Browser Automation

Automate browser interactions using the browse CLI with Claude.

Setup check

Before running any browser commands, verify the CLI is available:

which browse || npm install -g @browserbasehq/browse-cli

Environment Selection (Local vs Remote)

The CLI supports explicit per-session environment overrides. If you do nothing, the next session defaults to Browserbase when BROWSERBASE_API_KEY is set and to local otherwise.

Local mode

• browse env local starts a clean isolated local browser
• browse env local --auto-connect reuses an already-running debuggable Chrome and falls back to isolated if nothing is available
• browse env local <port|url> attaches to a specific CDP target
• Best for: development, localhost, trusted sites, and reproducible runs

Remote mode (Browserbase)

• browse env remote switches the current session to Browserbase
• Without a local override, Browserbase is also the default when BROWSERBASE_API_KEY is set
• Provides: anti-bot stealth, automatic CAPTCHA solving, residential proxies, session persistence
• Use remote mode when: the target site has bot detection, CAPTCHAs, IP rate limiting, Cloudflare protection, or requires geo-specific access
• Get credentials at https://browserbase.com/settings

When to choose which

• Repeatable local testing / clean state: browse env local
• Reuse your local login/cookies: browse env local --auto-connect
• Simple browsing (docs, wikis, public APIs): local mode is fine
• Protected sites (login walls, CAPTCHAs, anti-scraping): use remote mode
• If local mode fails with bot detection or access denied: switch to remote mode

Commands

All commands work identically in both modes. The daemon auto-starts on first command.

Navigation

browse open <url>                        # Go to URL (aliases: goto)
browse open <url> --context-id <id>      # Load Browserbase context (remote only)
browse open <url> --context-id <id> --persist  # Load context + save changes back
browse reload                            # Reload current page
browse back                              # Go back in history
browse forward                           # Go forward in history

Page state (prefer snapshot over screenshot)

browse snapshot                          # Get accessibility tree with element refs (fast, structured)
browse screenshot [path]                 # Take visual screenshot (slow, uses vision tokens)
browse get url                           # Get current URL
browse get title                         # Get page title
browse get text <selector>               # Get text content (use "body" for all text)
browse get html <selector>               # Get HTML content of element
browse get value <selector>              # Get form field value

Use browse snapshot as your default for understanding page state — it returns the accessibility tree with element refs you can use to interact. Only use browse screenshot when you need visual context (layout, images, debugging).

Interaction

browse click <ref>                       # Click element by ref from snapshot (e.g., @0-5)
browse type <text>                       # Type text into focused element
browse fill <selector> <value>           # Fill input and press Enter
browse select <selector> <values...>     # Select dropdown option(s)
browse press <key>                       # Press key (Enter, Tab, Escape, Cmd+A, etc.)
browse drag <fromX> <fromY> <toX> <toY>  # Drag from one point to another
browse scroll <x> <y> <deltaX> <deltaY> # Scroll at coordinates
browse highlight <selector>              # Highlight element on page
browse is visible <selector>             # Check if element is visible
browse is checked <selector>             # Check if element is checked
browse wait <type> [arg]                 # Wait for: load, selector, timeout

Session management

browse stop                              # Stop the browser daemon (also clears env override)
browse status                            # Check daemon status (includes env)
browse env                               # Show current environment (local or remote)
browse env local                         # Use clean isolated local browser
browse env local --auto-connect          # Reuse existing Chrome, fallback to isolated
browse env local <port|url>              # Attach to a specific CDP target
browse env remote                        # Switch to Browserbase (requires API keys)
browse pages                             # List all open tabs
browse tab_switch <index>                # Switch to tab by index
browse tab_close [index]                 # Close tab

Typical workflow

If the environment matters, set it first with browse env local, browse env local --auto-connect, or browse env remote.

1. browse open <url> — navigate to the page
2. browse snapshot — read the accessibility tree to understand page structure and get element refs
3. browse click <ref> / browse type <text> / browse fill <selector> <value> — interact using refs from snapshot
4. browse snapshot — confirm the action worked
5. Repeat 3-4 as needed
6. browse stop — close the browser when done

Quick Example

browse open https://example.com
browse snapshot                          # see page structure + element refs
browse click @0-5                        # click element with ref 0-5
browse get title
browse stop

Mode Comparison

Best Practices

1. Choose the local strategy deliberately: use browse env local for clean state, browse env local --auto-connect for existing local credentials, and browse env remote for protected sites
2. Always browse open first before interacting
3. Use browse snapshot to check page state — it's fast and gives you element refs
4. Only screenshot when visual context is needed (layout checks, images, debugging)
5. Use refs from snapshot to click/interact — e.g., browse click @0-5
6. browse stop when done to clean up the browser session and clear the env override

Troubleshooting

• "No active page": Run browse stop, then check browse status. If it still says running, kill the zombie daemon with pkill -f "browse.*daemon", then retry browse open
• Chrome not found: Install Chrome, use browse env local --auto-connect if you already have a debuggable Chrome running, or switch to browse env remote
• Action fails: Run browse snapshot to see available elements and their refs
• Browserbase fails: Verify API key is set

Switching to Remote Mode

Switch to remote when you detect: CAPTCHAs (reCAPTCHA, hCaptcha, Turnstile), bot detection pages ("Checking your browser..."), HTTP 403/429, empty pages on sites that should have content, or the user asks for it.

Don't switch for simple sites (docs, wikis, public APIs, localhost).

browse env local             # clean isolated local browser
browse env local --auto-connect  # reuse existing Chrome state
browse env remote            # switch to Browserbase

Overrides are scoped per session and stay in effect until you switch again or run browse stop. After browse stop, the next start falls back to env-var-based auto detection. Use browse status to inspect the resolved local strategy while the daemon is running.

For detailed examples, see EXAMPLES.md. For API reference, see REFERENCE.md.