OpenCLI

OpenCLI

Convert any website into a CLI & run Browser Use on your logged-in Chrome. Turn websites and browser sessions into deterministic interfaces for humans and AI agents. Or run Browser Use against any page — navigate, fill forms, click, extract, automate.

OpenCLI is a general-purpose browser automation CLI for AI agents and an agent-browser alternative. Navigate, inspect, click, fill forms, extract, and screenshot websites without a site adapter. Built-in adapters add reusable, deterministic site commands. See OpenCLI vs agent-browser and migration.

OpenCLI gives you one surface for three different kinds of automation:

• Use built-in adapters for sites like Bilibili, Zhihu, Xiaohongshu, Reddit, HackerNews, Twitter/X, and many more.
• Let AI Agents operate any website — install the opencli-browser skill in your AI agent (Claude Code, Cursor, etc.), and it can navigate, click, type/fill, extract, and inspect any page through your logged-in browser via opencli browser primitives.
• Write new adapters end-to-end with opencli browser + the opencli-adapter-author skill, which guides from first recon through field decoding, code, and opencli adapter test.

Agent command contract

Commands default to JSON: { "ok": true, "data": ... }; failures return { "ok": false, "error": { "code": "...", "message": "...", "hint": "..." } } on stdout with a nonzero exit code. Logs use stderr. Explicit human formats, help, version and completion retain their own formats; browser follow modes use JSON Lines.

opencli list search --site github
opencli browser open https://example.com --session research
opencli browser network --static --session research
opencli browser chrome describe
opencli adapter check github/search

list returns compact, paginated capabilities (commands, total, nextOffset); read arguments with <command> --help -f json. Page scope is --session, native Chrome calls need no session. Adapter authoring is grouped under adapter init|check|test. state --diagnostics and network --static replace analyze and discover. This changes CLI syntax and JSON output. JS adapters keep cli({...}), func(args) and func(page, args); adapter defaultFormat no longer changes the CLI default.

Quick Start

1. Install OpenCLI

For desktop use, start with OpenCLIApp. It bundles the OpenCLI runtime, keeps the managed opencli command installed, and gives you a system tray UI for setup, diagnostics, updates, browser-login keepalive, and Web → Markdown.

Option A — OpenCLIApp (recommended for macOS / Windows): Download the latest app from https://opencli.info/download, install it, then open the app once and use the System page to install or repair the opencli command.

Option B — npm global install (CLI-only / CI / servers): OpenCLI requires Node.js >= 20.18.1 when installed through npm.

node --version
npm install -g @jackwener/opencli

2. Install the Browser Bridge Extension

OpenCLI connects to Chrome/Chromium through a lightweight Browser Bridge extension plus a small local daemon. The daemon auto-starts when needed.

Option A — Chrome Web Store (recommended): Install OpenCLI from the Chrome Web Store.

Option B — Manual install:

1. Download the latest opencli-extension-v{version}.zip from the GitHub Releases page.
2. Unzip it, open chrome://extensions, and enable Developer mode.
3. Click Load unpacked and select the unzipped folder.

3. Verify the setup

opencli doctor

4. Optional: name your Chrome profile

Each Chrome profile runs its own OpenCLI extension instance. If you use multiple Chrome profiles, list the connected profiles and assign local aliases:

opencli profile list
opencli profile rename <contextId> work
opencli profile use work
opencli --profile work browser main state

With only one connected profile, OpenCLI uses it automatically. With multiple connected profiles and no default, OpenCLI asks you to choose instead of guessing.

5. Run your first commands

opencli list
opencli hackernews top --limit 5
opencli bilibili hot --limit 5

For Humans

Use OpenCLI directly when you want a reliable command instead of a live browser session:

• opencli list shows every registered command.
• opencli <site> <command> runs a built-in or generated adapter.
• opencli doctor helps diagnose browser connectivity.

Extending OpenCLI

If you want to add your own commands, start with the Extending OpenCLI guide. README keeps this short; the guide covers the directory layout, source-control model, and install commands.

Need	Recommended path
Keep personal website commands in your own Git repo	opencli plugin create + opencli plugin install file://...
Quickly draft a private local adapter	opencli adapter init <site>/<command> in ~/.opencli/clis/
Modify an official adapter locally	opencli adapter eject <site> + opencli adapter reset <site>
Publish or install third-party commands	opencli plugin install github:user/repo

Close temporary browser tabs after use

To remove temporary owned tabs when a workflow finishes:

export OPENCLI_CLOSE_OWNED_TAB=1
opencli web read --url https://example.com --stdout true
# Multi-step browser sessions stay open between calls; close explicitly at the end:
opencli browser close --session research

This opts into closing only the current lease's owned tab. Chrome closes its window automatically if no tabs remain; existing user pages and other sessions are preserved. Bound tabs are detached and kept open. The default reusable container policy, idle expiry, --keep-tab true, and persistent site sessions remain unchanged. Use --site-session ephemeral for one-shot reads of adapters that otherwise keep a persistent site session.

Cleanup uses a dedicated action, so older extensions reject it without releasing the lease, and requires an extension acknowledgement. If cleanup fails or the extension is too old, a warning reports it separately from the site action. Retry explicit browser cleanup, or close a remaining one-shot adapter tab manually; do not repeat a completed site write. Explicit browser close also exits with an error; a one-shot adapter can still return its already-completed result.

For AI Agents

OpenCLI's browser commands are designed to be used by AI Agents — not run manually. Install skills into your AI agent (Claude Code, Cursor, etc.), and the agent operates websites on your behalf using your logged-in Chrome session.

Install skills (also refreshes existing installs)

npx skills add jackwener/opencli

Or install only what you need:

npx skills add jackwener/opencli --skill opencli-adapter-author
npx skills add jackwener/opencli --skill opencli-autofix
npx skills add jackwener/opencli --skill opencli-browser
npx skills add jackwener/opencli --skill opencli-usage

OpenCLI no longer ships the sitemap skills. Older opencli-sitemap-author and opencli-browser-sitemap copies may remain in an agent's separate skills directory after an upgrade. If they remain, use the agent's removal flow if available; otherwise remove only those two directories (for example, ~/.agents/skills/opencli-sitemap-author). The location varies by agent; keep the rest of the skills directory.

Which skill to use

Skill	When to use	Example prompt to your AI agent
opencli-adapter-author	Write a reusable adapter for a new site or add a command to an existing site	"Write an adapter for douyin trending" / "Make a command that grabs the top posts from this page"
opencli-autofix	Repair a broken adapter when a built-in command fails	"opencli zhihu hot is returning empty — fix it"
opencli-browser	Drive a real Chrome page ad-hoc — navigate, fill forms, click, extract	"Help me check my Xiaohongshu notifications" / "Help me fill out this form" / "Use browser commands to scrape this page"
opencli-usage	Quick reference for all OpenCLI commands and sites	"What commands does OpenCLI have for Twitter?"

How it works

Once opencli-browser is installed, your AI agent can:

1. Navigate to any URL using your logged-in browser
2. Read page content via structured DOM snapshots (not screenshots)
3. Interact — click buttons, fill forms, select options, press keys
4. Extract data from the page or intercept network API responses
5. Wait for elements, text, or page transitions

The agent handles all the opencli browser commands internally — you just describe what you want done in natural language.

Skill references:

• skills/opencli-browser/SKILL.md — drive Chrome ad-hoc (navigate, fill forms, click, extract)
• skills/opencli-adapter-author/SKILL.md — write a new adapter end-to-end
• skills/opencli-autofix/SKILL.md — repair broken adapters
• skills/opencli-usage/SKILL.md — command and site reference

Available browser commands include open, state, click, type, fill, select, keys, wait, get, find, extract, frames, screenshot, scroll, back, eval, network, tab list, tab new, tab select, tab close, chrome describe, chrome call, and close.

opencli browser commands require a --session <name> option for page operations. opencli browser --session work open <url> and opencli browser --session work tab new [url] both return a target ID. Use opencli browser --session work tab list to inspect target IDs, then pass --tab <targetId> to route a command to a specific tab. tab new creates a new tab without changing the default browser target; only tab select <targetId> promotes that tab to the default target for later untargeted commands in the same session.

Writing a new adapter

When the site you need is not yet covered, use the opencli-adapter-author skill end-to-end:

1. Recon the site and pick a pattern (SPA / SSR / JSONP / Token / Streaming).
2. Discover the right endpoint — network inspection, initial state, bundle search, token trace, or interceptor fallback.
3. Pick auth — PUBLIC / COOKIE / INTERCEPT / UI / LOCAL.
4. Decode response fields and design output columns.
5. opencli browser recon analyze <url> → opencli browser recon init <site>/<name> → write adapter → opencli browser recon verify <site>/<name>.
6. Site knowledge persists to ~/.opencli/sites/<site>/ so the next adapter for the same site starts from context.

Configuration

Variable	Default	Description
OPENCLI_PROFILE	—	Browser Bridge profile alias/contextId to use when multiple Chrome profiles are connected
OPENCLI_WINDOW	command default	Set to foreground or background to override Browser Bridge window placement. Browser-backed commands also accept --window <foreground|background>.
OPENCLI_SITE_SESSION	adapter default	Set to ephemeral or persistent to override siteSession metadata for browser-backed adapter commands. ephemeral releases the one-shot tab when the command finishes, and the automation window stays open as a reusable container; persistent reuses the site's session. Per-command --site-session takes precedence.
OPENCLI_CLOSE_OWNED_TAB	0	Set to 1 to close the current owned tab on explicit session close or one-shot adapter cleanup instead of keeping a blank placeholder. Requires a supporting Browser Bridge extension.
OPENCLI_SITE_SLOTS	—	Pool sites onto warm persistent tabs, e.g. xiaohongshu:1:1500-3000,weibo:2 (site:poolSize[:minMs[-maxMs]]). Each command run borrows one slot tab exclusively (reads included) and queues when all are busy; the optional interval spaces runs by a jittered delay. Tabs share one automation window and only its active tab renders, so with poolSize > 1 render-dependent commands (lazy-loaded lists) can stall on background slots — use 1 for those and for risk-controlled sites. --site-session ephemeral opts one invocation out.
OPENCLI_BROWSER_CONNECT_TIMEOUT	45	Seconds to wait for browser connection
OPENCLI_BROWSER_COMMAND_TIMEOUT	60	Seconds to wait for a single browser command
OPENCLI_BROWSER_IDLE_TIMEOUT	extension default	Owned session idle timeout in seconds; per-command idleTimeout takes precedence. Does not extend explicit cleanup: ephemeral adapters normally release their tab at command completion. Bound tabs and persistent adapter sessions ignore idle timeouts. Releasing a session keeps its reusable window container open.
OPENCLI_CDP_ENDPOINT	—	Chrome DevTools Protocol endpoint for remote browsers
OPENCLI_CDP_TARGET	—	Filter CDP targets by URL substring (e.g. detail.1688.com)
OPENCLI_VERBOSE	false	Enable verbose logging (-v flag also works)
DEBUG_SNAPSHOT	—	Set to 1 for DOM snapshot debug output

opencli browser * requires an explicit --session <name> option for page operations, uses a foreground browser window by default, and keeps that session's tab lease until opencli browser --session <session> close or idle cleanup. Browser-backed adapters use a background adapter window and release one-shot tab leases by default. Interactive adapters can declare siteSession: 'persistent' to keep a stable site tab for continuity; pass --site-session ephemeral for a one-shot tab.

Built-in Commands

Site	Commands
xiaohongshu	search ask note comments feed user download publish follow unfollow notifications creator-notes creator-notes-summary creator-note-detail creator-profile creator-stats
bilibili	hot search history feed ranking download comments dynamic favorite following follow unfollow me subtitle summary video user-videos creator-stats
zhihu	hot search question download follow like favorite comment answer
hackernews	top new best ask show jobs search user
hltv	search player-summary player-matches player-form player-map-pool player-vs-team player-teammate-impact player-duel match-map match-series team-matches team-map-pool event-matches
geogebra	eval add-point add-line add-circle add-polygon triangle hexagon list info
linkedin	connect inbox job-detail jobs-preferences post-analytics posts profile-experience profile-projects profile-read profile-analytics safe-send search services-read sent-invitations thread-snapshot timeline salesnav-search salesnav-inbox salesnav-message salesnav-thread
reddit	hot frontpage popular search subreddit read user user-posts user-comments upvote upvoted save saved comment subscribe
twitter	trending search timeline tweets lists list-tweets list-create list-delete list-add list-add-batch list-remove list-remove-batch bookmarks post download profile article like likes notifications reply reply-dm thread follow unfollow followers following block unblock bookmark unbookmark delete hide-reply accept
claude	ask send new status read history detail
gemini	new ask image deep-research deep-research-result
notebooklm	status list open current get history summary note-list notes-get source-list source-get source-fulltext source-guide
amazon	bestsellers search product offer discussion movers-shakers new-releases rankings
upwork	search feed detail
slock	message-send message-read message-search channel-list channel-info channel-create channel-members channel-join task-list task-create task-claim task-status task-convert task-delete thread-list thread-follow attachment-upload attachment-download bookmark-add inbox dm-list server-list server-use whoami
huodongxing	events
midjourney	login whoami settings quota generate describe history status action download

Curated highlights — → see all 100+ supported sites & commands (douyin / weibo / spotify / 1688 / quark / nowcoder / google-scholar / hupu / xianyu / weread / weread-official / xiaoyuzhou / Chess.com / and more).

Download Support

OpenCLI supports downloading images, videos, and articles from supported platforms.

Platform	Content Types	Notes
xiaohongshu	Images, Videos	Downloads all media from a note
rednote	Images, Videos	Downloads all media from a signed rednote note URL
bilibili	Videos	Requires yt-dlp installed
twitter	Images, Videos	From user media tab or single tweet
douban	Images	Poster / still image lists
pixiv	Images	Original-quality illustrations, multi-page
1688	Images, Videos	Downloads page-visible product media from item pages
xiaoyuzhou	Audio, Transcript	Downloads episode audio and transcript JSON/text with local credentials
zhihu	Column articles, answers (Markdown)	Exports with optional image download
weixin	Articles (Markdown)	WeChat Official Account articles

For video downloads, install yt-dlp first: brew install yt-dlp

opencli xiaohongshu download "https://www.xiaohongshu.com/search_result/<id>?xsec_token=..." --output ./xhs
opencli xiaohongshu download "https://xhslink.com/..." --output ./xhs
opencli rednote download "https://www.rednote.com/search_result/<id>?xsec_token=..." --output ./rednote
opencli bilibili download BV1xxx --output ./bilibili
opencli twitter download elonmusk --limit 20 --output ./twitter
opencli 1688 download 841141931191 --output ./1688-downloads
opencli xiaoyuzhou download 69b3b675772ac2295bfc01d0 --output ./xiaoyuzhou
opencli xiaoyuzhou transcript 69dd0c98e2c8be31551f6a33 --output ./xiaoyuzhou-transcripts

opencli xiaoyuzhou download and transcript require local Xiaoyuzhou credentials in ~/.opencli/xiaoyuzhou.json.

Output Formats

All built-in commands support --format / -f with json (default), table, yaml, md, and csv.

opencli bilibili hot -f json    # Pipe to jq or LLMs
opencli bilibili hot -f csv     # Spreadsheet-friendly
opencli bilibili hot -v         # Verbose: show pipeline debug steps

Exit Codes

opencli follows Unix sysexits.h so CI / scripts can branch on failure mode: 0 success, 66 empty result, 69 Browser Bridge down, 75 timeout, 77 auth required, 78 config error, 130 Ctrl-C. Full reference: docs/guide/exit-codes.md.

Plugins

Extend OpenCLI with community-contributed adapters:

opencli plugin install github:user/opencli-plugin-my-tool
opencli plugin list
opencli plugin update --all
opencli plugin uninstall my-tool

Albato, Goofish and Taobao use local adapter-subdirectory installation; see the installation notes.

Plugin	Type	Description
opencli-plugin-albato	JS	Albato automation workflow management: scenario inspection, start/pause, failure diagnosis, and retry
opencli-plugin-amap	JS	AutoNavi / 高德地图 spot & route extraction, coordinate decoders (GCJ-02 & WGS-84), and SSR search
opencli-plugin-github-trending	JS	GitHub Trending repositories
opencli-plugin-goofish	JS	Goofish / 闲鱼 buyer orders, favorites, IM chat, profile, item search, and fulfillment stats
opencli-plugin-hot-digest	JS	Multi-platform trending aggregator
opencli-plugin-juejin	JS	稀土掘金 (Juejin) hot articles
opencli-plugin-taobao	JS	Taobao buyer chat history, order history, bought shops, favorites, and keyword-based chat summaries
opencli-plugin-vk	JS	VK (VKontakte) wall, feed, and search
opencli-plugin-x-article-publisher	JS	Publish Markdown with local images as X long-form Articles via OpenCLI and xPoster

See Plugins Guide for creating your own plugin.

Testing

See TESTING.md for how to run and write tests.

Troubleshooting

• "Extension not connected" — Ensure the Browser Bridge extension is installed from the Chrome Web Store and enabled in chrome://extensions.
• "attach failed: Cannot access a chrome-extension:// URL" — Another extension may be interfering. Try disabling other extensions temporarily.
• Empty data or 'Unauthorized' error — Your Chrome/Chromium login session may have expired. Navigate to the target site and log in again.
• Node API errors / missing fetch / startup crash on old Node — OpenCLI requires Node.js >= 20.18.1. Run node --version, upgrade Node if needed, then retry.
• Daemon issues — Check status: curl localhost:19825/status · View logs: curl localhost:19825/logs

Star History

License

Apache-2.0