visual-qa-testing

Visual QA

Use this skill after making UI changes to visually verify the result, catch console errors, and audit network requests — all without leaving Cursor.

How It Works

Cursor has a built-in browser (cursor-ide-browser MCP) that can navigate to URLs, take screenshots, read console messages, inspect network requests, and interact with page elements. This skill uses those tools to do a quick visual QA pass.

Steps

1. Ensure the dev server is running — check if there's already a terminal running the dev server. If not, start one in the background:

   npm run dev
   

   Wait for the server to be ready (watch for the "ready" or localhost URL in the output).

2. Navigate to the page — use browser_navigate to open the relevant page:

   Tool: browser_navigate
   Arguments: { "url": "http://localhost:3000", "take_screenshot_afterwards": true }
   

   If the change is on a specific route, navigate directly to it (e.g., /settings, /dashboard).

3. Take a screenshot — capture the current state:

   Tool: browser_take_screenshot
   Arguments: { "fullPage": true }
   

   Review the screenshot for visual issues: layout breaks, missing content, wrong colors, misaligned elements.

4. Check console for errors — look for JavaScript errors or warnings:

   Tool: browser_console_messages
   

   Report any errors, especially TypeError, ReferenceError, failed imports, or React hydration mismatches.

5. Audit network requests — check for failed API calls or unexpected requests:

   Tool: browser_network_requests
   

   Look for: 4xx/5xx status codes, CORS errors, excessively large responses, unnecessary duplicate requests.

6. Interact if needed — if the change involves interactive elements (buttons, forms, modals), use browser_click, browser_fill, or browser_hover to test the interaction, then take another screenshot to verify.

7. Report findings — summarize:

   • Screenshot shows the UI looks correct (or what's wrong)
   • Console is clean (or list errors found)
   • Network requests are healthy (or list failures)

Notes

• Always use browser_snapshot before clicking elements to get the correct element refs.
• For responsive testing, use browser_resize to check different viewport sizes.
• Use browser_navigate with position: "side" to open the browser beside your code.