Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsIf Playwright is not leaving failure screenshots in a GitHub Actions run, fix both halves of the pipeline: enable screenshot capture in the effective Playwright Test configuration, then upload the directory Playwright actually used as a workflow artifact. A file that exists on the runner is not automatically downloadable from GitHub Actions.
The two-step fix
Put failure-only screenshots in playwright.config.ts:
import { defineConfig } from '@playwright/test';
export default defineConfig({
use: {
screenshot: 'only-on-failure',
},
});Then upload the configured output directory after the test step. The condition below allows the upload to run when tests fail, but not after the workflow is cancelled:
- name: Run Playwright tests
run: npx playwright test
- name: Upload Playwright test results
if: ${{ !cancelled() }}
uses: actions/upload-artifact@v5
with:
name: playwright-test-results
path: test-results/
if-no-files-found: warn
retention-days: 14Use the same directory in both places. Playwright’s default outputDir is test-results under the package directory, but your configuration, working directory, or command line can change it.
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What “not working” can mean
There are two separate failure points:
- No file on the runner: capture was disabled, the test did not fail, the wrong configuration was loaded, or you inspected the wrong output directory.
- File on the runner but no download in Actions: the upload step was skipped or its
pathdoes not match the directory containing the file.
screenshot: 'only-on-failure' intentionally does not retain screenshots for passing tests. If a retry passes, decide whether you need evidence from the original failed attempt and select trace and retry settings accordingly.
Check the effective Playwright configuration
- Find the configuration used by the command. Confirm that
npx playwright testis running the expectedplaywright.config.*from the workflow’sworking-directory. A monorepo can contain more than one package and configuration file. - Inspect project-specific overrides. A project-level
useblock, a separate project definition, or command-line options can override shared settings. Verify the project that actually runs the failing test. - Confirm the test failed. Failure-only mode is not a general capture mode. A passing test should not be expected to produce a retained screenshot.
- Check the output location.
testConfig.outputDircontrols screenshots, videos, and traces. The command-line option--output <dir>overrides it for that invocation. - Match the upload path. If the effective output directory is
artifacts/pw, uploadingtest-results/cannot find those files.
Choose the right screenshot mode
| Mode | Behavior | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
off |
No screenshots are captured. | When screenshots are unnecessary and you want the least artifact work. |
only-on-failure |
Captures screenshots for failed tests. | The usual CI choice for focused failure evidence. |
on |
Captures screenshots for every test. | When every test needs visual output; expect more files and upload time. |
The setting belongs under use in Playwright Test configuration. It is independent of whether GitHub later uploads the resulting files.
A practical CI configuration with traces
Screenshots show the final rendered state, but a trace can reveal actions, network activity, console output, and timing. A common starting point is one retry in CI, a trace on the first retry, and failure screenshots:
import { defineConfig } from '@playwright/test';
export default defineConfig({
retries: process.env.CI ? 1 : 0,
outputDir: 'test-results',
use: {
screenshot: 'only-on-failure',
trace: process.env.CI ? 'on-first-retry' : 'off',
},
});This is a starting point, not a requirement. With retries enabled, trace: 'on-first-retry' records a trace for the retry path. If you do not use retries, trace: 'retain-on-failure' can retain traces for failed tests. Playwright advises using Trace Viewer for CI failures rather than recording videos and screenshots for every test; tracing every test has a significant runtime and storage cost.
Upload the directories you actually need
The test output directory and the HTML report directory are separate concerns. A workflow that uploads only an HTML report can omit screenshots, traces, or videos stored under outputDir. Upload both when investigators need both views:
- name: Run Playwright tests
run: npx playwright test
- name: Upload test output
if: ${{ !cancelled() }}
uses: actions/upload-artifact@v5
with:
name: playwright-test-output
path: test-results/
if-no-files-found: warn
retention-days: 14
- name: Upload HTML report
if: ${{ !cancelled() }}
uses: actions/upload-artifact@v5
with:
name: playwright-html-report
path: playwright-report/
if-no-files-found: warn
retention-days: 14Replace either path with the directory configured by your project. The if-no-files-found: warn setting makes a path mistake visible without hiding the test result; use a stricter policy if your team requires artifacts on every failed run.
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Diagnostic sequence for a failing run
- Read the job log and confirm the Playwright command reached the tests rather than failing during installation or configuration loading.
- Confirm at least one test failed if using
only-on-failure. - Print or otherwise inspect the working directory and package location used by the job, especially in a monorepo.
- Check for
--outputin the command, scripts, or wrapper tooling. - Inspect the configured
outputDirand list that directory immediately after the test command. - Verify the upload step appears in the run and was not marked skipped.
if: ${{ !cancelled() }}is important because a normal later step can be skipped after a failed test command. - Open the run’s artifact list, download the named artifact, and compare its directory layout with the runner’s listing.
- If a report is present but screenshots are absent, compare the report path with the test-output path; they may be different directories.
Common symptoms and targeted fixes
No screenshot file exists on the runner
- Set
use.screenshotto'only-on-failure'or'on', depending on the desired volume. - Confirm the test really failed and that the intended project configuration was loaded.
- Inspect the effective output directory instead of assuming
test-results/.
A screenshot exists, but no artifact is downloadable
- Add a cancellation-aware condition to the upload step.
- Point
pathto the exact output directory, relative to the job’s working directory. - Check the step details for a skipped condition or an “no files found” warning.
The HTML report downloads, but screenshots or traces do not
Upload the test output directory as a separate artifact. A report artifact does not automatically include files written elsewhere.
A retry passes and the original failure evidence is missing
Choose retention deliberately. Failure screenshots and traces have different policies. Use a trace mode such as retain-on-failure when retries are disabled, or configure first-retry tracing when a retry is part of the CI strategy.
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Each shard should publish its own report data and attachments. Playwright’s blob-report workflow pattern uses per-shard artifacts followed by a merge job; attachments such as traces and screenshot diffs can be included in that data. Do not make every shard write to a single shared directory unless your workflow explicitly prevents collisions.
Inspecting traces and reports
After downloading a trace, open it locally with:
npx playwright show-trace path/to/trace.zipYou can also open traces through the HTML report when they are attached. Trace Viewer can run locally or in a browser. Treat reports, screenshots, and traces as potentially sensitive: they may contain page content, test data, tokens shown in the UI, or diagnostic details. Apply your repository’s access and retention policy before publishing them as artifacts.
Reliability, runtime, and retention choices
- Capture volume:
only-on-failurelimits files during healthy runs;onproduces an artifact for every test and can increase storage and upload time. - Retries: retries can make transient failures easier to classify, but they also change which attempt remains visible. Pair retries with an explicit trace policy.
- Artifact retention: set
retention-daysto the period your team needs for diagnosis. The sample uses 14 days; it is a workflow choice, not a Playwright requirement. - Path determinism: use an explicit
outputDirand a consistent job working directory when possible. This reduces surprises across packages and matrix jobs. - Cancellation behavior: an upload cannot run after a cancelled workflow, but it should still run after a test failure. The cancellation-aware condition expresses that distinction.
Or skip the browser setup
If you need a clean screenshot of a URL rather than Playwright’s test-failure evidence, ScreenshotNeo provides a single screenshot API request. It accepts consent banners before capture and removes more than 60 known consent platforms, newsletter popups, and chat widgets; each cleanup step can be disabled. Bot checks, CAPTCHAs, blank pages, timeouts, failed loads, and cache hits are not billed, and the response identifies the result with X-Page-Verdict and X-Billed headers. Its MCP server lets Claude, Cursor, and other MCP clients call take_screenshot, get_page_info, and capture_pdf.
For API details, see the ScreenshotNeo documentation. A cURL request is:
curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://stripe.com -o shot.webpPython:
import requests
r = requests.get("https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot", params={"access_key": "YOUR_API_KEY", "url": "https://stripe.com"}, timeout=90)
open("shot.webp", "wb").write(r.content)Node.js:
const q = new URLSearchParams({ access_key: 'YOUR_API_KEY', url: 'https://stripe.com' });
const res = await fetch(`https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot?${q}`);It also supports full-page and element captures, device and viewport settings, dark mode, retina scale, PDF output, custom CSS and JavaScript, waits, request blocking, headers, cookies, user agents, geolocation, caching, signed links, asynchronous webhooks, bulk capture, and a usage API. Every plan includes every feature. The Free plan includes 1,000 screenshots per month without a card; paid plans start at $5 for 3,000 screenshots. Create a free ScreenshotNeo account to try it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does a passing test have no screenshot with `only-on-failure`?
That mode is intentionally failure-only. Use `on` when every test needs a screenshot.
Can I upload screenshots without uploading the HTML report?
Yes. Upload the configured Playwright `outputDir` as its own artifact; the report directory is independent.
What should I retain when a failure is intermittent?
Use a CI retry and `trace: ‘on-first-retry’`, or use `retain-on-failure` when retries are disabled, according to which attempt you need to inspect.
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Not automatically. Screenshots, reports, and traces can contain page content and diagnostic data, so restrict artifact access and retention to your project’s security policy.
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