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How to Capture a Scrolling Web Page with Chromium Headless

Chromium’s documented CLI screenshot is viewport-focused. Use Puppeteer’s fullPage option for a full-page capture, or CDP for lower-level control.
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For a full-page screenshot, use Puppeteer’s page.screenshot({ fullPage: true }). Chromium’s documented --headless --screenshot command captures a screenshot at a chosen window size, but its CLI reference does not document that option as capturing the entire scrolling page. If you need lower-level control, Chrome DevTools Protocol (CDP) provides Page.captureScreenshot with the captureBeyondViewport parameter.

Choose the right capture method

Method Best for What it supports Important limitation
Chromium headless CLI A screenshot of a fixed-size viewport --screenshot and --window-size The documented CLI reference does not describe full scrolling-page capture.
Puppeteer A scripted full-page capture with a high-level API fullPage: true Check the API for the Puppeteer version installed in your project. The cited reference is version 25.12.0.
Direct CDP Lower-level control over Chromium screenshot behavior Page.captureScreenshot and captureBeyondViewport Protocol details may vary by Chromium build; the cited tip-of-tree reference warns that it can change and does not guarantee backward compatibility.

Sources: Chrome Headless command-line reference, Puppeteer 25.12.0 ScreenshotOptions, and the Chrome DevTools Protocol Page domain.

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Capture a full page with Puppeteer

Install Puppeteer in your project, then use its screenshot option fullPage: true. This example navigates to a page, waits for the networkidle2 condition, saves a PNG, and closes the browser:

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const puppeteer = require('puppeteer');

(async () => {
  const browser = await puppeteer.launch({ headless: true });
  try {
    const page = await browser.newPage();
    await page.goto('https://example.com', { waitUntil: 'networkidle2' });
    await page.screenshot({ path: 'page.png', fullPage: true });
  } finally {
    await browser.close();
  }
})();

The fullPage option is documented to capture the full page. The navigation wait condition is a separate choice: network idleness does not prove that every application has finished rendering or that content triggered by scrolling has loaded. See the screenshot options reference for the option and check the documentation matching your installed Puppeteer version.

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Use Chromium’s CLI for a viewport screenshot

When the visible browser area is enough, the documented CLI form is:

chrome --headless --screenshot --window-size=412,892 https://example.com/

Chrome saves screenshot.png in the current working directory. --window-size sets the capture window dimensions; it does not turn the command into a full-page capture. See the Chrome Headless command-line reference for the documented options.

Adjust when the screenshot is taken

The CLI also documents --timeout and --virtual-time-budget for controlling timing before capture. A timeout caps the wait; a virtual-time budget lets time-dependent scripts advance as if a specified amount of time passed. Neither option is documented as a full-page capture switch. Choose timing based on the page’s behavior, then verify the output.

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Use CDP when you need protocol-level control

Chrome DevTools Protocol exposes Page.captureScreenshot, including the captureBeyondViewport parameter. The Page domain also lists Page.getLayoutMetrics. These are lower-level building blocks than Puppeteer’s fullPage option, so the caller must manage the CDP session and any protocol-specific details.

Check the protocol version implemented by the Chromium build you are using. The cited tip-of-tree Page reference may change and does not guarantee backward compatibility. For a simple full-page screenshot, Puppeteer is generally the more direct documented interface.

Handle dynamic pages and verify completeness

Decide what “ready” means for the target page before capturing it. A navigation event or network-idle condition may not account for content that appears only after a delay, user interaction, or scroll. Lazy-loaded images and nested scrolling regions can also behave differently across sites.

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  • Use a wait condition that matches the page’s loading behavior; do not treat network idleness as proof that all content is present.
  • For content triggered by scrolling, verify whether the page needs scrolling or another interaction before the screenshot.
  • Inspect the resulting image for missing sections, blank areas, or unloaded images.
  • When completeness matters, run a small verification capture against the intended page and Chromium build.

The documented sources do not establish universal behavior for every Chromium version, operating system, iframe, page, lazy-loaded image, or nested scrolling region. Verify the specific combination you rely on.

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Troubleshooting

The CLI screenshot shows only the visible area

--screenshot with --window-size is the documented viewport workflow; the CLI reference does not describe it as full-page capture. Use Puppeteer’s fullPage: true for a high-level full-page screenshot, or investigate CDP’s Page.captureScreenshot and captureBeyondViewport for protocol-level control.

Images or sections are missing

The page may not have finished rendering, or content may load only after scrolling or interaction. Adjust the page-specific readiness and loading steps, then inspect another capture. A generic navigation wait cannot guarantee all page content is ready.

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The page changes between runs

Time-dependent scripts can affect what appears. In the CLI, --timeout and --virtual-time-budget control aspects of timing, but they do not enable full-page capture. For Puppeteer, select an appropriate navigation or page-specific wait before calling screenshot.

CDP parameters do not work as expected

Confirm that the protocol documentation matches the Chromium build in use. The tip-of-tree protocol reference can change and does not promise backward compatibility.

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Or skip the browser setup

ScreenshotNeo offers a website screenshot API and MCP server. One GET request can return a screenshot or PDF; its full-page capture option loads lazy images. Cookie banners, newsletter popups, and chat widgets are removed before capture, and each cleanup step can be turned off. Bot checks, blank pages, timeouts, failed loads, and cache hits are not billed; response headers identify the page verdict and billing status. An MCP server provides take_screenshot, get_page_info, and capture_pdf tools for AI agents and MCP clients.

For a one-call capture, use cURL (replace the example target URL as needed):

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Frequently Asked Questions

Does --virtual-time-budget make a Chromium CLI screenshot full-page?

No. It controls time-dependent page execution before capture; it is not documented as a full-page capture option.

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Which Puppeteer version is covered by the cited screenshot-options reference?

The cited ScreenshotOptions reference is for Puppeteer 25.12.0. Check the documentation for the version installed in your project.

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