We may earn a commission if you buy through links on this page. It never changes a score or a ranking. How we make money
It's a split decision.
Browserbase is a hosted platform for browser agents, combining cloud browsers with Search, Fetch, agent identity and observability. Browserless provides managed browser infrastructure and APIs, with MCP tools and a self-hosted option. Choose Browserbase if your agent needs its broader web context and runtime features. Choose Browserless if you want published monthly-equivalent plan prices, defined session limits or the option to run on your own infrastructure. Both support Playwright and Puppeteer.
01Side by side
| Browserbase | Browserless | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Usage-based; base plan prices are unpublished | Annual-billed tiers with unit overages |
| Free tier | 3 browsers, 1 hour, 3 agent runs | 1,000 units/month; 2 concurrent browsers |
| Self-hosting | Self-hosting option not published | Self-host on customer infrastructure |
| API and SDKs | Browser, Search and Fetch APIs | Browser APIs and HTTP browser tasks |
| Integrations | Playwright, Puppeteer, Selenium, Stagehand | Playwright, Puppeteer, MCP clients |
| Deployment model | Hosted browsers, runtime and observability | Managed cloud or private deployment |
| Limits and scaling | Browser concurrency and hours by plan | Units, concurrency and session time by plan |
| Platforms | Web | Web |
Browserbase Choose Browserbase if
- Choose Browserbase if agents need Search and Fetch alongside browser sessions.
- Choose Browserbase if you need session replay, live view and logs.
- Choose Browserbase if you want a managed runtime for deploying agents.
Browserless Choose Browserless if
- Choose Browserless if you need to self-host on customer infrastructure.
- Choose Browserless if you want published tiers and unit overages.
- Choose Browserless if your workflow uses MCP search, scrape or crawl tools.
02Pricing at real usage
Browserbase's free plan includes 3 concurrent browsers, 1 browser hour, 3 agent runs, and 1,000 Search and 1,000 Fetch calls. The Developer and Startup base prices are not published. Included hours are followed by $0.12/hour on Developer or $0.10/hour on Startup; listed Search and Fetch rates vary by plan and request type. Browserless Free includes 1,000 units monthly. Its annual-billed Prototyping, Starter and Scale plans are listed at $25, $140 and $350 per month, respectively; yearly billing saves 30%, and monthly prices are not published. Those plans include 20,000, 180,000 and 500,000 units. Overages cost $0.0020, $0.0017 and $0.0015 per unit, respectively. Browserless also charges units for proxy traffic and successful CAPTCHA solves, so estimate those alongside browser use.
03API, SDKs and integration
Browserbase is a hosted API platform: its browser sessions handle navigation and interaction, while Search returns relevant websites and Fetch converts URLs into HTML, JSON or markdown. The homepage describes one API key for these capabilities. Its listed integrations include Playwright, Puppeteer, Selenium, Stagehand, CrewAI, LangChain and tools that make HTTP requests. Browserbase also offers a runtime for deploying agents and observability through logs, live view and session replay. Browserless offers managed browsers that existing Puppeteer or Playwright scripts can connect to, plus browser tasks over HTTP. Its MCP server exposes search, scrape and crawl tools to MCP clients including Claude and Cursor; listed frameworks also include LangChain and Claude Computer Use. Both vendors provide documentation. The listed integration details name libraries, frameworks and protocols, not language-specific SDKs or a CLI. Check the docs for the connection method and runtime requirements that match your codebase.
04Open source, self-hosting and lock-in
Neither vendor identifies its platform as open source or names an open-source licence. Browserless offers self-hosting on customer infrastructure, with the same API, and lists private deployment or licensed self-hosting for Enterprise. Browserbase describes hosted cloud infrastructure and an agent runtime; the vendor doesn't publish a self-hosting option. Both support Playwright and Puppeteer, which can keep browser-control code less tied to a single provider. Provider-specific features still create migration work: Browserbase's Search, Fetch, runtime and observability, or Browserless's MCP tools, authenticated profiles and unit-based APIs, need replacements if you move. Neither vendor's listed product details explain data export or portability for persisted sessions and profiles. Before committing, ask how to export session data, profiles and logs, and whether your contract covers their retention and transfer.
Questions people ask
Which is cheaper, Browserbase or Browserless?
Browserless publishes annual-billed monthly equivalents starting at $25 for Prototyping, with unit overages. Browserbase includes free usage and publishes some add-on rates, but its Developer and Startup base prices are not published. Compare Browserless units and Browserbase browser hours, Search, Fetch and proxy use against your workload before estimating cost.
Can I self-host Browserbase or Browserless?
Browserless offers self-hosting on customer infrastructure and says the same API is available. Browserbase describes hosted cloud browsers and runtime; the vendor doesn't publish a self-hosting option. For private or licensed Browserless deployments, Enterprise terms apply, so confirm deployment scope and pricing with the vendor.
Do Browserbase and Browserless support Playwright?
Yes. Both list Playwright and Puppeteer integrations. Browserbase also lists Selenium, Stagehand, CrewAI and LangChain. Browserless lists MCP clients such as Claude and Cursor, plus LangChain and Claude Computer Use. Check each vendor's docs for the specific connection setup and feature support your workflow needs.
What are the free-plan limits?
Browserbase's free plan includes 3 concurrent browsers, 1 browser hour, 3 agent runs, 1,000 Search calls and 1,000 Fetch calls. Browserless Free includes 1,000 units per month, 2 concurrent browsers, a 2-minute maximum session time, and 1 day of persisted sessions and replays.