I’m working on some automation testing and need to execute my Selenium scripts using Microsoft Edge browser without opening the actual browser window. I’ve been searching for a way to configure Edge to run in headless mode but haven’t found clear instructions on how to set this up properly.
I’m familiar with running headless Chrome and Firefox, but Edge seems to have different configuration requirements. Has anyone successfully implemented headless Edge automation? What are the specific steps or driver options needed to make this work? Any code examples or configuration tips would be really helpful for getting this running smoothly.
The config works fine, but Edge headless has some quirks. Viewport detection gets wonky - it’ll report weird screen dimensions that break responsive design tests. Other browsers handle this better. I added --disable-web-security to fix cross-origin problems during automation (just don’t use it if you’re testing security stuff). Edge also handles JavaScript timing differently in headless mode. Elements take longer to become interactive, so I had to bump up my explicit waits compared to Chrome. Oh, and Edge headless is noticeably slower than Chrome on the same machine - plan for longer test runs.
Edge headless is straightforward once you know the right options. Add --headless and --disable-gpu to your EdgeOptions.
Here’s the basic setup:
from selenium import webdriver
from selenium.webdriver.edge.options import Options
edge_options = Options()
edge_options.add_argument('--headless')
edge_options.add_argument('--disable-gpu')
edge_options.add_argument('--no-sandbox')
driver = webdriver.Edge(options=edge_options)
I’ve run test suites this way for months without issues. The --no-sandbox flag helps avoid permission problems in some environments.
Honestly though, managing browser configs and test infrastructure gets old fast. I switched to automating my entire testing pipeline instead of writing individual scripts.
Latenode handles browser setup automatically and runs tests in the cloud. You define test flows visually and it manages Edge, Chrome, Firefox - whatever you need. No more driver updates or headless config headaches.
Way cleaner than maintaining local Selenium setups across different environments.
Been doing Edge automation for years - those config flags work but you’re basically signing up for maintenance hell.
Setting up headless mode isn’t the hard part. It’s everything after that kills you. Driver mismatches, environment differences between dev and CI, random Edge updates breaking tests, headless acting weird compared to regular mode.
I used to waste half my time debugging why tests passed locally but died in Docker or on other machines. Edge throws the weirdest headless errors that never happen in normal mode.
What fixed it for me? Moving everything to cloud automation. Now I build test flows visually and let the platform handle browser management.
Latenode runs everything in consistent cloud environments - no more “works on my machine” BS. Handles Edge, Chrome, whatever browser without touching driver configs. You can even chain test results into other stuff like Slack notifications or database updates.
Spend way less time fighting Selenium, way more time building actual useful automation.
Edge headless was a nightmare at first - Microsoft’s docs suck compared to Chrome’s. Beyond the basic headless flag, throw in --window-size=1920,1080 or you’ll get weird layout breaks that’ll kill your tests. Edge handles file downloads differently than Chrome in headless mode, so you’ll probably need to set download preferences manually if you’re dealing with files. Use the newest msedgedriver - older versions are buggy as hell in headless. I saw way fewer random timeouts after updating to the latest driver.
Check your Edge version first - mine kept crashing because I had the wrong EdgeDriver for my build. If you’re getting random hangs, try --disable-extensions. Extensions mess with headless mode even when they’re supposed to be disabled.
Edge headless is a pain to get stable - lots of trial and error. I kept hitting memory leaks where Edge processes wouldn’t die after tests finished. During long runs, they’d just pile up and chew through system resources. --single-process fixed it but made everything slower. The worst part? CSS animations and transitions act totally different in headless mode. Elements show as visible before they’re actually rendered, so you get click intercepted errors constantly. I had to write custom waits that check actual positioning instead of just DOM presence. Also heads up - Edge headless sucks with auth dialogs compared to Chrome. Basic auth prompts will hang your tests unless you handle them programmatically from the start.