Brave MCP

Fork of ChromeDevTools/chrome-devtools-mcp ported to Brave Browser.

npm: brave-mcp · repo: triuzzi/brave-devtools-mcp

brave-mcp lets your coding agent (such as Claude, Cursor, Gemini or Copilot) control and inspect a live Brave browser. It acts as a Model-Context-Protocol (MCP) server, giving your AI coding assistant access to the full power of DevTools for reliable automation, in-depth debugging, and performance analysis. A CLI is also provided for use without MCP.

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 Brave and automatically wait for action results.

Disclaimers

brave-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. To disable this, run with the --no-performance-crux flag.

Usage statistics from the upstream project are disabled by default in this fork. You can explicitly enable them with --usage-statistics if desired.

Requirements

• Node.js v20.19 or a newer latest maintenance LTS version.
• Brave Browser current release version or newer.
• npm

Note: Do not use chrome-devtools-mcp@latest from npm — that installs Google's Chrome-oriented server. This fork is brave-mcp.

Setup

Quick start (via npm)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "brave-devtools": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "brave-mcp@latest"]
    }
  }
}

Add this to your MCP client config and you're done. Works with Claude Code (~/.mcp.json), Cursor (Settings → MCP), VS Code Copilot, and any other MCP client.

From source (for development)

git clone https://github.com/triuzzi/brave-devtools-mcp.git
cd brave-devtools-mcp
npm install
npm run build

Run npm run build again after git pull when you update the repo.

Then point your MCP config at the built CLI with an absolute path:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "brave-devtools": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "/absolute/path/to/brave-devtools-mcp/build/src/bin/brave-devtools-mcp.js"
      ]
    }
  }
}

This works with Claude Code (~/.mcp.json), Cursor (Settings → MCP → New MCP Server, or mcp.json), VS Code Copilot, and any other MCP client.

If Brave is not detected automatically, set BRAVE_PATH:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "brave-devtools": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "/absolute/path/to/brave-devtools-mcp/build/src/bin/brave-devtools-mcp.js"
      ],
      "env": {
        "BRAVE_PATH": "/Applications/Brave Browser.app/Contents/MacOS/Brave Browser"
      }
    }
  }
}

3. Choose your connection mode

The server has two modes: launch a new instance (default) or attach to your existing Brave window.

Mode A: Launch a new instance (default)

With the basic config above, the server spawns a dedicated Brave instance with its own profile. Your existing Brave windows are untouched. This is the simplest mode — no extra setup needed.

Mode B: Attach to your existing Brave window

If you want the MCP server to control the Brave window you already have open (same tabs, cookies, logins), you need to start Brave with remote debugging enabled.

Step 1: Quit Brave completely, then relaunch with the debugging flag:

# macOS
open -a "Brave Browser" --args --remote-debugging-port=9222

# Linux
brave-browser --remote-debugging-port=9222

# Windows
"C:\Program Files\BraveSoftware\Brave-Browser\Application\brave.exe" --remote-debugging-port=9222

Tip: To always start Brave with remote debugging, add --remote-debugging-port=9222 to Brave's launch shortcut or shell alias so you never have to think about it again.

Step 2: Add --browserUrl to your MCP config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "brave-devtools": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "brave-mcp@latest",
        "--browserUrl",
        "http://localhost:9222"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Or if running from source:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "brave-devtools": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "/absolute/path/to/brave-devtools-mcp/build/src/bin/brave-devtools-mcp.js",
        "--browserUrl",
        "http://localhost:9222"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Without --browserUrl, the server will always launch a new instance. With it, the server attaches to your running Brave instead.

Warning: The remote debugging port lets any application on your machine control the browser. Be mindful of sensitive websites while it's open.

All CLI options

Run --help to see every flag:

node /absolute/path/to/brave-devtools-mcp/build/src/bin/brave-devtools-mcp.js --help

Testing

An integration test suite exercises all 29 MCP tools against a running Brave instance:

# Launch Brave with remote debugging
open -a "Brave Browser" --args --remote-debugging-port=9222

# Run all 36 test cases
npm run test:brave

Tests cover navigation, snapshots, screenshots, script execution, input automation (click/fill/drag/upload), dialogs, console, network, emulation, performance tracing, memory snapshots, and Lighthouse audits.

Getting started

If you are interested in only basic browser tasks, use --slim mode:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "brave-devtools": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "/absolute/path/to/brave-devtools-mcp/build/src/bin/brave-devtools-mcp.js",
        "--slim",
        "--headless"
      ]
    }
  }
}

See Slim tool reference.

MCP Client configuration

amp mcp add chrome-devtools -- npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "chrome-devtools": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "chrome-devtools-mcp@latest",
        "--browser-url=http://127.0.0.1:9222",
        "-y"
      ]
    }
  }
}

claude mcp add chrome-devtools --scope user npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest

/plugin marketplace add ChromeDevTools/chrome-devtools-mcp

/plugin install chrome-devtools-mcp

codex mcp add chrome-devtools -- npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest

[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

cmd mcp add chrome-devtools --scope user npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest

copilot

/mcp add

code --add-mcp '{"name":"io.github.ChromeDevTools/chrome-devtools-mcp","command":"npx","args":["-y","chrome-devtools-mcp"],"env":{}}'

code --add-mcp '{"""name""":"""io.github.ChromeDevTools/chrome-devtools-mcp""","""command""":"""npx""","""args""":["""-y""","""chrome-devtools-mcp"""]}'

droid mcp add chrome-devtools "npx -y chrome-devtools-mcp@latest"

# 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

gemini mcp add -s user chrome-devtools npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest

mcp-proxy --transport streamablehttp --port 8080 -- npx -y chrome-devtools-mcp@latest

[[mcp_servers]]
name = "chrome-devtools"
transport = "stdio"
command = "npx"
args = ["chrome-devtools-mcp@latest"]

{
  "$schema": "https://opencode.ai/config.json",
  "mcp": {
    "chrome-devtools": {
      "type": "local",
      "command": ["npx", "-y", "chrome-devtools-mcp@latest"]
    }
  }
}

qodercli mcp add chrome-devtools -- npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest

qodercli mcp add -s user chrome-devtools -- npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest

Your first prompt

Enter the following prompt in your MCP Client to check if everything is working:

Check the performance of https://example.com

Your MCP client should open Brave (or attach to the running instance) and record a performance trace.

[!NOTE] The MCP server will start the browser automatically once the MCP client uses a tool that requires a running browser instance. Connecting to the Brave DevTools MCP server on its own will not automatically start the browser.

Tools

If you run into any issues, checkout our troubleshooting guide.

• Input automation (10 tools)
  • click
  • drag
  • fill
  • fill_form
  • handle_dialog
  • hover
  • press_key
  • type_text
  • upload_file
  • click_at
• Navigation automation (6 tools)
  • close_page
  • list_pages
  • navigate_page
  • new_page
  • select_page
  • wait_for
• Emulation (2 tools)
  • emulate
  • resize_page
• Performance (3 tools)
  • performance_analyze_insight
  • performance_start_trace
  • performance_stop_trace
• Network (2 tools)
  • get_network_request
  • list_network_requests
• Debugging (8 tools)
  • evaluate_script
  • get_console_message
  • lighthouse_audit
  • list_console_messages
  • take_screenshot
  • take_snapshot
  • screencast_start
  • screencast_stop
• Memory (4 tools)
  • take_memory_snapshot
  • get_memory_snapshot_details
  • get_nodes_by_class
  • load_memory_snapshot
• Extensions (5 tools)
  • install_extension
  • list_extensions
  • reload_extension
  • trigger_extension_action
  • uninstall_extension
• Third-party (2 tools)
  • execute_3p_developer_tool
  • list_3p_developer_tools
• WebMCP (2 tools)
  • execute_webmcp_tool
  • list_webmcp_tools

Configuration

The Brave DevTools MCP server supports the following configuration options:

• --autoConnect/ --auto-connect If specified, automatically connects to a Brave instance running locally from the user data directory identified by the channel param (default channel is release). Requires the remote debugging server to be started in the Brave instance via brave://inspect/#remote-debugging.

  • Type: boolean
  • Default: false

• --browserUrl/ --browser-url, -u Connect to a running, debuggable Brave instance (e.g. http://127.0.0.1:9222).

  • Type: string

• --wsEndpoint/ --ws-endpoint, -w WebSocket endpoint to connect to a running Brave instance (e.g., ws://127.0.0.1:9222/devtools/browser/). Alternative to --browserUrl.

  • Type: string

• --wsHeaders/ --ws-headers Custom headers for WebSocket connection in JSON format (e.g., '{"Authorization":"Bearer token"}'). Only works with --wsEndpoint.

  • Type: string

• --headless Whether to run in headless (no UI) mode.

  • Type: boolean
  • Default: false

• --executablePath/ --executable-path, -e Path to custom Brave executable. Can also be set via BRAVE_PATH environment variable.

  • Type: string

• --isolated If specified, creates a temporary user-data-dir that is automatically cleaned up after the browser is closed. Defaults to false.

  • Type: boolean

• --userDataDir/ --user-data-dir Path to the user data directory for Brave. Default is $HOME/.cache/brave-devtools-mcp/brave-profile$CHANNEL_SUFFIX_IF_NON_RELEASE

  • Type: string

• --channel Specify a different Brave channel that should be used. The default is the release channel.

  • Type: string
  • Choices: release, beta, nightly, dev

• --logFile/ --log-file Path to a file to write debug logs to. Set the env variable DEBUG to * to enable verbose logs. Useful for submitting bug reports.

  • Type: string

• --viewport Initial viewport size for the Brave instances started by the server. For example, 1280x720. In headless mode, max size is 3840x2160px.

  • Type: string

• --proxyServer/ --proxy-server Proxy server configuration for Brave passed as --proxy-server when launching the browser. See https://www.chromium.org/developers/design-documents/network-settings/ for details.

  • Type: string

• --acceptInsecureCerts/ --accept-insecure-certs If enabled, ignores errors relative to self-signed and expired certificates. Use with caution.

  • Type: boolean

• --experimentalVision/ --experimental-vision Whether to enable coordinate-based tools such as click_at(x,y). Usually requires a computer-use model able to produce accurate coordinates by looking at screenshots.

  • Type: boolean

• --experimentalScreencast/ --experimental-screencast Exposes experimental screencast tools (requires ffmpeg). Install ffmpeg https://www.ffmpeg.org/download.html and ensure it is available in the MCP server PATH.

  • Type: boolean

• --experimentalFfmpegPath/ --experimental-ffmpeg-path Path to ffmpeg executable for screencast recording.

  • Type: string

• --categoryExperimentalWebmcp/ --category-experimental-webmcp Set to true to enable debugging WebMCP tools. Requires Brave with the following flags: --enable-features=WebMCPTesting,DevToolsWebMCPSupport

  • Type: boolean

• --braveArg/ --brave-arg Additional arguments for Brave. Only applies when Brave is launched by brave-devtools-mcp.

  • Type: array

• --ignoreDefaultBraveArg/ --ignore-default-brave-arg Explicitly disable default arguments for Brave. Only applies when Brave is launched by brave-devtools-mcp.

  • Type: array

• --categoryEmulation/ --category-emulation Set to false to exclude tools related to emulation.

  • Type: boolean
  • Default: true

• --categoryPerformance/ --category-performance Set to false to exclude tools related to performance.

  • Type: boolean
  • Default: true

• --categoryNetwork/ --category-network Set to false to exclude tools related to network.

  • Type: boolean
  • Default: true

• --categoryExtensions/ --category-extensions Set to true to include tools related to extensions. Note: This feature is currently only supported with a pipe connection. autoConnect, browserUrl, and wsEndpoint are not supported with this feature until 149 will be released.

  • Type: boolean
  • Default: false

• --categoryExperimentalThirdParty/ --category-experimental-third-party Set to true to enable third-party developer tools exposed by the inspected page itself

  • Type: boolean
  • Default: false

• --performanceCrux/ --performance-crux Set to false to disable sending URLs from performance traces to CrUX API to get field performance data.

  • Type: boolean
  • Default: true

• --usageStatistics/ --usage-statistics Usage statistics collection (disabled by default in this fork).

  • Type: boolean
  • Default: false

• --slim Exposes a "slim" set of 3 tools covering navigation, script execution and screenshots only. Useful for basic browser tasks.

  • Type: boolean

• --redactNetworkHeaders/ --redact-network-headers If true, redacts some of the network headers considered senstive before returning to the client.

  • Type: boolean
  • Default: false

Pass them via the args property in the JSON configuration. For example:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "chrome-devtools": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "chrome-devtools-mcp@latest",
        "--channel=canary",
        "--headless=true",
        "--isolated=true"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Connecting via WebSocket with custom headers

You can connect directly to a Chrome WebSocket endpoint and include custom headers (e.g., for authentication):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "chrome-devtools": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "chrome-devtools-mcp@latest",
        "--wsEndpoint=ws://127.0.0.1:9222/devtools/browser/<id>",
        "--wsHeaders={\"Authorization\":\"Bearer YOUR_TOKEN\"}"
      ]
    }
  }
}

To get the WebSocket endpoint from a running Chrome instance, visit http://127.0.0.1:9222/json/version and look for the webSocketDebuggerUrl field.

You can also run npx chrome-devtools-mcp@latest --help to see all available configuration options.

Concepts

User data directory

brave-devtools-mcp starts a Brave release channel instance using the following user data directory:

• Linux / macOS: $HOME/.cache/brave-devtools-mcp/brave-profile-$CHANNEL
• Windows: %HOMEPATH%/.cache/brave-devtools-mcp/brave-profile-$CHANNEL

The user data directory is not cleared between runs and shared across all instances of brave-devtools-mcp. Set the isolated option to true to use a temporary user data dir instead which will be cleared automatically after the browser is closed.

Connecting to a running Brave instance

See Mode B: Attach to your existing Brave window in the Setup section above.

For VM-to-host port forwarding issues, see docs/troubleshooting.md.

Debugging on Android

Please consult these instructions (originally written for Chrome, but applicable to any Chromium browser).

Known limitations

See Troubleshooting.