Comparison of CAPTCHA Solving Services

Blog » Comparison of CAPTCHA Solving Services

Speed, Cost, and Features

CAPTCHA is designed to distinguish bots from humans, yet for automation specialists-SEO professionals, testers, developers-captchas often become 🔐 obstacles in data scraping, bulk operations, or testing. Instead of manually solving dozens of captchas, this routine task can be delegated to specialized CAPTCHA solving services. These services (also called anti-CAPTCHA services) take on the solving process using a combination of algorithms and human labor. As a result, a bot automatically receives the answer, allowing scripts to continue running without delays.

Here we provide a detailed comparison of popular CAPTCHA solving services-from classical manual-solving platforms, where live workers decode captchas, to modern AI-driven solutions, where most of the workload falls on neural networks.

Overview of the Main Anti-CAPTCHA Services

Before moving to criteria-based comparison, let us briefly outline each service: what they represent and what they are known for.

2Captcha

2Captcha is one of the oldest and largest CAPTCHA solving services, operating for more than 10 years. The service is known for relying primarily on manual recognition by a vast distributed workforce worldwide, paid small rewards. This crowdsourcing guarantees that virtually any captcha can be solved, since a human can handle what an algorithm might fail at. However, response time can vary-from seconds to dozens of seconds-depending on task complexity and system load. 2Captcha supports an exceptionally wide range of CAPTCHA types: from classic text images and all variants of Google reCAPTCHA to niche, complex captchas (Yandex, VK), rotation puzzles, and much more. For integration, 2Captcha offers a simple HTTP API (a two-step protocol: submit task, fetch result) and provides ready-made browser plugins.

SolveCaptcha

SolveCaptcha is a relatively new market entrant with an ambitious hybrid technology. It positions itself as a “powerful and fast” automatic solver for nearly all types of captchas. Unlike classical services, SolveCaptcha emphasizes a combination of machine learning and human input. The principle: simple cases (distorted text, uncomplicated images) are solved by the neural network within seconds (typically 2-5s), while more complex multi-component captchas are immediately routed to human operators to guarantee results. Thus, SolveCaptcha aims to maximize speed without sacrificing reliability. The service provides a cloud API structurally compatible with 2Captcha’s API (so migration is easy) and also offers its own Chrome/Chromium extension. It advertises support for all major captchas-Google reCAPTCHA v2/v3 (including Invisible and Enterprise), hCaptcha, Arkose Labs FunCaptcha, Cloudflare Turnstile, GeeTest, etc.-with a claimed success rate of 95-99%. In practice, SolveCaptcha covers most use cases, using AI for speed while bringing humans in where necessary.

AntiCaptcha (AntiGate)

AntiCaptcha (formerly AntiGate) is another veteran, active since 2007. It is essentially a direct competitor to 2Captcha: the service likewise relies primarily on human solvers rather than AI. Over the years AntiCaptcha has refined its infrastructure for high throughput and stability (advertised uptime: 99.99%). Virtually any captcha type is supported: all variants of Google reCAPTCHA (including Enterprise), complex puzzles such as GeeTest, Cloudflare Turnstile, FunCaptcha, and more. AntiCaptcha distinguishes itself with flexibility and advanced features. Beyond standard images, it supports “Custom Tasks”-user-defined sequences of actions or non-standard checks performed by a worker (useful for automating complex scenarios). For integration, AntiCaptcha offers a JSON API (createTask / getTaskResult), official SDKs in popular languages, unlimited parallel requests, browser extensions, and ready-made modules for tools like Selenium, Puppeteer, and iMacros. AntiCaptcha is therefore oriented toward users who need enterprise-level performance and flexible configuration (e.g., setting proxies, browser emulation types when solving captchas).

DeathByCaptcha (DBC)

DeathByCaptcha is an international service with over 15 years on the market. DBC was one of the pioneers of the hybrid approach: combining OCR algorithms with a round-the-clock team of human decoders. In practice: simple text captchas are attempted automatically (OCR) within fractions of a second, and only if uncertain are they sent to a human. This yields ~90% accuracy on simple captchas on the first attempt and up to 99% after human verification. Thanks to automation, simple images are solved in ~9 seconds on average, while more complex ones go straight to manual input. Historically DBC specialized in text captchas but now supports nearly all major types: Google reCAPTCHA (v2, Invisible, v3), hCaptcha, FunCaptcha (Arkose Labs), GeeTest (v3/v4), and other non-standard systems (KeyCaptcha, Capy, Amazon WAF, FriendlyCaptcha, etc.). A notable feature is audio captcha support: for example, audio reCAPTCHA for the visually impaired can be sent to DBC either for automatic speech recognition or (more often) for a human operator to listen and enter the answer. Thus, DBC covers even auditory challenges. For developers, the service provides API clients in popular languages (Python, Java, C#, PHP, etc.) and is compatible with protocols of other services (e.g., it accepts AntiCaptcha API-format requests), easing migration. Browser add-ons also exist (official Chrome/Firefox extensions), though the service’s user base today is smaller than 2Captcha/AntiCaptcha.

CapMonster Cloud

CapMonster Cloud represents a new generation of services emphasizing fully automated AI-based solving. The project grew out of the CapMonster software solver by Zennolab and is now offered as a cloud API. The main advantage: high speed and low price thanks to the absence of human labor costs. Neural networks make solving 2-3 times cheaper than manual services. CapMonster Cloud supports common captchas: Google reCAPTCHA v2/v3 (including Enterprise), hCaptcha (including Enterprise), GeeTest, Cloudflare Turnstile, Cloudflare Bot Challenge, protected images such as DataDome, Tencent captchas, simple text images, and more. (Very complex puzzles like Arkose Labs FunCaptcha are not yet fully listed-indicating the difficulty of purely AI handling them.) Reported accuracy reaches 99%, with average solving speed under 1 second per captcha-an impressive result. CapMonster Cloud can process over 1000 captchas per minute, charging only for successfully solved captchas (failed attempts are not billed), independent of server load. For integration, it supports APIs of popular manual services-so you can send the same familiar request formats as for 2Captcha or AntiCaptcha, but to CapMonster Cloud. Proxy usage is included (the service applies proxies automatically when needed). Browser extensions (Chrome, Firefox) are available for direct in-page solving. As for pricing, CapMonster Cloud’s tariffs are much lower than human-based services: simple captchas cost ₽1.8-3.5 per 1000 ($0.02-0.04), while complex reCAPTCHAs cost ₽50-194 (~$0.5-$2+) per 1000. Compared to typical manual prices of $1-3 per 1000 reCAPTCHAs, this is significantly cheaper. Thus CapMonster Cloud is attractive for high-volume, repetitive captcha workloads if its algorithms handle them confidently.

Supported CAPTCHA Types

All the reviewed services strive to 🙌 cover as many captcha types as possible, since a service’s value is largely defined by the breadth of checks it can solve. In this respect, classical manual services (2Captcha, AntiCaptcha) are not inferior to new players: over the years they have accumulated scripts for nearly every system. 2Captcha and AntiCaptcha currently support all Google reCAPTCHA variants (v2, Invisible, v3, including Enterprise), hCaptcha (standard and Enterprise for Cloudflare), Arkose Labs FunCaptcha, GeeTest (puzzles, v3/v4), various image-based tasks (object clicks, sliders, image rotations), as well as regional captchas (Yandex, VK, etc.). When a new captcha appears online, 2Captcha/AntiCaptcha are usually among the first to add support-thanks to their large workforce combined with updatable software.

📌 SolveCaptcha was designed as a universal solution and likewise declares compatibility with virtually all common captchas, similar to 2Captcha. Its list includes all Google reCAPTCHA versions, hCaptcha, FunCaptcha, GeeTest, Cloudflare Turnstile, and others-covering ~95% of encountered captchas. Thanks to its hybrid model, if the neural network cannot handle a new captcha, the task is simply assigned to a human, giving SolveCaptcha near-complete coverage.

📌 DeathByCaptcha historically focused on simple graphic captchas but has since expanded: it now supports reCAPTCHA v2/v3, hCaptcha, Arkose (FunCaptcha), GeeTest, and niche systems (KeyCaptcha, Lemin, Capy, AWS WAF CAPTCHA, FriendlyCaptcha, etc.). A unique feature is DBC’s support for audio captchas-rare in the industry: when an audio reCAPTCHA appears, DBC can route the file either to speech recognition or to a human listener, whereas many competitors do not advertise such functionality.

📌 CapMonster Cloud covers a somewhat narrower set but includes the most frequent: Google reCAPTCHA (v2/v3), hCaptcha, GeeTest, Cloudflare challenges, and some non-standard ones (e.g., from gaming platforms, payment gateways). Pure AI-based services typically do not support very complex interactive captchas that require full user emulation (like Arkose FunCaptcha), or support them only partially. By contrast, hybrid services (SolveCaptcha, DBC) and especially manual ones (2Captcha, AntiCaptcha) can handle them via human workers. Overall, in coverage breadth, 2Captcha/AntiCaptcha remain the benchmark-they solve virtually everything, even rare and new captchas. SolveCaptcha is close thanks to its hybrid approach. CapMonster lags somewhat (e.g., lacking FunCaptcha), but is catching up as models are trained on new checks.

Solving Speed and Performance

One of the main criteria when choosing an anti-CAPTCHA service is 🚀 speed-how quickly the service returns a solution. This is especially critical when many captchas must be solved sequentially or in parallel: delays directly affect total script runtime. Speed depends on captcha type (simple text vs complex puzzles), current service load, and the solving approach (human vs neural net vs hybrid).

• Simple captchas (text, classic images). Humans typically answer in ~10s on average. OCR algorithms can be faster-fractions of a second, if the image is straightforward. Thus, hybrid and AI services have an edge here. For example, DBC first attempts OCR, often solving text captchas in ~9s. SolveCaptcha’s neural net recognizes distorted text in 3-5s, while a human might take ~10s. Manual services (2Captcha, AntiCaptcha) rely on worker speed: with thousands online, they usually pick up tasks instantly. In practice, a simple captcha on 2Captcha is solved in ~7-15s; AntiCaptcha claims ~5s, though real averages are similar. Overall, light captchas are handled quickly by all-rarely exceeding 20s, and with AI/hybrid solutions often just a few seconds.
• Complex captchas (Google reCAPTCHA, hCaptcha, Arkose FunCaptcha, etc.). Here differences are greater. SolveCaptcha aims to minimize delays: according to CaptchaTheCat benchmarks, reCAPTCHA v2 is solved in ~4.5s on average, v3 in ~26s. (Developers claim reCAPTCHA tokens in as little as 2s under ideal conditions.) AntiCaptcha also solves Google reCAPTCHA quickly-typically within 10-20s. 2Captcha handles reCAPTCHA v2 in 1-3s at best (if the worker is already logged into Google), but can take up to ~60s in worst cases, averaging ~20s. CaptchaTheCat confirms ~20-22s averages for reCAPTCHA via 2Captcha. For reCAPTCHA v3, times are longer (20-30s), since browser “warming” is needed. DBC relies on humans for these, so times are ~15-30s. The hardest captchas, such as Arkose FunCaptcha with 3D puzzles, can take up to a minute: SolveCaptcha ~48s, 2Captcha ~55s.
• Parallel throughput. For solving hundreds of captchas simultaneously, scalability matters. AntiCaptcha stands out: no official limits on concurrency, capable of ~1000 captchas per minute. 2Captcha likewise supports high parallelism via its large workforce: hundreds of tasks can be sent at once, though response times may lengthen slightly if queues grow. SolveCaptcha advertises limits per captcha type, e.g., ~12,000 image or ~11,000 reCAPTCHA v2 per minute-very high. DBC scales less well and may raise prices during peak load.

☝️ Speed summary: On simple captchas, AI/hybrid services (SolveCaptcha, CapMonster) lead with ~3-5s responses. On complex captchas, all major services return results in ~20-30s, by different means. For high-volume tasks, hybrids show slight advantages, but all large services remain usable, rarely exceeding a minute even for difficult cases.

Service Pricing

Pricing plays a key role, especially when solving thousands or millions of captchas.

• 2Captcha / ruCaptcha: Classic image captchas cost ~$0.50 per 1000. Google reCAPTCHA v2/v3 is $1-3 per 1000 depending on load and difficulty. hCaptcha, FunCaptcha, etc., are typically ~$1 per 1000. Dynamic pricing raises rates during worker shortages. Refunds are offered for incorrect answers.
• SolveCaptcha: Markets itself as cheaper thanks to automation. Rates: ~$0.50 per 1000 simple captchas, ~$0.55 for reCAPTCHA v2, ~$0.80 for reCAPTCHA v3, up to ~$2.99 for Arkose FunCaptcha. Popular types often under $1 per 1000. Free trial quotas exist.
• AntiCaptcha: Prices similar to 2Captcha: ~$0.50 per 1000 simple, ~$1 per 1000 reCAPTCHA v2, up to $2 per 1000 for hCaptcha. Dynamic pricing applies. Subscription packages are available for large steady volumes. No refunds for incorrect answers, but error rates are low.
• DeathByCaptcha: Averages ~$1-3 per 1000 depending on type. Simple ~$0.99, complex several dollars. Prices rise 10-20% during peak load. Refunds for incorrect results are guaranteed.
• CapMonster Cloud: Significantly cheaper. Simple captchas ~₽1.8-3.5 per 1000 ($0.02-0.04). Complex reCAPTCHAs ₽53-194 per 1000 ($0.5-2). Free demo available. Billing only for successfully solved captchas.

Cost summary: AI solutions are cheaper-reCAPTCHA often under $1 per 1000 vs $1-3 for human-based services. The most difficult captchas (e.g., Arkose FunCaptcha) remain expensive everywhere, sometimes $30-50 per 1000 due to scarcity of solvers.

API and Project Integration

For developers, ease of integration is crucial.

• 2Captcha: Sets the industry standard with a simple two-request HTTP API (submit captcha, poll result). This format is widely copied, so many other services support compatible endpoints. Official libraries exist in Python, PHP, Java, C#, JavaScript, etc. Browser extensions are also provided.
• SolveCaptcha: API fully mirrors 2Captcha (in.php/res.php). Official SDKs in 8 languages, extensive docs, webhooks, error reporting. Chrome extension available. Migration from 2Captcha is trivial.
• AntiCaptcha: Uses its own JSON-RPC API (createTask / getTaskResult). Slightly more complex but more flexible: proxy settings, task types, emulation parameters can all be specified. Official SDKs and modules for Selenium, Puppeteer, etc., are provided. No limits on parallel requests.
• DeathByCaptcha: API similar to 2Captcha/AntiCaptcha. Officially supports compatibility mode (accepting AntiCaptcha-style requests). Clients exist for major languages. Browser add-ons also exist.
• CapMonster Cloud: Supports API emulation of 2Captcha/AntiCaptcha for easy switching. Also has its own API. Proxy handling is included. Browser extensions available.

Integration summary: 2Captcha and SolveCaptcha win on simplicity; AntiCaptcha offers maximum flexibility; DBC provides compatibility; CapMonster Cloud minimizes barriers by emulating others.

Conclusions and Recommendations

CAPTCHA solving services have evolved from simple manual entry farms to complex platforms combining human intelligence with 🤖 algorithms. The core capabilities of leading services are similar: all solve a broad range of captchas accurately and affordably via accessible APIs. Yet nuances can determine the best fit.

• 2Captcha/ruCaptcha: Time-tested all-rounder. Reliable, broad coverage, de facto API standard, large community. Best choice for Russian-speaking users.
• SolveCaptcha: Promising newcomer. Hybrid model, very fast, developer-friendly, low prices. Ideal where speed and efficiency are critical.
• AntiCaptcha: Enterprise-oriented. High throughput, flexible configuration, advanced integrations. Suited for large-scale or demanding scenarios.
• DeathByCaptcha: Less popular today but still relevant. Hybrid model, refunds, compatibility. Best as a backup or secondary option.
• CapMonster Cloud: AI-driven, cheapest and fastest for bulk repetitive captchas. Limitations on complex interactive types mean fallback may be needed.

Competition is intensifying, and AI solutions are 📈 steadily expanding. Likely, the future of anti-CAPTCHA lies in full automation, with humans reserved for edge cases. For end users, this creates new optimization opportunities: combining services, selecting them by captcha type, or balancing speed and cost.