Guide · for anyone, with or without code

How to capture a web page as evidence.

Save a copy of the page as it rendered, record the hash of that file and the time, and keep a receipt that someone else can check. PageVerified does those three things in one request, with a public receipt by default. It records what our renderer saw. It is not a forensic chain of custody and it is not legal advice.

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Five steps

The steps

Capture the page. Use the form on the Capture page, the API or the capture_url MCP tool. Choose PNG for how the page looked, PDF for a document you can page through, or HTML for the markup.
Save what comes back. Keep the response: the capture ID, the SHA-256 hash, the UTC capture time and, by default, the receipt link.
Download the file. Use the download link within 24 hours, or get a fresh link from the receipt page, and keep your own copy of the file.
Check the hash. Hash your copy with sha256sum, shasum or Get-FileHash and compare it with the hash on the receipt.
Keep the receipt link with your notes. Record why you made the capture and when. Anyone you send the receipt link to can run the same hash check.

In a browser

Without writing code

The Capture page has a live form. Enter a public URL, choose PNG, PDF or rendered HTML, and it makes a real capture with a receipt page. It needs no key and it is rate limited.

A receipt looks like this real one: /e/6c5dbd00-8f1c-4b3a-9456-6d585e615e51. It shows the source URL, the capture time, the size, the SHA-256 hash and a button to download the file.

Two requests

With the API

Get a key. It comes with 25 free credits and needs no email or card.

curl -s -X POST https://pageverified.com/api/v1/keys \
  -H "content-type: application/json" \
  -d '{"label":"my agent"}'

Capture the page. This asks for a PDF, which costs 2 credits:

curl -s -X POST https://pageverified.com/api/v1/capture \
  -H "authorization: Bearer $PAGEVERIFIED_API_KEY" \
  -H "content-type: application/json" \
  -d '{"url":"https://example.com/terms","format":"pdf"}'

The answer is HTTP 201 with these fields:

Scroll the table horizontally to see all fields.

Fields in the capture response
Field	What it is
`id`	The capture ID, a UUID.
`artifact_url`	A signed link to download the captured file. It expires after 24 hours.
`sha256`	The SHA-256 hash of the exact bytes of that file, as 64 lowercase hex characters.
`captured_at`	The UTC time the render finished, in ISO 8601 form, from PageVerified's server clock.
`evidence_url`	The public receipt page for this capture, at `/e/<id>`. It is `null` when the request sent `"public_receipt": false`.

Then download the file and hash it:

curl -s -o terms.pdf "<artifact_url>"
sha256sum terms.pdf

The full walk-through, with macOS and Windows commands, is on Verify a capture.

MCP

With an AI agent

An agent connected to PageVerified's MCP server can call the capture_url tool and get the same fields back. Set up the MCP server.

Read this part

What a capture shows, and what it does not

A capture shows:

The URL that was requested.
The file PageVerified's renderer produced from that URL: a PNG, a PDF or the rendered HTML.
The SHA-256 hash of that file.
The UTC time of the capture, from PageVerified's own server clock.

A capture does not show:

Who wrote the page, or whether anything on it is true.
What other visitors saw. The renderer loads the page from Cloudflare's network with no cookies and no login, and a site can show different content by location, device or account.
Content that appears only after a click or a scroll, or that loads late. The renderer waits until the HTML is parsed, then up to 4 seconds for network activity to settle, and captures then even if the page is still loading.
An independent time. No outside timestamp authority is involved.

A capture records what PageVerified's renderer saw at the recorded time. It is not a forensic chain of custody, proof of who wrote a page, or a legal certification. Nothing on this page is legal advice.

Good practice

Capture as soon as you see the page. Pages change and disappear.
Take more than one format when it matters: a PNG shows the layout, and the HTML keeps the text and links.
Keep your own copy of the file and of the response. With the hash, you can show later that your copy matches the receipt.
Write down why you made the capture, and anything the capture cannot show, such as being logged in when you first saw the page.
For a signature that anyone can check against published public keys, use a signed Capture Record: POST /api/v1/capture/record, the capture cost plus 4 credits.

These are record-keeping habits, not legal advice.

The same on every page

Prices and limits

Formats. PNG, PDF or rendered HTML. One format per call.
Cost. A PNG or HTML capture costs 1 credit. A PDF costs 2 credits. A capture that fails is not charged.
Signed Capture Record. The capture cost plus 4 credits.
Free key. 25 credits, with no email and no card. Free keys render at up to 1,280 by 800 pixels, stop full-page captures at 2,400 pixels and allow 10 captures a minute. New free keys are issued in limited numbers; when none are left the API answers 429.
Every key. Free or paid, one key can run up to 120 captures an hour. Each key also has a daily share of the shared browser pool. A key capturing at that rate reaches it in under an hour.
Paid keys. Viewports from 320 to 2,560 pixels wide and 240 to 2,000 pixels high. Full-page captures stop at 16,000 pixels.
Packs. Credit packs are one-time payments in US dollars, bought with card checkout: $19 for 3,000 credits, $49 for 12,000 credits, $149 for 60,000 credits. Nothing renews.
Agents. An agent can buy the same packs over HTTP 402 with no person involved, plus $1 for 150 credits. How an agent pays.
Storage. The captured file is kept in private storage until you ask for it to be deleted. Download links are signed and expire after 24 hours. By default a capture has a public receipt page, which issues a fresh link each time it is loaded.
Time. The capture time is UTC from PageVerified's own server clock. For a signed Capture Record, outside time-stamp authorities later sign the record's hash with their own time, usually within 15 minutes; the record check at /verify shows it.
Pages it can capture. Public http and https pages only. It cannot log in, send cookies or set request headers, and private network addresses are refused.
What a capture is. A capture records what PageVerified's renderer saw at the recorded time. It is not a forensic chain of custody, proof of who wrote a page, or a legal certification.
Not offered. No uptime guarantee and no security or compliance certifications.

The card packs and the cost of every tool are on the pricing page, and more limits are in the API reference. How long data is kept is on the data handling page.

Common questions

Is this legal advice?

No. This page explains what the tool records. Whether a capture is enough for your purpose is a question for a lawyer who knows the rules that apply to you.

Will a court, tribunal or platform accept a capture?

That is their decision, and PageVerified makes no promise about it. A capture gives you a file, its hash, a time from PageVerified's clock and, by default, a receipt that others can check.

Can I capture a page that needs a login?

No. Only public pages can be captured. The renderer cannot log in, send cookies or set request headers.

Who can see my capture?

By default the capture has a public receipt page, and anyone who has its link can open it and download the file. Send "public_receipt": false with an API capture to turn the receipt page off.

How long is a capture kept?

Until you ask for it to be deleted, through the support page.

Next steps

Get a free key: no signup. Or issue one with POST /api/v1/keys.
Pricing: packs and the cost of every call.
Documentation: quickstart, MCP setup and every tool's reference page.
Dispute evidence and compliance records: two worked use cases.
Support: ask for a capture to be deleted.