archive.today alternative (2026)
Paste an article link — read it free:
archive.today (archive.ph / archive.is) is a great manual archive, but it only helps if a snapshot already exists, and it shows the raw archived page. RemovePaywall uses archives too — but tries a clean reader extraction first.
Why look for an alternative?
archive.today only works if someone already archived the exact article, and it displays the raw page (ads, clutter, original layout). It is manual — you paste into archive.ph and hope a snapshot exists.
How RemovePaywall differs
RemovePaywall tries clean reader extraction first (often no archive needed). Only if that fails does it check archive.today and the Wayback Machine automatically, then a sandboxed proxy — so you get a clean reading view rather than the raw archived page.
You still get archives
archive.today is one of our automatic fallbacks — so you get its coverage plus reader extraction on top, in a single step.
Free paywall tools compared (2026)
| Tool | How it works | No install | No login | Languages | Shows success rates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RemovePaywall | Reader-first extraction, then archive.today + Wayback, then a sandboxed proxy | Yes (web; optional extension) | Yes | 7 | Yes — live, per site |
| archive.today | Public archive lookup only | Yes | Yes | — | No |
| Bypass Paywall Reader | Aggregator — redirects you to archives (Wayback, archive.today, others) | Yes | Yes | 5 | No |
| Smry.ai | AI reader + article summaries | Yes (also an extension) | Free tier; Pro is paid | — | No |
| Bypass Paywalls Clean | Browser extension with per-site rules | No — sideload from GitHub | Yes | — | No |
Live success rates
Unlike other tools, RemovePaywall shows how often it actually works, from real usage — recent examples: The New Yorker ~100% · WIRED ~100% · The Atlantic ~98% · Business Insider ~97% · The New York Times ~97%. See the full live list.
Got an article in mind? Try it now: