---
title: "Browser Automation with agent-browser"
description: "The CLI uses Chrome/Chromium via CDP directly. Install via `npm i -g agent-browser`, `brew install agent-browser`, or `cargo install agent-browser`. Run `agent-browser install` to download Chrome. Existing Chrome, Brave, Playwright, and Puppeteer installations are detected automatically. Run `agent-browser upgrade` to update to the latest version."
type: skill
canonical_url: https://claudary.paisolsolutions.com/skills/skill-169
source: "Claudary"
difficulty: intermediate
author: "Claude Code Knowledge Pack"
date: 2026-07-10T11:44:11.502Z
license: CC-BY-4.0
attribution: "Browser Automation with agent-browser — Claudary (https://claudary.paisolsolutions.com/skills/skill-169)"
---

# Browser Automation with agent-browser
The CLI uses Chrome/Chromium via CDP directly. Install via `npm i -g agent-browser`, `brew install agent-browser`, or `cargo install agent-browser`. Run `agent-browser install` to download Chrome. Existing Chrome, Brave, Playwright, and Puppeteer installations are detected automatically. Run `agent-browser upgrade` to update to the latest version.

## Overview

---
name: agent-browser
description: Browser automation CLI for AI agents. Use when the user needs to interact with websites, including navigating pages, filling forms, clicking buttons, taking screenshots, extracting data, testing web apps, or automating any browser task. Triggers include requests to "open a website", "fill out a form", "click a button", "take a screenshot", "scrape data from a page", "test this web app", "login to a site", "automate browser actions", or any task requiring programmatic web interaction.
allowed-tools: Bash(npx agent-browser:*), Bash(agent-browser:*)
license: Apache-2.0
---

# Browser Automation with agent-browser

The CLI uses Chrome/Chromium via CDP directly. Install via `npm i -g agent-browser`, `brew install agent-browser`, or `cargo install agent-browser`. Run `agent-browser install` to download Chrome. Existing Chrome, Brave, Playwright, and Puppeteer installations are detected automatically. Run `agent-browser upgrade` to update to the latest version.

## Core Workflow

Every browser automation follows this pattern:

1. **Navigate**: `agent-browser open <url>`
2. **Snapshot**: `agent-browser snapshot -i` (get element refs like `@e1`, `@e2`)
3. **Interact**: Use refs to click, fill, select
4. **Re-snapshot**: After navigation or DOM changes, get fresh refs

```bash
agent-browser open https://example.com/form
agent-browser snapshot -i
# Output: @e1 [input type="email"], @e2 [input type="password"], @e3 [button] "Submit"

agent-browser fill @e1 "user@example.com"
agent-browser fill @e2 "password123"
agent-browser click @e3
agent-browser wait --load networkidle
agent-browser snapshot -i  # Check result
```

## Command Chaining

Commands can be chained with `&&` in a single shell invocation. The browser persists between commands via a background daemon, so chaining is safe and more efficient than separate calls.

```bash
# Chain open + wait + snapshot in one call
agent-browser open https://example.com && agent-browser wait --load networkidle && agent-browser snapshot -i

# Chain multiple interactions
agent-browser fill @e1 "user@example.com" && agent-browser fill @e2 "password123" && agent-browser click @e3

# Navigate and capture
agent-browser open https://example.com && agent-browser wait --load networkidle && agent-browser screenshot page.png
```

**When to chain:** Use `&&` when you don't need to read the output of an intermediate command before proceeding (e.g., open + wait + screenshot). Run commands separately when you need to parse the output first (e.g., snapshot to discover refs, then interact using those refs).

## Handling Authentication

When automating a site that requires login, choose the approach that fits:

**Option 1: Import auth from the user's browser (fastest for one-off tasks)**

```bash
# Connect to the user's running Chrome (they're already logged in)
agent-browser --auto-connect state save ./auth.json
# Use that auth state
agent-browser --state ./auth.json open https://app.example.com/dashboard
```

State files contain session tokens in plaintext -- add to `.gitignore` and delete when no longer needed. Set `AGENT_BROWSER_ENCRYPTION_KEY` for encryption at rest.

**Option 2: Persistent profile (simplest for recurring tasks)**

```bash
# First run: login manually or via automation
agent-browser --profile ~/.myapp open https://app.example.com/login
# ... fill credentials, submit ...

# All future runs: already authenticated
agent-browser --profile ~/.myapp open https://app.example.com/dashboard
```

**Option 3: Session name (auto-save/restore cookies + localStorage)**

```bash
agent-browser --session-name myapp open https://app.example.com/login
# ... login flow ...
agent-browser close  # State auto-saved

# Next time: state auto-restored
agent-browser --session-name myapp open https://app.example.com/dashboard
```

**Option 4: Auth vault (credentials stored encrypted, login by name)**

```bash
echo "$PASSWORD" | agent-browser auth save myapp --url https://app.example.com/login --username user --password-stdin
agent-browser auth login myapp
```

`auth login` navigates with `load` and then waits for login form selectors to appear before filling/clicking, which is more reliable on delayed SPA login screens.

**Option 5: State file (manual save/load)**

```bash
# After logging in:
agent-browser state save ./auth.json
# In a future session:
agent-browser state load ./auth.json
agent-browser open https://app.example.com/dashboard
```

See [references/authentication.md](references/authentication.md) for OAuth, 2FA, cookie-based auth, and token refresh patterns.

## Essential Commands

```bash
# Navigation
agent-browser open <url>              # Navigate (aliases: goto, navigate)
agent-browser close                   # Close browser
agent-browser close --all             # Close all active sessions

# Snapshot
agent-browser snapshot -i             # Interactive elements with refs (recommended)
agent-browser snapshot -s "#selector" # Scope to CSS selector

# Interaction (use @refs from snapshot)
agent-browser click @e1               # Click element
agent-browser click @e1 --new-tab     # Click and open in new tab
agent-browser fill @e2 "text"         # Clear and type text
agent-browser type @e2 "text"         # Type without clearing
agent-browser select @e1 "option"     # Select dropdown option
agent-browser check @e1               # Check checkbox
agent-browser press Enter             # Press key
agent-browser keyboard type "text"    # Type at current focus (no selector)
agent-browser keyboard inserttext "text"  # Insert without key events
agent-browser scroll down 500         # Scroll page
agent-browser scroll down 500 --selector "div.content"  # Scroll within a specific container

# Get information
agent-browser get text @e1            # Get element text
agent-browser get url                 # Get current URL
agent-browser get title               # Get page title
agent-browser get cdp-url             # Get CDP WebSocket URL

# Wait
agent-browser wait @e1                # Wait for element
agent-browser wait --load networkidle # Wait for network idle
agent-browser wait --url "**/page"    # Wait for URL pattern
agent-browser wait 2000               # Wait milliseconds
agent-browser wait --text "Welcome"    # Wait for text to appear (substring match)
agent-browser wait --fn "!document.body.innerText.includes('Loading...')"  # Wait for text to disappear
agent-browser wait "#spinner" --state hidden  # Wait for element to disappear

# Downloads
agent-browser download @e1 ./file.pdf          # Click element to trigger download
agent-browser wait --download ./output.zip     # Wait for any download to complete
agent-browser --download-path ./downloads open <url>  # Set default download directory

# Network
agent-browser network requests                 # Inspect tracked requests
agent-browser network requests --type xhr,fetch  # Filter by resource type
agent-browser network requests --method POST   # Filter by HTTP method
agent-browser network requests --status 2xx    # Filter by status (200, 2xx, 400-499)
agent-browser network request <requestId>      # View full request/response detail
agent-browser network route "**/api/*" --abort  # Block matching requests
agent-browser network har start                # Start HAR recording
agent-browser network har stop ./capture.har   # Stop and save HAR file

# Viewport & Device Emulation
agent-browser set viewport 1920 1080          # Set viewport size (default: 1280x720)
agent-browser set viewport 1920 1080 2        # 2x retina (same CSS size, higher res screenshots)
agent-browser set device "iPhone 14"          # Emulate device (viewport + user agent)

# Capture
agent-browser screenshot              # Screenshot to temp dir
agent-browser screenshot --full       # Full page screenshot
agent-browser screenshot --annotate   # Annotated screenshot with numbered element labels
agent-browser screenshot --screenshot-dir ./shots  # Save to custom directory
agent-browser screenshot --screenshot-format jpeg --screenshot-quality 80
agent-browser pdf output.pdf          # Save as PDF

# Live preview / streaming
agent-browser stream enable           # Start runtime WebSocket streaming on an auto-selected port
agent-browser stream enable --port 9223  # Bind a specific localhost port
agent-browser stream status           # Inspect enabled state, port, connection, and screencasting
agent-browser stream disable          # Stop runtime streaming and remove the .stream metadata file

# Clipboard
agent-browser clipboard read                      # Read text from clipboard
agent-browser clipboard write "Hello, World!"     # Write text to clipboard
agent-browser clipboard copy                      # Copy current selection
agent-browser clipboard paste                     # Paste from clipboard

# Dialogs (alert, confirm, prompt, beforeunload)
# By default, alert and beforeunload dialogs are auto-accepted so they never block the agent.
# confirm and prompt dialogs still require explicit handling.
# Use --no-auto-dialog (or AGENT_BROWSER_NO_AUTO_DIALOG=1) to disable automatic handling.
agent-browser dialog accept              # Accept dialog
agent-browser dialog accept "my input"   # Accept prompt dialog with text
agent-browser dialog dismiss             # Dismiss/cancel dialog
agent-browser dialog status              # Check if a dialog is currently open

# Diff (compare page states)
agent-browser diff snapshot                          # Compare current vs last snapshot
agent-browser diff snapshot --baseline before.txt    # Compare current vs saved file
agent-browser diff screenshot --baseline before.png  # Visual pixel diff
agent-browser diff url <url1> <url2>                 # Compare two pages
agent-browser diff url <url1> <url2> --wait-until networkidle  # Custom wait strategy
agent-browser diff url <url1> <url2> --selector "#main"  # Scope to element
```

## Streaming

Every session automatically starts a WebSocket stream server on an OS-assigned port. Use `agent-browser stream status` to see the bound port and connection state. Use `stream disable` to tear it down, and `stream enable --port <port>` to re-enable on a specific port.

## Batch Execution

Execute multiple commands in a single invocation by piping a JSON array of string arrays to `batch`. This avoids per-command process startup overhead when running multi-step workflows.

```bash
echo '[
  ["open", "https://example.com"],
  ["snapshot", "-i"],
  ["click", "@e1"],
  ["screenshot", "result.png"]
]' | agent-browser batch --json

# Stop on first error
agent-browser batch --bail < commands.json
```

Use `batch` when you have a known sequence of commands that don't depend on intermediate output. Use separate commands or `&&` chaining when you need to parse output between steps (e.g., snapshot to discover refs, then interact).

## Common Patterns

### Form Submission

```bash
agent-browser open https://example.com/signup
agent-browser snapshot -i
agent-browser fill @e1 "Jane Doe"
agent-browser fill @e2 "jane@example.com"
agent-browser select @e3 "California"
agent-browser check @e4
agent-browser click @e5
agent-browser wait --load networkidle
```

### Authentication with Auth Vault (Recommended)

```bash
# Save credentials once (encrypted with AGENT_BROWSER_ENCRYPTION_KEY)
# Recommended: pipe password via stdin to avoid shell history exposure
echo "pass" | agent-browser auth save github --url https://github.com/login --username user --password-stdin

# Login using saved profile (LLM never sees password)
agent-browser auth login github

# List/show/delete profiles
agent-browser auth list
agent-browser auth show github
agent-browser auth delete github
```

`auth login` waits for username/password/submit selectors before interacting, with a timeout tied to the default action timeout.

### Authentication with State Persistence

```bash
# Login once and save state
agent-browser open https://app.example.com/login
agent-browser snapshot -i
agent-browser fill @e1 "$USERNAME"
agent-browser fill @e2 "$PASSWORD"
agent-browser click @e3
agent-browser wait --url "**/dashboard"
agent-browser state save auth.json

# Reuse in future sessions
agent-browser state load auth.json
agent-browser open https://app.example.com/dashboard
```

### Session Persistence

```bash
# Auto-save/restore cookies and localStorage across browser restarts
agent-browser --session-name myapp open https://app.example.com/login
# ... login flow ...
agent-browser close  # State auto-saved to ~/.agent-browser/sessions/

# Next time, state is auto-loaded
agent-browser --session-name myapp open https://app.example.com/dashboard

# Encrypt state at rest
export AGENT_BROWSER_ENCRYPTION_KEY=$(openssl rand -hex 32)
agent-browser --session-name secure open https://app.example.com

# Manage saved states
agent-browser state list
agent-browser state show myapp-default.json
agent-browser state clear myapp
agent-browser state clean --older-than 7
```

### Working with Iframes

Iframe content is automatically inlined in snapshots. Refs inside iframes carry frame context, so you can interact with them directly.

```bash
agent-browser open https://example.com/checkout
agent-browser snapshot -i
# @e1 [heading] "Checkout"
# @e2 [Iframe] "payment-frame"
#   @e3 [input] "Card number"
#   @e4 [input] "Expiry"
#   @e5 [button] "Pay"

# Interact directly — no frame switch needed
agent-browser fill @e3 "4111111111111111"
agent-browser fill @e4 "12/28"
agent-browser click @e5

# To scope a snapshot to one iframe:
agent-browser frame @e2
agent-browser snapshot -i         # Only iframe content
agent-browser frame main          # Return to main frame
```

### Data Extraction

```bash
agent-browser open https://example.com/products
agent-browser snapshot -i
agent-browser get text @e5           # Get specific element text
agent-browser get text body > page.txt  # Get all page text

# JSON output for parsing
agent-browser snapshot -i --json
agent-browser get text @e1 --json
```

### Parallel Sessions

```bash
agent-browser --session site1 open https://site-a.com
agent-browser --session site2 open https://site-b.com

agent-browser --session site1 snapshot -i
agent-browser --session site2 snapshot -i

agent-browser session list
```

### Connect to Existing Chrome

```bash
# Auto-discover running Chrome with remote debugging enabled
agent-browser --auto-connect open https://example.com
agent-browser --auto-connect snapshot

# Or with explicit CDP port
agent-browser --cdp 9222 snapshot
```

Auto-connect discovers Chrome via `DevToolsActivePort`, common debugging ports (9222, 9229), and falls back to a direct WebSocket connection if HTTP-based CDP discovery fails.

### Color Scheme (Dark Mode)

```bash
# Persistent dark mode via flag (applies to all pages and new tabs)
agent-browser --color-scheme dark open https://example.com

# Or via environment variable
AGENT_BROWSER_COLOR_SCHEME=dark agent-browser open https://example.com

# Or set during session (persists for su

---

Source: [Claudary](https://claudary.paisolsolutions.com/skills/skill-169) · https://claudary.paisolsolutions.com