| # 🎭 Playwright |
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| [](https://www.npmjs.com/package/playwright) <!-- GEN:chromium-version-badge -->[](https://www.chromium.org/Home)<!-- GEN:stop --> <!-- GEN:firefox-version-badge -->[](https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/)<!-- GEN:stop --> <!-- GEN:webkit-version-badge -->[](https://webkit.org/)<!-- GEN:stop --> [](https://aka.ms/playwright/discord) |
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| ## [Documentation](https://playwright.dev) | [API reference](https://playwright.dev/docs/api/class-playwright) |
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| Playwright is a framework for web automation and testing. It drives Chromium, Firefox, and WebKit with a single API — in your tests, in your scripts, and as a tool for AI agents. |
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| ## Get Started |
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| Choose the path that fits your workflow: |
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| | | Best for | Install | |
| |---|---|---| |
| | **[Playwright Test](#playwright-test)** | End-to-end testing | `npm init playwright@latest` | |
| | **[Playwright CLI](#playwright-cli)** | Coding agents (Claude Code, Copilot) | `npm i -g @playwright/cli@latest` | |
| | **[Playwright MCP](#playwright-mcp)** | AI agents and LLM-driven automation | `npx @playwright/mcp@latest` | |
| | **[Playwright Library](#playwright-library)** | Browser automation scripts | `npm i playwright` | |
| | **[VS Code Extension](#vs-code-extension)** | Test authoring and debugging in VS Code | [Install from Marketplace](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=ms-playwright.playwright) | |
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| --- |
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| ## Playwright Test |
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| Playwright Test is a full-featured test runner built for end-to-end testing. It runs tests across Chromium, Firefox, and WebKit with full browser isolation, auto-waiting, and web-first assertions. |
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| ### Install |
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| ```bash |
| npm init playwright@latest |
| ``` |
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| Or add manually: |
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| ```bash |
| npm i -D @playwright/test |
| npx playwright install |
| ``` |
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| ### Write a test |
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| ```TypeScript |
| import { test, expect } from '@playwright/test'; |
| |
| test('has title', async ({ page }) => { |
| await page.goto('https://playwright.dev/'); |
| await expect(page).toHaveTitle(/Playwright/); |
| }); |
| |
| test('get started link', async ({ page }) => { |
| await page.goto('https://playwright.dev/'); |
| await page.getByRole('link', { name: 'Get started' }).click(); |
| await expect(page.getByRole('heading', { name: 'Installation' })).toBeVisible(); |
| }); |
| ``` |
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| ### Run tests |
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| ```bash |
| npx playwright test |
| ``` |
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| Tests run in parallel across all configured browsers, in headless mode by default. Each test gets a fresh browser context — full isolation with near-zero overhead. |
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| ### Key capabilities |
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| **Auto-wait and web-first assertions.** No artificial timeouts. Playwright waits for elements to be actionable, and assertions automatically retry until conditions are met. |
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| **Locators.** Find elements with resilient locators that mirror how users see the page: |
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| ```TypeScript |
| page.getByRole('button', { name: 'Submit' }) |
| page.getByLabel('Email') |
| page.getByPlaceholder('Search...') |
| page.getByTestId('login-form') |
| ``` |
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| **Test isolation.** Each test runs in its own browser context — equivalent to a fresh browser profile. Save authentication state once and reuse it across tests: |
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| ```TypeScript |
| // Save state after login |
| await page.context().storageState({ path: 'auth.json' }); |
| |
| // Reuse in other tests |
| test.use({ storageState: 'auth.json' }); |
| ``` |
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| **Tracing.** Capture execution traces, screenshots, and videos on failure. Inspect every action, DOM snapshot, network request, and console message in the [Trace Viewer](https://playwright.dev/docs/trace-viewer): |
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| ```TypeScript |
| // playwright.config.ts |
| export default defineConfig({ |
| use: { |
| trace: 'on-first-retry', |
| }, |
| }); |
| ``` |
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| ```bash |
| npx playwright show-trace trace.zip |
| ``` |
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| <!-- TODO: screenshot of trace viewer --> |
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| **Parallelism.** Tests run in parallel by default across all configured browsers. |
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| [Full testing documentation](https://playwright.dev/docs/intro) |
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| --- |
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| ## Playwright CLI |
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| [Playwright CLI](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright-cli) is a command-line interface for browser automation designed for coding agents. It's more token-efficient than MCP — commands avoid loading large tool schemas and accessibility trees into the model context. |
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| ### Install |
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| ```bash |
| npm install -g @playwright/cli@latest |
| ``` |
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| Optionally install skills for richer agent integration: |
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| ```bash |
| playwright-cli install --skills |
| ``` |
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| ### Usage |
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| Point your coding agent at a task: |
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| ``` |
| Test the "add todo" flow on https://demo.playwright.dev/todomvc using playwright-cli. |
| Take screenshots for all successful and failing scenarios. |
| ``` |
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| Or run commands directly: |
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| ```bash |
| playwright-cli open https://demo.playwright.dev/todomvc/ --headed |
| playwright-cli type "Buy groceries" |
| playwright-cli press Enter |
| playwright-cli screenshot |
| ``` |
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| ### Session monitoring |
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| Use `playwright-cli show` to open a visual dashboard with live screencast previews of all running browser sessions. Click any session to zoom in and take remote control. |
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| ```bash |
| playwright-cli show |
| ``` |
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| <!-- TODO: screenshot of playwright-cli show dashboard --> |
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| [Full CLI documentation](https://playwright.dev/docs/cli-agent) | [GitHub](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright-cli) |
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| --- |
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| ## Playwright MCP |
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| The [Playwright MCP server](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright-mcp) gives AI agents full browser control through the [Model Context Protocol](https://modelcontextprotocol.io). Agents interact with pages using structured accessibility snapshots — no vision models or screenshots required. |
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| ### Setup |
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| Add to your MCP client (VS Code, Cursor, Claude Desktop, Windsurf, etc.): |
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| ```json |
| { |
| "mcpServers": { |
| "playwright": { |
| "command": "npx", |
| "args": ["@playwright/mcp@latest"] |
| } |
| } |
| } |
| ``` |
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| **One-click install for VS Code:** |
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| [<img src="https://img.shields.io/badge/VS_Code-VS_Code?style=flat-square&label=Install%20MCP%20Server&color=0098FF" alt="Install in VS Code" />](https://insiders.vscode.dev/redirect?url=vscode%3Amcp%2Finstall%3F%257B%2522name%2522%253A%2522playwright%2522%252C%2522command%2522%253A%2522npx%2522%252C%2522args%2522%253A%255B%2522%2540playwright%252Fmcp%2540latest%2522%255D%257D) |
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| **For Claude Code:** |
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| ```bash |
| claude mcp add playwright npx @playwright/mcp@latest |
| ``` |
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| ### How it works |
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| Ask your AI assistant to interact with any web page: |
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| ``` |
| Navigate to https://demo.playwright.dev/todomvc and add a few todo items. |
| ``` |
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| The agent sees the page as a structured accessibility tree: |
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| ``` |
| - heading "todos" [level=1] |
| - textbox "What needs to be done?" [ref=e5] |
| - listitem: |
| - checkbox "Toggle Todo" [ref=e10] |
| - text: "Buy groceries" |
| ``` |
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| It uses element refs like `e5` and `e10` to click, type, and interact — deterministically and without visual ambiguity. Tools cover navigation, form filling, screenshots, network mocking, storage management, and more. |
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| [Full MCP documentation](https://playwright.dev/docs/mcp) | [GitHub](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright-mcp) |
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| --- |
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| ## Playwright Library |
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| Use `playwright` as a library for browser automation scripts — web scraping, PDF generation, screenshot capture, and any workflow that needs programmatic browser control without a test runner. |
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| ### Install |
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| ```bash |
| npm i playwright |
| ``` |
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| ### Examples |
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| **Take a screenshot:** |
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| ```TypeScript |
| import { chromium } from 'playwright'; |
| |
| const browser = await chromium.launch(); |
| const page = await browser.newPage(); |
| await page.goto('https://playwright.dev/'); |
| await page.screenshot({ path: 'screenshot.png' }); |
| await browser.close(); |
| ``` |
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| **Generate a PDF:** |
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| ```TypeScript |
| import { chromium } from 'playwright'; |
| |
| const browser = await chromium.launch(); |
| const page = await browser.newPage(); |
| await page.goto('https://playwright.dev/'); |
| await page.pdf({ path: 'page.pdf', format: 'A4' }); |
| await browser.close(); |
| ``` |
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| **Emulate a mobile device:** |
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| ```TypeScript |
| import { chromium, devices } from 'playwright'; |
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| const browser = await chromium.launch(); |
| const context = await browser.newContext(devices['iPhone 15']); |
| const page = await context.newPage(); |
| await page.goto('https://playwright.dev/'); |
| await page.screenshot({ path: 'mobile.png' }); |
| await browser.close(); |
| ``` |
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| **Intercept network requests:** |
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| ```TypeScript |
| import { chromium } from 'playwright'; |
| |
| const browser = await chromium.launch(); |
| const page = await browser.newPage(); |
| await page.route('**/*.{png,jpg,jpeg}', route => route.abort()); |
| await page.goto('https://playwright.dev/'); |
| await browser.close(); |
| ``` |
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| [Library documentation](https://playwright.dev/docs/library) | [API reference](https://playwright.dev/docs/api/class-playwright) |
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| --- |
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| ## VS Code Extension |
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| The [Playwright VS Code extension](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=ms-playwright.playwright) brings test running, debugging, and code generation directly into your editor. |
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| <!-- TODO: hero screenshot of VS Code with Playwright sidebar --> |
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| **Run and debug tests** from the editor with a single click. Set breakpoints, inspect variables, and step through test execution with a live browser view. |
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| **Generate tests with CodeGen.** Click "Record new" to open a browser — navigate and interact with your app while Playwright writes the test code for you. |
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| **Pick locators.** Hover over any element in the browser to see the best available locator, then click to copy it to your clipboard. |
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| **Trace Viewer integration.** Enable "Show Trace Viewer" in the sidebar to get a full execution trace after each test run — DOM snapshots, network requests, console logs, and screenshots at every step. |
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| [Install the extension](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=ms-playwright.playwright) | [VS Code guide](https://playwright.dev/docs/getting-started-vscode) |
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| --- |
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| ## Cross-Browser Support |
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| | | Linux | macOS | Windows | |
| | :--- | :---: | :---: | :---: | |
| | Chromium<sup>1</sup> <!-- GEN:chromium-version -->148.0.7778.96<!-- GEN:stop --> | :white_check_mark: | :white_check_mark: | :white_check_mark: | |
| | WebKit <!-- GEN:webkit-version -->26.4<!-- GEN:stop --> | :white_check_mark: | :white_check_mark: | :white_check_mark: | |
| | Firefox <!-- GEN:firefox-version -->150.0.2<!-- GEN:stop --> | :white_check_mark: | :white_check_mark: | :white_check_mark: | |
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| Headless and headed execution on all platforms. <sup>1</sup> Uses [Chrome for Testing](https://developer.chrome.com/blog/chrome-for-testing) by default. |
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| ## Other Languages |
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| Playwright is also available for [Python](https://playwright.dev/python/docs/intro), [.NET](https://playwright.dev/dotnet/docs/intro), and [Java](https://playwright.dev/java/docs/intro). |
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| ## Resources |
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| * [Documentation](https://playwright.dev) |
| * [API reference](https://playwright.dev/docs/api/class-playwright) |
| * [MCP server](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright-mcp) |
| * [CLI for coding agents](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright-cli) |
| * [VS Code extension](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright-vscode) |
| * [Contribution guide](CONTRIBUTING.md) |
| * [Changelog](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright/releases) |
| * [Discord](https://aka.ms/playwright/discord) |
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