Browser Automation with agent-browser
Core Workflow
Every browser automation follows this pattern:
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Navigate: agent-browser open <url>
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Snapshot: agent-browser snapshot -i (get element refs like @e1 , @e2 )
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Interact: Use refs to click, fill, select
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Re-snapshot: After navigation or DOM changes, get fresh refs
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
Essential Commands
Navigation
agent-browser open <url> # Navigate (aliases: goto, navigate) agent-browser close # Close browser
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 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 scroll down 500 # Scroll page
Get information
agent-browser get text @e1 # Get element text agent-browser get url # Get current URL agent-browser get title # Get page title
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
Capture
agent-browser screenshot # Screenshot to temp dir agent-browser screenshot --full # Full page screenshot agent-browser pdf output.pdf # Save as PDF
Common Patterns
Form Submission
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 State Persistence
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
Data Extraction
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
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
Visual Browser (Debugging)
agent-browser --headed open https://example.com agent-browser highlight @e1 # Highlight element agent-browser record start demo.webm # Record session
iOS Simulator (Mobile Safari)
List available iOS simulators
agent-browser device list
Launch Safari on a specific device
agent-browser -p ios --device "iPhone 16 Pro" open https://example.com
Same workflow as desktop - snapshot, interact, re-snapshot
agent-browser -p ios snapshot -i agent-browser -p ios tap @e1 # Tap (alias for click) agent-browser -p ios fill @e2 "text" agent-browser -p ios swipe up # Mobile-specific gesture
Take screenshot
agent-browser -p ios screenshot mobile.png
Close session (shuts down simulator)
agent-browser -p ios close
Requirements: macOS with Xcode, Appium (npm install -g appium && appium driver install xcuitest )
Real devices: Works with physical iOS devices if pre-configured. Use --device "<UDID>" where UDID is from xcrun xctrace list devices .
Ref Lifecycle (Important)
Refs (@e1 , @e2 , etc.) are invalidated when the page changes. Always re-snapshot after:
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Clicking links or buttons that navigate
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Form submissions
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Dynamic content loading (dropdowns, modals)
agent-browser click @e5 # Navigates to new page agent-browser snapshot -i # MUST re-snapshot agent-browser click @e1 # Use new refs
Semantic Locators (Alternative to Refs)
When refs are unavailable or unreliable, use semantic locators:
agent-browser find text "Sign In" click agent-browser find label "Email" fill "user@test.com" agent-browser find role button click --name "Submit" agent-browser find placeholder "Search" type "query" agent-browser find testid "submit-btn" click
Deep-Dive Documentation
Reference When to Use
references/commands.md Full command reference with all options
references/snapshot-refs.md Ref lifecycle, invalidation rules, troubleshooting
references/session-management.md Parallel sessions, state persistence, concurrent scraping
references/authentication.md Login flows, OAuth, 2FA handling, state reuse
references/video-recording.md Recording workflows for debugging and documentation
references/proxy-support.md Proxy configuration, geo-testing, rotating proxies
Ready-to-Use Templates
Template Description
templates/form-automation.sh Form filling with validation
templates/authenticated-session.sh Login once, reuse state
templates/capture-workflow.sh Content extraction with screenshots
./templates/form-automation.sh https://example.com/form ./templates/authenticated-session.sh https://app.example.com/login ./templates/capture-workflow.sh https://example.com ./output