Connect Playwright to Browserless’s remote Chromium browser, navigate to the page, wait for the content you need, then save it with page.screenshot(). Browserless’s default Chromium WebSocket endpoint speaks Chrome DevTools Protocol (CDP), so the simplest route is Playwright’s chromium.connectOverCDP(). Use a /playwright endpoint with connect() if you need Playwright-native features such as request routing or a browser other than Chromium.
What you need before capturing a screenshot
- A Browserless API token from your account dashboard. Treat it as a secret: Browserless passes it in the WebSocket URL’s
tokenquery parameter. - Playwright installed in your project.
- A target URL and a decision about what counts as ready: a particular selector, a page state, or a short delay for content that appears after navigation.
For JavaScript, Browserless recommends playwright-core for a remote browser because it does not download local browser binaries. For Python, install the Playwright package but do not run playwright install when the browser will run remotely. The browser session runs on Browserless; local browser binaries are not needed for this workflow. See Browserless’s Playwright connection guide.
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Take a full-page screenshot with JavaScript
Install the package:
npm install playwright-coreSet the token in your shell rather than putting a real credential in source code. For example, on macOS or Linux:
export BROWSERLESS_TOKEN="your_browserless_token"Then save this as an ES module, such as screenshot.mjs:
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import { chromium } from 'playwright-core';
const token = process.env.BROWSERLESS_TOKEN;
if (!token) throw new Error('Set BROWSERLESS_TOKEN before running this script');
const browser = await chromium.connectOverCDP(
`wss://production-sfo.browserless.io?token=${encodeURIComponent(token)}`
);
try {
const page = await browser.newPage();
await page.goto('https://example.com', { waitUntil: 'networkidle' });
await page.screenshot({ path: 'screenshot.png', fullPage: true });
} finally {
await browser.close();
}Run it with node screenshot.mjs. The output is screenshot.png in the current directory. The example uses networkidle as a general readiness condition; on pages with persistent network activity, wait for a specific selector or use a more appropriate page state instead. The finally block closes the remote browser even when navigation or capture throws, releasing the session.
Choose the right Browserless connection endpoint
The connection method should match the protocol spoken by the endpoint. Browserless documents its default Chromium endpoint as CDP, which is why the preceding example uses connectOverCDP(), not connect() against the default endpoint.
| What you need | Connection approach | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Ordinary Chromium automation and screenshots | chromium.connectOverCDP('wss://production-sfo.browserless.io?token=…') |
Uses Browserless’s default CDP endpoint. Browserless describes CDP as more tolerant of client-version drift than its Playwright-native connection. |
Playwright-native features such as page.route() or APIRequestContext |
chromium.connect() with a path such as /chromium/playwright |
Uses Playwright’s protocol; client and server Playwright versions need to be compatible with the endpoint. |
| Firefox or WebKit automation | firefox.connect() or webkit.connect() with /firefox/playwright or /webkit/playwright |
Use the protocol-specific endpoint path. Check Browserless’s connection URL documentation for endpoint details. |
| Only a URL-to-image capture, without interactive Playwright work | Browserless POST /screenshot REST endpoint |
A WebSocket session is not required; send a URL and capture options and receive image bytes. See the Screenshot API documentation. |
For example, the Chromium Playwright-native endpoint uses the documented /chromium/playwright path. Consult Browserless’s current connection URL and endpoint reference for the correct regional host and protocol path for your account. Do not assume the default CDP endpoint accepts Playwright’s native connect() protocol.
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Wait for the content the screenshot needs
Navigation finishing does not necessarily mean that the page looks complete. Client-rendered content, image loading, and lazy-loaded sections can require additional readiness handling. Choose a wait condition tied to what the capture must show rather than adding an arbitrary long delay.
- Wait for a key element: after navigation, use
await page.locator('.report-ready').waitFor()or another selector that appears when the target content is present. - Wait for a page state:
page.goto()accepts states such asdomcontentloadedandnetworkidle. A page with persistent network traffic may not reach network idle. - Wait briefly for a known delayed update: use
await page.waitForTimeout(1000)only when a fixed delay is appropriate; it can waste time or still be too short if rendering varies.
For full-page screenshots, lazy-loaded content may not appear until the page is scrolled. Browserless’s REST screenshot API documents a scrollPage: true option to trigger lazy loading before a full-page capture. In Playwright automation, use an explicit readiness strategy that causes the page’s lazy content to load before calling page.screenshot(); verify the target sections are present before capturing.
Capture a viewport, full page, or one element
Viewport screenshot
Omit fullPage to capture the current viewport:
await page.screenshot({ path: 'viewport.png' });Full-page screenshot
Set fullPage: true to capture the page beyond the visible viewport:
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await page.screenshot({ path: 'full-page.png', fullPage: true });One element
Use a locator’s screenshot method when only a particular element is needed:
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await page.locator('.product-card').screenshot({ path: 'product-card.png' });For a fixed rectangular region, Playwright also supports a clip rectangle in screenshot options. Browserless’s REST API separately documents selector-based element capture and fixed clipping, along with PNG, JPEG, and WebP output, quality, viewport size, and device scale factor. Use the REST endpoint when those URL-to-image controls are enough and you do not need to interact with the page through a Playwright session.
Python example
Install Playwright without downloading a local browser:
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python -m pip install playwrightSet BROWSERLESS_TOKEN in the environment, then run:
import asyncio
import os
from playwright.async_api import async_playwright
async def main():
token = os.environ.get("BROWSERLESS_TOKEN")
if not token:
raise RuntimeError("Set BROWSERLESS_TOKEN before running this script")
async with async_playwright() as p:
browser = await p.chromium.connect_over_cdp(
f"wss://production-sfo.browserless.io?token={token}"
)
try:
page = await browser.new_page()
await page.goto("https://example.com", wait_until="networkidle")
await page.screenshot(path="screenshot.png", full_page=True)
finally:
await browser.close()
asyncio.run(main())Save it as screenshot.py and run python screenshot.py. As in JavaScript, use a selector-based wait if the page continues making requests or if a specific rendered element is the real readiness signal.
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- Close each browser connection: Browserless counts each parallel browser session against the plan’s concurrency limit. Close sessions in a
finallyblock and bound the number of simultaneous workers. - Do not log the token-bearing URL: the API token is part of the WebSocket URL. Store it in your deployment’s secret or environment-variable mechanism, and avoid printing connection URLs to build logs or public output.
- Do not pass local launch settings as if this were a local browser: remote-browser sessions do not use local
launch()options in the same way. Browserless documents supported launch settings on the connection URL; check its connection guide for the supported parameters. - Account for test parallelism: Browserless recommends a worker-scoped connection fixture for Playwright Test. Each parallel worker opens its own remote session and consumes concurrency.
Browserless describes concurrency behavior qualitatively in its documentation; plan-specific limits depend on the applicable account and plan. Check your account’s current plan details rather than assuming a particular number of simultaneous sessions.
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Troubleshooting common screenshot failures
| Symptom | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Connection fails or times out before a page opens | Missing or invalid token, incorrect endpoint, or an endpoint/protocol mismatch. | Confirm the token is present and current, check the endpoint URL for your account, and match the method to the endpoint: connectOverCDP() for the default CDP endpoint, or connect() for a Playwright protocol endpoint. |
| Playwright reports a protocol or version compatibility error | The native /playwright endpoint and local Playwright client are not compatible. |
Use a supported client/server version pairing for the native endpoint, or use the default CDP endpoint with connectOverCDP() if your work does not need Playwright-native protocol features. |
| The screenshot is blank or misses content | The page has not rendered the needed content, a selector is wrong, or content loads lazily. | Wait for the relevant selector or state, confirm the selector matches an element, and ensure lazy-loaded regions have been triggered before capture. |
networkidle never completes |
The page keeps network connections active or continues background requests. | Use domcontentloaded or another navigation state, then wait for the specific element or content needed for the image. |
| Concurrent jobs are rejected or cannot start | Too many remote sessions are open for the account’s concurrency allowance. | Close sessions promptly, limit parallel workers, and check the applicable plan’s current concurrency limit. |
| Images or lower-page sections are absent from a full-page capture | They load only after scrolling or after a later page event. | Trigger the page behavior that loads them and wait until they are present before capturing. For Browserless REST captures, review the documented scrollPage option. |
Or skip the browser setup
If you need a URL-to-image capture rather than an interactive Playwright session, ScreenshotNeo takes a screenshot from one GET request. See the ScreenshotNeo API documentation for options.
curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://example.com -o shot.webpScreenshotNeo accepts cookie and consent banners before capture and removes more than 60 known consent platforms, newsletter popups, and chat widgets; each of those steps can be turned off. Bot checks and CAPTCHAs, blank pages, timeouts, failed loads, and cache hits are not billed, and the response identifies the page verdict and billing status in headers. Its MCP server provides take_screenshot, get_page_info, and capture_pdf tools for AI agents. The free plan includes 1,000 screenshots a month with no card; paid plans start at $5 for 3,000.
Sign up for ScreenshotNeo’s free plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use Browserless with Playwright Test?
Yes. Browserless recommends creating the remote connection in a worker-scoped fixture; each parallel worker uses a separate session.
Quick wins for a faster PC:
Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Does this workflow require installing Chromium locally?
No. The browser runs remotely on Browserless. Browserless recommends playwright-core for JavaScript connections and skipping playwright install for Python.
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