# Skyvern

> Open-source agentic browser automation that handles login walls and CAPTCHAs.

[Canonical HTML page](https://top-mcps.com/mcp/skyvern) · [server.json](https://top-mcps.com/mcp/skyvern.json) · [methodology](https://top-mcps.com/about/methodology)

## Install

### Claude Desktop — `claude_desktop_config.json`

Paste under mcpServers. Fully quit and reopen Claude after editing.

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "skyvern": {
      "command": "pip",
      "args": [
        "install",
        "skyvern",
        "&&",
        "skyvern",
        "run",
        "mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "OPENAI_API_KEY": "${OPENAI_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

### Claude Code — `CLI or .mcp.json`

Run from your repo. Commit .mcp.json to share with your team.

```shell
# export OPENAI_API_KEY=YOUR_API_KEY
claude mcp add skyvern -- pip install skyvern && skyvern run mcp
```

### Cursor — `.cursor/mcp.json`

Global path: ~/.cursor/mcp.json. Reload window after editing.

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "skyvern": {
      "command": "pip",
      "args": [
        "install",
        "skyvern",
        "&&",
        "skyvern",
        "run",
        "mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "OPENAI_API_KEY": "${OPENAI_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

### VS Code — `.vscode/mcp.json`

VS Code uses the "servers" key (not "mcpServers").

```jsonc
{
  "servers": {
    "skyvern": {
      "command": "pip",
      "args": [
        "install",
        "skyvern",
        "&&",
        "skyvern",
        "run",
        "mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "OPENAI_API_KEY": "${OPENAI_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

### Windsurf — `~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json`

Open via Cascade → hammer icon → Configure.

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "skyvern": {
      "command": "pip",
      "args": [
        "install",
        "skyvern",
        "&&",
        "skyvern",
        "run",
        "mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "OPENAI_API_KEY": "${OPENAI_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

### Cline — `cline_mcp_settings.json`

Open via the Cline sidebar → MCP Servers → Edit.

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "skyvern": {
      "command": "pip",
      "args": [
        "install",
        "skyvern",
        "&&",
        "skyvern",
        "run",
        "mcp"
      ],
      "env": {
        "OPENAI_API_KEY": "${OPENAI_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

### Continue — `~/.continue/config.json`

Continue uses modelContextProtocolServers with a transport block.

```json
{
  "experimental": {
    "modelContextProtocolServers": [
      {
        "transport": {
          "type": "stdio",
          "command": "pip",
          "args": [
            "install",
            "skyvern",
            "&&",
            "skyvern",
            "run",
            "mcp"
          ],
          "env": {
            "OPENAI_API_KEY": "${OPENAI_API_KEY}"
          }
        }
      }
    ]
  }
}
```

### Codex CLI — `~/.codex/config.toml`

Codex uses TOML. Each server is a [mcp_servers.<name>] subtable.

```shell
# ~/.codex/config.toml
[mcp_servers.skyvern]
command = "pip"
args = [
  "install",
  "skyvern",
  "&&",
  "skyvern",
  "run",
  "mcp",
]
env = { OPENAI_API_KEY = "${OPENAI_API_KEY}" }
```

### Zed — `~/.config/zed/settings.json`

Zed calls them "context_servers". Settings live-reload on save.

```jsonc
{
  "context_servers": {
    "skyvern": {
      "command": {
        "path": "pip",
        "args": [
          "install",
          "skyvern",
          "&&",
          "skyvern",
          "run",
          "mcp"
        ]
      },
      "env": {
        "OPENAI_API_KEY": "${OPENAI_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}
```

### ChatGPT — `ChatGPT → Apps directory`

Skyvern doesn't ship a hosted HTTPS endpoint today. ChatGPT supports remote MCP servers only — to use this server in ChatGPT you'll need to deploy it to a public HTTPS URL first (e.g. via Cloudflare Workers or Vercel) or wait for an official remote build.

```none

```

## At a glance

- **Maintainer:** Skyvern AI
- **Transport:** stdio
- **Auth model:** API key
- **Required secrets:** OPENAI_API_KEY
- **Supported clients:** Claude, Cursor, Any MCP-compatible client
- **License:** AGPL-3.0
- **Language:** Python
- **Latest version:** latest
- **Last verified:** 2026-05-26
- **GitHub stars:** 21,733 (fetched 2026-05-26T10:50:22.917Z)
- **Score:** 78/100 (rubric 2026-04 — see https://top-mcps.com/about/methodology)
- **Source:** https://github.com/Skyvern-AI/skyvern

## Security & scope

- **Access scope:** exec
- **Sandbox:** Runs a real browser under the user (self-hosted) or in a Skyvern-managed container (cloud). Full network access.
- **Gotchas:**
  - AGPL license — using Skyvern as a hosted service triggers source-disclosure obligations.
  - Vision model calls are not free; long runs cost.
  - License-page assumptions: read the Skyvern terms before commercial use.

## Quick answer

**What it does.** Provides MCP tools to submit a Skyvern task (URL + goal + optional payload), poll status, and retrieve structured results. Skyvern itself runs the browser, handles selectors via vision, and recovers from minor page changes.

**Best for:**
- Login-walled flows
- Resilient to layout changes
- End-to-end automation under one tool call
- Vision-driven selectors

**Not for:**
- High-throughput scraping
- Latency-sensitive workflows
- Static-HTML reading

## Description

Skyvern is an open-source browser automation agent that uses vision models plus DOM signals to drive multi-step web flows. The MCP wrapper exposes Skyvern's task primitives so a Claude or Cursor agent can hand off "log in, fill this form, submit, screenshot the confirmation" to a specialist runtime.

## Why it matters

Most browser-automation MCPs need precise selectors. Skyvern aims at the messy real-world case where pages have unpredictable layouts, login walls, or anti-bot heuristics, by letting a vision model drive the steps.

## Key features

- Vision + DOM hybrid selectors
- Multi-step task execution
- Open-source
- Retry and recovery built in

## FAQ

### Is it really better than Playwright for messy pages?

On pages that change layout often, yes — Skyvern uses vision plus DOM signals so it survives minor structural shifts that break CSS selectors. On stable pages, Playwright is faster and cheaper.

### How does it handle CAPTCHAs?

Skyvern detects CAPTCHAs and pauses the run, optionally handing off to a CAPTCHA-solving service if configured. It does not bypass them by itself.

### Self-hosted or SaaS?

Both. The OSS repo runs anywhere; Skyvern also offers a managed cloud version with the same MCP surface. Pick by ops appetite.

## Changelog

- **2026-05-26** — Refreshed install snippets and fact sheet; verified for 2026.
- **2025-01-20** — Initial directory listing.