5 Minute How-To: Run Your First Browser Session

This guide helps you launch your first real browser session in under 5 minutes using the Bright Data Browser API.
It is designed for developers who need JavaScript rendering, page interaction, or dynamic content, without managing browsers or infrastructure. By the end of this guide, you will:

Verify your Browser API setup
Launch a live browser session
Load a website that requires JavaScript rendering

What you need before starting (1 minute)

Before you begin, make sure you have:

A Bright Data account
An active Browser API zone
A valid Browser API zone **credentials **(Username and Password)

You can find your credentials in the Overview tab of your Browser API in the Bright Data Control Panel. If you haven’t created a Browser API yet, follow Create Your First Browser API before continuing.

Step 1: Choose a JavaScript-based website (30 seconds)

Select a website that requires JavaScript rendering. Good examples:

Make sure the URL:

Starts with https://
Requires client-side rendering or user-like interaction

Step 2: Understand how the Browser API works (30 seconds)

The Browser API launches a real, cloud-based browser session on your behalf. With each session, Bright Data:

Launches a browser instance
Applies realistic fingerprints and headers
Handles proxy routing and anti-bot challenges
Returns rendered page content or session output

You do not need to manage browsers, drivers, or automation infrastructure.

Step 3: Start your first Browser API session (2 minutes)

Replace the placeholders below with your actual values:

USER:PASS
YOUR_TARGET_URL

Copy one of the example code snippets below and paste it into your IDE of choice.
Simply run the code after replacing the parameters to start your session!

NodeJS
Python

#!/usr/bin/env node
const puppeteer = require('puppeteer-core');

const AUTH = 'USER:PASS';
const TARGET_URL = 'YOUR_TARGET_URL';

async function main() {
    console.log('Connecting to Browser...');
    const browser = await puppeteer.connect({
        browserWSEndpoint: `wss://${AUTH}@brd.superproxy.io:9222`
    });

    const page = await browser.newPage();

    // Get debugging URL
    const client = await page.createCDPSession();
    const { frameTree: { frame } } = await client.send('Page.getFrameTree');
    const { url: inspectUrl } = await client.send('Page.inspect', {
        frameId: frame.id
    });
    console.log(`You can inspect this session at: ${inspectUrl}`);

    // Navigate to target
    await page.goto(TARGET_URL);

	console.log(await page.content());
    await page.screenshot({ path: 'screenshot.png', fullPage: true });
    console.log('Navigation complete!');

    await browser.close();
}

main().catch(console.error);

#!/usr/bin/env python3
import asyncio
from playwright.async_api import async_playwright

AUTH = 'USER:PASS'
TARGET_URL = 'YOUR_TARGET_URL'

async def main():
    print('Connecting to Browser...')
    
    async with async_playwright() as p:
        browser = await p.chromium.connect_over_cdp(
            f'wss://{AUTH}@brd.superproxy.io:9222'
        )
        page = await browser.new_page()
        
        # Get debugging URL
        client = await page.context.new_cdp_session(page)
        frame_tree = await client.send('Page.getFrameTree')
        frame_id = frame_tree['frameTree']['frame']['id']
        inspect_result = await client.send('Page.inspect', {'frameId': frame_id})
        print(f"Debug URL: {inspect_result['url']}")
        
        # Navigate to target
        await page.goto(TARGET_URL)

		print(await page.content())
        await page.screenshot(path='screenshot.png', full_page=True)
        print('Navigation complete!')
        
        await browser.close()

if __name__ == '__main__':
    try:
        asyncio.run(main())
    except Exception as e:
        print(f'Error: {e}')

This code:

Connects to a remote browser session
Prints the live session URL
Fully renders the page using JavaScript
Prints the HTML content of the page
Takes a screenshot of the rendered page
Closes the browser session

Step 4: Review the response (30 seconds)

If successful, you will receive:

Fully rendered HTML content + screenshot
JavaScript-generated elements included

If the page content matches what you see in a real browser, your Browser API setup is working correctly.

Common issues and quick fixes (30 seconds)

407 Auth Failed: Authentication is missing or invalid
→ Verify the Username and Password credentials
Invalid URL: The desired URL is in incorrect format
→ Confirm the TRAGET_URL parameter was changed to a valid URL

What you just accomplished

In under 5 minutes, you:

Connected to a reomte headless browser session
Loaded a JavaScript-heavy website
Retrieved rendered content

Your Browser API is now ready for advanced workflows.

Where to go next

Once your first session works, you can:

Interact with pages (clicks, scrolling, inputs)
Run multi-step browser workflows
Review Browser API Configuration for advanced controls
Check Troubleshooting if you encounter issues

Introduction

Product Guides

5 Minute How-To: Run Your First Browser Session

What you need before starting (1 minute)

Step 1: Choose a JavaScript-based website (30 seconds)

Step 2: Understand how the Browser API works (30 seconds)

Step 3: Start your first Browser API session (2 minutes)

Step 4: Review the response (30 seconds)

Common issues and quick fixes (30 seconds)

What you just accomplished

Where to go next

Introduction

Product Guides

​What you need before starting (1 minute)

​Step 1: Choose a JavaScript-based website (30 seconds)

​Step 2: Understand how the Browser API works (30 seconds)

​Step 3: Start your first Browser API session (2 minutes)

​Step 4: Review the response (30 seconds)

​Common issues and quick fixes (30 seconds)

​What you just accomplished

​Where to go next

What you need before starting (1 minute)

Step 1: Choose a JavaScript-based website (30 seconds)

Step 2: Understand how the Browser API works (30 seconds)

Step 3: Start your first Browser API session (2 minutes)

Step 4: Review the response (30 seconds)

Common issues and quick fixes (30 seconds)

What you just accomplished

Where to go next