browser-use/browser_use/skill_cli/README.md

Browser-Use CLI

Fast, persistent browser automation from the command line.

Installation

# From the browser-use repo directory
uv pip install -e .

Quick Start

# Open a webpage (starts browser automatically)
browser-use open https://example.com

# See clickable elements with their indices
browser-use state

# Click an element by index
browser-use click 5

# Type text into focused element
browser-use type "Hello World"

# Fill a specific input field (click + type)
browser-use input 3 "john@example.com"

# Take a screenshot
browser-use screenshot output.png

# Close the browser
browser-use close

Browser Modes

# Default: headless Chromium
browser-use open https://example.com

# Visible browser window
browser-use --headed open https://example.com

# Use your real Chrome (with existing logins/cookies)
browser-use --browser real open https://gmail.com

# Cloud browser (requires BROWSER_USE_API_KEY)
browser-use --browser remote open https://example.com

All Commands

Navigation

Command	Description
browser-use open <url>	Navigate to URL
browser-use back	Go back in history
browser-use scroll down	Scroll down
browser-use scroll up	Scroll up

Inspection

Command	Description
browser-use state	Get URL, title, and clickable elements
browser-use screenshot [path]	Take screenshot (base64 if no path)
browser-use screenshot --full path.png	Full page screenshot

Interaction

Command	Description
browser-use click <index>	Click element by index
browser-use type "text"	Type into focused element
browser-use input <index> "text"	Click element, then type
browser-use keys "Enter"	Send keyboard keys
browser-use keys "Control+a"	Send key combination
browser-use select <index> "value"	Select dropdown option

Tabs

Command	Description
browser-use switch <tab>	Switch to tab by index
browser-use close-tab	Close current tab
browser-use close-tab <tab>	Close specific tab

JavaScript & Data

Command	Description
browser-use eval "js code"	Execute JavaScript
browser-use extract "query"	Extract data with LLM

Python (Persistent Session)

browser-use python "x = 42"           # Set variable
browser-use python "print(x)"         # Access variable (prints: 42)
browser-use python "print(browser.url)"  # Access browser
browser-use python --vars             # Show defined variables
browser-use python --reset            # Clear namespace
browser-use python --file script.py   # Run Python file

Session Management

Command	Description
browser-use sessions	List active sessions
browser-use close	Close browser session
browser-use close --all	Close all sessions
browser-use server status	Check if server is running
browser-use server stop	Stop server

Global Options

Option	Description
--session NAME	Use named session (default: "default")
--browser MODE	Browser mode: chromium, real, remote
--headed	Show browser window
--profile NAME	Chrome profile (real mode)
--json	Output as JSON
--api-key KEY	Override API key

Session behavior: All commands without --session use the same "default" session. The browser stays open and is reused across commands. Use --session NAME to run multiple browsers in parallel.

Examples

Fill a Form

browser-use open https://example.com/contact
browser-use state
# Shows: [0] input "Name", [1] input "Email", [2] button "Submit"
browser-use input 0 "John Doe"
browser-use input 1 "john@example.com"
browser-use click 2

Extract Data with JavaScript

browser-use open https://news.ycombinator.com
browser-use eval "Array.from(document.querySelectorAll('.titleline a')).slice(0,5).map(a => a.textContent)"

Multi-Session Workflow

browser-use --session work open https://work.example.com
browser-use --session personal open https://personal.example.com
browser-use --session work state
browser-use --session personal state
browser-use close --all

Python Automation

browser-use open https://example.com
browser-use python "
for i in range(5):
    browser.scroll('down')
    browser.wait(0.5)
browser.screenshot('scrolled.png')
"

Claude Code Skill

For Claude Code, a skill provides richer context for browser automation:

mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/browser-use
curl -o ~/.claude/skills/browser-use/SKILL.md \
  https://raw.githubusercontent.com/browser-use/browser-use/main/skills/browser-use/SKILL.md

How It Works

The CLI uses a session server architecture:

1. First command starts a background server (browser stays open)
2. Subsequent commands communicate via Unix socket
3. Browser persists across commands for fast interaction
4. Server auto-starts when needed, stops with browser-use server stop

This gives you ~50ms command latency instead of waiting for browser startup each time.