| name | browser-use |
| description | Use Playwright MCP for browser and web-page automation. Use when the user asks to "open a website", "use a web app", "log in to a website", fill a browser form, inspect a page, or operate Google, YouTube, GitHub, a dashboard, or another web service. |
| category | automation |
| version | 1.0.0 |
| examples | [{"prompt":"Open YouTube and search for a video."},{"prompt":"Log in to the website and fill out the form."}] |
| test_commands | ["python -m pytest tests/test_prompts.py tests/test_skills.py tests/test_mcp_client.py -q"] |
Browser Use
Scope
Use Playwright MCP for browser and web-page automation: websites, web apps,
browser navigation, search pages, logins, forms, buttons, dashboards, page
inspection, and reading/scraping rendered content. This is the default browser
route even when the user refers to Chrome casually.
Do not use Windows MCP Snapshot/Click/Type for normal web pages. Windows MCP is
for native Windows apps, OS dialogs, desktop UI, and a user explicitly asking to
operate the visible desktop/browser window.
Playwright-First Loop
- Confirm that
mcp__playwright__browser_* tools are connected. If they are,
use them before any Windows MCP tool.
- Navigate with
mcp__playwright__browser_navigate when a URL is known.
- Observe with
mcp__playwright__browser_snapshot before interacting. Keep and
reuse that snapshot while the page is unchanged; do not take duplicate
snapshots just to reconfirm a static page. Prefer DOM/accessibility targets
over coordinates.
- Interact with
mcp__playwright__browser_click,
mcp__playwright__browser_type, mcp__playwright__browser_fill_form,
mcp__playwright__browser_select_option, and
mcp__playwright__browser_press_key as appropriate.
- Use
mcp__playwright__browser_wait_for for a known page condition. Do not
poll blindly.
- Use
mcp__playwright__browser_take_screenshot only when visual reasoning is
required, such as identifying color, layout, a canvas, an image-only control,
or a visual error that is absent from the snapshot.
- Verify with one fresh Playwright snapshot or read-back after navigation,
submit, login, a destructive/externally visible action, or an unexpected
result. Do not add a round trip after each deterministic keystroke.
Stale Reference Recovery
Playwright ref values belong only to the snapshot that produced them. If an
interaction reports a stale, invalid, missing, or unknown reference:
- Do not retry the same
ref.
- Take exactly one fresh
browser_snapshot.
- Select a target that exists in that fresh snapshot and make at most one
evidence-based retry.
- If the fresh snapshot also fails, stop and report the browser state instead
of guessing, repeatedly clicking, or switching to unsafe browser code.
Any click, navigation, form submission, or visible page transition can make the
previous snapshot stale. Re-observe before the next interaction.
Fast, Safe Paths
- Fill related fields in one
browser_fill_form call instead of one snapshot
and browser_type call per field.
- When a URL is known, navigate directly; do not first open a blank page and
type it into an address bar.
- Use a single named
browser_wait_for condition after navigation or submit,
not repeated generic waits and snapshots.
- Batch only steps whose targets come from the same unchanged snapshot. If a
click changes the page, obtain new evidence before selecting a new target.
Fallback
Fall back to Windows MCP only when Playwright is disconnected, cannot reach the
target, or the user explicitly asks to operate the actual visible desktop/Chrome
window. State the fallback reason, then use the native computer-use observe-act-
verify loop. Never choose Windows MCP merely because it has Snapshot/Click tools.
Safety
Do not enter passwords, one-time codes, or private account credentials. Do not
submit forms, send messages, purchase, delete data, or change account settings
without clear user intent and a final verification step.
