If your enrichment pipeline, CRM workflow, or side project ran on Proxycurl, you already know the bad news: the API is gone. Nubela, the company behind Proxycurl, announced the shutdown on July 4, 2025, and the service page now states plainly that Proxycurl is no longer in service. Thousands of teams that relied on it for LinkedIn profile and company data are migrating right now.
This guide covers what actually happened, what to look for in a replacement, and 7 Proxycurl alternatives with pricing verified against each vendor's own site in 2026. The right pick depends on whether you need a pre-built database, real-time lookups, large-scale collection, or, if the data only ever fed outreach campaigns, no data API at all.
What Happened to Proxycurl?
Proxycurl is shut down, permanently. LinkedIn sued Nubela Pte. Ltd., Proxycurl's parent company, in January 2025. On July 4, 2025, Nubela's founder published a farewell post titled Proxycurl Shuts Down. Thank you. explaining that the company chose to settle and wind down rather than fight: in his words, regardless of the merits of LinkedIn's lawsuit, there was no winning in fighting it.
The old product page at nubela.co/proxycurl now displays a discontinuation notice, and the founder has moved on to a new venture called NinjaPear, a B2B customer data platform. There is no successor API, no data export portal, and no timeline for a return. If Proxycurl was in your stack, migration is not optional.
What Should You Look For in a Proxycurl Alternative?
Match the tool to the job Proxycurl was doing for you. Proxycurl mixed several things in one API: profile lookups, company data, email finding, and a stored database. Its alternatives tend to specialize. Before you migrate, decide which of these you actually need:
- A pre-built contact database you can query by filters (person titles, company size, industry), refreshed on a schedule.
- Real-time lookups: give a LinkedIn URL, get fresh structured data back.
- Bulk scraping infrastructure for large one-off or recurring collection jobs.
- An outreach layer: if the data ultimately feeds LinkedIn or email campaigns, a platform that combines data with sending infrastructure removes a whole integration.
Prospect data without running a data pipeline
Swarmhit is an outreach platform, not a data API: multi-sender campaigns with a built-in 1B+ contact database, free monthly credits then pay-as-you-go, from $39/month per sender.
Developer pricing, scoped on a short call.
1. Swarmhit: The Alternative Built on Accounts You Own (Our Pick)
Full disclosure: Swarmhit is our product, and it takes the opposite approach to the one that ended Proxycurl. Everything runs through LinkedIn accounts you own and connect: outreach actions (connection requests, messages, profile visits, InMails) and account-based scraping capped at 2,500 profiles per day from Sales Navigator search and 1,000 per day from standard search, behind 100+ safeguards monitored 24/7. There is no cookie-less extraction here: pulling LinkedIn data without an authenticated session is the category LinkedIn litigates out of existence, and we stay entirely away from it. The built-in prospect database (1B+ contacts, 60M companies, refreshed weekly) is sourced from third-party data providers, with free monthly credits then pay-as-you-go.
The honest fit: if Proxycurl was feeding prospect lists into a sequencer, Swarmhit replaces that whole pipeline. You search the database, then run multi-sender campaigns with a dedicated proxy per sender, managed warmup, health checks, and smart caps, all reachable through the API, webhooks, and an MCP server. Developer pricing is scoped on a short call and scales with volume, down to $9/month per sender for large fleets (50-account minimum). If you need raw structured data delivered as JSON, use one of the data vendors below instead.
2. Unipile: Best for Account-Based LinkedIn API Access
Unipile takes a different approach from Proxycurl: instead of selling data from a scraped database, it gives you API access through LinkedIn accounts you connect yourself. One API covers LinkedIn plus email, WhatsApp, Telegram, and Instagram, with 100+ endpoints, real-time webhooks, and hosted authentication. Through a connected account you can pull profile data, send messages, and manage conversations.
Pricing is per connected account: a minimum of 49 euros per month (about $55) covers up to 10 accounts, then 5 euros per account per month from 11 to 50 accounts, with tiered discounts beyond that and a 7-day trial without a card. The verdict: excellent for developers building products on live LinkedIn access, but it is not a database. You bring the accounts, and volume is bounded by what those accounts can safely do. We cover it in depth in our Unipile review, linked at the end.
3. ScrapIn: Best for Real-Time Profile Lookups
ScrapIn is one of the closest functional matches to Proxycurl's core use case: real-time APIs that return structured data on people (title, experience, education, skills, location, email addresses) and companies (industry, headcount, HQ, website) without you needing LinkedIn accounts or official API access. The company, recently acquired by Reverse Contact, says it retrieves data through publicly available OSINT methods and advertises sub-2-second responses.
Pricing is credit-based: a $30 paid trial for 7 days, then pay-as-you-go credit packs starting at $500 (credits stay valid 12 months), and custom annual contracts for enterprise rate limits. The verdict: a natural landing spot for Proxycurl refugees who need per-URL freshness, though the $500 entry pack makes it a commitment for small projects.
4. Bright Data: Best for Large-Scale LinkedIn Scraping
Bright Data runs one of the biggest web data platforms and offers a dedicated LinkedIn Scraper API with around 10 scrapers covering profiles, companies, jobs, and posts, delivered as JSON, CSV, or NDJSON with automatic IP rotation and CAPTCHA handling. It can push results straight into S3, Google Cloud Storage, or Snowflake.
Pricing is per record: a free tier of 5,000 records per month, pay-as-you-go at $1.50 per 1,000 records with no minimum, and a $499/month Scale plan that includes 384,000 records, then $1.30 per additional 1,000. You only pay for successfully delivered records. The verdict: the strongest option for high-volume structured collection, with enterprise-grade infrastructure; overkill if you just need occasional lookups.
5. Apify: Best for Developer Flexibility on a Budget
Apify is a scraping platform and marketplace where thousands of pre-built scrapers (called Actors) run on managed infrastructure, including many for LinkedIn profiles, companies, and jobs. You can also deploy your own scraper code and schedule it.
Plans are subscription plus usage: a free plan with $5 of monthly credits, Starter at $29/month, Scale at $199/month, and Business at $999/month, each prepaying the same amount in platform credits, with overage billed in compute units. The verdict: the most flexible and often the cheapest entry point, but LinkedIn Actors are largely community-maintained, so reliability and upkeep vary; you own more of the maintenance burden than with a managed data API.
6. Coresignal: Best Database Model Closest to Proxycurl
Coresignal sells access to a large stored dataset of employee, company, and job posting records, queryable by API, which is structurally the closest thing on this list to how Proxycurl's database worked. It also delivers flat-file datasets (JSON or CSV) for teams that want the data in bulk.
Pricing is credit-based and unusually transparent: a free tier with 2,000 credits, Mini at $49/month for 2,500 credits, Starter at $199/month for 12,000, Pro at $499/month for 35,000, and higher tiers up to $5,000/month, with employee or company records costing 10 to 20 credits each. Bulk datasets start from $1,000. The verdict: the best like-for-like database replacement, especially for analytics and enrichment; it is a data vendor only, so outreach still needs another tool.
7. Crustdata: Best for Real-Time Data With Change Signals
Crustdata offers real-time APIs over people and company data with an emphasis on signals: hiring changes, funding events, and other company updates, alongside flat-file datasets refreshed monthly from 11+ sources. It positions itself for teams that need the data to be current at query time rather than periodically refreshed.
Pricing uses credit-based tiers with monthly and annual plans, but Crustdata does not publish numbers: you have to contact sales or book a demo. The verdict: strong for signal-driven workflows and real-time enrichment, but the opaque pricing makes it harder to budget a migration than the transparent options above.
8. Captain Data: People and Company Data for AI Agents
Captain Data is a people and company data API aimed at AI agents and B2B SaaS: 500M+ profiles kept fresh, search and enrichment endpoints, and a one-integration setup its homepage pitches as live in hours rather than weeks. It reports 100+ customers, 100M+ API calls per month, and 99% uptime, with SaaS and agent products like lemlist, Cargo, AiSDR, and Rippling among the logos on its homepage.
In this list it sits closest to Crustdata: a data layer designed to be called by agents and products rather than browsed by humans. Public per-call pricing is not listed on the site; access runs through self-serve signup or a demo.
How Do the Best Proxycurl Alternatives Compare in 2026?
| Tool | Model | Starting price (verified 2026) | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Swarmhit | Outreach platform: actions + account-based scraping (2,500/day Sales Navigator, 1,000/day search) through accounts you own, plus a third-party-sourced database | Call-scoped for builders, down to $9/mo per sender at 50+ accounts; $39/mo self-serve | Outreach pipelines that used Proxycurl for prospect lists |
| Unipile | API through LinkedIn accounts you connect | 49 euros/mo for up to 10 accounts | Products built on live account access |
| ScrapIn | Real-time person/company lookup API | $30 trial, then credit packs from $500 | Per-URL real-time enrichment |
| Bright Data | LinkedIn Scraper API, per record | Free 5,000 records/mo, then $1.50 per 1,000 records | High-volume structured scraping |
| Apify | Scraper marketplace + infrastructure | Free ($5 credits), paid from $29/mo | Developers who want flexibility |
| Coresignal | Stored dataset + API, credit-based | Free tier (2,000 credits), paid from $49/mo | Like-for-like database replacement |
| Crustdata | Real-time API + signals | Not published, contact sales | Signal-driven enrichment |
| Captain Data | People and company data API for AI agents | Not published, contact sales | Agent and SaaS data workflows |
Which Proxycurl Alternative Should You Pick?
Pick by workflow, not by feature list. If the data was feeding outreach, Swarmhit covers the pipeline end to end through accounts you own. If you are building a product on raw multi-channel account endpoints, Unipile is the purpose-built option. If you need per-URL freshness, ScrapIn or Crustdata. If you are collecting at scale, Bright Data or Apify. If you mostly queried Proxycurl's stored database, Coresignal is the most direct swap. And if Proxycurl was only feeding prospect lists for campaigns, Swarmhit covers the pipeline end to end without touching LinkedIn data.
FAQ
Is Proxycurl shut down?
Yes. Proxycurl announced its shutdown on July 4, 2025, and its site now states the service is no longer in operation. The API is offline and there is no successor product from Nubela; the founder has moved on to a new company called NinjaPear.
Why did Proxycurl shut down?
LinkedIn sued Proxycurl's parent company Nubela in January 2025. Rather than fight a prolonged legal battle against a Microsoft-owned company, the founder chose to settle and wind the business down, announcing the decision publicly in July 2025.
What is the best Proxycurl alternative in 2026?
For outreach workflows, Swarmhit (our product): account-based scraping with daily caps plus the whole outreach layer, through accounts you own and connect. For raw data needs, Coresignal is the closest database-model replacement, ScrapIn the closest real-time lookup replacement, Bright Data the strongest for bulk scraping, Unipile the pick for products built on connected LinkedIn accounts, and Captain Data the data layer aimed at AI agents.
What is the cheapest Proxycurl alternative in 2026?
For prototyping, Bright Data's free tier (5,000 LinkedIn records per month), Coresignal's free tier (2,000 credits), and Apify's free plan ($5 in credits) cost nothing. For paid entry points, Apify starts at $29/month and Coresignal at $49/month.
Can I still access my Proxycurl data or credits?
There is no self-serve export or refund portal. In the shutdown post, the founder said existing customers were helped with transitions in the weeks before closure and invited remaining customers to reach out by email for assistance.
Which Proxycurl alternative has a stored database like Proxycurl did?
Coresignal is the closest structural match: a large stored dataset of employee and company records queryable by API or delivered as flat files, with bulk datasets available from $1,000.
Is scraping LinkedIn data legal in 2026?
It is contested territory, and the Proxycurl case shows LinkedIn is willing to litigate. Scraping public data has had mixed outcomes in court, but LinkedIn's terms prohibit it and the practical risk sits with vendors and heavy users. Favor providers that document their compliance posture, and read our guide on LinkedIn automation safety before betting a core workflow on scraped data.
What happened to Nubela after Proxycurl?
Nubela's founder is now building NinjaPear, described as a B2B customer data platform. It is a separate product, not a Proxycurl relaunch, and the Proxycurl API itself is not coming back.
Conclusion
Proxycurl's shutdown ended an era of cheap, easy LinkedIn data, but the migration paths are clear: Unipile for account-based access, ScrapIn or Crustdata for real-time lookups, Bright Data or Apify for scale, Coresignal for a stored database. For more on this stack, read our Unipile review, our roundup of Unipile alternatives, our breakdown of LinkedIn API pricing, and our guide to the best LinkedIn scraper APIs.
If the end goal is booked meetings rather than raw JSON, start with our guide to LinkedIn prospecting tools, check whether LinkedIn automation is safe, and see how Swarmhit stacks up against a classic automation tool in our Swarmhit vs Expandi comparison.
