# Puppeteer vs Selenium

| Attribute | Puppeteer | Selenium |
|---|---|---|
| **vioscaleAI score** | 72.3 (66% (medium)) | 71.7 (76% (high)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 74 | 100 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | 144,056 | 98,124 |
| adoption.github_stars | 95,682 | 34,541 |
| adoption.package_downloads_weekly | 11,510,272 | 6,935,447 |
| content.faq | `[{"answer":"Puppeteer provides programmatic control over browser instances, enabling automated navigation, interaction, and inspection of web pages through a high-level API. It supports both Chrome and Firefox and runs in headless mode by default. It is indexed under Testing Tools.","source":"https://pptr.dev/","question":"What is Puppeteer?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Puppeteer is open source, so it can be self-hosted and used at no licence cost. It is released under the Apache-2.0 licence. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://pptr.dev/","question":"Is Puppeteer free to use?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Puppeteer supports the web and a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://pptr.dev/","question":"What platforms does Puppeteer support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. Puppeteer can be deployed self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.","source":"https://pptr.dev/","question":"Can Puppeteer be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed 4 integrations for Puppeteer, including Chrome, Firefox, DevTools Protocol and WebDriver BiDi. This is what we could verify from public sources, so the vendor may support others we have not indexed.","source":"https://pptr.dev/","question":"What does Puppeteer integrate with?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. Puppeteer is published under the Apache-2.0 licence, a permissive licence that generally allows commercial use and modification. Licence terms can change between releases, so verify against the repository for the version you intend to use.","source":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer","question":"Is Puppeteer open source?","confidence":0.99}]` | `[{"answer":"Open-source tool that automates web browsers to enable automated testing of web applications, regression testing, and automation of repetitive web-based administrative tasks. Includes WebDriver for robust test automation, IDE for record-and-playback scripting, and Grid for distributed test execution. It is indexed under Testing Tools.","source":"https://www.selenium.dev","question":"What is Selenium?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Selenium is open source, so it can be self-hosted and used at no licence cost. It is released under the Apache-2.0 licence. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://www.selenium.dev","question":"Is Selenium free to use?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Selenium supports Windows, macOS, Linux and a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://www.selenium.dev","question":"What platforms does Selenium support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. Selenium can be deployed self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.","source":"https://www.selenium.dev","question":"Can Selenium be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed 4 integrations for Selenium, including Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Appium. This is what we could verify from public sources, so the vendor may support others we have not indexed.","source":"https://www.selenium.dev","question":"What does Selenium integrate with?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. Selenium is published under the Apache-2.0 licence, a permissive licence that generally allows commercial use and modification. Licence terms can change between releases, so verify against the repository for the version you intend to use.","source":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium","question":"Is Selenium open source?","confidence":0.99}]` |
| deployment.options | `{"self_hosted":true}` | `{"self_hosted":true}` |
| description.long | Provides programmatic control of Chrome and Firefox browsers for automation and testing through a JavaScript API. | Selenium is an open-source testing framework that automates web browsers for testing applications and automating web-based administration tasks across multiple programming languages. |
| features.capabilities | `{"coverage":true,"protocol":"cdp","languages":"JavaScript","open_source":true,"headless_mode":true,"auto_wait_retry":true,"browser_automation":true}` | `{"protocol":"multi","languages":"Java, JavaScript, Python, Ruby, .NET","test_types":"e2e","open_source":true,"headless_mode":true,"ci_integration":true,"no_code_recorder":true,"browser_automation":true,"parallel_execution":true}` |
| integrations.count | 5 | 5 |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"Chrome"},{"name":"Firefox"},{"name":"DevTools Protocol"},{"name":"WebDriver BiDi"},{"name":"chrome-devtools-mcp"}]` | `[{"name":"Chrome"},{"name":"Firefox"},{"name":"Edge"},{"name":"Appium"},{"name":"Chrome for Testing (CfT)"}]` |
| language.primary | TypeScript | Java |
| license.spdx | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| market.availability | - | `{"primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true,"web":true}` | `{"web":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"open_source","sourceUrl":"https://pptr.dev/","retrievedAt":"2026-09-10T16:07:42.951Z"}` | `{"type":"open_source","sourceUrl":"https://www.selenium.dev","retrievedAt":"2026-10-13T15:12:44.428Z"}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | open_source | open_source |
| pricing.price_level | free | free |
| pricing.transparent | yes | yes |
| release.cadence_days | - | 30 |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-v25.13.0","date":"2026-10-08T13:00:00Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-v25.13.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-core-v25.13.0","date":"2026-10-08T13:00:01Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-core-v25.13.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/browsers-v3.2.4","date":"2026-10-08T13:00:03Z","type":"stable","version":"browsers-v3.2.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-v25.12.0","date":"2026-09-23T12:52:04Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-v25.12.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-core-v25.12.0","date":"2026-09-23T12:52:05Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-core-v25.12.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/browsers-v3.2.3","date":"2026-09-23T12:52:06Z","type":"stable","version":"browsers-v3.2.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-v25.11.0","date":"2026-09-14T08:59:59Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-v25.11.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-core-v25.11.0","date":"2026-09-14T09:00:00Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-core-v25.11.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-v25.10.0","date":"2026-09-03T13:06:55Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-v25.10.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-core-v25.10.0","date":"2026-09-03T13:06:56Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-core-v25.10.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/browsers-v3.2.2","date":"2026-09-03T13:06:58Z","type":"stable","version":"browsers-v3.2.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-v25.9.0","date":"2026-08-25T07:40:50Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-v25.9.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-core-v25.9.0","date":"2026-08-25T07:40:51Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-core-v25.9.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-v25.8.0","date":"2026-08-17T09:12:45Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-v25.8.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-core-v25.8.0","date":"2026-08-17T09:12:46Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-core-v25.8.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/browsers-v3.2.1","date":"2026-08-17T09:12:47Z","type":"stable","version":"browsers-v3.2.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-v25.7.0","date":"2026-08-13T18:40:18Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-v25.7.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-core-v25.7.0","date":"2026-08-13T18:40:19Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-core-v25.7.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-v25.6.0","date":"2026-08-11T13:11:24Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-v25.6.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/puppeteer/puppeteer/releases/tag/puppeteer-core-v25.6.0","date":"2026-08-11T13:11:26Z","type":"stable","version":"puppeteer-core-v25.6.0"}]` | `[{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/nightly","date":"2026-10-13T00:30:25Z","type":"prerelease","version":"nightly"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.51.0","date":"2026-10-09T19:18:18Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.51.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.50.0","date":"2026-09-30T22:16:28Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.50.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.49.0","date":"2026-09-09T15:35:47Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.49.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.48.0","date":"2026-08-27T20:13:03Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.48.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.47.0","date":"2026-08-10T18:00:07Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.47.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.46.0","date":"2026-07-11T00:47:53Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.46.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.45.0","date":"2026-06-16T13:59:48Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.45.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.44.0","date":"2026-05-12T23:58:59Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.44.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.43.0","date":"2026-04-10T06:52:53Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.43.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.42.0","date":"2026-04-09T11:53:47Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.42.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.41.0","date":"2026-02-20T15:57:35Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.41.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.40.0","date":"2026-01-18T23:53:16Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.40.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.39.0","date":"2025-12-06T22:53:26Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.39.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.38.0","date":"2025-10-25T05:01:29Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.38.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.37.0","date":"2025-10-18T05:02:55Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.37.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.36.0","date":"2025-10-02T15:37:23Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.36.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.35.0","date":"2025-08-12T15:44:30Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.35.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.34.0","date":"2025-06-29T18:25:54Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.34.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/SeleniumHQ/selenium/releases/tag/selenium-4.33.0","date":"2025-05-23T17:42:58Z","type":"stable","version":"selenium-4.33.0"}]` |
| reliability.status_page | - | yes |
| security.scorecard | 7.9 | 2.9 |
| security.trust_center | - | https://www.selenium.dev/categories/security/ |
| security.vulnerabilities | `{"count":1,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=npm&package_name=puppeteer&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":"MODERATE"}` | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=maven&package_name=org.seleniumhq.selenium%3Aselenium-java&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` |

## Capabilities (Testing Tools)

| Capability | Puppeteer | Selenium |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Core** |  |  |
| Test types | - | Unit + integration + E2E |
| Browser automation | ✓ | ✓ |
| Built-in assertion library | - | - |
| Languages | JavaScript | Java, JavaScript, Python, Ruby, .NET |
| **Isolation** |  |  |
| Mocking / stubbing | - | - |
| **Techniques** |  |  |
| Snapshot testing | - | - |
| **Performance** |  |  |
| Parallel execution | - | ✓ |
| **Insight** |  |  |
| Code coverage | ✓ | - |
| **DX** |  |  |
| Watch mode | - | - |
| **Ops** |  |  |
| CI integration | - | ✓ |

*Source: vioscaleAI. Generated 2026-10-16T19:27:13.731Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*