Headless browser: What is it and how to use it

Browsers

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by Milan Stanojevic 

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Key notes

  • There are all sorts of browsers available on the market, but one unique type is the headless browsers.
  • These browsers are used by web developers, yet we’re going to show you how to use them too.
  • To learn more about programming, we suggest that you read our other App development articles.
  • For more information about web browsers, take your time and visit this Browsers Hub as well.
Headless browser
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When talking about web browsers, most of us are familiar with browsers such as Google Chrome, Opera One, Firefox, etc.

However, there’s a special kind of browser called the headless browser. In case you’re not familiar with these browsers, let us help you out.

In this article, we’re going to explain to you everything you need to know about these browsers with no graphical user interface.

Quick Tip:

Opera One is available on all desktop and mobile platforms, and thanks to the synchronization feature, you can always have your browsing data with you. It’s easy to manage and toggle the graphics features.

Opera One is light on resources, so it should be able to handle any website with ease. In addition, the browser has the ability to organize tabs into workflows and a comes with a native AI.

Opera One

Could a headless browser be too much to handle? Install the user-friendly Opera One!
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What is a headless browser?

1. Discover all about headless browsers

find all about headless browsers

A headless browser is a web browser without a graphical user interface. Such a web browser can perform certain commands using a command-line interface.

These types of browsers are usually used for testing web pages, or scrapping data for websites.

Developers also use them to run automated tests for JavaScript libraries or for taking screenshots.

2. How to use a headless browser?

Firefox:

  1. Open Firefox and go to about:profiles.
  2. Click on Create a New Profile.
    new profile firefox Headless browser
  3. Create a new profile and name it test.
  4. Now press Windows Key + R.
  5. Enter C:Program FilesMozilla Firefoxfirefox.exe -p test -headles
    run dialog firefox Headless browser

This is a basic way of starting Firefox in headless mode. To execute commands, you’ll need to enter them manually.

Chrome:

  1. Open the Run dialog like in the previous step:
  2. Enter C:Program Files (x86)GoogleChromeApplicationchrome.exe --headless --disable-gpu --remote-debugging-port=9222 https://www.website_name.com
    run dialog chrome Headless browser

To run commands, be sure to check online guidelines for the headless version of Chrome.

If you’re planning to actively use a headless version of Chrome or Firefox, it would be best to run commands from Command Prompt or PowerShell.

What are the best headless browsers?

There are several headless browsers that you can use, but here are the most popular ones:

  • Chrome
  • PhantomJS
  • HtmlUnit
  • TrifleJS
  • Splash
  • SimpleBrowser

While headless browsers are useful for automation and web development, regular users won’t have too much use for them.

Headless browsers can be useful to web developers and advanced users, and we hope that our article was helpful to you.

As for regular users, they should stick with standard GUI browsers such as Opera One. Let us know your choice in the comments area below.

Milan Stanojevic

Milan Stanojevic Shield

Windows Toubleshooting Expert

Milan has been enthusiastic about technology ever since his childhood days, and this led him to take interest in all PC-related technologies. He's a PC enthusiast and he spends most of his time learning about computers and technology. Before joining WindowsReport, he worked as a front-end web developer. Now, he's one of the Troubleshooting experts in our worldwide team, specializing in Windows errors & software issues.

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