---
id: inspector
title: "Inspector"
---
Playwright Inspector is a GUI tool that helps authoring and debugging Playwright scripts.
## Open Playwright Inspector
There are several ways of opening Playwright Inspector:
- Set the `PWDEBUG` environment variable to run your scripts in debug mode. This
configures Playwright for debugging and opens the inspector.
```bash bash-flavor=bash lang=js
PWDEBUG=1 npm run test
```
```bash bash-flavor=batch lang=js
set PWDEBUG=1
npm run test
```
```bash bash-flavor=powershell lang=js
$env:PWDEBUG=1
npm run test
```
```bash bash-flavor=bash lang=java
# Source directories in the list are separated by : on macos and linux and by ; on win.
PWDEBUG=1 PLAYWRIGHT_JAVA_SRC= mvn test
```
```bash bash-flavor=batch lang=java
# Source directories in the list are separated by : on macos and linux and by ; on win.
set PLAYWRIGHT_JAVA_SRC=
set PWDEBUG=1
mvn test
```
```bash bash-flavor=powershell lang=java
# Source directories in the list are separated by : on macos and linux and by ; on win.
$env:PLAYWRIGHT_JAVA_SRC=""
$env:PWDEBUG=1
mvn test
```
```bash bash-flavor=bash lang=python
PWDEBUG=1 pytest -s
```
```bash bash-flavor=batch lang=python
set PWDEBUG=1
pytest -s
```
```bash bash-flavor=powershell lang=python
$env:PWDEBUG=1
pytest -s
```
```bash bash-flavor=bash lang=csharp
PWDEBUG=1 dotnet test
```
```bash bash-flavor=batch lang=csharp
set PWDEBUG=1
dotnet test
```
```bash bash-flavor=powershell lang=csharp
$env:PWDEBUG=1
dotnet test
```
Additional useful defaults are configured when `PWDEBUG=1` is set:
- Browsers launch in the headed mode
- Default timeout is set to 0 (= no timeout)
- Call [`method: Page.pause`] method from your script when running in headed browser.
```js
// Pause on the following line.
await page.pause();
```
```java
// Pause on the following line.
page.pause();
```
```python async
# Pause on the following line.
await page.pause()
```
```python sync
# Pause on the following line.
page.pause()
```
```csharp
// Pause on the following line.
await page.PauseAsync();
```
- Use `open` or `codegen` commands in the Playwright [CLI](./cli.md):
```bash js
npx playwright codegen wikipedia.org
```
```bash java
mvn exec:java -e -Dexec.mainClass=com.microsoft.playwright.CLI -Dexec.args="codegen wikipedia.org"
```
```bash python
playwright codegen wikipedia.org
```
```bash csharp
pwsh bin\Debug\netX\playwright.ps1 codegen wikipedia.org
```
## Stepping through the Playwright script
When `PWDEBUG=1` is set, Playwright Inspector window will be opened and the script will be
paused on the first Playwright statement:
Now we know what action is about to be performed and we can look into the details on that
action. For example, when stopped on an input action such as `click`, the exact point Playwright is about to click is highlighted with the large red dot on the inspected page:
By the time Playwright has paused on that click action, it has already performed actionability checks that can be found in the log:
If actionability can't be reached, it'll show action as pending:
You can step over each action using the "Step over" action or resume script without further pauses:
## Using Browser Developer Tools
You can use browser developer tools in Chromium, Firefox and WebKit while running
a Playwright script, with or without Playwright inspector. Developer tools help to:
* Inspect the DOM tree
* **See console logs** during execution (or learn how to [read logs via API](./api/class-page.md#page-event-console))
* Check **network activity** and other developer tools features
:::note
**For WebKit**: launching WebKit Inspector during the execution will
prevent the Playwright script from executing any further.
:::
## Debugging Selectors
- Click the Explore button to hover over elements in the screen and click them to
automatically generate selectors for those elements.
- To verify where selector points, paste it into the inspector input field:
You can also use the following API inside the Developer Tools Console of any browser.
#### playwright.$(selector)
Query Playwright selector, using the actual Playwright query engine, for example:
```js
> playwright.$('.auth-form >> text=Log in');
```
#### playwright.$$(selector)
Same as `playwright.$`, but returns all matching elements.
```js
> playwright.$$('li >> text=John')
> [
,
,
,
]
```
#### playwright.inspect(selector)
Reveal element in the Elements panel (if DevTools of the respective browser supports it).
```js
> playwright.inspect('text=Log in')
```
#### playwright.locator(selector)
Query Playwright element using the actual Playwright query engine, for example:
```js
> playwright.locator('.auth-form', { hasText: 'Log in' });
> Locator ()
> - element: button
> - elements: [button]
```
#### playwright.selector(element)
Generates selector for the given element.
```js
> playwright.selector($0)
"div[id="glow-ingress-block"] >> text=/.*Hello.*/"
```
## Recording scripts
At any moment, clicking Record action enables [codegen mode](./codegen.md).
Every action on the target page is turned into the generated script:
You can copy entire generated script or clear it using toolbar actions.
## Open Playwright Inspector
There are several ways of opening Playwright Inspector:
- Set the `PWDEBUG` environment variable to run your scripts in debug mode. This
configures Playwright for debugging and opens the inspector.
```bash bash-flavor=bash lang=js
PWDEBUG=1 npm run test
```
```bash bash-flavor=batch lang=js
set PWDEBUG=1
npm run test
```
```bash bash-flavor=powershell lang=js
$env:PWDEBUG=1
npm run test
```
```bash bash-flavor=bash lang=java
# Source directories in the list are separated by : on macos and linux and by ; on win.
PWDEBUG=1 PLAYWRIGHT_JAVA_SRC=
Now we know what action is about to be performed and we can look into the details on that
action. For example, when stopped on an input action such as `click`, the exact point Playwright is about to click is highlighted with the large red dot on the inspected page:
By the time Playwright has paused on that click action, it has already performed actionability checks that can be found in the log:
If actionability can't be reached, it'll show action as pending:
You can step over each action using the "Step over" action or resume script without further pauses:
You can also use the following API inside the Developer Tools Console of any browser.
#### playwright.$(selector)
Query Playwright selector, using the actual Playwright query engine, for example:
```js
> playwright.$('.auth-form >> text=Log in');
```
#### playwright.$$(selector)
Same as `playwright.$`, but returns all matching elements.
```js
> playwright.$$('li >> text=John')
> [
You can copy entire generated script or clear it using toolbar actions.