Codex vs Playwright MCP

We make Yab, the third column.facts checked Oct 9 ↓

Codex, in the ChatGPT desktop app, has a browser of its own, computer use, and an extension that works in your signed-in Chrome, Edge, Brave, Opera or Vivaldi, on a ChatGPT plan.

Playwright MCP is Microsoft’s free, open-source MCP server that lets an agent drive Chrome, Edge, Firefox or WebKit through Playwright, in a profile of its own by default.

The short answer

Pick Codex

if you code in the ChatGPT desktop app and want it to check your web app in its browser
if you pay for ChatGPT and want tasks done in your signed-in Chrome
if you want to leave comments right on the page you are building

Pick Playwright MCP

if you run agents in CI and tests that need a clean, repeatable browser
if you want it in any MCP client: Claude Code, Codex, Cursor or VS Code
if you check pages in Chromium, Firefox and WebKit

Or Yabours

if you already pay for Claude or ChatGPT and want it to work in your signed-in tabs
if you want Claude Code, Codex or Cursor to drive a real browser over MCP

At a glance

Codex and Playwright MCP, with Yab beside them for a Mac.

Codex vs Playwright MCP
What	Codex	Playwright MCP	Yab
Made by	OpenAI	Microsoft	Serafim Korablev
Status	Updated	Updated	Updated
Runs on	Mac, Windows and Linux	Mac, Windows and Linux	Mac
Price	Included in ChatGPT Plus ($20/month), Pro, Business and Enterprise	Free and open source; you pay only for your agent’s model	Free; its AI runs on your own Claude or ChatGPT plan
Drives	Its own browser in the ChatGPT app, your Mac or PC, and your Chrome, Edge, Brave, Opera or Vivaldi	Chrome, Edge, Firefox or WebKit	Yab itself, a browser on your Mac
Your sign-ins	Codex’s own browser has a separate profile; its extension works in your signed-in browser.	Playwright MCP uses a profile of its own by default, and your Chrome or Edge through its extension.	Yab is the browser you sign in to, so agents work with your sign-ins.
Works with	No	any MCP client, like Claude Code, Codex, Cursor or VS Code	yab mcp and the yab command, for Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and any MCP client
Open source	No	Yes	No

Checked October 9, 2026 on each maker’s own pages, linked under Sources. Prices are per month, in US dollars.

Where they differ

What separates them, area by area. Where one plainly has more, it says who; where it comes down to taste, it says so.

What it drivesa matter of taste

Codex, in the ChatGPT desktop app, has a browser with its own profile, computer use across your Mac or PC, and an extension for your signed-in Chrome, Edge, Brave, Opera or Vivaldi. Playwright MCP has no model of its own: your agent drives Chrome, Edge, Firefox or WebKit, reading pages as accessibility snapshots, in a profile of its own, a clean one, or your Chrome through extension mode.

Your sign-insa matter of taste

Codex’s own browser has a separate profile; its extension works in your signed-in browser. Playwright MCP uses a profile of its own by default, and your Chrome or Edge through its extension.

Which agents can use itPlaywright MCP leads

Codex has no MCP server or command line for other agents. Playwright MCP works with any MCP client, like Claude Code, Codex, Cursor or VS Code.

PricePlaywright MCP leads

Codex: Included in ChatGPT Plus ($20/month), Pro, Business and Enterprise. Playwright MCP: Free and open source; you pay only for your agent’s model.

Where it runseven

Both run on Mac, Windows and Linux.

What their pages don’t lead with

Real limits, from the makers’ own words and our own use.

Codex

In the desktop app only: not in Codex CLI or the IDE extension
Computer use is limited by region and missing on Linux
Its own browser uses a separate profile and can’t upload files for you
No MCP server for other agents

Playwright MCP

Its own profile has none of your sign-ins unless you use extension mode
Extension mode works only in Chrome and Edge
Brings no model: needs an MCP client and Node.js
Microsoft suggests its command line for coding agents, since MCP uses more tokens

Yab, honestly

Mac only: macOS 15.4 or later, no Windows, iPhone or Android
New: first released in September 2026
Its AI needs a Claude or ChatGPT plan; ChatGPT’s free plan may work with low limits
WebKit, as in Safari: a site tested only in Chrome can misbehave
Closed source

What changed lately

July 9, 2026Codex: Codex app merged into the ChatGPT desktop app
May 7, 2026Codex: Codex Chrome extension launched for macOS and Windows
April 16, 2026Codex: Codex got Computer Use on macOS and an in-app browser
January 26, 2026Playwright MCP: Microsoft published Playwright CLI (@playwright/cli), suggested for coding agents
March 13, 2025Playwright MCP: First published on npm as @playwright/mcp

Questions

Is Codex free?

Included in ChatGPT Plus ($20/month), Pro, Business and Enterprise.

Is Playwright MCP free?

Yes. Free and open source; you pay only for your agent’s model.

Which one works in my signed-in browser, Codex or Playwright MCP?

Codex’s own browser has a separate profile; its extension works in your signed-in browser. Playwright MCP uses a profile of its own by default, and your Chrome or Edge through its extension.

Do Codex and Playwright MCP run on Windows?

Yes, both. Codex runs on Mac, Windows and Linux; Playwright MCP on Mac, Windows and Linux.

Is there a third option on a Mac?

Yab, Yet Another Browser, is a free Mac browser that Claude Code, Codex and any MCP client can drive through yab mcp, in your own signed-in profile, with Send, Pay and Delete held for your yes. It has an agent of its own too, on your Claude or ChatGPT plan. It is Mac only, and new.

More comparisons

Codex vs Claude in Chrome Chrome DevTools MCP vs Codex Browser Use vs Codex Codex alternatives Yab vs Codex Playwright MCP vs Claude in Chrome Chrome DevTools MCP vs Playwright MCP Browser Use vs Playwright MCP Playwright MCP alternatives Yab vs Playwright MCP

Sources, read October 9, 2026. Something out of date? Write to hello@serafimlabs.io and we fix it.

Yab, Yet Another Browser.

Free for the Mac. Arc’s sidebar, your own Claude or ChatGPT as the agent, Chrome extensions on WebKit.

it’s freeDownload