The Friendly Captcha Alternative
Behavioural analysis plus a proof-of-work nonce, without cookies and with reason codes per request in the dashboard – SilentShield as an alternative to Friendly Captcha.
What to know about Friendly Captcha Friendly Captcha
- Free only for non-commercial projects: 1 domain, 1,000 requests per month
- Paid plans: Starter from €9 per month, Advanced €200 per month
- According to the provider: no cookies, an EU endpoint and certified against WCAG 2.2 AA (TÜV)
SilentShield solves this
- Debug overlay and IP rules per key
- WordPress plugin plus SDKs for PHP, Node, Go and Edge
- Free plan with 500 requests per month
- Invisible by default – no widget in the form; only when the result is unclear, a short arithmetic task
- Analytics in the dashboard – with reason codes per request
- Proof-of-work nonce: your server verifies every submission with one request
Visible CAPTCHA vs. invisible protection
SilentShield vs. Friendly Captcha
| Feature | SilentShield | Friendly Captcha |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | 500 requests/month | Non-commercial only: 1 domain, 1,000 requests/month |
| Paid plans from | See pricing | Starter: €9/month |
| Cookies | None | None (according to the provider) |
| EU endpoint | Yes, servers in Germany | Yes (according to the provider) |
| Accessibility | Widget tested against WCAG 2.1 AA | WCAG 2.2 AA, TÜV-certified (according to the provider) |
| Transferred size (gzip) | 48.9 KB | not measured |
Friendly Captcha details from friendlycaptcha.com (free plans, accessibility, EU endpoint), checked on Oct 4, 2026. The request limits of the paid plans are not published there. Transferred size: our own measurement of Sep 4, 2026 (SilentShield: Sep 23, 2026); we have not measured Friendly Captcha. Method and individual values
Switch in three steps
Remove Friendly Captcha
<!-- Remove this: -->
<script src="https://cdn.friendlycaptcha.com/
..."></script>
<div class="frc-captcha"
data-sitekey="..."></div>Add SilentShield
<!-- Add this: -->
<script src="https://api.silentshield.io/client.js?k=YOUR_API_KEY"
crossorigin="anonymous" defer></script>Verify Token
// Verify token server-side:
const res = await fetch(
'https://api.silentshield.io/api/v1/captcha/verify-nonce',
{
method: 'POST',
headers: {
'Content-Type': 'application/json',
'X-Api-Key': process.env.SILENTSHIELD_API_KEY,
},
body: JSON.stringify({ nonce: req.body.behavior_nonce }),
}
);
const { ok, verdict } = await res.json();Try the Live Demo
Interact with the form below — watch SilentShield analyze your behavior in real-time.
Behavior Analysis
Start interacting with the form to see the analysis.
Switch to SilentShield now
Invisible by default, no cookies. Start free – no credit card required.
Everything you need to know about replacing Friendly Captcha
Friendly Captcha vs SilentShield: what’s different?
Both work without cookies and offer processing in the EU. Friendly Captcha verifies with a proof of work in the background; SilentShield combines behavioural signals with a proof-of-work nonce, is invisible by default and shows you the reason for the decision on every request in the dashboard.
Is Friendly Captcha the most private option?
By its own account, Friendly Captcha does without cookies and offers an EU endpoint. SilentShield sets no cookies either: no cross-site tracking, the IP address used only for the check and not stored in plain text, servers in Germany – including a data processing agreement (DPA).
Switching from Friendly Captcha to SilentShield
Remove the Friendly Captcha widget and add the SilentShield script or the WordPress plugin. There is no visible widget for you to style; by default, visitors see nothing.
Related pages
Frequently asked questions
What is the best Friendly Captcha alternative?
SilentShield is a privacy-first Friendly Captcha alternative: invisible by default, hosted in Germany, sets no tracking cookies, and blocks bots by analysing behaviour rather than showing a widget.
Friendly Captcha vs SilentShield — which should I use?
Both are privacy-focused. Friendly Captcha shows a proof-of-work widget; SilentShield is invisible by default and adds behavioural scoring. Only when the result is unclear does a short arithmetic task appear.
Is SilentShield GDPR-compliant like Friendly Captcha?
Yes. SilentShield is GDPR-first — no tracking cookies, the IP address only as a hash, data kept on our servers in Germany.
Can I replace Friendly Captcha without code changes?
Almost — swap the script tag for SilentShield or install the WordPress plugin. There is no visible widget to configure.