Chrome DevTools MCP▌
by chromedevtools
AI-driven control of live Chrome via Chrome DevTools: browser automation, debugging, performance analysis and network mo
Enables AI coding assistants to control and inspect a live Chrome browser through Chrome DevTools. Provides browser automation, performance analysis, debugging capabilities, and network request monitoring.
Both formats append explainx.ai attribution and the canonical URL for this MCP server listing.
best for
- / Web developers debugging browser issues
- / Performance engineers analyzing site speed
- / QA teams automating browser testing
- / AI assistants needing browser control
capabilities
- / Automate browser interactions with reliable waiting
- / Record performance traces and extract insights
- / Monitor network requests and responses
- / Take screenshots of web pages
- / Debug JavaScript with console message analysis
- / Analyze page performance metrics
what it does
Lets AI assistants control a live Chrome browser through DevTools for automation, debugging, and performance analysis. Provides direct access to browser developer tools through a programming interface.
about
Chrome DevTools MCP is an official MCP server published by chromedevtools that provides AI assistants with tools and capabilities via the Model Context Protocol. AI-driven control of live Chrome via Chrome DevTools: browser automation, debugging, performance analysis and network mo It is categorized under browser automation, developer tools.
how to install
You can install Chrome DevTools MCP in your AI client of choice. Use the install panel on this page to get one-click setup for Cursor, Claude Desktop, VS Code, and other MCP-compatible clients. This server runs locally on your machine via the stdio transport.
license
Apache-2.0
Chrome DevTools MCP is released under the Apache-2.0 license. This is a permissive open-source license, meaning you can freely use, modify, and distribute the software.
readme
Chrome DevTools MCP
chrome-devtools-mcp lets your coding agent (such as Gemini, Claude, Cursor or Copilot)
control and inspect a live Chrome browser. It acts as a Model-Context-Protocol
(MCP) server, giving your AI coding assistant access to the full power of
Chrome DevTools for reliable automation, in-depth debugging, and performance analysis.
Tool reference | Changelog | Contributing | Troubleshooting | Design Principles
Key features
- Get performance insights: Uses Chrome DevTools to record traces and extract actionable performance insights.
- Advanced browser debugging: Analyze network requests, take screenshots and check browser console messages (with source-mapped stack traces).
- Reliable automation. Uses puppeteer to automate actions in Chrome and automatically wait for action results.
Disclaimers
chrome-devtools-mcp exposes content of the browser instance to the MCP clients
allowing them to inspect, debug, and modify any data in the browser or DevTools.
Avoid sharing sensitive or personal information that you don't want to share with
MCP clients.
Performance tools may send trace URLs to the Google CrUX API to fetch real-user
experience data. This helps provide a holistic performance picture by
presenting field data alongside lab data. This data is collected by the Chrome
User Experience Report (CrUX). To disable
this, run with the --no-performance-crux flag.
Usage statistics
Google collects usage statistics (such as tool invocation success rates, latency, and environment information) to improve the reliability and performance of Chrome DevTools MCP.
Data collection is enabled by default. You can opt-out by passing the --no-usage-statistics flag when starting the server:
"args": ["-y", "chrome-devtools-mcp@latest", "--no-usage-statistics"]
Google handles this data in accordance with the Google Privacy Policy.
Google's collection of usage statistics for Chrome DevTools MCP is independent from the Chrome browser's usage statistics. Opting out of Chrome metrics does not automatically opt you out of this tool, and vice-versa.
Collection is disabled if CHROME_DEVTOOLS_MCP_NO_USAGE_STATISTICS or CI env variables are set.
Requirements
- Node.js v20.19 or a newer latest maintenance LTS version.
- Chrome current stable version or newer.
- npm.
Getting started
Add the following config to your MCP client:
{
"mcpServers": {
"chrome-devtools": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "chrome-devtools-mcp@latest"]
}
}
}
[!NOTE]
Usingchrome-devtools-mcp@latestensures that your MCP client will always use the latest version of the Chrome DevTools MCP server.
If you are interested in doing only basic browser tasks, use the --slim mode:
{
"mcpServers": {
"chrome-devtools": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "chrome-devtools-mcp@latest", "--slim", "--headless"]
}
}
}
See Slim tool reference.
MCP Client configuration
<details> <summary>Amp</summary> Follow https://ampcode.com/manual#mcp and use the config provided above. You can also install the Chrome DevTools MCP server using the CLI:amp mcp add chrome-devtools -- npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest
</details>
<details>
<summary>Antigravity</summary>
To use the Chrome DevTools MCP server follow the instructions from <a href="https://antigravity.google/docs/mcp">Antigravity's docs</a> to install a custom MCP server. Add the following config to the MCP servers config:
{
"mcpServers": {
"chrome-devtools": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"chrome-devtools-mcp@latest",
"--browser-url=http://127.0.0.1:9222",
"-y"
]
}
}
}
This will make the Chrome DevTools MCP server automatically connect to the browser that Antigravity is using. If you are not using port 9222, make sure to adjust accordingly.
Chrome DevTools MCP will not start the browser instance automatically using this approach because the Chrome DevTools MCP server connects to Antigravity's built-in browser. If the browser is not already running, you have to start it first by clicking the Chrome icon at the top right corner.
</details> <details> <summary>Claude Code</summary>Install via CLI (MCP only)
Use the Claude Code CLI to add the Chrome DevTools MCP server (<a href="https://code.claude.com/docs/en/mcp">guide</a>):
claude mcp add chrome-devtools --scope user npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest
Install as a Plugin (MCP + Skills)
[!NOTE]
If you already had Chrome DevTools MCP installed previously for Claude Code, make sure to remove it first from your installation and configuration files.
To install Chrome DevTools MCP with skills, add the marketplace registry in Claude Code:
/plugin marketplace add ChromeDevTools/chrome-devtools-mcp
Then, install the plugin:
/plugin install chrome-devtools-mcp
Restart Claude Code to have the MCP server and skills load (check with /skills).
codex mcp add chrome-devtools -- npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest
On Windows 11
Configure the Chrome install location and increase the startup timeout by updating .codex/config.toml and adding the following env and startup_timeout_ms parameters:
[mcp_servers.chrome-devtools]
command = "cmd"
args = [
"/c",
"npx",
"-y",
"chrome-devtools-mcp@latest",
]
env = { SystemRoot="C:\Windows", PROGRAMFILES="C:\Program Files" }
startup_timeout_ms = 20_000
</details>
<details>
<summary>Copilot CLI</summary>
Start Copilot CLI:
copilot
Start the dialog to add a new MCP server by running:
/mcp add
Configure the following fields and press CTRL+S to save the configuration:
- Server name:
chrome-devtools - Server Type:
[1] Local - Command:
npx -y chrome-devtools-mcp@latest
Click the button to install:
Or install manually:
Follow the MCP install <a href="https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/copilot/chat/mcp-servers#_add-an-mcp-server">guide</a>, with the standard config from above. You can also install the Chrome DevTools MCP server using the VS Code CLI:
code --add-mcp '{"name":"io.github.ChromeDevTools/chrome-devtools-mcp","command":"npx","args":["-y","chrome-devtools-mcp"],"env":{}}'
</details>
<details>
<summary>Cursor</summary>
Click the button to install:
<img src="https://cursor.com/deeplink/mcp-install-dark.svg" alt="Install in Cursor">
Or install manually:
Go to Cursor Settings -> MCP -> New MCP Server. Use the config provided above.
droid mcp add chrome-devtools "npx -y chrome-devtools-mcp@latest"
</details>
<details>
<summary>Gemini CLI</summary>
Install the Chrome DevTools MCP server using the Gemini CLI.
Project wide:
# Either MCP only:
gemini mcp add chrome-devtools npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest
# Or as a Gemini extension (MCP+Skills):
gemini extensions install --auto-update https://github.com/ChromeDevTools/chrome-devtools-mcp
Globally:
gemini mcp add -s user chrome-devtools npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest
Alternatively, follow the <a href="https://github.com/google-gemini/gemini-cli/blob/main/docs/tools/mcp-server.md#how-to-set-up-your-mcp-server">MCP guide</a> and use the standard config from above.
</details> <details> <summary>Gemini Code Assist</summary> Follow the <a href="https://cloud.google.com/gemini/docs/codeassist/use-agentic-chat-pair-programmer#configure-mcp-servers">configure MCP guide</a> using the standard config from above. </details> <details> <summary>JetBrains AI Assistant & Junie</summary>FAQ
- What is the Chrome DevTools MCP MCP server?
- Chrome DevTools MCP is a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server profile on explainx.ai. MCP lets AI hosts (e.g. Claude Desktop, Cursor) call tools and resources through a standard interface; this page summarizes categories, install hints, and community ratings.
- How do MCP servers relate to agent skills?
- Skills are reusable instruction packages (often SKILL.md); MCP servers expose live capabilities. Teams frequently combine both—skills for workflows, MCP for APIs and data. See explainx.ai/skills and explainx.ai/mcp-servers for parallel directories.
- How are reviews shown for Chrome DevTools MCP?
- This profile displays 29 aggregated ratings (sample rows for discoverability plus signed-in user reviews). Average score is about 4.5 out of 5—verify behavior in your own environment before production use.
Use Cases▌
Web Research & Information Gathering
Fetch and extract information from websites automatically
Example
Research competitor pricing, scrape product reviews, monitor news mentions
Automate 5-10 hours/week of manual web research
Content Monitoring & Alerts
Track website changes, new content, price updates
Example
Monitor competitor blog for new posts, track stock availability, watch for pricing changes
Stay informed without manual checking, never miss important updates
Data Extraction & Aggregation
Extract structured data from multiple websites
Example
Compile product listings from 10 e-commerce sites, aggregate job postings, collect real estate data
Build datasets 100x faster than manual copying
API-less Integration
Interact with services that don't offer APIs
Example
Check form submissions, validate website functionality, test user flows
Automate interactions with any website, even without API
Implementation Guide▌
Prerequisites
- ›Claude Desktop or Cursor with MCP support
- ›Understanding of web scraping ethics and robots.txt
- ›Rate limiting awareness to avoid overwhelming target sites
- ›Knowledge of legal restrictions on data collection
Time Estimate
20-40 minutes including configuration and testing
Installation Steps
- 1.Install web automation MCP server via npm or pip
- 2.Configure allowed domains and rate limits in MCP config
- 3.Test with simple fetch: 'Get content from example.com'
- 4.Progress to extraction: 'Extract all product prices from this page'
- 5.Set up monitoring: 'Check this URL daily for changes'
- 6.Parse structured data: 'Create CSV from this table'
- 7.Respect robots.txt and rate limits always
Troubleshooting
- ⚠403 Forbidden: Website blocks bots—respect their wishes, use official API instead
- ⚠Rate limit errors: Slow down requests, add delays between fetches
- ⚠Stale data: Target site changed HTML structure—update selectors
- ⚠Timeout errors: Site is slow or blocking—increase timeout, try different user agent
- ⚠JavaScript-rendered content: Use headless browser MCP servers for dynamic sites
Best Practices▌
✓ Do
- +Check robots.txt and respect crawl rules
- +Rate limit requests: 1-2 requests/second maximum
- +Use official APIs when available instead of scraping
- +Identify your bot with descriptive user agent
- +Cache results to minimize repeated requests
- +Handle errors gracefully with retries and fallbacks
- +Validate extracted data for accuracy
✗ Don't
- −Don't scrape sites that explicitly forbid it (robots.txt, ToS)
- −Don't overwhelm servers with rapid requests—use rate limiting
- −Don't scrape personal data without consent and legal basis
- −Don't ignore copyright on extracted content
- −Don't assume HTML structure is stable—handle changes
- −Don't use scraped data for commercial purposes without permission
💡 Pro Tips
- ★Use CSS selectors or XPath for robust data extraction
- ★Set up monitoring alerts for extraction failures (structure changed)
- ★Implement exponential backoff for retries on failures
- ★Store raw HTML for reprocessing if extraction logic changes
- ★Combine with data analysis tools for insights from extracted data
- ★Consider using official APIs or RSS feeds as more stable alternatives
Technical Details▌
Architecture
MCP server handles HTTP requests, HTML parsing, JavaScript rendering (if headless browser), and returns structured data to Claude.
Protocols
- HTTP/HTTPS
- WebSocket (for real-time sites)
- Puppeteer/Playwright (for JavaScript sites)
Compatibility
- Static HTML sites
- JavaScript-rendered SPAs (with headless browser)
- REST APIs
- GraphQL endpoints
When to Use This▌
✓ Use When
Use for research automation, content monitoring, data aggregation from multiple sources, and when official APIs don't exist. Best for read-only information gathering.
✗ Avoid When
Avoid for sites with APIs (use API instead), sites that explicitly forbid scraping, when data is copyrighted, or for login-required content without proper authorization.
Integration▌
- →Scheduled monitoring with change detection
- →Multi-source data aggregation pipelines
- →Fallback to web scraping when API rate limits hit
- →Headless browser for JavaScript-heavy sites
Discussion
Product Hunt–style comments (not star reviews)- No comments yet — start the thread.
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Ratings
4.5★★★★★29 reviews- ★★★★★Hana Menon· Dec 4, 2024
Chrome DevTools MCP is a well-scoped MCP server in the explainx.ai directory — install snippets and categories matched our Claude Code setup.
- ★★★★★Kaira Anderson· Dec 4, 2024
Chrome DevTools MCP has been reliable for tool-calling workflows; the MCP profile page is a good permalink for internal docs.
- ★★★★★Hana Ramirez· Nov 23, 2024
We wired Chrome DevTools MCP into a staging workspace; the listing’s GitHub and npm pointers saved time versus hunting across READMEs.
- ★★★★★Sophia Huang· Nov 23, 2024
Chrome DevTools MCP reduced integration guesswork — categories and install configs on the listing matched the upstream repo.
- ★★★★★Sophia Ghosh· Nov 3, 2024
Useful MCP listing: Chrome DevTools MCP is the kind of server we cite when onboarding engineers to host + tool permissions.
- ★★★★★Sophia Anderson· Oct 22, 2024
We evaluated Chrome DevTools MCP against two servers with overlapping tools; this profile had the clearer scope statement.
- ★★★★★Anaya Jackson· Oct 14, 2024
According to our notes, Chrome DevTools MCP benefits from clear Model Context Protocol framing — fewer ambiguous “AI plugin” claims.
- ★★★★★Sophia Rahman· Oct 14, 2024
I recommend Chrome DevTools MCP for teams standardizing on MCP; the explainx.ai page compares cleanly with sibling servers.
- ★★★★★Rahul Santra· Sep 21, 2024
Chrome DevTools MCP reduced integration guesswork — categories and install configs on the listing matched the upstream repo.
- ★★★★★Pratham Ware· Aug 12, 2024
I recommend Chrome DevTools MCP for teams standardizing on MCP; the explainx.ai page compares cleanly with sibling servers.
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