Fix Browser Use navigation timeout
Browser Use navigation timeout occurs when the default page load time exceeds the allowed limit, causing the browser automation to fail. Fix this by increasing the navigation timeout parameter in the Agent initialization or by wrapping navigation calls with retry logic to handle slow page loads.config_error timeout value in milliseconds to the Agent constructor or navigation method.Why this happens
The Browser Use package uses playwright under the hood for browser automation. By default, playwright has a navigation timeout (usually 30 seconds). If the page takes longer to load or the network is slow, the navigation will time out, raising an error like TimeoutError: Navigation timeout of 30000 ms exceeded.
Typical triggering code looks like this:
from browser_use import Agent
agent = Agent(task="Go to example.com and scrape data", llm=...) # no timeout set
result = await agent.run()If the page load is slow or blocked, the default timeout causes failure.
from browser_use import Agent
import asyncio
async def run_agent():
agent = Agent(task="Go to https://example.com and get title", llm=None) # default timeout
result = await agent.run()
print(result)
asyncio.run(run_agent())TimeoutError: Navigation timeout of 30000 ms exceeded
The fix
Fix the navigation timeout by increasing the timeout value in the Agent constructor using the timeout parameter (in milliseconds). For example, set timeout=60000 for 60 seconds. This allows slower pages to load without error.
Alternatively, implement retry logic around agent.run() to handle intermittent slow loads.
from browser_use import Agent
import asyncio
async def run_agent():
agent = Agent(
task="Go to https://example.com and get title",
llm=None,
timeout=60000 # 60 seconds navigation timeout
)
result = await agent.run()
print(result)
asyncio.run(run_agent())Successfully retrieved page content or title without timeout error
Preventing it in production
To avoid navigation timeouts in production, always set a reasonable timeout based on expected page load times and network conditions. Combine this with exponential backoff retry logic to recover from transient network slowness.
Validate URLs before navigation and monitor for repeated timeouts to detect broken or slow sites. Logging timeout errors helps diagnose issues early.
import asyncio
from browser_use import Agent
async def run_with_retries(task, retries=3, timeout=60000):
for attempt in range(retries):
try:
agent = Agent(task=task, llm=None, timeout=timeout)
result = await agent.run()
return result
except Exception as e:
print(f"Attempt {attempt + 1} failed: {e}")
if attempt == retries - 1:
raise
await asyncio.sleep(2 ** attempt) # exponential backoff
async def main():
task = "Go to https://example.com and get title"
result = await run_with_retries(task)
print(result)
asyncio.run(main())Attempt 1 failed: TimeoutError: Navigation timeout of 60000 ms exceeded Successfully retrieved page content or title without timeout error
Key Takeaways
- Set the
timeoutparameter inAgentto avoid default navigation timeouts. - Use exponential backoff retries around
agent.run()to handle intermittent slow page loads. - Monitor and log navigation errors to proactively detect site or network issues.