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The open-source SeleniumBase alternative

SeleniumBase is a big, well-maintained Python automation framework, and its UC and CDP modes are the most active stealth option in the Selenium world. They change how the browser is driven, not what it reports: the fingerprint is still your machine's. Clearcote changes it in the engine, and SeleniumBase can run on top of it.

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What is SeleniumBase?

SeleniumBase (by Michael Mintz) is a full testing and automation framework for Python: pytest integration, a test recorder, dashboards, an MCP server and much more. It is MIT-licensed, has about 13,200 GitHub stars and roughly 1.6 million PyPI downloads a month, and ships releases every few days.

Its stealth comes in two modes. UC Mode, originally based on undetected-chromedriver, uses a modified driver that disconnects WebDriver from the browser at key moments. CDP Mode, its successor, drives Chrome directly over the DevTools Protocol and can also make Playwright stealthier. Both work on the driver layer. The Chrome underneath is stock, so canvas, WebGL, fonts and hardware are those of the machine it runs on, and the docs say UC Mode may be detectable in headless mode, recommending an Xvfb virtual display on Linux servers instead.

Clearcote vs SeleniumBase

FeatureClearcoteSeleniumBase
Approach Engine-level C++ patches Driver-level (modified driver or direct CDP)
Fingerprint identity Coherent persona from a seed Your host's real values
On Linux servers Official Docker image (headed under Xvfb); the persona covers the VM's GPU and fonts Headed under Xvfb recommended; reports the VM's hardware
TLS / network ClientHello follows the persona's Chrome version Whatever the local Chrome sends
Test framework features None: it's a browser pytest, recorder, reports, dashboards
Framework Playwright & Puppeteer (Python, Node, .NET) Selenium and CDP (Python)
Maintenance Active Very active
Cost Open build free; latest build free with GitHub; Pro $49/mo Free & open (MIT)

Comparison compiled November 2026. SeleniumBase is open source (mit); details change — check its project for the latest.

Measured: 12 tools on the same 10 sites

We ran the open-source browsers-benchmark harness 5 times, finishing on 27 October 2026. Each tool ran on its own US residential IP, in a different order each run. A pass means the harness's own check for that site found the page itself, not a block or challenge page. Clearcote measured on a Windows desktop (latest build); other tools on a Linux server.

Share of page loads that reached the real page, per tool, headed and headless
ToolHeadedHeadless
Clearcote0.63.2 · r5278%39/5080%40/50
Camoufox0.5.8 · v156.0.1-beta.3672%36/5080%40/50
Invisible Playwright0.43.0 · Firefox76%38/5078%39/50
CloakBrowser0.6.474%37/5064%32/50
SeleniumBase (CDP mode)4.49.0 · Chrome74%37/50—
nodriver0.50.6 · Chrome74%37/5040%20/50
Zendriver0.17.1 · Chrome64%32/5060%30/50
tf-playwright-stealth (Firefox)1.2.058%29/5062%31/50
tf-playwright-stealth (Chromium)1.2.056%28/5050%25/50
Playwright (Chromium)1.62.056%28/5030%15/50
Playwright (Firefox)1.62.054%27/5054%27/50
Patchright1.64.3 · Chrome24%12/5026%13/50

Sites: a search results page, a community forum, a software company's site, a luxury retailer, a marketplace product page, a ticketing site, a fashion retailer, a travel booking site, an airline, a social network. This is a snapshot from one network and one week: results move with every release, every proxy and the sites themselves, and no tool loaded every site every time. Raw results (JSON).

Why teams pick Clearcote

The browser changes, not only the driver

UC and CDP modes hide the automation session. Clearcote changes what the browser itself reports, which a driver can't reach.

Made for servers

A stock Chrome on a VPS reports a software GPU and a server font set. Clearcote's persona replaces them with a consistent desktop machine, and it ships as a ready-made Docker image.

Many identities, one machine

Each --fingerprint seed is its own consistent machine, so parallel sessions don't all share the host's fingerprint.

Works with SeleniumBase

SeleniumBase accepts a custom browser through binary_location, so you can keep its framework and run Clearcote underneath.

When SeleniumBase might be the better pick

  • You want a complete test framework (pytest, recorder, reporting) and stealth is one feature among many.
  • You run on a real desktop where the host's own fingerprint is fine.
  • Or combine them: pass the Clearcote binary as binary_location and keep SeleniumBase's API.

FAQ

SeleniumBase UC Mode vs Clearcote?

UC Mode is a modified driver that hides the WebDriver connection from the page. Clearcote is a modified Chromium that changes the fingerprint the page reads. They work on different layers, so you can use both.

Can SeleniumBase use the Clearcote browser?

Yes. SeleniumBase has a binary_location option for a custom Chromium. Point it at the path from Clearcote's download() and pass your --fingerprint arguments as Chrome options.

Does SeleniumBase work headless on a server?

Its own docs say UC Mode may be detectable in headless mode and recommend running headed under an Xvfb virtual display on Linux. That is sound advice for any browser: Clearcote's official Docker image also runs headed under Xvfb by default. The difference is what the browser reports once it is running: the server's real hardware, or a consistent persona.

How deep it goes

More than twice the patches of any fork we compared.

Patches compiled into Chromium, by approach. Script-based tools don't change the engine at all.

Stealth plugins

e.g. puppeteer-extra-plugin-stealth

0

Patched drivers

e.g. undetected-chromedriver, nodriver

0

Other Chromium forks

free and paid builds

35–87

Clearcote Pro

r57, Chromium 156

240

Published patch counts, October 2026. The range covers other forks' free and paid builds; Clearcote's is the Pro build.

Test it

365 checks, free, on your own browser

The fingerprint test every Clearcote build is held to. Run it on whatever you use today and compare.

Run the test
Read it

The open build's patches are public

The free open build is BSD-3, reproducible from source and needs no account. The Pro build adds private patches on top.

Open on GitHub
Watch it ship

57 engine releases, 7 Chromium majors

Every patch is carried to each new Chromium. The latest build gets new majors the day they ship.

See the releases

Related reading

CompareClearcote vs undetected-chromedriverundetected-chromedriver is still downloaded about 2.5 million times a month, but its last release was in February 2024. It hides the Selenium/ChromeDriver seam on a stock Chrome and never touches the fingerprint or the network layer. Clearcote changes both in the engine.Q&AHow is a headless browser detected?Detectors probe for headless tells: automation launch flags, missing or inconsistent browser APIs, software-render shortcuts, and behavior that differs from a windowed browser.DocsDeployment — Docker & CDP endpointRun Clearcote as a stealth CDP endpoint: the official Docker image, serve(), and attaching Playwright, Puppeteer or browser-use over CDP with no code change.CompareClearcote vs CamoufoxCamoufox is a well-built open-source anti-detect browser, on Firefox. Clearcote takes the same engine-level approach to Chromium, so your automation presents the browser about 66% of the web actually uses instead of one used by about 3%.CompareClearcote vs CloakBrowserCloakBrowser is a capable engine-level stealth Chromium with a large following, but the patched binary is closed source. Clearcote is engine-level too, and ships an open build whose every patch you can read and rebuild.

Try the open-source Chromium alternative

Free and open source, a drop-in for Playwright & Puppeteer, coherent down to the TLS handshake.

Get it freeSee pricing

Free for one browser: GitHub, a card check or a company Google account. Never charged.