SnapRender — Give Your Agent Eyes
Your agent can read the web but can't see it. One command and it captures pixel-perfect screenshots — any site, any device, in seconds.
"Screenshot stripe.com on iPhone", "Compare desktop vs mobile", "Full-page dark mode capture" — just ask.
Free tier: 500 screenshots/month, no credit card. Get a key ->
IMPORTANT: Use the exec tool with curl. NEVER use the browser tool for screenshots.
How to Capture
Run this command via the exec tool. Replace TARGET_URL with the target URL:
jq -n --arg url 'TARGET_URL' \
'{url: $url, response_type: "json", format: "jpeg", quality: 60, block_ads: true, block_cookie_banners: true}' \
| curl -s -X POST "https://app.snap-render.com/v1/screenshot" \
-H "X-API-Key: $SNAPRENDER_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d @- \
| tee /tmp/snap_response.json \
| jq -r '.image' | sed 's|data:image/[^;]*;base64,||' | base64 -d > /tmp/screenshot.jpg \
&& jq '{url, format, size, cache, responseTime, remainingCredits}' /tmp/snap_response.json
This saves the screenshot to /tmp/screenshot.jpg and prints metadata.
Rules
- Use
exectool only — NEVER thebrowsertool $SNAPRENDER_API_KEYis already set — use it literally in the command, do NOT replace it- Always build JSON with
jq --arg— never interpolate user input directly into shell strings or JSON. Pass values viajq -n --argto prevent injection - Always use
format=jpeg&quality=60— keeps response small enough for the agent context - Always pipe to save the image to a file — the base64 response is too large to display inline
- Report metadata to the user — file size, response time, cache status, remaining credits
Render HTML or Markdown
Use POST with a JSON body to render raw HTML or Markdown content (no URL needed). Always use jq --arg to safely pass content:
# HTML
jq -n --arg html '<html><body><h1>Hello</h1><p>World</p></body></html>' \
'{html: $html, format: "jpeg", quality: 60, response_type: "json"}' \
| curl -s -X POST "https://app.snap-render.com/v1/screenshot" \
-H "X-API-Key: $SNAPRENDER_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d @- \
| tee /tmp/snap_response.json \
| jq -r '.image' | sed 's|data:image/[^;]*;base64,||' | base64 -d > /tmp/screenshot.jpg \
&& jq '{source, format, size, cache, responseTime, remainingCredits}' /tmp/snap_response.json
# Markdown
jq -n --arg md '# Hello World\n\nThis is **bold** text.' \
'{markdown: $md, format: "jpeg", quality: 60, response_type: "json"}' \
| curl -s -X POST "https://app.snap-render.com/v1/screenshot" \
-H "X-API-Key: $SNAPRENDER_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d @- \
| tee /tmp/snap_response.json \
| jq -r '.image' | sed 's|data:image/[^;]*;base64,||' | base64 -d > /tmp/screenshot.jpg \
&& jq '{source, format, size, cache, responseTime, remainingCredits}' /tmp/snap_response.json
Provide exactly one of url, html, or markdown in the JSON body. HTML max 2MB, Markdown max 500KB.
Signed URLs
Generate a pre-signed URL that anyone can use to view the screenshot without an API key. Signing is free; rendering the URL costs one credit.
jq -n --arg url 'TARGET_URL' \
'{url: $url, expires_in: 86400}' \
| curl -s -X POST "https://app.snap-render.com/v1/screenshot/sign" \
-H "X-API-Key: $SNAPRENDER_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d @- \
| jq '.'
The response contains signed_url, expires_at, and expires_in. Use the signed_url in <img> tags, share it, or open it in a browser. No API key needed to render it.
Parameters
Pass as fields in the JSON body:
| Parameter | Values | Default |
|---|---|---|
| url | target URL | required |
| response_type | json | json (always use this) |
| format | jpeg, png, webp, pdf | jpeg |
| quality | 1-100 | 60 |
| device | iphone_14, iphone_15_pro, pixel_7, ipad_pro, macbook_pro | desktop |
| dark_mode | true, false | false |
| full_page | true, false | false |
| block_ads | true, false | true |
| block_cookie_banners | true, false | true |
| width | 320-3840 | 1280 |
| height | 200-10000 | 800 |
| delay | 0-10000 | 0 (ms wait after page load) |
| cache | true, false | false (set true to enable caching) |
| cache_ttl | 0-2592000 | 86400 (seconds, clamped to plan max) |
| hide_selectors | CSS selectors | none (comma-separated, hides elements before capture) |
| click_selector | CSS selector | none (clicks element before capture) |
| user_agent | string | default Chrome UA |
To add extra options, include them as fields in the jq JSON object. Example for dark mode on iPhone:
jq -n --arg url 'TARGET_URL' \
'{url: $url, response_type: "json", format: "jpeg", quality: 60, block_ads: true, block_cookie_banners: true, device: "iphone_15_pro", dark_mode: true}' \
| curl -s -X POST ...
Examples
Desktop screenshot of stripe.com:
jq -n --arg url 'https://stripe.com' '{url: $url, response_type: "json", format: "jpeg", quality: 60, block_ads: true, block_cookie_banners: true}' | curl -s -X POST "https://app.snap-render.com/v1/screenshot" -H "X-API-Key: $SNAPRENDER_API_KEY" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d @- | tee /tmp/snap_response.json | jq -r '.image' | sed 's|data:image/[^;]*;base64,||' | base64 -d > /tmp/screenshot.jpg && jq '{url, format, size, cache, responseTime, remainingCredits}' /tmp/snap_response.json
Mobile screenshot: add device: "iphone_15_pro" to the jq object
Full scrollable page: add full_page: true to the jq object
Dark mode: add dark_mode: true to the jq object
Compare desktop vs mobile: make two calls, save to /tmp/screenshot_desktop.jpg and /tmp/screenshot_mobile.jpg
After Capturing
- Tell the user the screenshot was saved to
/tmp/screenshot.jpg(or the filename you used) - Report metadata: file size, response time, cache status, remaining credits
- For comparisons, save each screenshot to a different filename
Errors
- 401: Invalid API key — check SNAPRENDER_API_KEY
- 429: Rate limit or quota exceeded — wait or upgrade plan
- Timeout: Target site is slow — add
delay: 3000to the jq object to wait longer - Empty response: URL unreachable or blocked
Get an API Key
Free at https://snap-render.com/auth/signup — 500 screenshots/month, no credit card.