Playwright Trace Decoder MCP vs Google Surf MCP

In-depth architectural comparison of the Playwright Trace Decoder MCP and Google Surf MCP MCP servers. Compare execution transports, security boundaries, tool capabilities, quality scores, and ready-to-paste client installation snippets for Claude, Cursor, Windsurf, and VS Code.

Which MCP Server Should You Choose?

P

Choose Playwright Trace Decoder MCP when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Browser Automation domain.
• You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).

Explore Playwright Trace Decoder MCP Details

Choose Google Surf MCP when:

• You need dedicated capabilities in the Browser Automation domain.
• You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
• Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
• Primary tools included: extract_mode, extract, project_id.

Explore Google Surf MCP Details

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	P Playwright Trace Decoder MCP Browser Automation	Google Surf MCP Browser Automation
Summary	MCP server for unpacking and analyzing Playwright trace.zip archives	Google search via Playwright with a warm Chrome profile. No API key, no proxies.
Category & Scope	Browser Automation	Browser Automation

Tools & Capabilities Breakdown

Ready-to-Paste Client Configurations

Paste either (or both) of these JSON server blocks into your client config file (e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json).

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "playwright-trace-decoder-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "playwright-trace-decoder-mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "google-surf-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "google-surf-mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

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