The logged-out HarvestAPI alternative
Always logged out, numeric ids included, credits that never expire.
CrustAPI vs HarvestAPI
HarvestAPI is a genuinely capable tool, and by default it reads logged-out pages with no cookie. It also documents a bring-your-own-LinkedIn-account option, so a workflow can end up running data through your own logged-in session.
CrustAPI keeps one posture instead. There is no account option to switch on, so a session of yours is never part of a request. The other two differences are money: our credits never expire, and you only pay for a call that returns data.
| Where they differ | CrustAPI | HarvestAPI |
|---|---|---|
| Collection posture | Always logged-out public pages. No account option, so no login of yours is ever in a request. | Logged-out with no cookie by default, plus a documented bring-your-own-LinkedIn-account option and account-based interaction endpoints. |
| Price per 1,000 | 25,000 credits for $49, about $1.96 per 1,000 successful calls, and lower as packs grow. | $4 down to $2 per 1,000 for a main profile as volume grows, $6.40 down to $3.20 for a full profile, $20 down to $10 with email. |
| Credit expiry | Credits never expire. | Funds expire one year after purchase. |
| Billing | One credit per successful call. An empty or inaccessible profile is free. | Priced per 1,000 records across tiers. |
HarvestAPI figures are its own published tier prices as of August 2026, from the entry Starter tier down to the high-volume Business tier, where purchased funds expire one year later.
A real response, not a mockup
One GET request, logged out, returns the public profile as clean JSON with numeric ids and an opt-in email field. This is the exact response for the call below, trimmed for width. It cost 1 credit.
Three fields do the work when you switch. companyLinkedInId and schoolLinkedInId are the numeric org ids from companyId=true and schoolId=true, so a name change never breaks the join. memberIdentifier is LinkedIn's permanent member id. When accessible is false, the call is free.
What data do you get?
The whole public record, structured the same way on every call, so your parser is written once and does not care which profile it reads.
Email is an opt-in field, not a separate product. Add email=true and the response appends workEmail and emailStatus (verified, pattern-likely, or unknown). Keep the confirmed addresses, treat the rest as guesses, and skip a with-email tier rate.
Fields that only exist behind a login stay out, on purpose. Connection lists, mutual connections, and profile viewers never appear on the logged-out page, so they are not in the response. That boundary lets CrustAPI run with no accounts and nothing of yours at risk. A tool running on a logged-in session, including HarvestAPI's account-based path, can reach those fields, at that account's risk.
How do you get started?
From zero to your first profile JSON in about a minute:
- 1
Create a free account. You get 3,000 credits a month, no card needed.
- 2
Copy your key from the dashboard. Signup issues one automatically.
- 3
Run the curl above with any public profile URL. The JSON comes back with the ids in it.
How much does CrustAPI cost?
Every successful LinkedIn call is 1 credit, whatever the type. A private or inaccessible profile is free, and numeric ids and email ride along at no extra rate.
| What you pull | Credits | You pay |
|---|---|---|
| First 3,000 calls each month | 3,000 | $0, free tier, no card |
| 25,000 profile calls | 25,000 | $49 ($1.96 per 1,000) |
| 100,000 profile calls | 100,000 | $149 ($1.49 per 1,000) |
| 500,000 profile calls | 500,000 | $549 ($1.10 per 1,000) |
| 2.5 million profile calls | 2,500,000 | $1,999 ($0.80 per 1,000) |
Packs continue up to 250 million credits for $100,000, which is $0.40 per 1,000. Prices ex-tax.
Credits are prepaid and never expire, unlike HarvestAPI funds that expire a year after purchase. Batch up to 100 profile URLs in one POST to keep a large database current without one round trip per row.
Who uses CrustAPI?
- Compliance-minded teams. No account option exists, so no logged-in session of theirs is ever at risk.
- Sales and enrichment tools. Profile, numeric ids, and opt-in email arrive on one call, billed only on success.
- Data teams. Numeric org and member ids keep joins stable through name and vanity-URL changes.
- Burst workloads. Credits never expire, so a pack bought for one big run keeps its value.
Related: LinkedIn API · Proxycurl alternative · Bright Data LinkedIn alternative · Scrape LinkedIn without login
Common questions
HarvestAPI is a capable tool that reads logged-out pages with no cookie by default, and it also documents a bring-your-own-LinkedIn-account option and account-based endpoints. CrustAPI keeps a single posture instead: always logged-out public pages, no account option, so no session of yours is ever in a request. On top of that, CrustAPI credits never expire, while HarvestAPI funds expire one year after purchase, and our main-tier price is about $1.96 per 1,000 successful calls.
No. There is no account option to switch on. CrustAPI reads only the public, logged-out version of each page, so there is no cookie to paste and no login to hand over. HarvestAPI's default is also logged-out, but it documents an optional path that uses your own account for account-based endpoints. CrustAPI does not offer that path by choice.
No. CrustAPI credits are prepaid and never expire, so a pack you buy now is still usable a year later. On HarvestAPI, funds expire one year after purchase. For a workload that runs in bursts rather than steadily, that difference can matter more than the per-call price.
CrustAPI is 25,000 credits for $49, about $1.96 per 1,000 successful calls, and lower as packs grow. HarvestAPI prices by tier: a main profile runs $4 per 1,000 on the entry Starter tier down to $2 per 1,000 on the high-volume Business tier, a full profile $6.40 down to $3.20, and a profile with email $20 down to $10. At entry spend that puts CrustAPI well under half HarvestAPI's main-profile rate. CrustAPI also has a free tier of 3,000 credits a month with no card, and includes numeric ids and opt-in email without a separate rate.
A profile call returns the public record as one clean JSON schema: name, headline, location, about, follower count, the full experience history with company URLs and dates, education, and stable identifiers. With companyId=true and schoolId=true you get the numeric org ids, memberIdentifier is LinkedIn's permanent numeric member id, and email=true appends workEmail with an emailStatus. Batch up to 100 URLs in one POST, billed one credit per successful row.
We read only public, logged-out pages and never use fake accounts or logins, and fields that exist only behind a login are deliberately excluded. A site's own terms may restrict automated access on their side. What you receive is data that is public for anyone to see.
Clay
One posture, no expiry, one clean schema
Start on the free 3,000 credits a month, no card needed. One GET returns the public profile as clean JSON with numeric ids, and a profile that is not accessible costs you nothing. No account of yours is ever part of the request.
Get 3,000 free credits