Comparison

crawler.sh vs Screaming Frog

Lightweight desktop crawler with Markdown export and a CLI vs the classic Java-based SEO spider with report-centric output.

Screaming Frog is the best-known desktop SEO spider. It crawls sites and surfaces technical SEO issues through a visual Java GUI. crawler.sh covers the same crawling and SEO ground but ships as a single binary with a CLI, exports clean Markdown for AI pipelines, and does not require a license file per machine.

Download crawler.sh Markdown for AI

Side by side

Honest comparison on the axes that decide which tool fits your workflow.

Property

Screaming Frog

crawler.sh

Install

Java-based installer. Requires a JRE and a license key file for the paid version.

One command installs a single static binary. No runtime dependencies.

Pricing model

Free up to 500 URLs. Paid license is around £259 a year per user.

Free up to 1,000 pages per crawl. $99 a year unlocks 10,000 pages and Markdown archive export.

Interfaces

Desktop GUI. Command line available in the paid license only.

CLI, desktop app, and MCP server. All tiers.

JavaScript rendering

Configurable via headless Chrome in the paid version.

Custom JavaScript engine built in. Auto-detected per site.

Output formats

CSV, Excel, PDF reports. Data is report-centric.

NDJSON stream, sitemap XML, and Markdown archive with YAML frontmatter.

Export portability

Designed for report export and visual inspection.

Raw data files you can pipe into scripts, databases, or RAG pipelines.

SEO analysis

Extensive built-in SEO audits and visualizations.

Built-in SEO checks (titles, descriptions, h1, redirects, broken links) via CLI.

robots.txt by default

Configurable; not enforced by default.

On by default. Disallow, Allow, and Crawl-delay honored.

Desktop app

Yes.

Pricing and feature notes reflect publicly listed information at the time of writing. Screaming Frog pricing is in GBP and may vary by region.

When to pick which

Both tools solve real problems. Pick based on where the work actually runs and what you are billing against.

Pick Screaming Frog when

You need deep visual SEO reporting, you are an SEO professional who lives in spreadsheets and PDFs, and you want a mature tool with decades of feature depth for technical audits. Screaming Frog is the industry standard for a reason.

Pick crawler.sh when

You want a lighter installer without Java, you need a CLI as a first-class interface, you want Markdown export for AI workflows, or you prefer raw data files over report-centric output. crawler.sh is also cheaper for large crawl volumes.

Try the local-first path

Install in one command. Crawl any site into clean Markdown in seconds. Free up to 1,000 pages, $99 a year for 10,000.

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