Apify Pay Per Event (PPE) Pricing Explained
Pay per event (PPE) means you pay a fixed price for specific actions an Actor performs (an Actor start, a scraped result, an opened page) instead of paying for the compute time the run consumes. For PPE Actors, there is no separate Apify platform-usage charge on top of the event prices. PPE is now the default pricing model for most Apify Store scrapers because it makes cost predictable: if a Google Maps Actor charges $2.10 per 1,000 places, 5,000 places cost about $10.50 regardless of how long the run took (Apify monetization docs).
Apify has four Actor pricing models. PPE is the newest and now the most common for Store scrapers. This guide explains what an "event" is, how PPE differs from the older compute-unit model, how to read an Actor's Pricing tab, and how to budget a run.
What is an event?
An event is a discrete, billable action defined by the Actor's developer. Common events include:
- Actor start (sometimes per gigabyte of memory): a small fixed fee each time the Actor runs.
- Result / dataset item: charged per output record, often quoted per 1,000 (for example "$1.50 / 1,000 results").
- Page opened: charged per page crawled, sometimes with surcharges for a headless browser or a residential-proxy page.
- Custom actions: a search performed, a file downloaded, a profile enriched, and similar.
The Actor declares its events and their prices in its Pricing tab. You are billed only for the events that actually occur during your run.
PPE vs the other pricing models
| Model | You pay for | Separate compute charge? | Best when |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pay per event (PPE) | Fixed price per action (start, result, page) | No | Predictable budgeting; most Store scrapers and AI/MCP tools |
| Pay per result (PPR) | Each output row or item | No (price is all-in) | High-value structured data (leads, products) |
| Pay per usage | Compute units (RAM x runtime), plus proxies | Yes, this is the charge | Generic open-source crawlers, the Web Scraper, Website Content Crawler |
| Rental | A flat monthly fee for unlimited access to one Actor | Yes, compute is on top | Heavy recurring use of a single Actor |
Two things worth knowing:
- Pay per result is not deprecated. It remains a current, supported model. PPE is promoted as the flagship because it can price multi-step work (a start fee plus per-result fees) more flexibly, and it is the model Apify highlights for AI-agent and MCP use.
- The rental model is being retired. Apify stopped accepting new rental Actors on 1 April 2026 and plans to fully retire rental pricing on 1 October 2026 (monetization docs). Existing rental Actors still run until then.
For the underlying compute-unit model that pay-per-usage Actors bill against, see compute units explained.
How PPE billing works
- No platform-usage line for PPE events. When an Actor is purely PPE, Apify does not add a separate compute-unit charge. The event prices are what you pay.
- Events can combine. A single run can bill an Actor-start fee and a per-result fee and a per-page fee. Read every event row before you scale.
- Free-plan credits apply. The Free plan's $5 in monthly credits is spent against PPE events just like any other usage, so you can test PPE Actors before committing. Credits do not roll over.
- Store discounts apply. Paid plans add Bronze (Starter), Silver (Scale), and Gold (Business) Store discounts on participating Actors, which lower PPE event prices. See Apify discounts.
Reading an Actor's Pricing tab
Every Store Actor exposes a Pricing tab. For a PPE Actor it lists each event and its price, often with a plan-tiered table (the price drops on higher plans through Store discounts). Examples of current PPE pricing on popular Actors (verified on their live Store pages, 2026-05-26):
| Actor | Headline PPE price |
|---|---|
| Google Maps Scraper | from $2.10 / 1,000 places |
| Instagram Scraper | from $1.50 / 1,000 results |
| Google Search Results Scraper | from $1.80 / 1,000 SERPs |
| TikTok Scraper | from $1.70 / 1,000 results |
Prices marked "from" are the lowest tier (usually Business with the Gold discount); Free and Starter pay a higher rate. Always open the live Pricing tab for your plan.
How to budget a PPE run
- Identify the events. Read the Pricing tab. Note every event and its price.
- Estimate volume. How many results, pages, or starts will your job produce?
- Multiply. For example, 12,000 places at $2.10 / 1,000 is about $25.20.
- Add combined events. If the Actor also charges per page or per start, add those.
- Run a 10-item test. Open the run's cost breakdown in Apify Console, then extrapolate with a small safety buffer.
The Apify Free plan gives you $5 in monthly credits with no card, enough to run a small PPE job and read the exact event costs before you scale.
You pay a fixed price for specific actions an Actor performs, such as an Actor start, a scraped result, or an opened page, instead of paying for compute time. For pay-per-event Actors there is no separate Apify platform-usage charge on top of the event prices.
It is more predictable, which usually matters more. With compute units a slow or memory-heavy run costs more even for the same output. With PPE you pay a fixed price per result or page regardless of runtime, so you can budget from volume alone. Whether it is cheaper depends on the Actor and your workload.
Pay per result charges one price per output row. Pay per event is more general: it can charge for an Actor start, a page, a search, a download, or a result, and a single run can combine several event types. Pay per result is effectively a PPE setup with one result event.
Yes. The Free plan's $5 in monthly credits is spent against PPE events, so you can test most PPE Actors for free. Credits reset each month and do not roll over.
PPE makes cost predictable for users and lets developers price multi-step work flexibly. Apify also promotes it as the model best suited to AI agents and MCP tool calls. Pay per result remains supported, while the older rental model is being retired through 2026.
Open the Actor's Pricing tab in the Apify Store. It lists every event and its price for your plan tier. Run a small test, then read the run's cost breakdown in the Console before scaling.
Sources
Common mistakes and fixes
I cannot predict what a PPE Actor will cost.
Open the Actor's Pricing tab, note the price for each event (for example per 1,000 results), multiply by your expected volume, then run a 10-item test and read the run's cost in the Console.
My PPE run cost more than the headline price.
Some Actors charge several event types in one run (an Actor-start fee plus a per-result fee, or extra for browser or residential-proxy pages). Read every line on the Pricing tab, not just the first.