Introduction
The Playwright MCP server provides browser automation capabilities through the Model Context Protocol, enabling LLMs to interact with web pages using structured accessibility snapshots. It works with VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, Claude Desktop, and any other MCP client — no vision models required.
Prerequisites
Before you begin, make sure you have the following installed:
Node.js 20 or newer
An MCP client: VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, Claude Code, Claude Desktop, or similar
Getting Started
Installation
Add the Playwright MCP server to your client using the standard configuration:
{
"mcpServers": {
"playwright": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"@playwright/mcp@latest"
]
}
}
}
VS Code
Click one of the buttons below to install directly:
Install in VS Code Install in VS Code Insiders
Or install via the VS Code CLI:
code --add-mcp '{"name":"playwright","command":"npx","args":["@playwright/mcp@latest"]}'
Cursor
Install in Cursor
Or go to Cursor Settings → MCP → Add new MCP Server and use command type with npx @playwright/mcp@latest.
Claude Code
claude mcp add playwright npx @playwright/mcp@latest
Claude Desktop
Follow the MCP install guide and use the standard config above.
Other clients
The standard configuration works with most MCP clients, including Windsurf, Cline, Goose, Kiro, Codex, Copilot CLI, and others. Consult your client's MCP documentation for where to place the config.
First interaction
Once the server is connected, ask your AI assistant to interact with a web page:
Navigate to https://demo.playwright.dev/todomvc and add a few todo items.
The assistant will use Playwright MCP tools to open the browser, navigate to the page, and interact with elements — all through structured accessibility snapshots rather than screenshots.
Core Features
Accessibility snapshots
Playwright MCP operates on the page's accessibility tree, not pixels. When a tool runs, it returns a structured snapshot showing the page elements, their roles, and text content. The LLM uses element references from these snapshots to interact with the page:
- heading "todos" [level=1]
- textbox "What needs to be done?" [ref=e5]
- listitem:
- checkbox "Toggle Todo" [ref=e10]
- text: "Buy groceries"
The LLM reads this snapshot and uses ref=e5 to type into the textbox or ref=e10 to check the checkbox.
Interacting with pages
Playwright MCP provides tools for all common browser interactions:
Navigation: Open URLs, go back/forward, reload pages.
Clicking and typing: Click elements, type text, fill forms, select dropdowns.
Screenshots: Capture the current page or specific elements for visual verification.
Keyboard and mouse: Press keys, hover, drag and drop.
Dialogs: Accept or dismiss browser dialogs.
Tabs: Create, close, and switch between browser tabs.
Running Playwright code
For complex interactions that go beyond individual tool calls, use the browser_run_code_unsafe tool to execute Playwright scripts directly. This tool runs arbitrary JavaScript in the Playwright server process and is RCE-equivalent — only enable it for trusted MCP clients:
Run this Playwright code to verify the todo count:
async (page) => {
const count = await page.getByTestId('todo-count').textContent();
return count;
}
Network monitoring and mocking
Inspect network traffic and mock API responses:
View network requests: List all requests made since page load.
Mock routes: Set up URL pattern matching to return custom responses.
Console messages: Access browser console output for debugging.
Storage state
Save and restore browser state including cookies and localStorage:
Save state: Persist authentication and session data to a file.
Restore state: Load previously saved state into a new session.
Cookie management: List, get, set, and delete individual cookies.
Configuration
Headed mode
By default, Playwright MCP runs the browser in headed mode so you can see what's happening. To run headless:
{
"mcpServers": {
"playwright": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"@playwright/mcp@latest",
"--headless"
]
}
}
}
Browser selection
Choose which browser to use:
{
"mcpServers": {
"playwright": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"@playwright/mcp@latest",
"--browser=firefox"
]
}
}
}
Supported values: chrome, firefox, webkit, msedge.
User profile
Playwright MCP supports three profile modes:
Persistent (default): Login state and cookies are preserved between sessions. The profile is stored in ms-playwright/mcp-{channel}-{workspace-hash} in your platform's cache directory, so different projects get separate profiles automatically. Override with --user-data-dir.
Isolated: Each session starts fresh. Pass --isolated to enable. You can load initial state with --storage-state.
Browser extension: Connect to your existing browser tabs with the Playwright Extension. Pass --extension to enable.
Configuration file
For advanced configuration, use a JSON config file:
npx @playwright/mcp@latest --config path/to/config.json
The config file supports browser options, context options, network rules, timeouts, and more. See the Playwright MCP repository for the full schema.
Standalone server
When running a headed browser on a system without a display or from IDE worker processes, start the MCP server separately with HTTP transport:
npx @playwright/mcp@latest --port 8931
HTTP sessions use a five-second heartbeat timeout. If your MCP client or proxy does not answer server-initiated pings, set PLAYWRIGHT_MCP_PING_TIMEOUT_MS to a longer timeout in milliseconds. Set it to 0 to disable the heartbeat.
Then point your MCP client to the HTTP endpoint:
{
"mcpServers": {
"playwright": {
"url": "http://localhost:8931/mcp"
}
}
}
Quick Reference
Action How to do it
Install server Add standard config to your MCP client
Navigate to a page Ask: "Go to https://example.com"
Click an element Ask: "Click the Submit button"
Fill a form Ask: "Fill in the email field with test@example.com"
Take a screenshot Ask: "Take a screenshot of the page"
Run Playwright code Ask: "Run this Playwright code: ..."
Mock an API Ask: "Mock the /api/users endpoint to return ..."
Use headed mode Default. Pass --headless to disable
Choose a browser Pass --browser=firefox in args
