# Playwright Browser

> Headless browser automation using Playwright CLI. Use for browser testing, screenshots, scraping, and parallel browser sessions. Token-efficient CLI — no MCP overhead.

- Skill: `orakitine/playwright-browser` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add orakitine/playwright-browser`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/orakitine/playwright-browser/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: AI & ML
- Author: orakitine (https://skillmd.com/u/orakitine)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/orakitine/playwright-browser

---


# Purpose

Automate browsers using `playwright-cli`, a token-efficient CLI for Playwright. Runs headless by default, supports parallel sessions via named sessions (`-s=`), and persistent profiles for cookies/state. Use when you need headless browsing, UI testing, screenshots, web scraping, or any browser automation that can run in the background.

## Variables

HEADED: false # Show browser window. Options: true, false
VISION: false # Return screenshots as images in context (higher token cost)
VIEWPORT_SIZE: 1440x900 # Browser viewport dimensions (WxH)
SCREENSHOTS_DIR: ./screenshots # Where screenshots are saved

## Workflow

1. **Open Session**
   - Derive a short kebab-case session name from the user's prompt
   - Open with `--persistent` to preserve cookies/localStorage across commands
   - Example: "test checkout on mystore.com" → `-s=mystore-checkout`
   - Example: "scrape pricing from competitor.com" → `-s=competitor-pricing`
   - IF: HEADED is true → add `--headed` flag
   - IF: VISION is true → prefix with `PLAYWRIGHT_MCP_CAPS=vision`
   - Tool: Bash
     ```
     PLAYWRIGHT_MCP_VIEWPORT_SIZE=<VIEWPORT_SIZE> playwright-cli -s=<session-name> open <url> --persistent
     ```
   - Headed example:
     ```
     PLAYWRIGHT_MCP_VIEWPORT_SIZE=1440x900 playwright-cli -s=mystore-checkout open https://mystore.com --persistent --headed
     ```

2. **Snapshot Page**
   - Capture element references to identify interactive elements
   - Returns a list of refs (e.g., `e12`, `e45`) you can click, fill, etc.
   - Example: `playwright-cli -s=mystore-checkout snapshot` → returns element tree with refs
   - Tool: Bash `playwright-cli -s=<session-name> snapshot`

3. **Interact with Elements**
   - Use refs from snapshot to click, fill, type, select, hover
   - Example: `playwright-cli -s=mystore-checkout click e12` → clicks element ref e12
   - Example: `playwright-cli -s=mystore-checkout fill e15 "test@example.com"` → fills input
   - Example: `playwright-cli -s=mystore-checkout type "search query"` → types into focused element
   - Example: `playwright-cli -s=mystore-checkout press Enter` → presses keyboard key
   - Navigate: `goto <url>`, `go-back`, `go-forward`, `reload`
   - Tool: Bash `playwright-cli -s=<session-name> <command> <args>`

4. **Take Screenshots**
   - Capture current page state as PNG
   - IF: specific filename needed → use `--filename=<path>`
   - Example: `playwright-cli -s=mystore-checkout screenshot` → saves to default location
   - Example: `playwright-cli -s=mystore-checkout screenshot --filename=./screenshots/checkout-step1.png`
   - Tool: Bash `playwright-cli -s=<session-name> screenshot [--filename=<path>]`

5. **Close Session**
   - ALWAYS close the session when done — this is not optional
   - Example: `playwright-cli -s=mystore-checkout close`
   - To close ALL sessions: `playwright-cli close-all`
   - To wipe session data: `playwright-cli -s=<name> delete-data`
   - Tool: Bash `playwright-cli -s=<session-name> close`

## Additional Commands Reference

| Command | Description | Example |
|---------|-------------|---------|
| `open [url]` | Launch browser | `-s=test open https://example.com --persistent` |
| `close` | Close session | `-s=test close` |
| `goto <url>` | Navigate to URL | `-s=test goto https://example.com/page2` |
| `snapshot` | Get element refs | `-s=test snapshot` |
| `screenshot` | Capture page image | `-s=test screenshot --filename=out.png` |
| `click <ref>` | Click element | `-s=test click e12` |
| `fill <ref> <text>` | Fill input field | `-s=test fill e15 "hello"` |
| `type <text>` | Type into focused | `-s=test type "search"` |
| `press <key>` | Press keyboard key | `-s=test press Enter` |
| `hover <ref>` | Hover over element | `-s=test hover e20` |
| `select <ref> <val>` | Select dropdown | `-s=test select e30 "option1"` |
| `go-back` | Back | `-s=test go-back` |
| `go-forward` | Forward | `-s=test go-forward` |
| `reload` | Reload page | `-s=test reload` |
| `tab-list` | List tabs | `-s=test tab-list` |
| `tab-new [url]` | New tab | `-s=test tab-new https://example.com` |
| `tab-select <i>` | Switch tab | `-s=test tab-select 1` |
| `list` | List sessions | `list` |
| `close-all` | Close all sessions | `close-all` |

**Common flags**: `--persistent` (cookies/state), `--headed` (visible browser), `--browser=chrome`, `--filename=<path>`