Let an AI agent see a web page
To let an AI agent see a web page, connect it to the CurlShot MCP server. The agent gets a take_screenshot tool: it passes the address of a page and receives a screenshot of it, which a model that reads images can look at. Agents without MCP use the same thing as one HTTP request, described in an OpenAPI file and in llms.txt.
curl "https://curlshot.com/api/v1/screenshot?access_key=YOUR_ACCESS_KEY&url=https://example.com&response_type=json&image_width=1200" \
--output screenshot.jsonHow to do it, in three steps
- 1
Create a free account and copy your access key.
- 2
Add the MCP server to your agent, or give it the screenshot request.
- 3
Ask the agent to look at a page. It takes the screenshot itself.
What people use it for
- A coding agent that checks how the page it just changed looks
- Research agents that read pages which need a real browser to load
- Visual checks: is the banner there, did the layout break
- Reports with screenshots, written by an assistant
For developers: one request
The same thing from your own code. It is a plain HTTP request, so it works from any language. Create a free account to get an access key.
Questions people ask
How can an AI agent take a screenshot of a website?
Through the CurlShot MCP server, which gives the agent a take_screenshot tool, or with one HTTP request that returns the image.
What does the agent get back?
The image itself, or with response_type=json a short JSON answer with a link to the file, which is easier for a tool call to pass on.
Can the agent read the page as text too?
The service returns images and PDFs. A PDF of a page has text that can be selected and extracted, and a model that reads images can read a screenshot directly.
How do I keep the cost of an agent under control?
Each plan is a fixed number of screenshots a month, and an access key can be revoked at any time. Repeat requests for the same page can come from the cache at no cost.
Related tools
- Screenshot APIA screenshot API for developers. One HTTP request turns a URL, HTML or Markdown into a PNG, JPEG, WebP or PDF. Full page, devices, blocking, cache, MCP.
- Full-page screenshotTake a screenshot of a whole web page, from the top to the very bottom, as one image. Paste the address, nothing to install. Also available as an API.
- HTML to imageRender your own HTML, CSS or Markdown into an image or a PDF with one API request. For social cards, certificates, receipts and reports.