The terms "email extractor" and "email scraper" are often used interchangeably, but they describe two different workflows. An email extractor pulls addresses out of text or files you already have - pasted text, exported CSVs, HTML you copied. An email scraper actively crawls websites to collect addresses from pages you don't control.
The distinction matters for speed, reliability, and compliance. Extraction is instant, works offline in your browser, and only touches data you already possess. Scraping involves fetching pages, handling rate limits, and navigating a much murkier legal and ethical landscape.