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Test and scripting frameworks

BrowserOS neo vs Puppeteer

Puppeteer automates what earned a script. neo runs the checks you would otherwise do by hand.

Puppeteer is a Node library from the Chrome team. Your code opens a browser over the DevTools Protocol, clicks and types through it, and closes it again. It is small, fast, and has been the default way to script Chrome for years.

BrowserOS neo is not a library. It is a browser you install, sign in to once, and hand to an agent over MCP. There is nothing to import and no script to maintain.

[ 01 ]

The short version

Choose BrowserOS neo when

  • The work sits behind a login you would rather not script.
  • You want to ask for a result instead of describing every step.
  • You want to watch the run and rewind it afterwards.
  • Several agents need to work at once.

Choose Puppeteer when

  • The job repeats on a schedule and is worth maintaining as code.
  • The target is public, with no sign-in to get past.
  • Scraping or screenshotting at volume, headless, unattended.
  • You want one Node dependency rather than an application.
[ 02 ]

Side by side

BrowserOS neo compared with Puppeteer, row by row.
DimensionBrowserOS neoPuppeteer
Who drives itBrowserOS neoAny agent that speaks MCP, in plain language.PuppeteerYour own JavaScript, line by line.
Logged-in sitesBrowserOS neoOne-click import of your Chrome logins, into a browser that runs beside your main one.PuppeteerYou script the login yourself, or reuse a cookies file you saved. Puppeteer can also attach to a Chrome you launched with a real profile, which is closer to neo than its reputation suggests.
When a page changesBrowserOS neoThe agent re-reads the page and adapts. Usually right, sometimes not.PuppeteerThe selector misses and the script throws. For scripted work that is the correct outcome, not a flaw.
Seeing what happenedBrowserOS neoWatch live, then replay the session as a scrubbable video. On by default.PuppeteerScreenshots and traces you add yourself, plus a headed window if you ask for one.
Several at onceBrowserOS neoSeveral agents share one visible browser, each with its own tabs.PuppeteerAs many browser instances as your machine will hold, usually headless.
PriceBrowserOS neoFree. You bring your own model keys.PuppeteerFree. No model in the loop, so no token cost per run.

The row worth pausing on is what a script costs before it runs. Someone has to learn the page, write the selectors and debug them, and that bill arrives whether the task ever repeats or not.

Most checks never repeat. They are one-off verifications behind a login, needed today, where the script would outlive its usefulness by about an hour. neo does them without leaving anything behind to maintain.

[ 03 ]

Most verification never earns a script.

Reaching for Puppeteer means deciding a check is worth a file. Someone learns the page, writes the selectors, debugs them, and maintains them when the markup shifts. Most QA checks never clear that bar, so they get done by hand or quietly skipped.

neo runs them without the file. Describe the check in plain language, in a browser already holding your logins, and watch it happen. Every run is recorded, so what you hand back is a replay rather than a description of what you did.

Scripts stay right for jobs that repeat on a schedule. neo takes the one-off verifications around them, which is where most of the checking actually happens.

[ 04 ]

Common questions

Can I use BrowserOS neo for QA checks?

Yes. Describe the check and the agent runs it in a browser already signed in, with a replay of the session afterwards. It suits the verifications that were never worth scripting: confirming a fix, checking a page behind a login, spot-checking a build.

Does BrowserOS neo replace Puppeteer?

No. There is no scripting API and nothing for continuous integration. Puppeteer is right for jobs that repeat on a schedule. neo is for the checks that happen once, where writing the script costs more than the check.

Which one actually costs less?

It depends what you count. A Puppeteer script costs nothing per run, but somebody has to learn the page, write it and maintain it first. neo spends model tokens per run and no engineering time at all. For one-off checks the second is almost always cheaper.

Can Puppeteer use my existing Chrome profile?

Yes. Launch Chrome with a user data directory, or connect to one already running, and the logins come with it. It is more setup than neo’s one-click import, but the claim that Puppeteer is always logged out is wrong.

[ 05 ]

Check it yourself

Every claim about Puppeteer here was read off these pages on 16 September 2026. If something has gone stale, tell us.

What we could not confirm

  • We did not test Puppeteer’s connection to an existing user profile ourselves; that claim comes from its documentation.
[ 06 ]

Other comparisons

Give your agent a browser it can sign into.

Free, open source, and it sits beside the browser you already use.