Five Chrome extensions · One developer
Apify Alternative for Social and Messaging Exports
Apify runs third-party scrapers in the cloud, priced per result on top of a monthly platform credit. Mastros is five Chrome extensions that export what you can already see on Telegram, WhatsApp, LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok to CSV, JSON or JSONL (the CSV opens in Excel and Google Sheets), in your browser, from your own session. Different jobs; this page says which is which.
4.95 out of 5 from 152 reviews across Mastros extensions
Free to start · No sign-up
Apify vs Mastros at a glance
| What matters | Apify | Mastros |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A cloud platform running thousands of scrapers ("actors"), most built by third-party developers | Five browser extensions built by one developer for five platforms |
| Where it runs | Apify's cloud, unattended, on a schedule | Your Chrome, while you watch |
| Access model | Public data, no login; some actors accept your session cookie | Your own logged-in session; reaches groups and lists you are a member of |
| Reaches private Telegram and WhatsApp groups | No (public channels only) | Yes, ones you joined |
| Pricing model | Per result per actor, drawn from a monthly platform credit that does not roll over, plus paid plans as volume grows (as of August 2026) | Free tier, then flat monthly plans per extension |
| Setup | Account, pick an actor, configure inputs, run, download | Install, open the page, run, download |
| Output | JSON, CSV, API, integrations | CSV, JSON or JSONL (XLSX on Instagram); the CSV opens in Excel and Google Sheets |
| Best for | Nightly pipelines, large public datasets, developers | Lists from accounts and groups you use, spreadsheets, CRM imports |
What alternatives exist for a cloud platform specialising in web automation and scraping?
Three kinds. Other cloud platforms (Bright Data, Zyte, Phantombuster) compete with Apify on its own terms. General AI scrapers (Thunderbit and similar) trade scale for point-and-click setup. Browser extensions built for one platform, which is the Mastros category, trade scale and scheduling for reach into your own account and a flat price. If the job is "export this group" or "export this search", the third category is the cheapest and the only one that sees private groups.
Can Apify scrape LinkedIn, Instagram or TikTok?
Yes, through third-party actors: "apify linkedin scraper", "apify instagram scraper" and "apify tiktok scraper" are all searched for by name. Each is built and maintained by an individual developer on Apify's marketplace, priced per result, and reads public pages or takes your session cookie. The Mastros LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok extensions read the same pages inside your own browser without handing a cookie to anyone.
What is Apify used for?
Large, repeatable collection: monitoring thousands of public channels, pulling product data nightly, feeding a data warehouse. For those jobs it is the right tool and the price buys unattended scale that a browser extension does not offer. For a worked cost comparison on Telegram at equal volumes, see Mastros vs Apify for Telegram data.
Can I integrate a data extraction platform with my CRM?
Apify integrates through webhooks, Zapier-style connectors and its API. Mastros integrates the way a spreadsheet does: the export is a CSV with a stable key column (a profile URL, a phone number, a user ID) that every CRM imports. For a weekly list that a person reviews before import, the file is simpler; for an automated feed, Apify is.
I tested the extension and everything I tried worked smoothly chat messages exported successfully to csv, group members were well organized, and media was downloaded into a zip file i especially liked that it can find a member’s profile name when it isn’t shown in the group.
Works really well and saves me a lot of time when downloading Telegram videos and media. Simple, useful, and easy to use.
Building lead lists used to feel like an endless punishment of copy pasting profile URLs all afternoon.This extension detects search results instantly and pulls the whole batch into an excel file with clean aligned columns
Frequently asked questions
Related: the Phantombuster alternative page, and the Mastros guides for Telegram, Instagram and TikTok.