BuiltWith is one of the most well-known website technology profiling tools, used by sales teams and agencies for lead generation. But its enterprise pricing (starting at $295/month) puts it out of reach for many users. Whether you need a free alternative or simply want to compare your options, here are seven BuiltWith alternatives worth considering in 2026.
1. WhatStack (Best Free Alternative)
WhatStack is a technology detection platform built for developers and agencies. It detects 8,000+ technologies using 10 different analyzers — HTTP headers, HTML source, script URLs, cookies, DNS records, JavaScript globals, meta tags, DOM patterns, URL analysis, and ads.txt parsing.
What sets it apart: WhatStack offers a generous free tier with 500 API requests per month — no credit card required. Every scan hits the live website in real time, so you always get current data rather than stale crawler results. The REST API is clean and well-documented, making it easy to integrate into CRM pipelines, sales tools, or custom dashboards.
- Technologies: 8,000+
- Free tier: 500 requests/month
- Paid plans: From EUR 19/month
- API: Yes, REST with JSON responses
- Best for: Developers, agencies, sales teams on a budget
2. Wappalyzer
Wappalyzer is well-known for its browser extension that shows technologies on every page you visit. It also offers an API and lead-generation features. The technology database is open-source (community-maintained), which means good coverage for mainstream technologies.
- Technologies: ~7,900
- Free tier: Browser extension only
- Paid plans: From $250/month for API access
- Best for: Users who want passive detection while browsing
3. SimilarTech
SimilarTech focuses on market intelligence and technology adoption tracking. It provides historical trend data showing how technology usage changes over time across millions of websites. This makes it a strong choice for market research and investment analysis.
- Technologies: 30,000+
- Free tier: Limited lookups
- Paid plans: Enterprise pricing
- Best for: Market researchers, investors, enterprise teams
4. WhatCMS
WhatCMS is a lightweight tool focused specifically on CMS detection. It has a simple API that returns the CMS and theme for any URL. If you only care about identifying the content management system (and not the broader technology stack), WhatCMS is straightforward and easy to use.
- Technologies: ~500 (CMS-focused)
- Free tier: Limited API calls
- Paid plans: From $10/month
- Best for: Users who only need CMS identification
5. W3Techs
W3Techs provides technology usage statistics and market share data for web technologies. It surveys the top 10 million websites and publishes detailed reports on CMS market share, programming languages, web servers, and more. It is less of a lookup tool and more of a data source for understanding macro-level technology trends.
- Technologies: Covers all major categories
- Free tier: Public market share reports
- Best for: Researchers analyzing overall technology market trends
6. NerdyData
NerdyData takes a unique approach — it lets you search the web by source code. You can find all websites that contain a specific JavaScript snippet, HTML pattern, or technology fingerprint. This is powerful for prospecting: search for sites using a competitor's product and build a targeted lead list.
- Free tier: Limited searches
- Paid plans: From $49/month
- Best for: Sales teams building prospecting lists from code patterns
7. Datanyze
Datanyze (now part of ZoomInfo) combines technology detection with company data and contact information. It is aimed squarely at B2B sales teams that want to find leads based on the technologies a company uses, then get direct contact details for decision-makers.
- Technologies: Covers major categories
- Free tier: Chrome extension with limited credits
- Paid plans: Through ZoomInfo (enterprise pricing)
- Best for: B2B sales teams that need technology data plus contact info
How Do They Compare?
If you need a free, developer-friendly tool with a strong API, WhatStack is the most accessible option. For passive browsing detection, Wappalyzer's extension is hard to beat. Enterprise teams with large budgets may prefer BuiltWith or SimilarTech for their massive historical datasets. And if your primary goal is building prospecting lists, NerdyData and Datanyze offer specialized workflows.
The best tool depends on your use case. For most developers and small agencies, starting with WhatStack's free tier gives you comprehensive technology detection without committing to expensive subscriptions. You can always upgrade or supplement with other tools as your needs grow.
Want to see how WhatStack compares head-to-head? Check out our detailed comparison pages for WhatStack vs BuiltWith, WhatStack vs Wappalyzer, and WhatStack vs WhatCMS.