C# compatible JavaScript-enabled headless browser options

Other Questions Headless Browser
1

I’m looking for a headless browser solution that works with C# and supports client-side JavaScript. I’ve checked out some packages mentioned online, but they weren’t truly headless or had other issues.

Does anyone know of a good alternative? I’m hoping to find something that:

  1. Is actually headless (no visible browser window)
  2. Can be used by importing an assembly in C#
  3. Supports JavaScript execution on the client side

I tried WatiN first, but it wasn’t headless. Are there any newer options available that meet these criteria? It would be great to hear about people’s experiences with different tools.

Here’s a simple example of what I’m trying to do:

using HeadlessBrowser;

var browser = new InvisibleBrowser();
browser.Navigate("https://example.com");
var result = browser.ExecuteJavaScript("document.title");
Console.WriteLine(result);

Any suggestions would be much appreciated!

2

hey, have u tried Puppeteer Sharp? its pretty sweet for headless browsing in C#. supports JS and everything. I’ve used it for some web scraping projects and it works great. just install the nuget package and you’re good to go. way easier than messing with selenium imho

3

I’ve had great success with Selenium WebDriver using the ChromeDriver in headless mode. It ticks all your boxes - truly headless, C# compatible, and full JavaScript support. Here’s a quick snippet to get you started:

using OpenQA.Selenium.Chrome;
using OpenQA.Selenium;

var options = new ChromeOptions();
options.AddArgument("--headless");

using (var driver = new ChromeDriver(options))
{
    driver.Navigate().GoToUrl("https://example.com");
    var result = ((IJavaScriptExecutor)driver).ExecuteScript("return document.title");
    Console.WriteLine(result);
}

The setup can be a bit finicky at first, but once you’ve got it running, it’s quite powerful. You’ll need to install the Selenium.WebDriver and Selenium.WebDriver.ChromeDriver NuGet packages. Make sure the ChromeDriver version matches your installed Chrome version. It’s been rock-solid for me across multiple projects.

4

I’ve found CefSharp to be an excellent solution for headless browsing with C# and JavaScript support. It’s based on Chromium and offers a high degree of compatibility. Here’s a basic example:

using CefSharp;
using CefSharp.OffScreen;

Cef.Initialize(new CefSettings { WindowlessRenderingEnabled = true });
using (var browser = new ChromiumWebBrowser())
{
    browser.LoadUrl("https://example.com").Wait();
    var result = await browser.EvaluateScriptAsync("document.title");
    Console.WriteLine(result.Result);
}

You’ll need to install the CefSharp.OffScreen NuGet package. It’s been reliable in my projects, handling complex web applications with ease. The API is intuitive, and it’s actively maintained. Just be aware it has a larger footprint than some alternatives.