SeleniumHQ/selenium · error · ValueError

The browser path is not a valid file: {output['browser_path'

Error message

The browser path is not a valid file: {output['browser_path']}

What it means

After Selenium Manager resolves the browser location, `DriverFinder` verifies the returned `browser_path` is a real file. If it is not, it raises `ValueError`, wrapped into `NoSuchDriverException`. This means Selenium Manager could not locate a usable browser binary even though it returned a path string.

Source

Thrown at py/selenium/webdriver/common/driver_finder.py:75

        try:
            path = self._service.path
            if path:
                logger.debug(
                    "Skipping Selenium Manager; path to %s driver specified in Service class: %s", browser, path
                )
                if not Path(path).is_file():
                    raise ValueError(f"The path is not a valid file: {path}")
                self._paths["driver_path"] = path
            else:
                output = SeleniumManager().binary_paths(self._to_args())
                if Path(output["driver_path"]).is_file():
                    self._paths["driver_path"] = output["driver_path"]
                else:
                    raise ValueError(f"The driver path is not a valid file: {output['driver_path']}")
                if Path(output["browser_path"]).is_file():
                    self._paths["browser_path"] = output["browser_path"]
                else:
                    raise ValueError(f"The browser path is not a valid file: {output['browser_path']}")
        except Exception as err:
            msg = f"Unable to obtain driver for {browser}"
            raise NoSuchDriverException(msg) from err
        return self._paths

    def _to_args(self) -> list:
        args = ["--browser", self._options.capabilities["browserName"]]

        if self._options.browser_version:
            args.append("--browser-version")
            args.append(str(self._options.browser_version))

        binary_location = getattr(self._options, "binary_location", None)
        if binary_location:
            args.append("--browser-path")
            args.append(str(binary_location))

        proxy = self._options.proxy

View on GitHub (pinned to aa36b38e69)

Solutions

1. Install the browser in the environment (e.g. `apt install google-chrome-stable`).
2. Set `options.binary_location` explicitly to the real browser path.
3. Clear the Selenium Manager cache so it re-detects: `rm -rf ~/.cache/selenium`.
4. Use a Docker image that ships the browser (e.g. selenium/standalone-chrome).

Example fix

// before
# browser_path not a file -> NoSuchDriverException on headless CI
// after
# install the browser first, or point at it explicitly
options.binary_location = "/usr/bin/google-chrome"
driver = webdriver.Chrome(options=options)

from pathlib import Path
binary = "/usr/bin/google-chrome"
if not Path(binary).is_file():
    raise FileNotFoundError(f"browser not installed at {binary}; install it first")
options.binary_location = binary

from pathlib import Path
def browser_binary_exists(path) -> bool:
    return Path(path).is_file()

from selenium.common.exceptions import NoSuchDriverException
try:
    driver = webdriver.Chrome()
except NoSuchDriverException:
    options.binary_location = "/usr/bin/google-chrome"  # explicit fallback
    driver = webdriver.Chrome(options=options)

When it happens

Trigger: Selenium Manager reports a browser_path that does not exist. Browser was uninstalled/moved after manager cached its location. A browser version pinned via options that is not installed. Headless-only image without the GUI browser binary.

Common situations: Browser uninstalled since last run. CI image without Chrome/Edge installed and Selenium Manager cannot install it. Snap/Flatpak installs in non-standard paths. Mismatched architecture (arm64 vs amd64) browser package.

Related errors

• The driver path is not a valid file: {output['driver_path']}
• Unable to obtain driver for {browser}
• The path is not a valid file: {path}
• Browser path does not exist: {}
• Unable to obtain browser driver. For more informatio

AI-assisted analysis of SeleniumHQ/selenium@aa36b38e69 (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/787d519b2ea278d4. Report an issue: GitHub.