n8n-nodes-playwright-api

An n8n community node for remote browser automation using Playwright over WebSocket.

Unlike other n8n Playwright nodes that run browsers locally (requiring ~1GB of browser binaries), this node connects to a remote Playwright server — ideal for Kubernetes, Docker, and cloud environments where n8n and the browser engine run on separate containers/machines.

How It Works

┌─────────────┐     WebSocket      ┌──────────────────────┐
│   n8n        │ ◄──────────────► │  Playwright Server    │
│  (this node) │   connect()       │  (Docker container)   │
└─────────────┘                    └──────────────────────┘

This node uses Playwright's native browserType.connect(wsEndpoint) to connect to a remote Playwright server over WebSocket. The connection uses the full Playwright protocol, supporting all browsers (Chromium, Firefox, WebKit) with full feature fidelity.

Prerequisites

• A running Playwright server accessible via WebSocket
• Important: The Playwright version on the server must match the client version (currently 1.49.0)

Recommended: Microsoft Playwright Docker Image

docker run --rm -p 3000:3000 mcr.microsoft.com/playwright:v1.58.0-noble \
  npx playwright launch-server --browser chromium --host 0.0.0.0 --port 3000

Installation

In n8n (Community Node)

1. Go to Settings > Community Nodes
2. Install: n8n-nodes-playwright-api

Manual Installation

cd ~/.n8n/custom
pnpm install n8n-nodes-playwright-api

Note: Set PLAYWRIGHT_SKIP_BROWSER_DOWNLOAD=1 in your environment to skip browser binary downloads — this node only needs the Playwright client library, not the browser binaries.

Configuration

Credentials

Create a Playwright API credential in n8n with:

Operations

Custom Script Variables

In the Run Custom Script operation, these variables are available:

• $page — Current Playwright Page instance
• $browser — Browser instance
• $playwright — Playwright library
• $helpers — n8n helper methods (including prepareBinaryData)
• $json, $input — Standard n8n variables

Docker Compose Example

See docker-compose.yml for a complete setup with n8n and a Playwright server.

services:
  n8n:
    image: n8nio/n8n
    ports:
      - "5678:5678"
    depends_on:
      - playwright-server

  playwright-server:
    image: mcr.microsoft.com/playwright:v1.58.0-noble
    command: npx playwright launch-server --browser chromium --host 0.0.0.0 --port 3000
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"

Then configure your Playwright API credentials with ws://playwright-server:3000.

Kubernetes Deployment

Example Kubernetes manifests for running the Playwright server as a separate service:

apiVersion: apps/v1
kind: Deployment
metadata:
  name: playwright-server
spec:
  replicas: 1
  selector:
    matchLabels:
      app: playwright-server
  template:
    metadata:
      labels:
        app: playwright-server
    spec:
      containers:
        - name: playwright
          image: mcr.microsoft.com/playwright:v1.58.0-noble
          command: ["npx", "playwright", "launch-server", "--browser", "chromium", "--host", "0.0.0.0", "--port", "3000"]
          ports:
            - containerPort: 3000
          resources:
            requests:
              memory: "512Mi"
              cpu: "500m"
            limits:
              memory: "2Gi"
              cpu: "2000m"
---
apiVersion: v1
kind: Service
metadata:
  name: playwright-server
spec:
  selector:
    app: playwright-server
  ports:
    - port: 3000
      targetPort: 3000

Then configure your n8n Playwright API credentials with ws://playwright-server:3000.

Version Compatibility

The Playwright client and server major.minor versions must match. If you upgrade the Playwright dependency in this node, you must also update your Playwright server image.

Development

# Clone the repo
git clone <repo-url>
cd n8n-nodes-playwright-api

# Install dependencies (skips browser download)
PLAYWRIGHT_SKIP_BROWSER_DOWNLOAD=1 pnpm install

# Build
pnpm build

# Link to n8n for development
cd ~/.n8n/custom
pnpm link <path-to-this-repo>

License

MIT

Credits

Based on n8n-nodes-playwright by Mohamed Toema, modified for remote browser execution.