Quick answer
How do I know if WebReaderAPI is working?
Call GET https://webreaderapi.com/api/v1/credits with your key: it is free, and a normal answer means the API and your key work. If a page fails, the error code tells you why, and WebReaderAPI charges nothing for it. Incidents on our side are recorded on the changelog with their date.
What is the fastest health check?
The credits endpoint. It answers without fetching any website, so it tests only our side: authentication, the API and your account.
curl -s https://webreaderapi.com/api/v1/credits -H "Authorization: Bearer $WEBREADER_API_KEY"
Which errors come from the website, and which from us?
The error code says where the problem is. None of these errors uses a credit.
| Code | Where the problem is | What to do |
|---|---|---|
blocked_by_robots | The site's robots.txt refuses our crawler | Nothing: the site has said no |
blocked_by_site_policy | The site declares ai-input=no | Nothing: the site has said no |
target_refused | The site answered 403, 429, a challenge or a login | Try later, or ask the site for access |
fetch_failed | DNS, TLS, connection, or a 404/410 page | Check the URL; retry later |
fetch_timeout | The site did not answer in time | Retry with a longer timeout |
concurrency_limit | Too many requests at once from your account | Slow down or ask for a higher limit |
invalid_api_key, insufficient_credits | Your key or your balance | Check the dashboard |
The errors page gives each case in detail, with a retry loop.
Why is there no live uptime figure here?
Because we have not measured one yet over a public sample, and an invented figure would mislead you. The success of a read depends mostly on the site being read, so a single percentage would say little. Once we publish figures, they will come with the method, the sample and the date.
Where are incidents announced?
On the changelog, with the date, the endpoints affected and what was done. If you see repeated errors on our side (codes other than those caused by the target site), write to [email protected] with the request time and the error code.
Status: common questions
Does checking my credits cost anything?
No. GET https://webreaderapi.com/api/v1/credits never uses a credit, so you can call it from a health check as often as you like, within your concurrency limit.
A page fails for me but opens in my browser. Why?
Usually because the site treats robots differently from people: it may refuse our crawler in robots.txt or answer automated requests with a challenge page. We return its answer and charge nothing. The error code and target_status show what the site sent.
Are failed reads ever charged?
No. 1 credit = 1 page read without a browser; 2 credits when the page needs a browser to render JavaScript. A request that fails, or that a site's robots.txt refuses, is not charged.