If you’re looking for how to install ScreenshotMachine CLI on Ubuntu, the official ScreenshotMachine materials reviewed describe an online screenshot API and a Bash/curl example—not a separately installable ScreenshotMachine CLI package. You can still make screenshot requests from Ubuntu: use Bash as your shell and curl as the HTTP client to call the API.
What you’re setting up on Ubuntu
ScreenshotMachine’s Bash example is described by its GitHub organization as a simple script for calling the API. The screenshot service runs remotely; the script sends an HTTP GET request to https://api.screenshotmachine.com/ and saves the response. The official sources reviewed do not establish an installable Ubuntu CLI package or a tested Ubuntu-specific installation procedure.
This means you need a Bash environment, curl, and your own ScreenshotMachine customer API key. The API documentation says the key is provided through the service account signup process. Do not put a real key in a public script or repository.
Check Bash and curl
Open a terminal and check that both commands are available:
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bash --version
curl --versionIf either command is unavailable, install or enable it using the package-management instructions appropriate to your Ubuntu release. ScreenshotMachine’s reviewed documentation does not specify Ubuntu package commands or minimum Ubuntu versions, so verify the command for your release rather than assuming a version-specific procedure.
Make a screenshot request with curl
-
Obtain your ScreenshotMachine API key through your account.
-
Replace
YOUR_API_KEYand the example page URL below. The API requires a customer key and a target URL. -
Run the request.
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curl --get "https://api.screenshotmachine.com/"
--data-urlencode "key=YOUR_API_KEY"
--data-urlencode "url=https://example.com"
--data-urlencode "dimension=1024x768"
--data-urlencode "format=png"
--output screenshot.pngFor the exact parameter definitions and additional options, see ScreenshotMachine’s screenshot API documentation. The documentation’s default dimension is 120x90, default device is desktop, and default format is jpg. Supported documented formats are jpg, png, and gif.
Choose capture options
These documented options let you adjust the image request. Keep the values within the API’s stated limits.
| Option | Documented choices or range | What it controls |
|---|---|---|
dimension |
Width 100–1920 and height 100–9999; full is also accepted for full-length capture |
Image dimensions or full-page capture. |
device |
desktop, phone, tablet |
Device mode used for the capture. |
format |
jpg, png, gif |
Image file format. |
| Cache age | Use the cache-age parameter documented by ScreenshotMachine | Controls how long a cached result may be used; consult the API documentation for the parameter name and accepted values. |
| Delay | Use the delay parameter documented by ScreenshotMachine | Waits before capture so page content has time to load. |
| Zoom | Use the zoom parameter documented by ScreenshotMachine | Adjusts capture zoom. |
For long pages, ScreenshotMachine advises allowing more time before capture—such as a delay of 2000 milliseconds or more—because images or animations may need time to appear. A full-length image can also take longer and be larger than a viewport capture.
Keep a reusable Bash script
For repeated use, save a small script such as capture.sh. Pass credentials through an environment variable so they do not have to be written into the script itself.
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#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail
: "${SCREENSHOTMACHINE_KEY:?Set SCREENSHOTMACHINE_KEY first}"
page_url="${1:?Usage: SCREENSHOTMACHINE_KEY=... ./capture.sh URL [OUTPUT]}"
output="${2:-screenshot.png}"
curl --fail --silent --show-error --get "https://api.screenshotmachine.com/"
--data-urlencode "key=${SCREENSHOTMACHINE_KEY}"
--data-urlencode "url=${page_url}"
--data-urlencode "dimension=1024x768"
--data-urlencode "format=png"
--output "${output}"
printf 'Saved response to %sn' "${output}"Make it executable and call it with a URL:
chmod +x capture.sh
export SCREENSHOTMACHINE_KEY='YOUR_API_KEY'
./capture.sh 'https://example.com' 'example.png'Use an environment variable or a secret manager suited to your system, and avoid sharing terminal history or logs that might expose credentials.
Public-page requests and the hash safeguard
If you make requests from public HTML, a customer key embedded in the page can be exposed. ScreenshotMachine documents a hash safeguard: calculate an MD5 hash from the requested URL plus your secret phrase. When a secret phrase is configured, the service ignores requests with a missing or incorrect hash. Keep the phrase private; do not put it in client-side HTML. Follow the API documentation’s exact hash construction and parameter requirements rather than improvising the input string.
Screenshot output and PDF output are different requests
If your goal is a PDF rather than an image, ScreenshotMachine documents a separate PDF API at https://pdfapi.screenshotmachine.com. Its Bash/curl example sends the customer key and PDF options, then redirects the returned PDF to a local file. Do not substitute that endpoint into a screenshot request: it is a distinct service with its own parameters. See the official PDF API documentation and examples.
Troubleshooting
-
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-
The script says the API key is missing: Set
SCREENSHOTMACHINE_KEYin the shell where you run the script, or pass the key directly to the request without publishing it. -
An error image is saved instead of a screenshot: ScreenshotMachine says invalid or incomplete requests return an error image and an
X-Screenshotmachine-Responseheader containing an error code;invalid_urlis a documented example. Check the target URL and required parameters. To inspect response headers, run the request with-D response-headers.txt, then read that file. -
The page is incomplete or images are missing: Increase the capture delay; ScreenshotMachine suggests
2000milliseconds or more for long pages when images or animations need time to load. -
The output file is not the expected format: Check the requested format and file extension together. The documented default is JPG if you omit the format.
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The hash-protected request is ignored: Confirm that the hash is present, derived using the documented URL and secret phrase, and matches the request. Do not expose the secret phrase in a public page.
Or skip the browser setup
ScreenshotNeo is a website screenshot API and MCP server. One GET request can return an image or PDF; its documented features include accepting cookie/consent banners and removing known consent platforms, newsletter popups, and chat widgets before capture. Each step can be turned off. Bot checks, blank pages, failed loads, timeouts, and cache hits cost nothing, and responses identify the page verdict and billing status. AI agents can use its MCP server tools, including take_screenshot, get_page_info, and capture_pdf.
Example cURL request (replace the target URL and API key):
curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://stripe.com -o shot.webpSee the ScreenshotNeo API documentation for request options and other client examples. The Free plan includes 1,000 screenshots per month with no card; paid plans start at $5 for 3,000. Sign up for ScreenshotNeo free.
Quick Recap
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