> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://developers.scrapeunblocker.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Fetching page HTML

> Get the rendered HTML of any URL through the right bypass chain - direct, residential proxy, stealth browser, or fallback.

The `/getPageSource` endpoint is the workhorse of the API. You pass a URL, ScrapeUnblocker picks the cheapest bypass route that works for that domain, and returns the prettified HTML.

## Minimum request

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash cURL theme={null}
  curl -X POST "https://api.scrapeunblocker.com/getPageSource?url=https://example.com" \
    -H "x-scrapeunblocker-key: YOUR_API_KEY"
  ```

  ```python Python theme={null}
  import requests

  r = requests.post(
      "https://api.scrapeunblocker.com/getPageSource",
      params={"url": "https://example.com"},
      headers={"x-scrapeunblocker-key": "YOUR_API_KEY"},
      timeout=120,
  )
  html = r.text
  ```

  ```javascript Node.js theme={null}
  const res = await fetch(
    "https://api.scrapeunblocker.com/getPageSource?url=https://example.com",
    {
      method: "POST",
      headers: { "x-scrapeunblocker-key": "YOUR_API_KEY" },
    }
  );
  const html = await res.text();
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## How routing decisions are made

ScrapeUnblocker keeps a per-domain success history and picks the cheapest path that has worked recently:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Domain plugin">
    If we have a custom-built plugin for the target domain (Mobile.de, Zillow, Amazon, etc.), we use it. Plugins ship hardcoded knowledge about that site's protection - cookie order, headers, anti-fingerprinting tweaks.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Direct fetch">
    For unprotected origins, a plain HTTP fetch is tried first. Fastest and cheapest.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Residential proxy">
    If direct fails, the request is rotated through a residential IP in a relevant country.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Stealth browser">
    For JavaScript-rendered pages or sites with browser fingerprint checks, we spin up a real browser with a randomized profile.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Upstream fallback">
    If all in-house paths fail, the request falls back to a third-party provider as a last resort.
  </Step>
</Steps>

You don't pick the route. It's chosen automatically per request based on what has worked for that domain.

## Useful parameters

### `method` and `value`

For domains with custom plugins, `method` selects a specific extraction strategy and `value` passes a parameter to it. Common patterns:

* `method=ajax&value=<endpoint>` - hit a site's internal JSON API and return the JSON instead of HTML.
* `method=scroll&value=3` - scroll the page N times before returning HTML, for infinite-scroll listings.

The exact methods supported depend on the domain plugin. Check the [help center](https://scrapeunblocker.com/contact) for per-domain documentation.

### `time_sleep`

Number of seconds to wait *after* the page loads before returning HTML. Useful for sites that hydrate content lazily after first paint.

```bash theme={null}
curl -X POST "https://api.scrapeunblocker.com/getPageSource?url=https://example.com&time_sleep=5" \
  -H "x-scrapeunblocker-key: YOUR_API_KEY"
```

### `method_timeout`

Hard cap on how long ScrapeUnblocker will spend on a single bypass attempt before moving to the next one. Default is 60 seconds. Lower it for fast-failing crawls; raise it for slow targets you really need.

### `proxy_country`

Two-letter ISO country code forcing the request through that country's proxy pool. See [country targeting](/guides/country-targeting).

## Response

By default, the response body is the prettified HTML of the page. Content-Type is `text/html`.

When you add `parsed_data=true` or `get_cookies=true`, the response becomes JSON. See [parsed data](/guides/parsed-data) and [cookies and sessions](/guides/cookies-and-sessions).

## Errors

| Code  | Meaning                                                     |
| ----- | ----------------------------------------------------------- |
| `400` | Invalid URL or unsupported scheme                           |
| `403` | Every bypass path was blocked - try `proxy_country` or wait |
| `503` | Target site is serving a server-side outage page            |
| `422` | One of your parameters failed validation                    |

Full reference in [errors](/errors).