# Jina Reader

Product · https://godooo.ai/en/product/jina-reader

> Jina Reader is an open-source AI app, launched in 2024, made for developers.

An API that turns any URL into LLM-friendly Markdown by adding a prefix to it.

Main jobs: Web scraping. It is open source and free to use. You can use it through an API and on your own server.

## At a glance

- **Type:** [Product](https://godooo.ai/en/browse#product)
- **Launched:** 2024
- **Galaxy:** [Agents & Automation](https://godooo.ai/en/galaxy/agents)
- **Pricing:** Open source, free
- **Open source:** Yes · Apache-2.0
- **Source code:** [github.com/jina-ai/reader](https://github.com/jina-ai/reader)
- **GitHub stars:** 12,038
- **How you run it:** API · Self-host
- **Made for:** Developers
- **Website:** [jina.ai](https://jina.ai/reader)
- **Also known as:** r.jina.ai

## What it can do

- **[Web scraping](https://godooo.ai/en/capability/web-scraping)** — main job, _proposed by a machine, awaiting calibration_. “Convert a URL to LLM-friendly input by prepending r.jina.ai .” (read on [jina.ai](https://jina.ai/reader/), 2026-09-24)
- **[Document parsing](https://godooo.ai/en/capability/document-parsing)** — supported, _proposed by a machine, awaiting calibration_.
- **[Web search with answers](https://godooo.ai/en/capability/web-search)** — supported, _proposed by a machine, awaiting calibration_. “Use s.jina.ai to search the web and get SERP” (read on [jina.ai](https://jina.ai/reader/), 2026-09-24)

## Alternatives

- **[Firecrawl](https://godooo.ai/en/product/firecrawl)** (Open source, free): Also does: Web scraping, Document parsing, Web search with answers
- **[Firecrawl MCP Server](https://godooo.ai/en/mcp/firecrawl)** (Open source, free): Also does: Web scraping, Document parsing, Web search with answers
- **[Crawl4AI](https://godooo.ai/en/framework/crawl4ai)** (Open source, free): Also does: Web scraping; runs offline
- **[Exa MCP Server](https://godooo.ai/en/mcp/exa)** (Open source, free): Also does: Web search with answers, Web scraping
- **[Fetch MCP Server](https://godooo.ai/en/mcp/fetch)** (Open source, free): Also does: Web scraping; runs offline
- **[ScrapeGraphAI](https://godooo.ai/en/framework/scrapegraphai)** (Open source, free): Also does: Web scraping; runs offline
- **[Apify MCP Server](https://godooo.ai/en/mcp/apify)** (Open source, free): Also does: Web scraping
- **[Tavily MCP Server](https://godooo.ai/en/mcp/tavily)** (Open source, free): Also does: Web search with answers, Web scraping; runs offline
- **[AnythingLLM](https://godooo.ai/en/product/anythingllm)** (Open source, free): Also does: Web scraping, Web search with answers; runs offline; no code needed
- **[Browser Use](https://godooo.ai/en/framework/browser-use)** (Open source, free): Also does: Web scraping; runs offline
- **[Cloudflare MCP Servers](https://godooo.ai/en/mcp/cloudflare)** (Open source, free): Also does: Web scraping
- **[Skyvern](https://godooo.ai/en/agent/skyvern)** (Open source, free): Also does: Web scraping

## Questions

### What is Jina Reader?

Jina Reader is an open-source AI app, launched in 2024, made for developers. An API that turns any URL into LLM-friendly Markdown by adding a prefix to it.

### Is Jina Reader free?

Yes. Jina Reader is open source (Apache-2.0) and free to use.

### Is Jina Reader open source?

Yes, under the Apache-2.0 license. The source code is at https://github.com/jina-ai/reader.

### Can Jina Reader run locally?

Jina Reader can be self-hosted on your own server.

### What can Jina Reader do?

Main jobs: Web scraping. It can also do: Document parsing, Web search with answers.

### What are open-source alternatives to Jina Reader?

Open-source ones: Firecrawl, Firecrawl MCP Server, Crawl4AI, Exa MCP Server, Fetch MCP Server, ScrapeGraphAI, Apify MCP Server and Tavily MCP Server.

## Sources

- [jina.ai](https://jina.ai/reader/) — checked 2026-09-24
- [github.com](https://github.com/jina-ai/reader)

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Last updated 2026-09-24 · sources checked 2026-09-24 · Markdown version of https://godooo.ai/en/product/jina-reader. Every page on this site has one: add .md to its address.