Playwright MCP: let your agent use a web browser

What it does

What it is

MCP is a standard way to connect tools to an AI agent. This MCP server gives the agent a browser. The agent can open a page, read what is on it, click, type and take notes.

It uses the page structure as text, so it does not need to look at screenshots.

Who it helps

Web developers who want the agent to test their own pages.
Anyone who wants the agent to collect information from public pages.

How to start

Run the install command for your agent, then ask for one small browser task on your own site.

Be careful

A browser can do a lot. Do not let it work on pages where a click can buy something or send a message. Keep it away from your signed-in browser profile.

How to install

$ claude mcp add playwright npx @playwright/mcp@latest

$ codex mcp add playwright npx "@playwright/mcp@latest"

How to use it

After install, ask the agent to do something in a browser, for example "open my site, click the sign-up button and tell me if the form works". It reads the page as text, not as a picture, so it is fast.

What to watch out for

It controls a real browser and can open any web address, fill forms and click buttons. Do not point it at pages where a click can cost money or send messages.
If you let it use a browser profile that is signed in, it can act as you. Use a clean profile.
A web page can contain hidden text that tries to steer the agent.
The @latest tag means you get a new version each time. Pin a version if you want a stable setup.

Licence and author

Licence: Apache-2.0
Author: Microsoft
Source code: github.com/microsoft/playwright-mcp

How we tested it

We installed it on an empty test computer on 12 Oct 2026. Partly tested: installed in a clean test system, but its main features need an account or key we did not use.

Test level

No web page was opened, so the browser download and real page actions were not tested. Tools such as file upload and script evaluation increase the risk; read the tool list.

Technical details of the test

Date: 12 Oct 2026
Method: In a clean container with no account we started npx -y @playwright/mcp@latest, sent the MCP initialize and tools/list requests, and it answered with 25 tools. We also registered it with claude mcp add, and claude mcp list reported it as connected. We did not open a browser page.

Checked again on 12 Oct 2026

Sources

github.com/microsoft/playwright-mcp