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In Python, open a Chrome WebDriver session, navigate with driver.get(), then call driver.save_screenshot('screenshot.png'). Selenium writes the current browsing window as a PNG and returns a Boolean that lets your script detect a file-write failure. Always quit the driver in a finally block.
Minimal working example
Install Selenium in the environment that will run the script:
python -m pip install seleniumThen save this as capture.py:
from selenium import webdriver
driver = webdriver.Chrome()
try:
driver.get("https://example.com")
saved = driver.save_screenshot("screenshot.png")
if not saved:
raise OSError("Could not save screenshot")
finally:
driver.quit()Remove the extra leading spaces before driver and the indented lines when copying; the valid Python is:
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driver = webdriver.Chrome()
try:
driver.get("https://example.com")
saved = driver.save_screenshot("screenshot.png")
if not saved:
raise OSError("Could not save screenshot")
finally:
driver.quit()webdriver.Chrome() creates the Chrome session. get() navigates to the target, and save_screenshot() captures the current window after that navigation. Selenium’s Chromium WebDriver API documents the filename and Boolean return behavior in its Python API reference.
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What Selenium captures
Current window, not an automatically defined full-page image
The documented save_screenshot() operation captures the current browsing context/window. The official material used for this guide establishes current-window and element capture, but does not establish a Chrome-specific full-page method, viewport-size guarantee, or identical behavior between headed and headless sessions. Treat the PNG as a screenshot of the window Selenium is controlling rather than promising a complete document image.
Use a full path when the location matters
Pass a path ending in .png. A relative path is resolved from the process’s working directory, which can differ between a terminal, an IDE, a test runner, and CI. Resolve an absolute path when another step must find the file reliably:
from pathlib import Path
from selenium import webdriver
output = (Path.cwd() / "artifacts" / "home.png").resolve()
output.parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
driver = webdriver.Chrome()
try:
driver.get("https://example.com")
if not driver.save_screenshot(str(output)):
raise OSError(f"Screenshot could not be written to {output}")
finally:
driver.quit()The method returns True when Selenium reports success and False when an I/O error prevents the file from being saved. Checking the value is useful in build scripts and tests instead of assuming that a call which did not raise an exception produced an artifact.
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| Method | Scope | Result | Use it when |
|---|---|---|---|
driver.save_screenshot(path) |
Current window | PNG file and a Boolean status | You need a file on disk. |
driver.get_screenshot_as_file(path) |
Current window | PNG file and a Boolean status | You prefer the explicit “as file” method name. |
driver.get_screenshot_as_png() |
Current window | PNG bytes | The next step uploads, hashes, transforms, or stores the image in memory. |
driver.get_screenshot_as_base64() |
Current window | Base64-encoded image text | A consumer requires an encoded string, such as an HTML embedding. |
These methods represent the same current-window capture scope with different destinations. The underlying WebDriver screenshot response is Base64-encoded; the Python methods expose either a file, decoded PNG bytes, or Base64 text.
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Save directly with get_screenshot_as_file()
from selenium import webdriver
driver = webdriver.Chrome()
try:
driver.get("https://example.com")
if not driver.get_screenshot_as_file("page.png"):
raise OSError("PNG file was not saved")
finally:
driver.quit()Keep PNG bytes in memory
from selenium import webdriver
driver = webdriver.Chrome()
try:
driver.get("https://example.com")
png_bytes = driver.get_screenshot_as_png()
if not png_bytes:
raise OSError("No PNG bytes returned")
# Send png_bytes to your image-processing or storage code.
finally:
driver.quit()As with the first example, remove the accidental leading spaces before copying this snippet into a Python file.
Request Base64 text
from selenium import webdriver
driver = webdriver.Chrome()
try:
driver.get("https://example.com")
encoded = driver.get_screenshot_as_base64()
if not encoded:
raise OSError("No Base64 screenshot returned")
finally:
driver.quit()Base64 is text rather than a second image format. A recipient must decode it to recover the PNG data.
Capture one element instead of the window
When the artifact is a card, chart, logo, or other component, locate that element and use its screenshot method rather than capturing the whole current context:
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from selenium import webdriver
driver = webdriver.Chrome()
try:
driver.get("https://example.com")
card = driver.find_element("css selector", "main article")
if not card.screenshot("article.png"):
raise OSError("Element screenshot was not saved")
finally:
driver.quit()Replace main article with a selector that identifies the element you need. An element screenshot has a different scope from driver.save_screenshot(): the driver method is for the current window, while the element method targets the selected element.
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A repeatable capture procedure
- Prepare Chrome and Selenium. Install Selenium in the same Python environment that runs the script and ensure Chrome can start under the account executing it.
- Create one driver session. Construct
webdriver.Chrome()and keep the object available until all required captures finish. - Navigate. Call
driver.get(url)with the exact page URL. - Select a scope. Use
driver.save_screenshot()orget_screenshot_as_file()for the current window; locate an element and call its screenshot method for a component. - Select a destination. Use a writable, absolute path for a file, PNG bytes for in-memory processing, or Base64 text for an encoded transport.
- Check the result. Test the Boolean returned by file methods, or verify that the bytes/text result is non-empty.
- Close the session. Put
driver.quit()infinallyso a failed navigation or write does not leave Chrome running.
Troubleshooting
Chrome WebDriver does not start
If webdriver.Chrome() raises a session-creation error, verify that Chrome is installed and can launch for the current user, that Selenium is installed in the active interpreter, and that the browser-driver components are compatible. Run the smallest possible script first; only add selectors or output handling after the session opens.
The script runs but no file appears
Print or log the absolute path you passed. A relative path may have been written to the test runner’s working directory rather than the project directory. Check that the parent directory exists and that the process has write permission. For a file method, handle a returned False as a failed capture instead of treating it as success.
The image shows the wrong page
Capture only after the intended driver.get() call and confirm that the URL passed to the browser is the one you expect. If your application changes content after navigation, arrange the synchronization your application requires before taking the shot; the screenshot call records the state present at the moment it executes.
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An element screenshot raises a lookup error
The selector may not match the current document. Confirm the element’s selector in the page under test and make sure the capture occurs after the relevant page has loaded. If the selector can match multiple nodes, narrow it to the component that should be saved.
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The result is empty or unusable
For file methods, check the Boolean result. For byte and Base64 methods, check that the returned value is non-empty before handing it to another system. Preserve the original bytes when possible; converting repeatedly between bytes and encoded text adds work without changing the documented PNG output.
You need a full-page or headless guarantee
The official evidence covered here does not establish a Chrome-specific full-page screenshot API, a maximum page-height behavior, or equivalence between headed and headless sessions. Do not infer those guarantees from the current-window method. If your requirement is specifically a full document image, validate the exact Chrome/Selenium version and technique in your own environment before depending on it.
Reliability and performance considerations
- Reuse a session for related pages. Creating and quitting Chrome is separate overhead from writing an image. Capture the pages you need, then quit once.
- Prefer bytes for pipelines.
get_screenshot_as_png()avoids a temporary file when the next operation is an upload or image transform. - Use files for audit trails. An absolute, deterministic path makes test artifacts easier to collect and inspect.
- Keep cleanup unconditional. A
finallyblock limits orphaned browser processes when navigation, element lookup, or file writing fails. - Keep scope explicit. Driver capture and element capture produce different artifacts; choose before you build downstream comparisons.
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cURL
curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://stripe.com -o shot.webpPython
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open("shot.webp", "wb").write(r.content)Node.js
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can I put a Selenium screenshot directly into an HTML page?
Yes. Use driver.get_screenshot_as_base64() when the receiving HTML needs an encoded image string, then place that value in the appropriate data URL or image attribute. The encoded value represents PNG data; it is not a separate image format.
Does Selenium’s standard Chrome call create a PDF?
No. The screenshot methods documented here produce a PNG file, PNG bytes, or Base64-encoded PNG text. A PDF is a separate output requirement; ScreenshotNeo’s API provides PDF output when that is the artifact you need.
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