Playwriter
Playwriter is a tool that enables AI agents to control a user's real Chrome browser using Playwright. It works by installing a Chrome extension and a CLI, allowing agents to interact with the browser while preserving existing logins, cookies, and extensions. This avoids the limitations of headless browsers and provides a more realistic browsing environment for automation tasks. The tool supports multiple integration methods, including a command-line interface (CLI), an MCP server for agent communication, and a skill recorder. It offers features such as accessibility snapshots, search and diff capabilities, visual labels, session management, isolated state, dedicated pages, a debugger and editor, network interception, and screen recording. Remote access via tunnel or LAN is also supported. Playwriter is available as a Chrome extension with over 20,000 users and a 4.7 rating on the Chrome Web Store.
- Category
- AI Browsers
- Pricing
- Unknown
Problem solved
AI agents often struggle to interact with websites that require authentication or have complex client-side behavior. Headless browsers lack the logged-in state and extensions that real users have. Playwriter solves this by letting agents control the user's actual Chrome browser, preserving sessions, cookies, and extensions, enabling seamless automation of web tasks that depend on a real browsing context.
Use cases
- Automating repetitive web workflows that require login
- Web scraping with authenticated sessions
- Testing web applications with real browser state
- Building AI agents that interact with websites
- Recording and replaying browser interactions via skill recorder
- Monitoring or diffing web page changes with snapshots
- Intercepting and modifying network requests during automation
- Recording screen sessions for debugging or documentation
Audience
- Developers
- ML Engineers
- Researchers
- Hobbyists
Pros
- Works with your real Chrome browser, preserving logins, cookies, and extensions
- Supports AI agents via MCP server, CLI, and skill recorder
- Provides accessibility snapshots, search, and diffing for agent interaction
- Includes network interception, screen recording, and remote access
- Available as a Chrome extension with 20k+ users and 4.7 rating
Cons
- Pricing information is not publicly available
- Requires installing a Chrome extension and CLI
- May not work with non-Chrome browsers
- Agent integration requires MCP or skill setup
Official website: https://playwriter.dev/
Canonical LambdaBase page: https://www.lambdabase.com/tools/playwriter