Use Playwright to capture the same pages in a consistent browser environment, then use a scheduled GitHub Actions workflow to run the capture once a week. Store the resulting screenshots or visual-test report as artifacts so reviewers can compare each week with the last. GitHub’s schedule uses UTC by default, runs against the default branch, and may start late under load—so choose a non-round-minute time and treat the schedule as recurring, not exact-time.
How the weekly screenshot workflow fits together
Capture and scheduling are separate jobs. Playwright opens pages and takes screenshots; GitHub Actions starts the script on a recurring schedule. A comparison layer then helps people identify changes:
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- Capture: use Playwright to navigate to each page and save a viewport or full-page image.
- Schedule: use a GitHub Actions
scheduletrigger to run the capture workflow weekly. - Compare and review: use Playwright Test screenshot assertions with stored baselines, or send Playwright snapshots to Percy for a hosted comparison and review workflow.
- Retain: preserve images or reports for the period your team needs to compare. GitHub’s Playwright CI example uploads a report artifact; choose retention according to your review needs and current artifact settings.
Playwright documents both CI execution and visual comparisons; GitHub documents scheduled workflow triggers. See the Playwright CI guide, Playwright visual comparisons, and GitHub scheduled workflows.
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Choose what to capture and keep it comparable
Make a stable page list
Start with a short list of important URLs. Give each page a stable name, and use the same name each week so files and comparisons line up. Decide whether each capture should show the initial viewport or the full page; full-page captures are useful for long pages, while viewport captures focus on what visitors see first.
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Use a consistent browser environment
Browser version, viewport, device scale, locale, and other rendering conditions can affect pixels. Run captures in a consistent environment; Playwright’s CI guidance discusses using containers for consistent screenshot and visual-regression work. Wait for the page to reach an appropriate state before capturing it, such as a key selector appearing or a brief settling period after navigation.
Account for content that changes on its own
Timestamps, rotating banners, personalized content, animations, and third-party widgets can differ even when the site has no meaningful design change. Treat a diff as a review signal, not automatically as a defect. Where your own application allows it, consider using stable test data or suppressing known volatile elements in the capture; there is no universal content-freezing policy that suits every site.
Build a Playwright capture script
The following Node.js example captures each URL as a full-page PNG. It uses a fixed viewport and stable filenames, and closes the browser even if a navigation fails. Install Playwright and its Chromium browser in the project before running it:
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npx playwright install chromiumSave this as capture.mjs:
import { chromium } from 'playwright';
import { mkdir } from 'node:fs/promises';
const pages = [
{ name: 'home', url: 'https://example.com/' },
{ name: 'pricing', url: 'https://example.com/pricing' },
];
const outputDir = 'screenshots';
await mkdir(outputDir, { recursive: true });
const browser = await chromium.launch({ headless: true });
try {
const page = await browser.newPage({
viewport: { width: 1440, height: 1000 },
deviceScaleFactor: 1,
});
for (const item of pages) {
await page.goto(item.url, { waitUntil: 'networkidle', timeout: 60000 });
await page.screenshot({ path: `${outputDir}/${item.name}.png`, fullPage: true });
}
} finally {
await browser.close();
}Replace the example URLs and names with your pages. networkidle may not occur on sites with persistent network activity; if navigation times out, wait for a page-specific selector or use a deliberate short settling delay instead. For pages that require sign-in, configure authentication securely rather than committing credentials to the repository.
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Compare weekly captures
Playwright Test baselines
Playwright Test provides toHaveScreenshot() for visual assertions against stored baselines. This suits teams that want comparisons and baseline files managed with their test code. Review baseline updates deliberately: accepting a new image changes what future runs consider expected. See Playwright’s screenshot comparison documentation.
Percy review workflow
Percy’s Playwright integration sends snapshots to Percy for comparison and review, offering a hosted review workflow. It is an optional service; consult Percy’s Playwright integration documentation for its current setup and product details.
| Comparison path | Where comparisons are managed | Useful when |
|---|---|---|
| Playwright Test visual assertions | Screenshot baselines and assertions are managed with the test code. | Your team wants visual checks integrated with its tests and is prepared to review baseline changes. |
| Percy with Playwright | Snapshots are uploaded to Percy for comparison and review. | Your team wants a hosted visual review workflow and is prepared for its account and CI setup. |
Choose based on where you want baselines and reports to live, how reviewers approve changes, and how much CI and account setup your team wants to maintain. These options are not evidence that one is universally more accurate, faster, or cheaper.
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Schedule the workflow in GitHub Actions
Add a workflow file such as .github/workflows/weekly-screenshots.yml to the repository’s default branch. The example runs every Monday at 14:17 UTC, installs Playwright and Chromium, runs the capture script, and uploads the output as an artifact. Update the Node version if your project requires another supported version.
name: Weekly website screenshots
on:
schedule:
- cron: '17 14 * * 1'
workflow_dispatch:
jobs:
capture:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- uses: actions/checkout@v4
- uses: actions/setup-node@v4
with:
node-version: '20'
- run: npm ci
- run: npx playwright install --with-deps chromium
- run: node capture.mjs
- uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
with:
name: weekly-website-screenshots
path: screenshots/
retention-days: 30The cron expression has five fields: minute, hour, day of month, month, and day of week. In this example, 17 14 * * 1 means 14:17 every Monday. GitHub Actions scheduled workflows use UTC by default and support optional IANA timezone values. The workflow must exist on the default branch for scheduled events to run, and runs use the latest commit on that branch. Check GitHub’s schedule event documentation when selecting a timezone or changing the schedule.
GitHub documents a shortest scheduled interval of once every five minutes, so weekly scheduling is within its supported cadence. However, scheduled starts are not guaranteed to occur at the exact minute: GitHub warns that schedule events can be delayed during periods of high Actions load, especially at the start of an hour, and sufficiently delayed queued jobs may be dropped. Choosing minute 17 rather than minute 0 avoids placing this example at the start of an hour, but does not guarantee an exact start time.
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Adjust artifact retention
The example keeps screenshot artifacts for 30 days. Change retention-days to fit your comparison window and the repository’s artifact settings. If you need a lasting report history, decide separately how to preserve or publish results beyond the artifact retention period.
Common failures and fixes
- The scheduled run never starts: confirm the workflow file is on the default branch, the YAML is valid, and the cron expression has five fields. A scheduled event runs from the latest commit on that branch.
- The run starts later than expected: Actions schedules can be delayed under load. Avoid the start of the hour and do not use the schedule as an exact-time trigger.
- Navigation times out or never becomes idle: some sites keep connections open or load resources continuously. Replace
networkidlewith a page-specificwaitForSelectorcondition or a bounded delay suited to the page. - Screenshots differ on every run: check for rotating content, timestamps, animation, personalization, or third-party widgets; keep viewport and browser conditions consistent and review diffs before updating baselines.
- No useful report is available afterward: verify that the capture step completed and the artifact upload path matches the output directory. Set retention to cover the period in which reviewers need the files.
- The browser is missing in CI: install the browser required by the script in the workflow, as shown with
npx playwright install --with-deps chromium.
Or skip the browser setup
ScreenshotNeo is a website screenshot API and MCP server. Its one-call API can return a screenshot image or PDF, so you can avoid maintaining a browser capture script for a straightforward capture. The API documentation describes the available parameters.
curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot"
-d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY
--data-urlencode url=https://example.com
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Frequently Asked Questions
Does GitHub Actions run a weekly workflow at an exact time?
No. Scheduled events can be delayed during high load, so use the cron time as a target rather than an exact-time guarantee.
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Can I run a scheduled screenshot workflow manually too?
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