Steel

Open-source cloud browser API for AI agents

Steel is an open-source browser API that lets AI agents and developers spin up on-demand cloud browser sessions. Handles CAPTCHA solving, proxy and fingerprint rotation, sessions up to 24 hours, and context reuse via cookies and localStorage. Drop-in compatible with Puppeteer, Playwright, and Selenium. Includes a live session viewer for debugging and can be self-hosted via Docker.

Best for agent capabilities

Browser automation Web extraction

Useful in agent tasks

Research the web

Find, inspect, extract, and synthesize reliable information from the open web.

Manage memory and knowledge

Keep useful context available across long-running tasks and sessions.

Overview

Websitesteel.dev

Authapi key

PricingFree tier available · $0/month

SDKstypescript, python

OpenAPIYes

MCP SupportNo

When to use Steel

Steel is listed for Browser, Web Scraping workflows. Steel is an open-source browser API that lets AI agents and developers spin up on-demand cloud browser sessions. Handles CAPTCHA solving, proxy and fingerprint rotation, sessions up to 24 hours, and context reuse via cookies and localStorage. Drop-in compatible with Puppeteer, Playwright, and Selenium. Includes a live session viewer for debugging and can be self-hosted via Docker. Consider it when an agent needs this capability through a documented service boundary instead of custom infrastructure maintained inside the application.

In 4agent's task model, the product maps to browser automation, web extraction. That makes it a candidate for workflows that research the web, manage memory and knowledge.

Integration checklist

Access: confirm the api key authentication flow, credential scope, rotation process, and whether calls can be attributed to a user or service identity.
Client support: official or documented clients are listed for typescript, python.
Automation: OpenAPI is listed as available, MCP is not currently recorded, and CLI support is not currently recorded. Confirm each requirement in the provider's current documentation.
Operations: test rate limits, timeouts, retry safety, error payloads, logs, data retention, and the current free-tier and paid pricing model with production-like volume.

Sources and verification

Use these primary sources to verify current behavior before making an implementation or purchasing decision. Product capabilities, limits, and prices can change after a 4agent listing is reviewed.