A Apify alternative that runs on your own accounts.
If you're outgrowing Apify, here's why teams switch to Writ - and exactly how to move without losing what's working.
Apify runs on apify's cloud (their servers, their accounts). Writ runs on your accounts, and makes every workflow a REST API and an MCP tool.
A large web-data and automation cloud with a marketplace of pre-built "Actors" that run on Apify's infrastructure.
What sends people looking for a Apify alternative
These are the reasons teams tell us they move. We name where Apify is still the better tool further down - switching should be an honest decision.
- ✓You need to run on your own authenticated accounts (login, 2FA) rather than a vendor's cloud.
- ✓You want every workflow callable as both a REST endpoint and an MCP tool.
- ✓You want to reach intranet or VPN-only systems a vendor cloud cannot.
What Writ adds on top
The synthesis position: the four things that most often make the switch worth it.
Writ and Apify, side by side
The structural differences: billing unit, where runs execute, auth, MCP, marketplace. Reviewed June 2026.
| Criterion | Writ | Apify |
|---|---|---|
| Where runs execute | Your own account: local (free of compute) or managed cloud | Apify's cloud |
| Login + 2FA on the hard web | Personas with built-in TOTP + mailbox OTP | Possible but DIY per Actor |
| MCP-native | Every workflow publishes as an MCP tool | Limited |
| Marketplace data model | Recipes only: you attach your own data and run it yourself | Actors run on the creator's logic |
| Billing unit | Actual cloud running time; free on your own machine | Compute units / credits |
Moving from Apify, step by step
Start small, prove it, then port the rest. You never have to switch everything at once.
- 1
Pick one Apify job to move
Start with a single workflow - the one that costs the most or breaks the most on Apify. A small first move de-risks the switch.
- 2
Rebuild it once in Writ
Record the flow in the browser recorder, describe it to an AI session, or discover the site's own API - whichever fits. You get a real, replayable workflow.
- 3
Call it as an API and MCP tool
Publish the workflow to get a REST endpoint at /v1/{slug}/{path} and an MCP tool, authenticated with a wt_ key.
- 4
Run it your way and compare
Run it free on your own machine or on metered cloud, watch the success rate, then port the rest of your Apify work at your own pace.
Keep what works. You can run Writ alongside Apify. Use Apify where it shines and add Writ for the parts it can't reach - sites with no API, authenticated in-browser actions, and any-site MCP tools. See the full comparison ▸
When Apify is still the right call
Apify is genuinely good at this.
- —A deep, mature Actor marketplace with thousands of ready-made extractors.
- —Strong tooling for large-scale crawling and dataset export.
- —A well-documented SDK and a large community.
Stay on Apify if
- —You want a huge library of ready-made public-web extractors that run on someone else's cloud.
- —You are doing very large crawl jobs and want a mature dataset pipeline.
Switching from Apify - questions
Is Writ a good Apify alternative?
How do I migrate from Apify to Writ?
What does Writ cost compared to Apify?
Can Writ work on sites and accounts behind a login?
Do I have to give up Apify entirely?
Try Writ as your Apify alternative
Move one workflow first. Run it free on your own machine, see the success rate, then switch the rest at your own pace.