Set the Permissions Before Turning On Browser Use in n8n Assistant

It can open tabs, click, type, and even create credentials.

What does Browser Use do for you?

The official documentation says that once you install and connect the n8n Browser Use Chrome extension, n8n Assistant works in your own browser. It uses your real browser profile with no extra software, so it also works with sites you are already signed in to.

Request (Assistant chat) → your browser connected through the extension → site permission prompt → tab actions and typing → approval to save the credential

The documentation lists four kinds of work.

• Create an API key or app in a service console and save it as an n8n credential.
• Open pages, follow links, and read content.
• Fill in forms, choose options, upload files, and submit.
• Open, switch between, and close tabs.

Where can you use it?

The conditions differ slightly between pages. Date checked: 2026-10-17.

The release notes describe an instance setting that is on by default, while the Browser use page says an admin must turn it on in the settings screen. Check the settings screen to see which applies to your instance. In the same 2.43 release, the experimental "Set up automatically" credential option became off by default for all users.

Which permissions should an admin set first?

Settings > Assistant > Permissions has two settings tied directly to Browser Use. Each can be Allow, Ask first, or Block, and the default is Ask first.

1. Fetch URLs (under Web): controls the prompt before a new site is used. The documentation says it also applies to web access outside Browser Use.
2. Create credentials from a browser session (under Credentials): controls whether it asks before saving a credential.

The documentation warns that Browser Use acts with your signed-in sessions. Starting with both settings left at Ask first is the safer choice. For teams that work in sites where mistakes are hard to undo, such as billing or admin consoles, setting Fetch URLs to Block is another option.

What does the user choose when connecting?

You start by selecting Connect browser from the + beside the Assistant chat input. The extension popup then asks for a few choices.

• Always allow <instance host>: the extension reconnects automatically until you remove the instance from Allowed instances.
• Sharing existing tabs: shared tabs apply to this connection only. Otherwise it handles only tabs that Assistant opened itself.
• Per-site permission: before using a new site, it asks you to pick Allow once, Allow for session, or Deny.

Always allow is convenient, but the connection comes back every time you open the browser. On a personal browser rather than a work profile, it is better not to pick it. To disconnect, use Disconnect from the same + menu or the extension popup.

What can't Browser Use do?

The documentation lists these limits.

• It can't sign in, complete two-factor authentication, or solve CAPTCHAs. It stops at those steps and you finish them in the browser.
• It can't read downloaded files or internal pages such as chrome://.
• It works only while your browser is open and connected. It doesn't run in published workflows.
• Only one browser connection works at a time.

The last two matter for operations. Browser Use is a tool for preparing credentials or settings while a person is present, not something to hand overnight automation to.

What should you test when first turning it on?

Start in a separate browser profile where no important accounts are signed in. Ask it to create an API key for one test service, and confirm that the site permission prompt and the credential save approval actually appear. If either prompt is skipped, first check whether the two Permissions settings have been switched to Allow.

Sources: n8n Release notes, n8n Browser use. Date checked: 2026-10-17.