Playwright-Lighthouse MCP Server: Automate Audits | Optimize UX

What is Playwright-Lighthouse MCP Server: Automate Audits | Optimize UX?

This server harnesses Playwright's browser automation and Lighthouse's performance analysis to streamline web auditing via the Model Context Protocol (MCP). It enables AI models like Claude to autonomously assess website metrics, identify UX bottlenecks, and generate actionable insights for developers. The solution bridges manual testing workflows with automated analysis, offering a programmable interface for continuous optimization.

How to use Playwright-Lighthouse MCP Server: Automate Audits | Optimize UX?

1. Environment Setup: Install Node.js 18+ and npm, then clone the repository from GitHub.
2. Dependencies Installation: Execute npm install followed by Playwright's browser binaries installation.
3. Server Activation: Build the project with npm run build and debug using npm run inspector.
4. Client Integration: Configure MCP clients like Claude for Desktop by specifying server command paths in JSON config files.

Key Features of Playwright-Lighthouse MCP Server: Automate Audits | Optimize UX?

• Multipurpose Analysis: Evaluate 5 core Lighthouse categories (performance, accessibility, SEO, etc.) with customizable scoring thresholds
• Visual Validation: Capture full-page screenshots alongside audit reports for UX correlation analysis
• Adaptive Output: Prioritizes top 3-5 improvement areas per category, highlighted with color-coded severity indicators
• Programmatic Control: Parameterize audits via URL inputs, category filters, and result granularity settings

Use cases of Playwright-Lighthouse MCP Server: Automate Audits | Optimize UX?

Developers use this tool to:

• Automate Lighthouse audits in CI/CD pipelines for regression monitoring
• Generate diagnostic reports for client stakeholders with visual evidence
• Power chatbot integrations that explain optimization recommendations in natural language
• Conduct A/B testing comparisons between production and staging environments

FAQ from Playwright-Lighthouse MCP Server: Automate Audits | Optimize UX?

Does this require specific browser versions?

Playwright handles browser management - required versions are automatically provisioned during setup

Can I analyze multiple URLs at once?

Currently supports single-page audits, but batch processing extensions are planned for future releases

What's the max report detail depth?

Users can display up to 5 improvement items per category, with intelligent prioritization of critical issues

Is output format customizable?

Structured JSON reports are generated by default, with CSV export support available via configuration

Playwright-Lighthouse MCP Server

A MCP server that analyzes web site performance using Playwright and Lighthouse. Through the Model Context Protocol (MCP), LLMs can perform web site performance analysis.

Features

• Performance analysis with Lighthouse
• Screenshot capture

Setup

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18 or higher
• npm

Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/kbyk004/playwright-lighthouse-mcp.git
cd playwright-lighthouse-mcp

# Install dependencies
npm install
npx playwright install

# Build
npm run build

Usage

Debugging MCP Server

npm run inspector

Integration with MCP Clients

This server is designed to be used with clients that support the Model Context Protocol (MCP). For example, it can be integrated with Claude for Desktop.

Configuration Example for Claude for Desktop

Add the following to the Claude for Desktop configuration file (~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "playwright-lighthouse": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "/path-to/playwright-lighthouse-mcp/build/index.js"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Available Tools

1. run-lighthouse

Runs a Lighthouse performance analysis on the currently open page.

Parameters:

• url: The URL of the website you want to analyze
• categories: Array of categories to analyze (default: ["performance"])
  • Available categories: "performance", "accessibility", "best-practices", "seo", "pwa"
• maxItems: Maximum number of improvement items to display for each category (default: 3, max: 5)

2. take-screenshot

Takes a screenshot of the currently open page.

Parameters:

• url: The URL of the website you want to capture
• fullPage: If true, captures a screenshot of the entire page (default: false)

Output Format

The analysis results include:

• Overall scores for each selected category with color indicators
• Key improvement areas grouped by category
• Path to the saved report file

License

MIT License - see LICENSE for details