playwriter/website/public/SKILL.md

CLI Usage

If playwriter command is not found, install globally or use npx/bunx:

npm install -g playwriter@latest
# or use without installing:
npx playwriter@latest session new
bunx playwriter@latest session new

If using npx or bunx always use @latest for the first session command. so we are sure of using the latest version of the package

Session management

Each session runs in an isolated sandbox with its own state object. Use sessions to:

• Keep state separate between different tasks or agents
• Persist data (pages, variables) across multiple execute calls
• Avoid interference when multiple agents use playwriter simultaneously

Get a new session ID to use in commands:

playwriter session new
# outputs: 1

Always use your own session - pass -s <id> to all commands. Using the same session preserves your state between calls. Using a different session gives you a fresh state.

List all active sessions with their state keys:

playwriter session list
# ID  State Keys
# --------------
# 1   myPage, userData
# 2   -

Reset a session if the browser connection is stale or broken:

playwriter session reset <sessionId>

Execute code

playwriter -s <sessionId> -e "<code>"

The -s flag specifies a session ID (required). Get one with playwriter session new. Use the same session to persist state across commands.

Default timeout is 10 seconds. you can increase the timeout with --timeout <ms>

Examples:

# Navigate to a page
playwriter -s 1 -e 'state.page = await context.newPage(); await state.page.goto("https://example.com")'

# Click a button
playwriter -s 1 -e 'await state.page.click("button")'

# Get page title
playwriter -s 1 -e 'await state.page.title()'

# Take a screenshot
playwriter -s 1 -e 'await state.page.screenshot({ path: "screenshot.png", scale: "css" })'

# Get accessibility snapshot
playwriter -s 1 -e 'await snapshot({ page: state.page })'

# Get accessibility snapshot for a specific iframe
playwriter -s 1 -e 'const frame = await state.page.locator("iframe").contentFrame(); await snapshot({ frame })'

Why single quotes? Always wrap -e code in single quotes ('...') to prevent bash from interpreting $, backticks, and other special characters inside your JS code. Use double quotes or backtick template literals for strings inside the JS code.

Multiline code:

# Preferred: use heredoc with quoted delimiter (disables all bash expansion)
playwriter -s 1 -e "$(cat <<'EOF'
const links = await state.page.$$eval('a', els => els.map(e => e.href));
console.log('Found', links.length, 'links');
const price = text.match(/\$[\d.]+/);
EOF
)"

# Alternative: $'...' syntax (but beware: \n and \t become special, and
# single quotes inside must be escaped as \')
playwriter -s 1 -e $'
const title = await state.page.title();
const url = state.page.url();
console.log({ title, url });
'

Quoting rules summary:

• Single quotes ('...'): best for one-liners. No bash expansion at all. But you cannot include a literal single quote inside — use double quotes for JS strings instead.
• Heredoc (<<'EOF'): best for multiline code. The quoted 'EOF' delimiter disables all bash expansion. Any character works inside, including $, backticks, and single quotes.
• $'...': allows \' escaping but \n, \t, \\ become special — conflicts with JS regex patterns.

Debugging playwriter issues

If some internal critical error happens you can read the relay server logs to understand the issue. The log file is located in the user home directory:

playwriter logfile  # prints the log file path
# typically: ~/.playwriter/relay-server.log

The relay log contains logs from the extension, MCP and WS server. A separate CDP JSONL log is created alongside it (see playwriter logfile) with all CDP commands/responses and events, with long strings truncated. Both files are recreated every time the server starts. For debugging internal playwriter errors, read these files with grep/rg to find relevant lines.

Example: summarize CDP traffic counts by direction + method:

jq -r '.direction + "\t" + (.message.method // "response")' ~/.playwriter/cdp.jsonl | uniq -c

If you find a bug, you can create a gh issue using gh issue create -R remorses/playwriter --title title --body body. Ask for user confirmation before doing this.

---

playwriter best practices

Control user's Chrome browser via playwright code snippets. Prefer single-line code with semicolons between statements. Use playwriter immediately without waiting for user actions; only if you get "extension is not connected" or "no browser tabs have Playwriter enabled" should you ask the user to click the playwriter extension icon on the target tab.

When to use playwriter instead of webfetch/curl: If a website is JS-heavy (SPAs like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc.), has cookie consent modals, login walls, lazy-loaded content, carousels, or infinite scroll — always use playwriter. Simple fetch/webfetch will return an empty HTML shell with no content. Do NOT waste time trying curl, webfetch, or parsing raw HTML from JS-rendered sites. Go straight to playwriter: navigate with a real browser, dismiss modals, then extract what you need via page.evaluate() or network interception.

If Chrome is not running, the extension can't connect. Start Chrome from the command line before retrying:

# macOS
open -a "Google Chrome" --args --profile-directory=Default

# Linux
google-chrome --profile-directory=Default &

# Windows (cmd)
start chrome.exe --profile-directory=Default

# Windows (PowerShell)
Start-Process chrome.exe -ArgumentList '--profile-directory=Default'

To also enable automatic tab capture for screen recording (no manual extension click needed), add the --allowlisted-extension-id and --auto-accept-this-tab-capture flags:

# macOS
open -a "Google Chrome" --args --profile-directory=Default --allowlisted-extension-id=jfeammnjpkecdekppnclgkkffahnhfhe --auto-accept-this-tab-capture

# Linux
google-chrome --profile-directory=Default --allowlisted-extension-id=jfeammnjpkecdekppnclgkkffahnhfhe --auto-accept-this-tab-capture &

# Windows
start chrome.exe --profile-directory=Default --allowlisted-extension-id=jfeammnjpkecdekppnclgkkffahnhfhe --auto-accept-this-tab-capture

You can collaborate with the user - they can help with captchas, difficult elements, or reproducing bugs.

context variables

• state - object persisted between calls within your session. Each session has its own isolated state. Use to store pages, data, listeners (e.g., state.page = await context.newPage())
• page - a default page (may be shared with other agents). Prefer creating your own page and storing it in state (see "working with pages")
• context - browser context, access all pages via context.pages()
• require - load Node.js modules (e.g., const fs = require('node:fs')). ESM import is not available in the sandbox
• Node.js globals: setTimeout, setInterval, fetch, URL, Buffer, crypto, etc.

Important: state is session-isolated but pages are shared across all sessions. See "working with pages" for how to avoid interference.

rules

• Initialize state.page first: see "working with pages" — at the start of a task, assign state.page (reuse about:blank or create one) and use state.page for all automation steps.
• Multiple calls: use multiple execute calls for complex logic - helps understand intermediate state and isolate which action failed
• Never close: never call browser.close() or context.close(). Only close pages you created or if user asks
• No bringToFront: never call unless user asks - it's disruptive and unnecessary, you can interact with background pages
• Check state after actions: always verify page state after clicking/submitting (see next section)
• Clean up listeners: call state.page.removeAllListeners() at end of message to prevent leaks
• CDP sessions: use getCDPSession({ page: state.page }) not state.page.context().newCDPSession() - NEVER use newCDPSession() method, it doesn't work through playwriter relay
• Wait for load: use state.page.waitForLoadState('domcontentloaded') not state.page.waitForEvent('load') - waitForEvent times out if already loaded
• Minimize timeouts: prefer proper waits (waitForSelector, waitForPageLoad) over state.page.waitForTimeout(). Short timeouts (1-2s) are acceptable for non-deterministic events like popups, animations, or tab opens where no specific selector is available
• Snapshot before screenshot: always use snapshot() first to understand page state (text-based, fast, cheap). Only use screenshot when you specifically need visual/spatial information. Never take a screenshot just to check if a page loaded or to read text content — snapshot gives you that instantly without burning image tokens
• Snapshot replaces page.evaluate() for inspection: do NOT write page.evaluate() calls to manually query class names, bounding boxes, child counts, or visibility flags. snapshot() already shows every interactive element with its text, role, and a ready-to-use locator. If you catch yourself writing document.querySelector or getBoundingClientRect inside evaluate — stop and use snapshot() instead. Reserve page.evaluate() for actions that modify page state (e.g., localStorage.clear(), scroll manipulation) or extract non-DOM data (e.g., window.__CONFIG__)

interaction feedback loop

Every browser interaction should follow a observe → act → observe loop. After every action, you must check its result before proceeding. Never chain multiple actions blindly — the page may not have responded as expected.

Core loop:

1. Open page — get or create your page and navigate to the target URL
2. Observe — print state.page.url() and take an accessibility snapshot. Always print the URL so you know where you are — pages can redirect, and actions can trigger unexpected navigation.
3. Check — read the snapshot and URL. If the page isn't ready (still loading, expected content missing, wrong URL), wait and observe again — don't act on stale or incomplete state. Only proceed when you can identify the element to interact with.
4. Act — perform one action (click, type, submit)
5. Observe again — print URL + snapshot to verify the action's effect. If the action didn't take effect (nothing changed, page still loading), wait and observe again before proceeding.
6. Repeat — continue from step 3 until the task is complete

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│            open page + goto URL             │
└──────────────────┬──────────────────────────┘
                   ▼
          ┌────────────────┐
     ┌───►│    observe      │◄─────────────────┐
     │    │ (url + snapshot) │                   │
     │    └───────┬────────┘                   │
     │            ▼                            │
     │    ┌────────────────┐                   │
     │    │     check       │                   │
     │    │  (read result)  │                   │
     │    └───┬────────┬───┘                   │
     │  not   │        │ ready                 │
     │  ready │        ▼                       │
     └────────┘ ┌────────────────┐             │
                │      act        │             │
                │  (click/type)   │─────────────┘
                └────────────────┘

Example: opening a Framer plugin via the command palette

Each step is a separate execute call. Notice how every action is followed by a snapshot to verify what happened:

// 1. Open page and observe — always print URL first
state.page = context.pages().find((p) => p.url() === 'about:blank') ?? (await context.newPage())
await state.page.goto('https://framer.com/projects/my-project', { waitUntil: 'domcontentloaded' })
console.log('URL:', state.page.url())
await snapshot({ page: state.page }).then(console.log)

// 2. Act: open command palette → observe result
await state.page.keyboard.press('Meta+k')
console.log('URL:', state.page.url())
await snapshot({ page: state.page, search: /dialog|Search/ }).then(console.log)
// If dialog didn't appear, observe again before retrying

// 3. Act: type search query → observe result
await state.page.keyboard.type('MCP')
console.log('URL:', state.page.url())
await snapshot({ page: state.page, search: /MCP/ }).then(console.log)

// 4. Act: press Enter → observe plugin loaded
await state.page.keyboard.press('Enter')
await state.page.waitForTimeout(1000)
console.log('URL:', state.page.url())
const frame = state.page.frames().find((f) => f.url().includes('plugins.framercdn.com'))
await snapshot({ page: state.page, frame: frame || undefined }).then(console.log)
// If frame not found, wait and observe again — plugin may still be loading

Other ways to observe action results:

Snapshots are the primary feedback mechanism, but some actions have side effects that are better observed through other channels:

• Console logs — check for errors or app state after an action:

  await getLatestLogs({ page: state.page, search: /error|fail/i, count: 20 })
  

• Network requests — verify API calls were made after a form submit or button click:

  state.page.on('response', async (res) => {
    if (res.url().includes('/api/')) {
      console.log(res.status(), res.url())
    }
  })
  

• URL changes — confirm navigation happened:

  console.log(state.page.url())
  

• Screenshots — only for visual layout issues (see "choosing between snapshot methods" below).

common mistakes to avoid

1. Not verifying actions succeeded Always check page state after important actions (form submissions, uploads, typing). Your mental model can diverge from actual browser state:

await state.page.keyboard.type('my text')
await snapshot({ page: state.page, search: /my text/ })
// If verifying visual layout specifically, use screenshotWithAccessibilityLabels instead

2. Assuming paste/upload worked Clipboard paste (Meta+v) can silently fail. For file uploads, prefer file input:

// Reliable: use file input
const fileInput = state.page.locator('input[type="file"]').first()
await fileInput.setInputFiles('/path/to/image.png')

// Unreliable: clipboard paste may silently fail, need to focus textarea first for example
await state.page.keyboard.press('Meta+v') // always verify with screenshot!

3. Using stale locators from old snapshots Locators (especially ones with >> nth=) can change when the page updates. Always get a fresh snapshot before clicking:

// BAD: using ref from minutes ago
await state.page.locator('[id="old-id"]').click() // element may have changed

// GOOD: get fresh snapshot, then immediately use locators from it
await snapshot({ page: state.page, showDiffSinceLastCall: true })
// Now use the NEW locators from this output

4. Wrong assumptions about current page/element Before destructive actions (delete, submit), verify you're targeting the right thing:

// Before deleting, verify it's the right item
await screenshotWithAccessibilityLabels({ page: state.page })
// READ the screenshot to confirm, THEN proceed with delete

5. Text concatenation without line breaks keyboard.type() doesn't insert newlines from \n in strings. Use keyboard.press('Enter'):

// BAD: newlines in string don't create line breaks
await state.page.keyboard.type('Line 1\nLine 2') // becomes "Line 1Line 2"

// GOOD: use Enter key for line breaks
await state.page.keyboard.type('Line 1')
await state.page.keyboard.press('Enter')
await state.page.keyboard.type('Line 2')

6. Quote escaping in bash Bash parses $, backticks, and \ inside double-quoted strings. This silently corrupts JS code containing dollar signs (regex like /\$[\d.]+/), template literals, or backslash patterns.

# BAD: double quotes — bash interprets $ and backticks in your JS
playwriter -s 1 -e "const price = text.match(/\$[\d.]+/)"

# GOOD: single quotes — bash passes everything through literally
playwriter -s 1 -e 'await state.page.locator(`[id="_r_a_"]`).click()'

# GOOD: heredoc for complex code with mixed quotes
playwriter -s 1 -e "$(cat <<'EOF'
await state.page.locator('[id="_r_a_"]').click()
const match = html.match(/\$[\d.]+/g)
EOF
)"

7. Using screenshots when snapshots suffice Screenshots + image analysis is expensive and slow. Only use screenshots for visual/CSS issues:

// BAD: screenshot to check if text appeared (wastes tokens on image analysis)
await state.page.screenshot({ path: 'check.png', scale: 'css' })

// GOOD: snapshot is text — fast, cheap, searchable
await snapshot({ page: state.page, search: /expected text/i })

// GOOD: evaluate DOM directly for content checks
const text = await state.page.evaluate(() => document.querySelector('.message')?.textContent)

8. Assuming page content loaded Even after goto(), dynamic content may not be ready:

await state.page.goto('https://example.com')
// Content may still be loading via JavaScript!
await state.page.waitForSelector('article', { timeout: 10000 })
// Or use waitForPageLoad utility
await waitForPageLoad({ page: state.page, timeout: 5000 })

9. Not using playwriter for JS-rendered sites Do NOT waste context trying webfetch, curl, or Playwright CLI screenshots on SPAs (Instagram, Twitter, etc.). These sites return empty HTML shells — the real content is rendered by JavaScript. Use playwriter with a real browser session instead:

// BAD: webfetch/curl on Instagram returns empty HTML, grep finds nothing, huge context wasted
// BAD: Playwright CLI screenshot needs browser install, produces blank/modal-blocked images

// GOOD: use playwriter — real browser, full JS rendering, interactive
state.page = context.pages().find((p) => p.url() === 'about:blank') ?? (await context.newPage())
await state.page.goto('https://www.instagram.com/p/ABC123/', { waitUntil: 'domcontentloaded' })
await waitForPageLoad({ page: state.page, timeout: 8000 })
await snapshot({ page: state.page, search: /cookie|consent|accept/i }).then(console.log)
// Now you can see modals, dismiss them, navigate carousels, extract content

10. Login buttons that open popups Playwriter extension cannot control popup windows. If a login button opens a popup (common with OAuth/SSO), use cmd+click to open in a new tab instead:

// BAD: popup window is not controllable by playwriter
await state.page.click('button:has-text("Login with Google")')

// GOOD: cmd+click opens in new tab that playwriter can control
await state.page.locator('button:has-text("Login with Google")').click({ modifiers: ['Meta'] })
await state.page.waitForTimeout(2000)

// Verify new tab opened - last page should be the login page
const pages = context.pages()
const loginPage = pages[pages.length - 1]
if (loginPage.url() === state.page.url()) {
  throw new Error('Cmd+click did not open new tab - login may have opened as popup')
}

// Complete login flow in loginPage, cookies are shared with original page
await loginPage.locator('[data-email]').first().click()
await loginPage.waitForURL('**/callback**')
// Original page should now be authenticated

11. Click times out or does nothing — snapshot to find the blocker When a click times out, a modal or overlay is likely intercepting pointer events. Do not retry with different selectors or { force: true } — snapshot to find the blocker:

// click timed out → don't retry blindly, find what's blocking
await snapshot({ page: state.page, search: /dialog|modal/i })
// Found modal → interact with it properly (don't just close via X, it may reappear)
await state.page.getByRole('radio', { name: 'Nope, Vanilla' }).click()

12. Never use dispatchEvent or { force: true } to bypass blockers dispatchEvent(new MouseEvent(...)) and { force: true } bypass Playwright checks but do not trigger React/Vue/Svelte handlers — state won't update. The same applies to element.click() inside page.evaluate(). If a click "succeeds" but nothing changes, you're either clicking the wrong node or using the wrong interaction pattern:

// BAD: heading click bypasses overlay but React ignores it
await state.page.locator('h3:has-text("Node.js")').click({ force: true })
// BAD: evaluate click bypasses all Playwright input simulation
await state.page.evaluate(() => document.querySelector('button').click())
// GOOD: snapshot shows the real interactive element is a radio, not the heading
await state.page.getByRole('radio', { name: 'Node.js' }).click()

13. Over-investigating instead of just interacting When something doesn't respond to a click, do NOT start inspecting CDP event listeners, React fibers, canvas pixel data, or writing page.evaluate() to read class names and bounding boxes. This wastes massive context. Instead:

1. Take a snapshot() — it shows every interactive element and what to click
2. Try a different interaction pattern if click() didn't work:
   • Drawing/annotation tools, canvas paint → mouse.down, move with steps, mouse.up (see drag section)
   • Keyboard-activated modes → press the shortcut key (snapshot shows tooltip text like "Draw mode D")
   • Sliders, timeline scrubbers → drag pattern
   • Collapsed/toggled toolbars → click the toggle first, wait, then interact
3. Take another snapshot() to see what changed
4. Only investigate DOM internals if correct interaction patterns produce zero response after 2–3 attempts

checking page state

After any action (click, submit, navigate), verify what happened. Always print URL first, then snapshot:

// Always print URL first, then snapshot
console.log('URL:', state.page.url())
await snapshot({ page: state.page }).then(console.log)

// Filter for specific content when snapshot is large
console.log('URL:', state.page.url())
await snapshot({ page: state.page, search: /dialog|button|error/i }).then(console.log)

If nothing changed, try await waitForPageLoad({ page: state.page, timeout: 3000 }) or you may have clicked the wrong element.

accessibility snapshots

await snapshot({ page: state.page, search?, showDiffSinceLastCall? })

accessibilitySnapshot is still available as an alias for backward compatibility.

• search - string/regex to filter results (returns first 10 matching lines)
• showDiffSinceLastCall - returns diff since last snapshot (default: true, but false when search is provided). Pass false to get full snapshot.

Snapshots return full content on first call, then diffs on subsequent calls. Diff is only returned when shorter than full content. If nothing changed, returns "No changes since last snapshot" message. Use showDiffSinceLastCall: false to always get full content. When search is provided, diffing is disabled by default so the search filters the full content — pass showDiffSinceLastCall: true explicitly to combine both. This diffing behavior also applies to getCleanHTML and getPageMarkdown.

Example output:

- banner:
  - link "Home" [id="nav-home"]
  - navigation:
    - link "Docs" [data-testid="docs-link"]
    - link "Blog" role=link[name="Blog"]

Each interactive line ends with a Playwright locator you can pass to state.page.locator(). If multiple elements share the same locator, a >> nth=N suffix is added (0-based) to make it unique.

Use snapshot locators directly — never invent selectors. The snapshot output IS the selector. Do not guess CSS selectors or getByText when the snapshot already gives you the exact match:

// Snapshot shows: role=radio[name="Nope, Vanilla"]  →  use it directly
await state.page.getByRole('radio', { name: 'Nope, Vanilla' }).click()
// Snapshot shows: role=link[name="SIGN IN"]  →  or pass raw string to locator()
await state.page.locator('role=link[name="SIGN IN"]').click()

Beware CSS text-transform: snapshots show visual text (heading "NODE.JS") but DOM may be "Node.js". Use case-insensitive regex: getByRole('heading', { name: /node\.js/i }).

If a screenshot shows ref labels like e3, resolve them using the last snapshot:

const snap = await snapshot({ page: state.page })
const locator = refToLocator({ ref: 'e3' })
await state.page.locator(locator!).click()

await state.page.locator('[id="nav-home"]').click()
await state.page.locator('[data-testid="docs-link"]').click()
await state.page.locator('role=link[name="Blog"]').click()

Search for specific elements:

const snap = await snapshot({ page: state.page, search: /button|submit/i })

Scoping snapshots to a specific element — pass a locator instead of page to snapshot only a subtree. This dramatically reduces output size when you only care about one section of the page (e.g., the main content area, ignoring the sidebar/header/footer):

// Full page snapshot: ~150 lines (sidebar, nav, header, footer, everything)
await snapshot({ page: state.page })

// Scoped to main: ~20 lines (just the content you care about)
await snapshot({ locator: state.page.locator('main') })

// Scope to a specific form, dialog, or section
await snapshot({ locator: state.page.locator('[role="dialog"]') })
await snapshot({ locator: state.page.locator('form#checkout') })

Use this whenever the full page snapshot is dominated by navigation or layout elements you don't need. It saves significant tokens and makes the output much easier to parse.

Filtering large snapshots in JS — when the built-in search isn't enough (e.g., you need multiple patterns or custom logic), filter the snapshot string directly:

const snap = await snapshot({ page: state.page, showDiffSinceLastCall: false })
const relevant = snap
  .split('\n')
  .filter((l) => l.includes('dialog') || l.includes('error') || l.includes('button'))
  .join('\n')
console.log(relevant)

This is much cheaper than taking a screenshot — use it as your primary debugging tool for verifying text content, checking if elements exist, or confirming state changes.

choosing between snapshot methods

Both snapshot and screenshotWithAccessibilityLabels use the same ref system, so you can combine them effectively.

Use snapshot when:

• Page has simple, semantic structure (articles, forms, lists)
• You need to search for specific text or patterns
• Token usage matters (text is smaller than images)
• You need to process the output programmatically

Use screenshotWithAccessibilityLabels when:

• Page has complex visual layout (grids, galleries, dashboards, maps)
• Spatial position matters (e.g., "first image", "top-left button")
• DOM order doesn't match visual order
• You need to understand the visual hierarchy

Combining both: Use screenshot first to understand layout and identify target elements visually, then use snapshot({ search: /pattern/ }) for efficient searching in subsequent calls.

selector best practices

For unknown websites: use snapshot() - it shows what's actually interactive with stable locators.

For development (when you have source code access), prefer stable selectors in this order:

1. Best: [data-testid="submit"] - explicit test attributes, never change accidentally
2. Good: getByRole('button', { name: 'Save' }) - accessible, semantic
3. Good: getByText('Sign in'), getByLabel('Email') - readable, user-facing
4. OK: input[name="email"], button[type="submit"] - semantic HTML
5. Avoid: .btn-primary, #submit - classes/IDs change frequently
6. Last resort: div.container > form > button - fragile, breaks easily

Combine locators for precision:

state.page.locator('tr').filter({ hasText: 'John' }).locator('button').click()
state.page.locator('button').nth(2).click()

If a locator matches multiple elements, Playwright throws "strict mode violation". Use .first(), .last(), or .nth(n):

await state.page.locator('button').first().click() // first match
await state.page.locator('.item').last().click() // last match
await state.page.locator('li').nth(3).click() // 4th item (0-indexed)

working with pages

Pages are shared, state is not. context.pages() returns all browser tabs with playwriter enabled — shared across all sessions. Multiple agents see the same tabs. If another agent navigates or closes a page you're using, you'll be affected. To avoid interference, get your own page.

Get or create your page (first call):

On your very first execute call, reuse an existing empty tab or create a new one, and navigate it in the same execute call. Store it in state and use state.page for all subsequent operations instead of the default page variable:

// Reuse an empty about:blank tab if available, otherwise create a new one.
// IMPORTANT: always navigate immediately in the same call to avoid another
// agent grabbing the same about:blank tab between execute calls.
state.page = context.pages().find((p) => p.url() === 'about:blank') ?? (await context.newPage())
await state.page.goto('https://example.com')
// Use state.page for ALL subsequent operations

Handle page closures gracefully:

The user may close your page by accident (e.g., closing a tab in Chrome). Always check before using it and recreate if needed:

if (!state.page || state.page.isClosed()) {
  state.page = context.pages().find((p) => p.url() === 'about:blank') ?? (await context.newPage())
}
await state.page.goto('https://example.com')

Use an existing page only when the user asks:

Only use a page from context.pages() if the user explicitly asks you to control a specific tab they already opened (e.g., they're logged into an app). Find it by URL pattern and store it in state:

const pages = context.pages().filter((x) => x.url().includes('myapp.com'))
if (pages.length === 0) throw new Error('No myapp.com page found. Ask user to enable playwriter on it.')
if (pages.length > 1) throw new Error(`Found ${pages.length} matching pages, expected 1`)
state.targetPage = pages[0]

List all available pages:

context.pages().map((p) => p.url())

navigation

Use domcontentloaded for page.goto():

await state.page.goto('https://example.com', { waitUntil: 'domcontentloaded' })
await waitForPageLoad({ page: state.page, timeout: 5000 })

common patterns

Authenticated fetches - to access protected resources, fetch from within page context (includes session cookies automatically):

// BAD: curl/external requests don't have session cookies
// curl -H "Cookie: ..." often fails due to missing cookies or CSRF

// GOOD: fetch inside state.page.evaluate uses browser's full session
const data = await state.page.evaluate(async (url) => {
  const resp = await fetch(url)
  return await resp.text()
}, 'https://example.com/protected/resource')

Downloading large data - console output truncates large strings. Trigger a browser download instead:

// Fetch protected data and trigger download to user's Downloads folder
await state.page.evaluate(async (url) => {
  const resp = await fetch(url)
  const data = await resp.text()
  const blob = new Blob([data], { type: 'application/octet-stream' })
  const a = document.createElement('a')
  a.href = URL.createObjectURL(blob)
  a.download = 'data.json'
  a.click()
}, 'https://example.com/protected/large-file')
// File saves to ~/Downloads - read it from there

Avoid permission-gated browser APIs - some APIs require user permission prompts or special browser flags. These often fail silently or hang. Examples to avoid:

• navigator.clipboard.writeText() - requires permission
• Multiple concurrent downloads - browser may block
• window.showSaveFilePicker() - requires user gesture
• Geolocation, camera, microphone APIs

Instead, use simpler alternatives (single download via a.click(), store data in state, etc).

Links that open new tabs - playwriter cannot control popup windows opened via window.open. Use cmd+click to open in a controllable new tab instead (see mistake #9 above for a full example):

await state.page.locator('a[target=_blank]').click({ modifiers: ['Meta'] })
await state.page.waitForTimeout(1000)
const pages = context.pages()
const newTab = pages[pages.length - 1]
console.log('New tab URL:', newTab.url())

Downloads - capture and save:

const [download] = await Promise.all([state.page.waitForEvent('download'), state.page.click('button.download')])
await download.saveAs(`/tmp/${download.suggestedFilename()}`)

iFrames - two approaches depending on what you need:

// frameLocator: for chaining locator operations (click, fill, etc.)
const frame = state.page.frameLocator('#my-iframe')
await frame.locator('button').click()

// contentFrame: returns a Frame object, needed for snapshot({ frame })
const frame2 = await state.page.locator('iframe').contentFrame()
await snapshot({ frame: frame2 })

Dialogs - handle alerts/confirms/prompts:

state.page.on('dialog', async (dialog) => {
  console.log(dialog.message())
  await dialog.accept()
})
await state.page.click('button.trigger-alert')

Handling page obstacles (cookie modals, login walls, age gates) - most major websites show blocking overlays. Always check for these with snapshot() right after navigation and dismiss them before doing anything else:

// After navigating, check for common obstacles
await waitForPageLoad({ page: state.page, timeout: 5000 })
const snap = await snapshot({
  page: state.page,
  search: /cookie|consent|accept|reject|decline|allow|age|verify|login|sign.in/i,
})
console.log(snap)
// Look for dismiss/accept/decline buttons in the snapshot, then click them:
// await state.page.locator('button:has-text("Accept")').click();
// await state.page.locator('button:has-text("Decline optional")').click();
// Then re-snapshot to confirm the modal is gone before proceeding

If the page requires login and the user is already logged into Chrome, their session cookies are available — just navigate and the page should load authenticated. If not, ask the user for help or use their existing logged-in tab via context.pages().

Extracting and downloading media (images, videos) - use page.evaluate() to extract URLs from the rendered DOM, then download via Node.js in the sandbox. This is far more reliable than parsing raw HTML:

// Extract all image URLs from rendered DOM
const images = await state.page.evaluate(() =>
  Array.from(document.querySelectorAll('img[src]')).map((img) => ({
    src: img.src,
    alt: img.alt,
    width: img.naturalWidth,
  })),
)
console.log(JSON.stringify(images, null, 2))

// Download a specific image to disk
const fs = require('node:fs')
const resp = await fetch(images[0].src)
const buf = Buffer.from(await resp.arrayBuffer())
fs.writeFileSync('./downloaded-image.jpg', buf)
console.log('Saved', buf.length, 'bytes')

For carousels or lazy-loaded galleries, you may need to click navigation arrows or scroll first, then re-extract. Use network interception (see "network interception" section) to capture high-resolution CDN URLs that may differ from the img.src thumbnails.

utility functions

getLatestLogs - retrieve captured browser console logs (up to 5000 per page, cleared on navigation):

await getLatestLogs({ page?, count?, search? })
// Examples:
const errors = await getLatestLogs({ search: /error/i, count: 50 })
const pageLogs = await getLatestLogs({ page: state.page })

For custom log collection across runs, store in state: state.logs = []; state.page.on('console', m => state.logs.push(m.text()))

getCleanHTML - get cleaned HTML from a locator or page, with search and diffing:

await getCleanHTML({ locator, search?, showDiffSinceLastCall?, includeStyles? })
// Examples:
const html = await getCleanHTML({ locator: state.page.locator('body') })
const html = await getCleanHTML({ locator: state.page, search: /button/i })
const fullHtml = await getCleanHTML({ locator: state.page, showDiffSinceLastCall: false })  // disable diff

Parameters:

• locator - Playwright Locator or Page to get HTML from
• search - string/regex to filter results (returns first 10 matching lines with 5 lines context)
• showDiffSinceLastCall - returns diff since last call (default: true, but false when search is provided). Pass false to get full HTML.
• includeStyles - keep style and class attributes (default: false)

HTML processing: The function cleans HTML for compact, readable output:

• Removes tags: script, style, link, meta, noscript, svg, head
• Unwraps nested wrappers: Empty divs/spans with no attributes that only wrap a single child are collapsed (e.g., <div><div><div><p>text</p></div></div></div> → <div><p>text</p></div>)
• Removes empty elements: Elements with no attributes and no content are removed
• Truncates long values: Attribute values >200 chars and text content >500 chars are truncated

Attributes kept (summary):

• Common semantic and ARIA attributes (e.g., href, name, type, aria-*)
• All data-* test attributes
• Frequently used test IDs and special attributes (e.g., testid, qa, e2e, vimium-label)

getPageMarkdown - extract main page content as plain text using Mozilla Readability (same algorithm as Firefox Reader View). Strips navigation, ads, sidebars, and other clutter. Returns formatted text with title, author, and content:

await getPageMarkdown({ page: state.page, search?, showDiffSinceLastCall? })
// Examples:
const content = await getPageMarkdown({ page: state.page, showDiffSinceLastCall: false })  // full article
const matches = await getPageMarkdown({ page: state.page, search: /API/i })  // search within content

Output format:

# Article Title

Author: John Doe | Site: example.com | Published: 2024-01-15

> Article excerpt or description

The main article content as plain text, with paragraphs preserved...

Parameters:

• page - Playwright Page to extract content from
• search - string/regex to filter content (returns first 10 matching lines with 5 lines context)
• showDiffSinceLastCall - returns diff since last call (default: true, but false when search is provided). Pass false to get full content.

Use cases:

• Extract article text for LLM processing without HTML noise
• Get readable content from news sites, blogs, documentation
• Compare content changes after interactions

waitForPageLoad - smart load detection that ignores analytics/ads:

await waitForPageLoad({ page: state.page, timeout?, pollInterval?, minWait? })
// Returns: { success, readyState, pendingRequests, waitTimeMs, timedOut }

getCDPSession - send raw CDP commands:

const cdp = await getCDPSession({ page: state.page })
const metrics = await cdp.send('Page.getLayoutMetrics')

getLocatorStringForElement - get stable Playwright selector from an element:

const selector = await getLocatorStringForElement(state.page.locator('[id="submit-btn"]'))
// => "getByRole('button', { name: 'Save' })"

getReactSource - get React component source location (dev mode only):

const source = await getReactSource({ locator: state.page.locator('[data-testid="submit-btn"]') })
// => { fileName, lineNumber, columnNumber, componentName }

getStylesForLocator - inspect CSS styles applied to an element, like browser DevTools "Styles" panel. Useful for debugging styling issues, finding where a CSS property is defined (file:line), and checking inherited styles. Returns selector, source location, and declarations for each matching rule. ALWAYS fetch https://playwriter.dev/resources/styles-api.md first with curl or webfetch tool.

const styles = await getStylesForLocator({
  locator: state.page.locator('.btn'),
  cdp: await getCDPSession({ page: state.page }),
})
console.log(formatStylesAsText(styles))

createDebugger - set breakpoints, step through code, inspect variables at runtime. Useful for debugging issues that only reproduce in browser, understanding code flow, and inspecting state at specific points. Can pause on exceptions, evaluate expressions in scope, and blackbox framework code. ALWAYS fetch https://playwriter.dev/resources/debugger-api.md first.

const cdp = await getCDPSession({ page: state.page })
const dbg = createDebugger({ cdp })
await dbg.enable()
const scripts = await dbg.listScripts({ search: 'app' })
await dbg.setBreakpoint({ file: scripts[0].url, line: 42 })
// when paused: dbg.inspectLocalVariables(), dbg.stepOver(), dbg.resume()

createEditor - view and live-edit page scripts and CSS at runtime. Edits are in-memory (persist until reload). Useful for testing quick fixes, searching page scripts with grep, and toggling debug flags. ALWAYS read https://playwriter.dev/resources/editor-api.md first.

const cdp = await getCDPSession({ page: state.page })
const editor = createEditor({ cdp })
await editor.enable()
const matches = await editor.grep({ regex: /console\.log/ })
await editor.edit({ url: matches[0].url, oldString: 'DEBUG = false', newString: 'DEBUG = true' })

screenshotWithAccessibilityLabels - take a screenshot with Vimium-style visual labels overlaid on interactive elements. Shows labels, captures screenshot, then removes labels. The image and accessibility snapshot are automatically included in the response. Can be called multiple times to capture multiple screenshots. Use a timeout of 20 seconds for complex pages.

Prefer this for pages with grids, image galleries, maps, or complex visual layouts where spatial position matters. For simple text-heavy pages, snapshot with search is faster and uses fewer tokens.

await screenshotWithAccessibilityLabels({ page: state.page })
// Image and accessibility snapshot are automatically included in response
// Use refs from snapshot to interact with elements
await state.page.locator('[id="submit-btn"]').click()

// Can take multiple screenshots in one execution
await screenshotWithAccessibilityLabels({ page: state.page })
await state.page.click('button')
await screenshotWithAccessibilityLabels({ page: state.page })
// Both images are included in the response

Labels are color-coded: yellow=links, orange=buttons, coral=inputs, pink=checkboxes, peach=sliders, salmon=menus, amber=tabs.

resizeImage - shrink an image in-place so it consumes fewer tokens when read back into context. await resizeImage({ input: './screenshot.png' }). Also accepts width, height, maxDimension, quality, output.

recording.start / recording.stop - record the page as a video at native FPS (30-60fps). Uses chrome.tabCapture in the extension context, so recording survives page navigation. Video is saved as mp4.

While recording is active, Playwriter automatically overlays a smooth ghost cursor that follows automated mouse actions (page.mouse.*, locator.click(), hover flows) using page.onMouseAction from the Playwright fork.

For demos where cursor movement should be visible and human-like, drive the page with interaction methods (locator.click(), page.click(), page.mouse.move(), press, typing). Avoid skipping interactions with direct state jumps (for example, goto(itemUrl) instead of clicking the link) when your goal is to show realistic pointer motion in the recording.

Note: Recording requires the user to have clicked the Playwriter extension icon on the tab. This grants activeTab permission needed for chrome.tabCapture. Recording works on tabs where the icon was clicked - if you need to record a new tab, ask the user to click the icon on it first.

// Start recording - outputPath must be specified upfront
await recording.start({
  page: state.page,
  outputPath: './recording.mp4',
  frameRate: 30, // default: 30
  audio: false, // default: false (tab audio)
  videoBitsPerSecond: 2500000, // 2.5 Mbps
})

// Navigate around - recording continues!
await state.page.click('a')
await state.page.waitForLoadState('domcontentloaded')
await state.page.goBack()

// Stop and get result
const { path, duration, size } = await recording.stop({ page: state.page })
console.log(`Saved ${size} bytes, duration: ${duration}ms`)

Additional recording utilities:

// Check if recording is active
const { isRecording, startedAt } = await recording.isRecording({ page: state.page })

// Cancel recording without saving
await recording.cancel({ page: state.page })

ghostCursor.show / ghostCursor.hide - manually show or hide the in-page cursor overlay. Useful for screenshots and demos even when recording is not running.

// Show cursor in the center (or keep current position if already visible)
await ghostCursor.show({ page: state.page })

// Optional styles: 'minimal' (default triangular pointer), 'dot', 'screenstudio'
await ghostCursor.show({ page: state.page, style: 'minimal' })

// Hide cursor overlay
await ghostCursor.hide({ page: state.page })

startRecording, stopRecording, isRecording, and cancelRecording remain available as backward-compatible aliases.

Key difference from getDisplayMedia: This approach uses chrome.tabCapture which runs in the extension context, not the page. The recording persists across navigations because the extension holds the MediaRecorder, not the page's JavaScript context.

createDemoVideo - create a polished demo video from a recording by automatically speeding up idle sections (time between execute() calls) while keeping interactions at normal speed. Useful for creating demo videos of agent workflows without long pauses.

While recording is active, playwriter tracks when each execute() call starts and ends. recording.stop() returns these timestamps alongside the video file. createDemoVideo uses this data to identify idle gaps and speed them up with ffmpeg in a single pass.

A 1-second buffer is preserved around each interaction so viewers see context before and after each action.

Requires ffmpeg and ffprobe installed on the system.

Timeout: createDemoVideo runs ffmpeg on the full recording and can take 60–120+ seconds. Always pass --timeout 120000 (or higher) to the playwriter execute call that contains it, otherwise it will silently time out before the file is written.

// Start recording
await recording.start({ page: state.page, outputPath: './recording.mp4' })

// ... multiple execute() calls with browser interactions ...
// Each call's timing is tracked automatically while recording is active

// Stop recording — executionTimestamps is included in the result
const recordingResult = await recording.stop({ page: state.page })

// Create demo video — idle gaps are sped up 4x (default)
const demoPath = await createDemoVideo({
  recordingPath: recordingResult.path,
  durationMs: recordingResult.duration,
  executionTimestamps: recordingResult.executionTimestamps,
  speed: 5, // optional, default 5x for idle sections
  // outputFile: './demo.mp4', // optional, defaults to recording-demo.mp4
})
console.log('Demo video:', demoPath)

pinned elements

Users can right-click → "Copy Playwriter Element Reference" to store elements in globalThis.playwriterPinnedElem1 (increments for each pin). The reference is copied to clipboard:

const el = await state.page.evaluateHandle(() => globalThis.playwriterPinnedElem1)
await el.click()

taking screenshots

Always use scale: 'css' to avoid 2-4x larger images on high-DPI displays:

await state.page.screenshot({ path: 'shot.png', scale: 'css' })

If you want to read back the image file into context, resize it first so it consumes fewer tokens:

await resizeImage({ input: './shot.png' })

page.evaluate

Code inside page.evaluate() runs in the browser - use plain JavaScript only, no TypeScript syntax. Return values and log outside (console.log inside evaluate runs in browser, not visible):

const title = await state.page.evaluate(() => document.title)
console.log('Title:', title)

const info = await state.page.evaluate(() => ({
  url: location.href,
  buttons: document.querySelectorAll('button').length,
}))
console.log(info)

loading files

Fill inputs with file content:

const fs = require('node:fs')
const content = fs.readFileSync('./data.txt', 'utf-8')
await state.page.locator('textarea').fill(content)

network interception

For scraping or reverse-engineering APIs, intercept network requests instead of scrolling DOM. Store in state to analyze across calls:

state.requests = []
state.responses = []
state.page.on('request', (req) => {
  if (req.url().includes('/api/')) state.requests.push({ url: req.url(), method: req.method(), headers: req.headers() })
})
state.page.on('response', async (res) => {
  if (res.url().includes('/api/')) {
    try {
      state.responses.push({ url: res.url(), status: res.status(), body: await res.json() })
    } catch {}
  }
})

Then trigger actions (scroll, click, navigate) and analyze captured data:

console.log('Captured', state.responses.length, 'API calls')
state.responses.forEach((r) => console.log(r.status, r.url.slice(0, 80)))

Inspect a specific response to understand schema:

const resp = state.responses.find((r) => r.url.includes('users'))
console.log(JSON.stringify(resp.body, null, 2).slice(0, 2000))

Replay API directly (useful for pagination):

const { url, headers } = state.requests.find((r) => r.url.includes('feed'))
const data = await state.page.evaluate(
  async ({ url, headers }) => {
    const res = await fetch(url, { headers })
    return res.json()
  },
  { url, headers },
)
console.log(data)

Clean up listeners when done: state.page.removeAllListeners('request'); state.page.removeAllListeners('response');

debugging web apps

When debugging why a web app isn't working (e.g., content not rendering, API errors, state issues), use these techniques before resorting to screenshots:

1. Console logs — use getLatestLogs to check for errors:

const errors = await getLatestLogs({ page: state.page, search: /error|fail/i, count: 20 })
const appLogs = await getLatestLogs({ page: state.page, search: /myComponent|state/i })

2. DOM inspection via evaluate — check content directly without screenshots:

const info = await state.page.evaluate(() => {
  const msgs = document.querySelectorAll('.message')
  return Array.from(msgs).map((m) => ({
    text: m.textContent?.slice(0, 200),
    visible: m.offsetHeight > 0,
  }))
})
console.log(JSON.stringify(info, null, 2))

3. Combine snapshot + logs for full picture:

await state.page.keyboard.press('Enter')
await state.page.waitForTimeout(2000)

const snap = await snapshot({ page: state.page, search: /dialog|error|message/ })
const logs = await getLatestLogs({ page: state.page, search: /error/i, count: 10 })
console.log('UI:', snap)
console.log('Logs:', logs)

capabilities

Examples of what playwriter can do:

• Monitor console logs while user reproduces a bug
• Intercept network requests to reverse-engineer APIs and build SDKs
• Scrape data by replaying paginated API calls instead of scrolling DOM
• Get accessibility snapshot to find elements, then automate interactions
• Use visual screenshots to understand complex layouts like image grids, dashboards, or maps
• Debug issues by collecting logs and controlling the page simultaneously
• Handle popups, downloads, iframes, and dialog boxes
• Record videos of browser sessions that survive page navigation

computer use

Playwriter provides the same browser control as Anthropic's computer_20250124 tool and the Claude Chrome extension, using Playwright APIs instead of screenshot-based coordinate clicking. No computer use beta needed.

This section covers low-level mouse/keyboard APIs not documented elsewhere. For locator-based clicking, screenshots, navigation, forms, evaluate, snapshots, and network interception see their dedicated sections above.

clicking

// Preferred: by locator (stable, auto-waits, no coordinates needed)
await state.page.locator('button[name="Submit"]').click()
await state.page.locator('text=Login').click({ button: 'right' })
await state.page.locator('text=Login').dblclick()
await state.page
  .locator('a')
  .first()
  .click({ modifiers: ['Meta'] }) // cmd+click opens new tab

// By coordinates (when locators aren't available, e.g. canvas, maps, custom widgets)
await state.page.mouse.click(450, 320) // left click
await state.page.mouse.click(450, 320, { button: 'right' }) // right click
await state.page.mouse.dblclick(450, 320) // double click
await state.page.mouse.click(450, 320, { clickCount: 3 }) // triple click
await state.page.mouse.click(450, 320, { modifiers: ['Shift'] }) // shift+click

hover

await state.page.locator('.tooltip-trigger').hover() // by locator (preferred)
await state.page.mouse.move(450, 320) // by coordinates

scroll

// By locator (preferred)
await state.page.locator('#footer').scrollIntoViewIfNeeded()

// By pixel (for canvas, maps, infinite scroll)
await state.page.mouse.wheel(0, 300) // scroll down 300px
await state.page.mouse.wheel(0, -300) // scroll up
await state.page.mouse.wheel(300, 0) // scroll right
await state.page.mouse.wheel(-300, 0) // scroll left

// Scroll at a specific position
await state.page.mouse.move(450, 320)
await state.page.mouse.wheel(0, 500)

// Scroll inside a container
await state.page.locator('.scrollable-list').evaluate((el) => {
  el.scrollTop += 500
})

drag

// By locator (preferred)
await state.page.locator('#item').dragTo(state.page.locator('#target'))

// By coordinates (for canvas, sliders, custom drag targets)
await state.page.mouse.move(100, 200)
await state.page.mouse.down()
await state.page.mouse.move(400, 500, { steps: 10 }) // steps for smooth drag
await state.page.mouse.up()

Freehand drawing, annotation widgets, and canvas tools use this same mouse.down → move → up pattern. If a widget expects a drawn stroke (paint tools, annotation overlays, range sliders, timeline scrubbers), always use held-mouse motion — not mouse.click():

// Draw a stroke across a canvas or annotation layer
await state.page.mouse.move(startX, startY)
await state.page.mouse.down()
await state.page.mouse.move(endX, endY, { steps: 15 }) // steps = smoother stroke
await state.page.mouse.up()
await state.page.waitForTimeout(500) // let the widget process the stroke

key hold / release / repeat

// Hold modifier while pressing another key
await state.page.keyboard.down('Shift')
await state.page.keyboard.press('ArrowDown')
await state.page.keyboard.up('Shift')

// Repeat a key
for (let i = 0; i < 5; i++) await state.page.keyboard.press('ArrowDown')

resize viewport

await state.page.setViewportSize({ width: 1280, height: 720 })

region screenshot (zoom equivalent)

await state.page.screenshot({ path: 'region.png', scale: 'css', clip: { x: 100, y: 200, width: 400, height: 300 } })

Prefer locator-based actions over coordinates — locators are stable across scroll/resize, auto-wait for elements, and don't require screenshot round-trips that burn ~800 image tokens per cycle.

Ghost Browser integration

Playwriter supports Ghost Browser for multi-identity automation. When running in Ghost Browser, the chrome object exposes APIs to control identities, proxies, and sessions - useful for managing multiple accounts, rotating proxies, or isolated cookie sessions.

// List identities and open tabs in different ones
const identities = await chrome.projects.getIdentitiesList()
await chrome.ghostPublicAPI.openTab({ url: 'https://reddit.com', identity: identities[0].id })

// Assign proxies per tab or identity
const proxies = await chrome.ghostProxies.getList()
await chrome.ghostProxies.setTabProxy(tabId, proxies[0].id)

For complete API reference with all methods, types, and examples, read: extension/src/ghost-browser-api.d.ts

Note: Only works in Ghost Browser. In regular Chrome, calls fail with "not available".