agent-browser
Skill by ara.so — Daily 2026 Skills collection.
agent-browser is a headless browser automation CLI built in Rust, designed for AI agents. It wraps Chrome via the Chrome DevTools Protocol (CDP) and exposes a fast, ergonomic command-line interface for navigation, interaction, accessibility snapshots, screenshots, network interception, and more — with no Node.js or Playwright runtime required.
Installation
Recommended (npm global)
npm install -g agent-browser
agent-browser install # Download Chrome for Testing (first time only)
macOS (Homebrew)
brew install agent-browser
agent-browser install
Rust / Cargo
cargo install agent-browser
agent-browser install
Local project dependency
npm install agent-browser
# Add to package.json scripts or invoke via npx
Linux (with system dependencies)
agent-browser install --with-deps
Quick Start
agent-browser open https://example.com
agent-browser snapshot # Accessibility tree with @refs (best for AI)
agent-browser click @e2 # Click by ref from snapshot
agent-browser fill @e3 "hello@example.com" # Fill by ref
agent-browser get text @e1 # Get text content
agent-browser screenshot page.png
agent-browser close
Core Commands
Navigation
agent-browser open <url> # Navigate (aliases: goto, navigate)
agent-browser get url # Get current URL
agent-browser get title # Get page title
agent-browser close # Close browser (aliases: quit, exit)
Accessibility Snapshot (recommended for AI agents)
agent-browser snapshot # Returns accessibility tree with @ref IDs
agent-browser snapshot -i # Interactive / compact mode
Snapshot output includes @eN refs you can use directly:
@e1 [button] "Submit"
@e2 [textbox] "Email" value=""
@e3 [link] "Sign in"
Then act on them:
agent-browser fill @e2 "user@example.com"
agent-browser click @e1
Interaction
agent-browser click <sel> # Click element
agent-browser dblclick <sel> # Double-click
agent-browser fill <sel> <text> # Clear and fill input
agent-browser type <sel> <text> # Type into element
agent-browser press <key> # Press key (Enter, Tab, Control+a)
agent-browser keyboard type <text> # Type at current focus (real keystrokes)
agent-browser keyboard inserttext <text> # Insert text without key events
agent-browser hover <sel> # Hover element
agent-browser select <sel> <value> # Select dropdown option
agent-browser check <sel> # Check checkbox
agent-browser uncheck <sel> # Uncheck checkbox
agent-browser scroll down 500 # Scroll (up/down/left/right, optional px)
agent-browser scroll down --selector "#feed" # Scroll within element
agent-browser scrollintoview <sel> # Scroll element into view
agent-browser drag <src> <target> # Drag and drop
agent-browser upload <sel> /path/file.pdf # Upload file
Screenshots & PDF
agent-browser screenshot # Save to temp dir, print path
agent-browser screenshot page.png # Save to path
agent-browser screenshot --full page.png # Full-page screenshot
agent-browser screenshot --annotate # Numbered element labels overlay
agent-browser screenshot --screenshot-dir ./shots # Custom output directory
agent-browser screenshot --screenshot-format jpeg --screenshot-quality 80
agent-browser pdf output.pdf # Save page as PDF
Getting Element Info
agent-browser get text <sel> # Text content
agent-browser get html <sel> # innerHTML
agent-browser get value <sel> # Input value
agent-browser get attr <sel> <attr> # Attribute value
agent-browser get count <sel> # Count matching elements
agent-browser get box <sel> # Bounding box
agent-browser get styles <sel> # Computed styles
agent-browser get cdp-url # CDP WebSocket URL
State Checks
agent-browser is visible <sel>
agent-browser is enabled <sel>
agent-browser is checked <sel>
Semantic Locators (find)
agent-browser find role button click --name "Submit"
agent-browser find text "Sign In" click
agent-browser find label "Email" fill "test@example.com"
agent-browser find placeholder "Search..." fill "rust"
agent-browser find testid "login-btn" click
agent-browser find first ".item" click
agent-browser find nth 2 "a" text
agent-browser find role textbox fill "hello" --name "Username"
Actions: click, fill, type, hover, focus, check, uncheck, text
Waiting
agent-browser wait "#modal" # Wait for element visible
agent-browser wait 2000 # Wait N milliseconds
agent-browser wait --text "Welcome back" # Wait for text
agent-browser wait --url "**/dashboard" # Wait for URL pattern
agent-browser wait --load networkidle # Wait for load state
agent-browser wait --fn "window.appReady === true" # Wait for JS condition
agent-browser wait "#spinner" --state hidden # Wait for element to disappear
Load states: load, domcontentloaded, networkidle
JavaScript Eval
agent-browser eval "document.title"
agent-browser eval "JSON.stringify(window.__STATE__)"
agent-browser eval -b "BASE64_ENCODED_JS"
echo "return document.body.innerHTML" | agent-browser eval --stdin
Batch Execution (efficient multi-step)
echo '[
["open", "https://example.com"],
["snapshot", "-i"],
["fill", "@e2", "user@example.com"],
["click", "@e1"],
["screenshot", "result.png"]
]' | agent-browser batch --json
# Stop on first failure
agent-browser batch --bail < commands.json
Tabs & Frames
agent-browser tab # List tabs
agent-browser tab new https://... # New tab with URL
agent-browser tab 2 # Switch to tab 2
agent-browser tab close # Close current tab
agent-browser frame "#my-iframe" # Switch into iframe
agent-browser frame main # Return to main frame
Cookies & Storage
agent-browser cookies
agent-browser cookies set session_id "abc123"
agent-browser cookies clear
agent-browser storage local
agent-browser storage local set theme dark
agent-browser storage local clear
agent-browser storage session set cart '{"items":[]}'
Network
agent-browser network route "**/api/users" --body '{"users":[]}' # Mock response
agent-browser network route "**/ads/**" --abort # Block requests
agent-browser network unroute # Remove all routes
agent-browser network requests --filter api # View requests
agent-browser network har start
agent-browser network har stop recording.har
Browser Settings
agent-browser set viewport 1280 800
agent-browser set viewport 375 812 2 # With device pixel ratio (retina)
agent-browser set device "iPhone 14"
agent-browser set geo 37.7749 -122.4194
agent-browser set offline on
agent-browser set headers '{"X-Custom":"value"}'
agent-browser set credentials admin secret
agent-browser set media dark
Auth State
agent-browser state save ./auth.json # Save cookies + localStorage
agent-browser state load ./auth.json # Restore auth state
agent-browser state list # List saved states
agent-browser state show auth.json # Summary of saved state
Dialogs
agent-browser dialog accept # Accept alert/confirm/prompt
agent-browser dialog accept "My input" # Accept prompt with text
agent-browser dialog dismiss
Clipboard
agent-browser clipboard read
agent-browser clipboard write "Hello, World!"
agent-browser clipboard copy # Ctrl+C current selection
agent-browser clipboard paste # Ctrl+V
Diff & Visual Testing
agent-browser diff snapshot # vs last snapshot
agent-browser diff snapshot --baseline before.txt # vs saved file
agent-browser diff snapshot --selector "#main" --compact
agent-browser diff screenshot --baseline before.png
agent-browser diff screenshot --baseline b.png -o diff.png
agent-browser diff url https://v1.example.com https://v2.example.com
agent-browser diff url https://v1.example.com https://v2.example.com --screenshot
agent-browser diff url https://v1.example.com https://v2.example.com --selector "#content"
Debug & Profiling
agent-browser trace start trace.zip
agent-browser trace stop
agent-browser profiler start
agent-browser profiler stop profile.json
agent-browser console # View console messages
agent-browser errors # View uncaught JS exceptions
agent-browser highlight "#button" # Visually highlight element
agent-browser inspect # Open Chrome DevTools
agent-browser connect 9222 # Connect to existing browser via CDP port
Common Patterns
Login flow and save session
#!/bin/bash
agent-browser open https://app.example.com/login
agent-browser fill "#email" "$LOGIN_EMAIL"
agent-browser fill "#password" "$LOGIN_PASSWORD"
agent-browser click "[type=submit]"
agent-browser wait --url "**/dashboard"
agent-browser state save ./session.json
AI agent loop with snapshot-driven interaction
#!/bin/bash
agent-browser open https://app.example.com
agent-browser state load ./session.json
# Get snapshot, parse @refs, act
SNAPSHOT=$(agent-browser snapshot)
echo "$SNAPSHOT"
# Agent determines @e5 is the search box
agent-browser fill @e5 "quarterly report"
agent-browser press Enter
agent-browser wait --load networkidle
agent-browser snapshot
agent-browser screenshot results.png
Batch commands from a script (JSON)
cat > commands.json << 'EOF'
[
["open", "https://news.ycombinator.com"],
["wait", "--load", "networkidle"],
["get", "title"],
["snapshot"],
["screenshot", "hn.png"]
]
EOF
agent-browser batch --json < commands.json
Scrape with mocked network
agent-browser open https://api-heavy-app.example.com
agent-browser network route "**/api/slow-endpoint" --body '{"data":"mocked"}'
agent-browser snapshot
agent-browser network unroute
Full-page screenshot with annotations
agent-browser open https://example.com
agent-browser wait --load networkidle
agent-browser screenshot --full --annotate annotated.png
Connect to already-running Chrome
# Start Chrome with remote debugging
google-chrome --remote-debugging-port=9222 &
agent-browser connect 9222
agent-browser open https://example.com
agent-browser snapshot
Emulate mobile device
agent-browser set device "iPhone 14"
agent-browser open https://example.com
agent-browser screenshot mobile.png
HAR recording for network analysis
agent-browser open https://example.com
agent-browser network har start
agent-browser click "#load-data"
agent-browser wait --load networkidle
agent-browser network har stop session.har
Selector Reference
| Format | Example | Notes |
|---|---|---|
@ref | @e1, @e12 | From snapshot output — preferred for AI |
| CSS | #id, .class, [attr=val] | Standard CSS selectors |
| Text | "Sign In" | Exact text match |
| XPath | //button[@type='submit'] | Full XPath |
Troubleshooting
Chrome not found
agent-browser install # Downloads Chrome for Testing
agent-browser install --with-deps # Linux: also installs system libs
Element not found / timing issues
agent-browser wait "#my-element" # Wait for visibility first
agent-browser wait --load networkidle # Wait for page to settle
agent-browser wait --fn "!!document.querySelector('#app')"
Selector issues — use snapshot refs instead
# Instead of fragile CSS:
agent-browser click ".btn.btn-primary.submit-form"
# Use snapshot refs:
agent-browser snapshot # Find @e7 = [button] "Submit"
agent-browser click @e7
Debug what's on the page
agent-browser screenshot debug.png # Visual check
agent-browser snapshot # Accessibility tree
agent-browser console # JS console output
agent-browser errors # Uncaught exceptions
agent-browser eval "document.readyState"
Auth issues between sessions
agent-browser state save ./auth.json # After successful login
agent-browser state load ./auth.json # At start of next session
Handling alerts/dialogs
# Set up handler BEFORE the action that triggers dialog
agent-browser dialog accept
agent-browser click "#delete-button"
Performance — use batch for multi-step workflows
# Slow: one process per command
agent-browser open https://example.com
agent-browser fill "#q" "search"
agent-browser click "#submit"
# Fast: single process, multiple commands
echo '[["open","https://example.com"],["fill","#q","search"],["click","#submit"]]' \
| agent-browser batch --json