Comparing
FastAPI framework, high performance, easy to learn, fast to code, ready for production
Fast, batteries-included web scraping and crawling framework for Python.
| Metric | fastapi | Scrapy |
|---|---|---|
| Ecosystem | Python | Python |
| Difficulty | Beginner ✓ | Intermediate |
| Weekly downloads | 0 | 1.4M↑ |
| Latest version | v0.135.2 | v2.11.2 |
| Recipes | 1 | 2↑ |
fastapi only
Shared
Scrapy only
Use FastAPI when building REST or GraphQL APIs in Python, especially when you need async support, automatic OpenAPI/Swagger docs, request validation, or are building microservices. It's the best choice for new Python API projects.
Large-scale crawling, production spiders that run regularly, structured data extraction with pipelines (to DB, CSV, JSON), sites with pagination or login.
FastAPI is API-only — it has no templating, admin interface, or ORM. For full-stack web apps with server-rendered HTML, Django is better. For tiny internal tools, Flask's smaller learning curve might be preferable.
Single-page quick scrapes (use requests+BS4). JavaScript-heavy sites (use Playwright; or scrapy-playwright to integrate). When a proper API exists.
fastapi
Scrapy