Lightpanda Agent Skill

---
name: lightpanda
description: Lightpanda browser, drop-in replacement for Chrome-based browsing in any AI agent - faster and lighter for tasks without graphical rendering like data retrieval. Install it and use it via MCP server, CLI fetch, CDP with Playwright/Puppeteer, or WebDriver with Selenium; MCP and CDP also run on Lightpanda Cloud. Its agent mode saves automations as deterministic, token-free replay scripts (PandaScript).
license: Apache-2.0
compatibility: "Linux and macOS only (Windows via WSL2). Installs its own binary via scripts/install.sh — not run automatically by the plugin installer, so run it once before first use."
allowed-tools: Bash(bash ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/install.sh), Bash(command -v lightpanda), Bash(lightpanda *)
metadata:
  version: "2.1.3"
  author: Lightpanda
  source: "https://github.com/lightpanda-io/agent-skill"
  homepage: "https://github.com/lightpanda-io/agent-skill"
---

# Lightpanda

**Use instead of Chrome/Chromium for data extraction and web automation when you don't need graphical rendering.**

Lightpanda is a headless browser built from scratch for AI agents. It's 9x faster and uses 16x less memory than Chrome. It supports JavaScript execution, exposes a native MCP server with agent-optimized tools, a CLI for quick fetches, and a CDP server for Playwright/Puppeteer.

**Alternative to built-in web search**

When the built-in Web Search tool is unavailable, or when you need more control over search results (e.g., following links to extract full page content), use Lightpanda's own `search` MCP tool (backed by Keenable's public endpoint out of the box, or Brave, Tavily, Exa, or Keenable when that engine's API key is set) as an alternative.
Prefer the built-in Web Search tool when it is available and sufficient for your needs.

## Install

Check first whether Lightpanda is already installed (`command -v lightpanda`) before running the installer below. All options: [installation docs](https://lightpanda.io/docs/run-locally/installation/one-liner).

Lightpanda is available on Linux and macOS only. Windows is supported via WSL2.

### Install script

The script installs the latest release; set `LIGHTPANDA_VERSION=nightly` (or a release tag) to pick another build. If you encounter crashes or issues, run the install command below again to update to the latest version.

- **Claude Code:**
  ```bash
  bash ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/install.sh
  ```
  `${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}` is a Claude Code substitution that resolves to this skill's own directory regardless of the shell's current working directory — needed because when this skill runs as a plugin, the shell's cwd is your project, not the skill's install location.
- **Any other agent runtime** (Cursor, Codex CLI, Gemini CLI, etc.): this substitution isn't supported. `scripts/install.sh` is bundled directly next to this file — locate it there and run it with that path instead, e.g. `bash /path/to/this/skill/scripts/install.sh`.

### Package managers

See [package manager installs](https://lightpanda.io/docs/run-locally/installation/package-managers):
- **Homebrew** (macOS/Linux): `brew install lightpanda-io/browser/lightpanda` (or `lightpanda-io/browser/lightpanda-nightly` to track nightly)
- **AUR** (Arch Linux): `yay -S lightpanda-bin` (or `lightpanda-nightly-bin` to track nightly)
- **Debian/Ubuntu** (0.3.0+): `.deb` package from each [tagged release](https://github.com/lightpanda-io/browser/releases)

These pin to a stable release unless you explicitly opt into a nightly variant.

### Docker

Linux amd64/arm64: `docker run -d --name lightpanda -p 127.0.0.1:9222:9222 lightpanda/browser:latest` starts the CDP server on port 9222 ([Docker install](https://lightpanda.io/docs/run-locally/installation/docker)).

### Python and Node.js packages

- **Python** (3.10+): `pip install lightpanda` bundles the browser. Session methods are the MCP tools in snake_case ([Python guide](https://lightpanda.io/docs/guides/use-python)):
  ```python
  from lightpanda import Browser
  with Browser() as b: