Using Proxies with Playwright

Playwright supports HTTP and SOCKS proxies at launch. You pass a proxy object with server, and optionally username and password for authenticated proxies. For scraping at scale, use a rotating residential proxy gateway so each browser (or context) gets a different IP. See Playwright Web Scraping Tutorial and Best Proxies for Web Scraping.

Basic Proxy Configuration

python

from playwright.sync_api import sync_playwright

with sync_playwright() as p:
    browser = p.chromium.launch(
        proxy={
            "server": "http://proxy.example.com:8080",
            "username": "user",
            "password": "pass"
        }
    )
    page = browser.new_page()
    page.goto("https://example.com")

With a rotating residential proxy provider, set server to the provider’s gateway (e.g. http://gateway.bytesflows.com:8001). Each new browser or context can get a new IP. Read Rotating Proxies for Web Scraping and How Proxy Rotation Works. Use Proxy Checker to verify the IP Playwright is using.

Per-Context vs Per-Browser

Per-browser — One proxy for all pages in that browser. Good for session-like scraping. Proxy rotation strategies.
Per-context — In some setups you can create multiple contexts with different proxies for parallel sessions. Playwright at scale and scraping data at scale.

For Cloudflare and anti-bot sites, combine residential proxies with Playwright’s real browser. Handling Cloudflare with Playwright and avoid detection.

Best Practices

Use residential proxies — Residential Proxies and why residential is best for Playwright.
Rotate — New browser or context for new IP when needed. Proxy Rotator to test. Using Proxies with Python for Python + proxy patterns.
Handle failures — Retry with a new proxy on block or CAPTCHA. Handling CAPTCHAs and avoid IP bans.

More: Playwright Proxy Configuration, Ultimate Web Scraping Guide, Proxies.

Node.js Example

In Node.js you pass the same proxy option to chromium.launch():

javascript

const { chromium } = require('playwright');

(async () => {
  const browser = await chromium.launch({
    proxy: {
      server: 'http://proxy.example.com:8080',
      username: 'user',
      password: 'pass'
    }
  });
  const page = await browser.newPage();
  await page.goto('https://example.com');
  await browser.close();
})();

With a rotating residential proxy gateway, each new browser or context can get a new exit IP. See Playwright web scraping tutorial and best proxies for web scraping. Use Proxy Checker to confirm the IP.

Handling Proxy Failures

Proxies can be slow, offline, or blocked by the target. In Playwright, a failed request will throw or return an error. Best practice: catch errors, retry with the same or a new proxy (new browser/context if using rotating proxies), and back off on repeated failure. See avoid IP bans and common proxy mistakes. For Cloudflare or CAPTCHA, combine residential proxies with handling CAPTCHAs. Scraping test helps validate before scaling.

Environment Variables

Some providers support proxy via environment variables (e.g. HTTP_PROXY, HTTPS_PROXY). Playwright can pick these up depending on version and config. For explicit control and proxy rotation, passing proxy in code is usually better. How proxy rotation works and proxy rotation strategies. Using proxies with Python for Python-side patterns. Residential proxies and Proxies for product options.

Further reading:

Using Proxies with Playwright - Configuration Guide (2026)

Key Takeaways