Our take
Activeregular commits- Activity
- 36
- Community
- 75
- Issues
- 33
- Pull requests
- 42
+1 stars in the last 17 days
- Slower to close issues than 98% of the projects we track
MechanicalSoup is an actively maintained, focused option for form-based web automation, though its lack of JavaScript support and slow issue closure may matter for production use.
Good fit if
- Your task works through ordinary HTML pages, links, and forms without JavaScript.
- You want a Python library built around HTTP sessions and HTML parsing rather than a full browser.
- You value recent development activity: the project is active, has regular commits and merged changes, and contributions are not concentrated in one person.
Look elsewhere if
- The target site requires JavaScript execution or browser-rendered content.
- You need rapid issue resolution, since issues have taken a long time to close despite quick pull request merges.
- You require frequent releases, as there has been no release in over a year.
All health signals
| Last commit | 2026-10-06 (5 days ago) |
|---|---|
| Commits, last 90 days | 15 |
| Releases, last 12 months | 0 (latest v1.4.0, 2025-05-30) |
| Contributors | 51 (top contributor: 34% of commits) |
| Issues closed, last 90 days | 5 (typically closed in 958 days) |
| Pull requests merged, last 90 days | 15 (typically merged in 2 days) |
| Project age | 12 years |
Checked on 2026-10-12 with the GitHub API.
Overview
MechanicalSoup is a Python library for automating website interactions without a full browser. It combines HTTP session handling with HTML navigation so scripts can open pages, retain cookies, follow links, and submit forms.
It is aimed at developers who need a lightweight way to automate sites with conventional HTML forms and pages. It does not execute JavaScript, so it is not a fit for workflows that depend on client-side rendering or browser-only behavior.
Key Features
- Maintains cookies through HTTP sessions and follows redirects.
- Navigates HTML documents using BeautifulSoup.
- Finds and follows links.
- Selects forms, fills in fields, and submits them.
- Provides a stateful browser interface for sequences of website interactions.
- Supports Python and PyPy3, according to the project documentation.
Use Cases
- Automate a search form and extract result links when the site serves usable HTML.
- Submit routine forms, such as those with text fields, checkboxes, radio buttons, or textareas.
- Write Python scripts that revisit pages while keeping session cookies.
- Build lightweight data collection tasks for sites that do not require JavaScript to expose their content.
What you need
Detected in the repository
- Python (from setup.py)
- A test suite and automated checks on GitHub Actions
License in plain words
MITpermissive
- Commercial use: yes
- Modify and redistribute: yes
- You must keep: the copyright and license notice
- Share your changes: no
A summary, not legal advice: the LICENSE file is what applies.
Getting Started
Install from PyPI:
pip install MechanicalSoup
See the README and documentation for usage and examples.
Alternatives
- splinter: Splinter automates real browsers through drivers such as Selenium, while MechanicalSoup interacts with pages using HTTP sessions and parsed HTML.
- CloakBrowser: CloakBrowser automates a customized Chromium browser through Playwright or Puppeteer, while MechanicalSoup does not execute JavaScript.
| Project | Language | License | Stars | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MechanicalSoup | Python | MIT | 4.9k | Active |
| splinter | Python | BSD-3-Clause | 2.8k | Inactive |
| CloakBrowser | Python | MIT | 31.9k | Active |
Considerations
The project explicitly does not run JavaScript, which rules it out for many modern interactive sites. Development remains active, but release cadence is slower than commit activity, and the measured issue-closure time is lengthy. The library is distributed under the MIT license; check that its terms meet your project’s requirements.
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