Playwright Cli

Browser Automation with playwright-cli

Quick start

# open new browser
playwright-cli open
# navigate to a page
playwright-cli goto https://playwright.dev
# interact with the page using refs from the snapshot
playwright-cli click e15
playwright-cli type "page.click"
playwright-cli press Enter
# take a screenshot (rarely used, as snapshot is more common)
playwright-cli screenshot
# close the browser
playwright-cli close

Commands

Core

playwright-cli open
# open and navigate right away
playwright-cli open https://example.com/
playwright-cli goto https://playwright.dev
playwright-cli type "search query"
playwright-cli click e3
playwright-cli dblclick e7
playwright-cli fill e5 "user@example.com"
playwright-cli drag e2 e8
playwright-cli hover e4
playwright-cli select e9 "option-value"
playwright-cli upload ./document.pdf
playwright-cli check e12
playwright-cli uncheck e12
playwright-cli snapshot
playwright-cli snapshot --filename=after-click.yaml
playwright-cli eval "document.title"
playwright-cli eval "el => el.textContent" e5
playwright-cli dialog-accept
playwright-cli dialog-accept "confirmation text"
playwright-cli dialog-dismiss
playwright-cli resize 1920 1080
playwright-cli close

Navigation

playwright-cli go-back
playwright-cli go-forward
playwright-cli reload

Keyboard

playwright-cli press Enter
playwright-cli press ArrowDown
playwright-cli keydown Shift
playwright-cli keyup Shift

Mouse

playwright-cli mousemove 150 300
playwright-cli mousedown
playwright-cli mousedown right
playwright-cli mouseup
playwright-cli mouseup right
playwright-cli mousewheel 0 100

Save as

playwright-cli screenshot
playwright-cli screenshot e5
playwright-cli screenshot --filename=page.png
playwright-cli pdf --filename=page.pdf

Tabs

playwright-cli tab-list
playwright-cli tab-new
playwright-cli tab-new https://example.com/page
playwright-cli tab-close
playwright-cli tab-close 2
playwright-cli tab-select 0

Storage

playwright-cli state-save
playwright-cli state-save auth.json
playwright-cli state-load auth.json

# Cookies
playwright-cli cookie-list
playwright-cli cookie-list --domain=example.com
playwright-cli cookie-get session_id
playwright-cli cookie-set session_id abc123
playwright-cli cookie-set session_id abc123 --domain=example.com --httpOnly --secure
playwright-cli cookie-delete session_id
playwright-cli cookie-clear

# LocalStorage
playwright-cli localstorage-list
playwright-cli localstorage-get theme
playwright-cli localstorage-set theme dark
playwright-cli localstorage-delete theme
playwright-cli localstorage-clear

# SessionStorage
playwright-cli sessionstorage-list
playwright-cli sessionstorage-get step
playwright-cli sessionstorage-set step 3
playwright-cli sessionstorage-delete step
playwright-cli sessionstorage-clear

Network

playwright-cli route "**/*.jpg" --status=404
playwright-cli route "https://api.example.com/**" --body='{"mock": true}'
playwright-cli route-list
playwright-cli unroute "**/*.jpg"
playwright-cli unroute

DevTools

playwright-cli console
playwright-cli console warning
playwright-cli network
playwright-cli run-code "async page => await page.context().grantPermissions(['geolocation'])"
playwright-cli tracing-start
playwright-cli tracing-stop
playwright-cli video-start
playwright-cli video-stop video.webm

Open parameters

# Use specific browser when creating session
playwright-cli open --browser=chrome
playwright-cli open --browser=firefox
playwright-cli open --browser=webkit
playwright-cli open --browser=msedge
# Connect to browser via extension
playwright-cli open --extension

# Use persistent profile (by default profile is in-memory)
playwright-cli open --persistent
# Use persistent profile with custom directory
playwright-cli open --profile=/path/to/profile

# Start with config file
playwright-cli open --config=my-config.json

# Close the browser
playwright-cli close
# Delete user data for the default session
playwright-cli delete-data

Snapshots

After each command, playwright-cli provides a snapshot of the current browser state.

> playwright-cli goto https://example.com
### Page
- Page URL: https://example.com/
- Page Title: Example Domain
### Snapshot
[Snapshot](.playwright-cli/page-2026-02-14T19-22-42-679Z.yml)

You can also take a snapshot on demand using playwright-cli snapshot command.

If --filename is not provided, a new snapshot file is created with a timestamp. Default to automatic file naming, use --filename= when artifact is a part of the workflow result.

Browser Sessions

# create new browser session named "mysession" with persistent profile
playwright-cli -s=mysession open example.com --persistent
# same with manually specified profile directory (use when requested explicitly)
playwright-cli -s=mysession open example.com --profile=/path/to/profile
playwright-cli -s=mysession click e6
playwright-cli -s=mysession close  # stop a named browser
playwright-cli -s=mysession delete-data  # delete user data for persistent session

playwright-cli list
# Close all browsers
playwright-cli close-all
# Forcefully kill all browser processes
playwright-cli kill-all

Local installation

In some cases user might want to install playwright-cli locally. If running globally available playwright-cli binary fails, use npx playwright-cli to run the commands. For example:

npx playwright-cli open https://example.com
npx playwright-cli click e1

Example: Form submission

playwright-cli open https://example.com/form
playwright-cli snapshot

playwright-cli fill e1 "user@example.com"
playwright-cli fill e2 "password123"
playwright-cli click e3
playwright-cli snapshot
playwright-cli close

Example: Multi-tab workflow

playwright-cli open https://example.com
playwright-cli tab-new https://example.com/other
playwright-cli tab-list
playwright-cli tab-select 0
playwright-cli snapshot
playwright-cli close

Example: Debugging with DevTools

playwright-cli open https://example.com
playwright-cli click e4
playwright-cli fill e7 "test"
playwright-cli console
playwright-cli network
playwright-cli close

playwright-cli open https://example.com
playwright-cli tracing-start
playwright-cli click e4
playwright-cli fill e7 "test"
playwright-cli tracing-stop
playwright-cli close

Request Mocking

Intercept, mock, modify, and block network requests.

CLI Route Commands

# Mock with custom status
playwright-cli route "**/*.jpg" --status=404

# Mock with JSON body
playwright-cli route "**/api/users" --body='[{"id":1,"name":"Alice"}]' --content-type=application/json

# Mock with custom headers
playwright-cli route "**/api/data" --body='{"ok":true}' --header="X-Custom: value"

# Remove headers from requests
playwright-cli route "**/*" --remove-header=cookie,authorization

# List active routes
playwright-cli route-list

# Remove a route or all routes
playwright-cli unroute "**/*.jpg"
playwright-cli unroute

URL Patterns

**/api/users           - Exact path match
**/api/*/details       - Wildcard in path
**/*.{png,jpg,jpeg}    - Match file extensions
**/search?q=*          - Match query parameters

Advanced Mocking with run-code

For conditional responses, request body inspection, response modification, or delays:

Conditional Response Based on Request

playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.route('**/api/login', route => {
    const body = route.request().postDataJSON();
    if (body.username === 'admin') {
      route.fulfill({ body: JSON.stringify({ token: 'mock-token' }) });
    } else {
      route.fulfill({ status: 401, body: JSON.stringify({ error: 'Invalid' }) });
    }
  });
}"

Modify Real Response

playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.route('**/api/user', async route => {
    const response = await route.fetch();
    const json = await response.json();
    json.isPremium = true;
    await route.fulfill({ response, json });
  });
}"

Simulate Network Failures

playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.route('**/api/offline', route => route.abort('internetdisconnected'));
}"
# Options: connectionrefused, timedout, connectionreset, internetdisconnected

Delayed Response

playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.route('**/api/slow', async route => {
    await new Promise(r => setTimeout(r, 3000));
    route.fulfill({ body: JSON.stringify({ data: 'loaded' }) });
  });
}"

Running Custom Playwright Code

Use run-code to execute arbitrary Playwright code for advanced scenarios not covered by CLI commands.

Syntax

playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  // Your Playwright code here
  // Access page.context() for browser context operations
}"

Geolocation

# Grant geolocation permission and set location
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.context().grantPermissions(['geolocation']);
  await page.context().setGeolocation({ latitude: 37.7749, longitude: -122.4194 });
}"

# Set location to London
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.context().grantPermissions(['geolocation']);
  await page.context().setGeolocation({ latitude: 51.5074, longitude: -0.1278 });
}"

# Clear geolocation override
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.context().clearPermissions();
}"

Permissions

# Grant multiple permissions
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.context().grantPermissions([
    'geolocation',
    'notifications',
    'camera',
    'microphone'
  ]);
}"

# Grant permissions for specific origin
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.context().grantPermissions(['clipboard-read'], {
    origin: 'https://example.com'
  });
}"

Media Emulation

# Emulate dark color scheme
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.emulateMedia({ colorScheme: 'dark' });
}"

# Emulate light color scheme
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.emulateMedia({ colorScheme: 'light' });
}"

# Emulate reduced motion
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.emulateMedia({ reducedMotion: 'reduce' });
}"

# Emulate print media
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.emulateMedia({ media: 'print' });
}"

Wait Strategies

# Wait for network idle
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.waitForLoadState('networkidle');
}"

# Wait for specific element
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.waitForSelector('.loading', { state: 'hidden' });
}"

# Wait for function to return true
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.waitForFunction(() => window.appReady === true);
}"

# Wait with timeout
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.waitForSelector('.result', { timeout: 10000 });
}"

Frames and Iframes

# Work with iframe
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  const frame = page.locator('iframe#my-iframe').contentFrame();
  await frame.locator('button').click();
}"

# Get all frames
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  const frames = page.frames();
  return frames.map(f => f.url());
}"

File Downloads

# Handle file download
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  const [download] = await Promise.all([
    page.waitForEvent('download'),
    page.click('a.download-link')
  ]);
  await download.saveAs('./downloaded-file.pdf');
  return download.suggestedFilename();
}"

Clipboard

# Read clipboard (requires permission)
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.context().grantPermissions(['clipboard-read']);
  return await page.evaluate(() => navigator.clipboard.readText());
}"

# Write to clipboard
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.evaluate(text => navigator.clipboard.writeText(text), 'Hello clipboard!');
}"

Page Information

# Get page title
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  return await page.title();
}"

# Get current URL
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  return page.url();
}"

# Get page content
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  return await page.content();
}"

# Get viewport size
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  return page.viewportSize();
}"

JavaScript Execution

# Execute JavaScript and return result
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  return await page.evaluate(() => {
    return {
      userAgent: navigator.userAgent,
      language: navigator.language,
      cookiesEnabled: navigator.cookieEnabled
    };
  });
}"

# Pass arguments to evaluate
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  const multiplier = 5;
  return await page.evaluate(m => document.querySelectorAll('li').length * m, multiplier);
}"

Error Handling

# Try-catch in run-code
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  try {
    await page.click('.maybe-missing', { timeout: 1000 });
    return 'clicked';
  } catch (e) {
    return 'element not found';
  }
}"

Complex Workflows

# Login and save state
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.goto('https://example.com/login');
  await page.fill('input[name=email]', 'user@example.com');
  await page.fill('input[name=password]', 'secret');
  await page.click('button[type=submit]');
  await page.waitForURL('**/dashboard');
  await page.context().storageState({ path: 'auth.json' });
  return 'Login successful';
}"

# Scrape data from multiple pages
playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  const results = [];
  for (let i = 1; i  {
  await page.context().addCookies([
    { name: 'session_id', value: 'sess_abc123', domain: 'example.com', path: '/', httpOnly: true },
    { name: 'preferences', value: JSON.stringify({ theme: 'dark' }), domain: 'example.com', path: '/' }
  ]);
}"

Local Storage

List All localStorage Items

playwright-cli localstorage-list

Get Single Value

playwright-cli localstorage-get token

Set Value

playwright-cli localstorage-set theme dark

Set JSON Value

playwright-cli localstorage-set user_settings '{"theme":"dark","language":"en"}'

Delete Single Item

playwright-cli localstorage-delete token

Clear All localStorage

playwright-cli localstorage-clear

Advanced: Multiple Operations

For complex scenarios like setting multiple values at once, use run-code:

playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.evaluate(() => {
    localStorage.setItem('token', 'jwt_abc123');
    localStorage.setItem('user_id', '12345');
    localStorage.setItem('expires_at', Date.now() + 3600000);
  });
}"

Session Storage

List All sessionStorage Items

playwright-cli sessionstorage-list

Get Single Value

playwright-cli sessionstorage-get form_data

Set Value

playwright-cli sessionstorage-set step 3

Delete Single Item

playwright-cli sessionstorage-delete step

Clear sessionStorage

playwright-cli sessionstorage-clear

IndexedDB

List Databases

playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  return await page.evaluate(async () => {
    const databases = await indexedDB.databases();
    return databases;
  });
}"

Delete Database

playwright-cli run-code "async page => {
  await page.evaluate(() => {
    indexedDB.deleteDatabase('myDatabase');
  });
}"

Common Patterns

Authentication State Reuse

# Step 1: Login and save state
playwright-cli open https://app.example.com/login
playwright-cli snapshot
playwright-cli fill e1 "user@example.com"
playwright-cli fill e2 "password123"
playwright-cli click e3

# Save the authenticated state
playwright

…

## Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

- **Author:** [gandazgul](https://github.com/gandazgul)
- **Source:** [gandazgul/dotopencode](https://github.com/gandazgul/dotopencode)
- **License:** MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.