic session logs.
Free plan · paid from $29/mo (annual) Visit site - 8
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Anchor Browser
Free plan APISelf-hostedWeb - 10
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Bright Data Browser API
Free plan APIWeb - 13
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BrowserSolver Headless Browser API
Free plan API - 18
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Notte Cloud Browsers
Free plan APISelf-hostedWeb - 20
BrowserView
Free plan API - 21
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Reader Browser
Free plan APISelf-hosted - 24
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Remote Browser
Free plan API - 26
Webscrape AI Browse
Free plan APIWeb - 27 6.6 Visit site
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Surfsky Cloud Browser
Free plan API - 29
Yutori Browsing API
Free plan APISelf-hosted - 30
TinyFish Browser
Free plan API
A different fit may make sense if Steel's $250 monthly paid starting price is too high, if a project needs local or mobile app testing rather than cloud browser sessions, or if a testing framework is a closer match than a browser API. Compare the work each product is built for, its browser and device coverage, and whether it offers testing, automation, or fingerprint masking. Also weigh the deployment options and the specific platforms or integrations your project needs before switching.