The short version: HTML capture vs screenshot interactive demo is a question about what a viewer is actually clicking. In a screenshot demo they click an image with a hotspot on it. In an HTML demo they click a copy of the real page.
Escourtly, the tool I build, captures HTML, so I have a stake in this argument. I'll tell you where screenshot demos are the better choice, and I'll show you what each tool charges for HTML capture, with the pricing page for each one.
What a screenshot demo is
A screenshot demo is a sequence of images. Each time you click during recording, the tool saves a picture of the screen and puts a clickable hotspot over the button you pressed. The viewer sees step one, clicks the hotspot, and lands on step two.
This is simple and it loads fast. It also works on almost anything, because a picture of a screen is a picture of a screen. A desktop app, a mobile app, a legacy tool with strange rendering; a screenshot doesn't care.
The cost is that it is only a picture. Text in a screenshot can't be selected. If the viewer's screen is bigger than the one you recorded on, the image gets scaled and can look soft. If you spot a typo in step six, you are editing pixels, or re-recording the step.
What an HTML demo is
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An HTML demo saves the page itself: the elements, the styles and the assets. When the viewer opens it, their browser draws the page again from that saved copy. On Escourtly's own feature page, this is described as capturing the actual HTML and CSS layer, so viewers can scroll, click and select text.
Three things follow from that.
First, the demo scales with the screen, because it is rendered live rather than stretched from an image. Second, text stays text, so a viewer can select it and you can change it afterwards. Third, the demo is not a recording of pixels, so it doesn't have a video's compression or blur.
Here is an Escourtly demo captured as HTML. Scroll it, select text and click around, then compare how that feels with a flat image:
Where HTML capture can cause problems
I don't want you to leave thinking HTML capture is strictly better. Any tool that saves a page's code has trade offs, and these apply in general rather than to one vendor.
It captures whatever was on screen, including real customer names and numbers. With a screenshot you can see the sensitive part and blur it. With HTML the data is also in the saved text, so you need to redact it in the editor and not just cover it up. Escourtly's editor has blur and redact tools for this, and you should check the published demo yourself before sending it.
Parts of a page that depend on live behavior can't be replayed from a frozen copy. Video players, canvases, maps and anything that needs a server call are the usual suspects. If your product's main selling point is a live chart that updates every second, a captured demo can show the chart but not make it live.
Heavy single page apps are the hardest case. Before you commit to any tool, record your most complicated screen and look at the result. That test is worth more than any feature page, including mine.
What each tool charges for HTML capture
Here is the thing nobody puts in a headline: HTML capture usually sits on a higher plan. These are the prices from each company's pricing page, checked on 14 October 2026.
| Tool | Plan where HTML starts | Price | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supademo | Business (guided HTML demos) | $199 per month billed annually, $249 monthly, 1 creator | supademo.com/pricing |
| Storylane | Growth (HTML demo editor) | $500 per month billed annually, $625 monthly, 5 seats | storylane.io/pricing |
| Navattic | Base (unlimited HTML demos) | $500 per month billed annually, 5 seats; the free Starter plan allows 1 demo, HTML or media | navattic.com/pricing |
| Guideflow | Startup (HTML capture) | $499 per month billed yearly, $599 monthly | guideflow.com/pricing |
| Arcade | Listed in its feature table | I could not confirm which plan includes it | arcade.software/pricing |
| Escourtly | Founder Plan (every demo is HTML) | $49 per month, billed monthly | escourtly.com |
A note on the last row. $49 per month is the Founder Plan, an early price. It will change later, and I will update this post when it does. The site says people who buy now keep that price.
That gap is the main reason I built Escourtly the way I did. If your product has hover states, dropdowns and dense screens, HTML capture is worth having, and for a solo founder paying $199 to $500 a month for it is a hard sell.
When a screenshot demo is the right call
Pick screenshots if you are demoing something a browser can't draw, like a native desktop or mobile app. Pick them if you need to show a short flow quickly and the screens are simple. And pick them if you want a free plan to try the idea first: Supademo, Storylane, Arcade, Navattic and Guideflow all have free plans, each with tight limits (for example Storylane and Navattic allow 1 demo, Guideflow allows 5 with a watermark). Escourtly does not list a free plan.
What HTML capture adds up to over a year
Prices decide this for many founders, so here is the entry price for HTML capture on each tool, as a yearly figure. Each one is the monthly price on the vendor's pricing page, checked 14 October 2026, times 12.
| Tool | Entry plan with HTML capture | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Escourtly | Founder Plan, $49 per month billed monthly | $588 |
| Supademo | Business, $199 per month billed annually | $2,388 |
| Guideflow | Startup, $499 per month billed yearly | $5,988 |
| Storylane | Growth, $500 per month billed annually (5 seats) | $6,000 |
| Arcade | HTML capture is listed, but the plan that includes it is not confirmed | Not confirmed |
Screenshot demos cost less at the start. Guideflow's Solo plan is $35 per month billed yearly and Supademo's Scale plan is $38 per creator per month billed annually. The gap shows up when you need the page itself to be live.
How to choose
Ask what your viewer needs to believe. If they need to believe the product is real and has depth, HTML capture helps, because they can scroll, select and poke around. If they need a quick sense of the flow, a screenshot demo does the job and costs less.
Then ask what you can afford this month. If HTML capture is on your must have list and you are one or two people, compare the table above honestly. For more on the whole category, see my guide to the best interactive demo tools for solo founders, and if you are new to this, start with how to create an interactive product demo.
How to test HTML capture on your own product
Do not judge a tool on its own showcase demo. Record the same short flow in each tool you are considering and check these things:
- Hover effects, dropdowns, modals and tabs still work in the finished demo.
- Fonts, icons and images load the same way they do in the live product.
- Text is selectable and the page scrolls like the real one.
- Real customer names, emails and numbers can be blurred or edited.
- The demo opens quickly on a phone and inside an embed on your own page.
- The tool tells you where viewers stop.
If one tool breaks on a screen your customers use all day, that is the answer, whatever its price.
FAQ
What is the difference between HTML capture and screenshot capture? Screenshot capture saves a picture of each step and lays a hotspot over it. HTML capture saves the page's code, so the demo is drawn live in the viewer's browser and text can be selected.
Does HTML capture look better than a screenshot? Usually it stays sharper on different screen sizes, because it is redrawn instead of stretched. It is not automatically better for every product, and complex apps need testing.
Which interactive demo tools offer HTML capture? Supademo, Storylane, Navattic, Guideflow and Escourtly all list HTML based demos on some plan, and Arcade's feature table lists HTML capture. The plan where it starts varies, as the table above shows.
Can I edit text in an HTML demo? Supademo lists HTML text and image editing on Business, Storylane lists an HTML demo editor on Growth, and Guideflow lists text, picture and graph editing on Startup. Escourtly's editor lets you change annotations, hotspots, blur and zoom, and add or restore steps.
