Compare · Browser Automation
Playwright vs Puppeteer MCP Server
Playwright exposes 25 tools and adds about 3,710 tokens to every model turn. Puppeteer exposes 8 tools and adds about 504. Playwright costs 7.4× as much context. Measured by connecting to each server and counting its tool list, not from the README.
 Playwrightmicrosoft |  Puppeteermerajmehrabi | |
|---|---|---|
| Context tax | ~3,710 tok/turn | ~504 tok/turn(leaner) |
| Tools | 25 | 8 |
| Cost per 1,000 turns (Claude Sonnet 5.5, uncached) | $7.42 | $1.01 |
| Security score | 100/100 | 87/100 |
| Cold start | 965 ms | 905 ms |
| Runs | Local (stdio) | Local (stdio) |
| Needs keys | None declared | None declared |
| Freshness | Active | Abandoned |
| GitHub stars | 38k | 486 |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Official MCP registry | Yes | No |
Install in Claude Code
Playwright
claude mcp add playwright -- npx -y @playwright/mcp
Puppeteer
claude mcp add puppeteer-merajmehrabi -- npx -y puppeteer-mcp-server
Tools
By name, from each server's live tool list. The same name can still behave differently.
Only in Playwright · 25
- browser_close
- browser_resize
- browser_console_messages
- browser_handle_dialog
- browser_emulate_media
- browser_evaluate
- browser_file_upload
- browser_drop
- browser_find
- browser_fill_form
- browser_press_key
- browser_type
- browser_navigate
- browser_navigate_back
- browser_network_requests
- browser_network_request
- browser_run_code_unsafe
- browser_take_screenshot
- browser_snapshot
- browser_click
- browser_drag
- browser_hover
- browser_select_option
- browser_tabs
- browser_wait_for
In both · 0
- none
Only in Puppeteer · 8
- puppeteer_connect_active_tab
- puppeteer_navigate
- puppeteer_screenshot
- puppeteer_click
- puppeteer_fill
- puppeteer_select
- puppeteer_hover
- puppeteer_evaluate
Questions
- Which uses fewer tokens, Playwright or Puppeteer?
- Puppeteer: its tool definitions take about 504 tokens per turn against 3,710 for Playwright (7.4× more). Tool definitions are resent on every model turn.
- Do Playwright and Puppeteer have the same tools?
- No tool names overlap: Playwright has 25 tools and Puppeteer has 8.
- Are Playwright and Puppeteer hosted or local?
- Playwright: local (stdio). Puppeteer: local (stdio).
Token counts use the o200k tokenizer on each server's tool definitions as an agent receives them; clients that load tools lazily pay less. Prices are Claude Sonnet 5.5 input at $2/MTok. Want to check one yourself? Run npx mcpskillhub test <package> — how it works.