Vigilant vs JUDIT vs Escavador: Brazilian court data API comparison 2026

Anyone who needs to integrate Brazilian court data into their own system — whether fintech, law firm, or compliance team — inevitably compares the available options. This comparison analyzes the three most relevant APIs for querying lawsuits by CPF in Brazil in 2026: Vigilant (by TrackJud), JUDIT, and Escavador.

The goal isn’t to declare a winner. It’s to help you choose the right tool for your use case, volume, and budget. Each has real differentiators and trade-offs. For a broader market overview, see also our guide to Brazilian court data APIs.

Note for international readers: CPF is Brazil’s individual taxpayer ID (11 digits). Every Brazilian court case references parties by CPF, making it the primary search parameter for judicial data APIs.

Overview of the three platforms

Vigilant (by TrackJud)

REST API focused on lawsuit search by CPF. One call, multiple courts, standardized JSON. Pay-per-use model with no mandatory monthly plan.

• Model: pure API (REST + JSON)
• Input: CPF + list of courts
• Coverage: 12 court sources (ESAJ, PJe, EPROC, Projudi, and others) across 10 states
• Pricing: R$ 0.10 per court queried (~US$ 0.02). 5 free credits on signup
• Documentation: OpenAPI 3.1 with interactive Scalar UI (PT + EN)
• Cache: 2-day smart cache (fresh data = instant response)
• Website: trackjud.com.br

JUDIT

Full judicial data platform with API, web panel, and webhook monitoring. Monthly/annual plans with per-transaction pricing.

• Model: API + web panel (Platform)
• Input: CPF, CNPJ, OAB, case number
• Coverage: 90+ courts (state, federal, labor, superior courts)
• Pricing: annual plans from R$ 1,000/month; pre-paid from R$ 5,000. Per-transaction R$ 0.07 to R$ 6.00 depending on service
• Documentation: docs.judit.io
• Differentiators: webhooks for monitoring, historical data lake, AI summaries
• Website: judit.io

Escavador

Platform with two distinct products: consumer product (manual search + mobile app) and separate API for integration.

• Model: consumer product (web + app) + separate API
• Input: name, CPF, CNPJ, OAB
• Coverage: 90+ sources (courts + official gazettes)
• Pricing: consumer plans from R$ 9.90/month (4 tiers). API pricing is volume-based (not public)
• Documentation: api.escavador.com/v2/docs + Python SDK
• Differentiators: name search, official gazettes, mobile app, largest user base
• Website: escavador.com

Comparison table

Criteria	Vigilant	JUDIT	Escavador
Product type	Pure API	API + panel	Product + API
CPF search	Yes	Yes	Yes
Name search	No	Yes	Yes
CNPJ search	No	Yes	Yes
Courts covered	12 sources (10 states)	90+ courts	90+ sources
Official gazettes	No	No	Yes
Monitoring (webhook)	No (polling)	Yes	Yes (API)
Minimum price	R$ 0 (5 free credits)	~R$ 1,000/month	R$ 9.90/month (consumer)
Per-query price	R$ 0.10/court	R$ 0.07-6.00/transaction	Not public (API)
Documentation	OpenAPI 3.1 + Scalar	docs.judit.io	API v2 docs + Python SDK
Response format	JSON (parties, movements, subjects)	JSON	JSON
Doc languages	PT + EN	PT	PT
Free tier	5 credits	No	Product trial
Mobile app	Yes (iOS + Android)	No	Yes

When to use each

Use Vigilant when:

• Low to medium volume — up to ~5,000 queries/month by CPF
• You need a simple API — one call, standardized JSON, no complexity
• Limited budget — pay only for what you use, no minimum monthly plan
• You need bilingual docs — PT + EN with interactive UI
• Primary use cases: one-off due diligence, KYC in onboarding, Google Sheets automation, quick integration in an MVP

For more on integration, see the court data API guide or the Google Sheets integration.

Use JUDIT when:

• High volume — thousands to tens of thousands of queries/month
• You need maximum coverage — 90+ courts including labor and superior courts
• You need webhook monitoring — automatic alerts when cases change
• You need a historical data lake — query old cases in bulk
• Budget: R$ 1,000+/month is viable for your use case
• Primary use cases: credit operations at scale, continuous monitoring of large portfolios, financial institution compliance

Use Escavador when:

• Non-technical users need to search — the consumer product is optimized for lawyers and analysts doing manual research
• You need name search — when you don’t have the CPF, only the person’s name
• You need official gazettes — official publications beyond court data
• Mixed team — some people use the web interface, others use the API
• Primary use cases: law firm with frequent manual research, investigative journalism, academic legal research

What about DataJud (CNJ)?

DataJud is the free public API from Brazil’s National Council of Justice (CNJ). It’s a valid option for research and transparency, but has important limitations for commercial use:

• Data: statistical metadata, not complete individual case data
• Details: doesn’t return parties, movements, or subjects for a specific case
• Limits: rate-limited, requires a public key from DPJ/CNJ
• Ideal use: academic research, data journalism, macro judicial analysis

For due diligence, KYC, compliance, or any use requiring detailed case data linked to a CPF, you need a commercial API (Vigilant, JUDIT, or Escavador).

To better understand the difference between court systems, see our ESAJ vs PJE comparison.

Other players in the market

• Codilo (codilo.com.br): API focused on case lookup and monitoring. Supports CPF, CNPJ, OAB, and name. Pricing not public. Integration with Projuris legal management
• JusBrasil: Brazil’s largest legal platform by user base. Enterprise API (insight.jusbrasil.com.br) with pricing only via sales contact. Stronger in legal content and name search than API integration
• Docket: focused on certificates and compliance documents, not case data. Different category

How to choose

The decision comes down to three questions:

1. What’s your monthly volume?

   • Up to 5,000 queries: Vigilant (pay-per-use) or Escavador (low plans)
   • 5,000-50,000: JUDIT (discounted plans) or Vigilant
   • 50,000+: JUDIT (direct negotiation)

2. Do you need data beyond CPF?

   • CPF only: Vigilant handles it
   • CPF + CNPJ + name: JUDIT or Escavador
   • Official gazettes: Escavador

3. Do you need continuous monitoring?

   • Polling is enough: Vigilant (see lawsuit monitoring)
   • Need native webhooks: JUDIT
   • Don’t need monitoring: any of them

Conclusion

There’s no universal “best Brazilian court data API.” There’s the best one for your use case.

• Vigilant is the most accessible and simple option for CPF-based REST API search with no monthly commitment
• JUDIT is the most complete option for scale operations needing maximum coverage and monitoring
• Escavador is the most versatile option for mixed teams combining manual research with API integration

The key is to test before deciding. Vigilant offers 5 free credits on signup — enough to search one CPF across 5 courts and evaluate the response format. JUDIT and Escavador also offer trials or demos on request.

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5 free credits on sign-up. No credit card. Create a Vigilant account.