Zyte API is the next iteration of Zyte’s best-in class proxy and website unblocking technology. We built it as an HTTP API. This was a conscious design decision: an API to support all your web scraping needs would not work well with the limitations of a proxy API. Zyte API can

• handle bans for you automatically by selecting the leanest configuration for the websites you access, ensuring the best price per request per website,

• make use of datacenter and residential proxies and browser technologies within a single subscription, so there’s no waste and no need for integrations,

• extract common data types with our patented AI-powered solution without creating manual parsing code,

• render pages and interact with websites using a built-in headless browser,

• automate browser actions with a built-in scriptable headless browser,

• generate full page or viewport screenshots,

• manage sessions and cookies to handle advanced use cases, and

• report a 360 overview of all API usage and financial data.

However, we have always known that, for people already using a service with a proxy API, like Zyte Smart Proxy Manager, migrating to Zyte API’s HTTP API may not be straightforward. We knew we had to bridge the gap between the two different types of APIs so people can still access proxies and other ban-handling tech via Zyte API.

We have made things easier for Scrapy users through scrapy-zyte-api integration, and while we cannot provide all Zyte API features behind a proxy API, we have  implemented a proxy mode for Zyte API that provides some of those features to make it easier for people to use the best anti-ban technology.

How to use Zyte API Proxy Mode

To use Zyte API’s proxy mode,  set http://YOUR_API_KEY:@api.zyte.com:8011 as your proxy, replacing YOUR_API_KEY with your actual Zyte API key (but keeping the : after the key!). If you don’t have a Zyte API key, you can sign up for a free trial.

The way you define your proxy varies across different technologies. You can see different examples in our docs. This is how to implement it in curl:

And… that’s it! Point that to any website, and forget about bans.

Proxy mode also supports a few additional features through special headers, such as setting a custom geolocation or device emulation.

However, as I hinted earlier, proxy mode does have some limitations when compared to the HTTP API. Mainly, you can not take advantage of browser automation and automatic extraction features. I strongly suggest you consider using the HTTP API to unblock all the potential of Zyte API. Trial Zyte API for free.