`pip install playwright` installs only the Python package. The actual browser binaries are a separate download, and until you fetch them every launch fails with `Executable doesn't exist`. Run `playwright install` (or `python -m playwright install chromium` for just Chromium) once, and launches work from then on.

## The error

```text
playwright._impl._api_types.Error: Executable doesn't exist at [path]/ms-playwright/chromium-XXXX/chrome-linux/chrome
(use `playwright install` to download browsers.)
```

## Fix it

1. **Download the browsers**

```
playwright install
```
Expected: downloads Chromium, Firefox, and WebKit into the ms-playwright cache. For only Chromium: `playwright install chromium`. If the `playwright` CLI is not on PATH, use `python -m playwright install`.

2. **Confirm the launch works**

```
python -c "from playwright.sync_api import sync_playwright
with sync_playwright() as p:
    b = p.chromium.launch()
    print(b.version)
    b.close()"
```
Expected: prints a Chromium version like `131.0.6778.33` with no error.

3. **If installs are blocked, point at a system browser instead**

```python
p.chromium.launch(executable_path='/usr/bin/google-chrome')
```
Expected: launches using the browser you already have. Useful in locked-down CI where the download is blocked.

## When this applies

- the error text contains `Executable doesn't exist` and suggests `playwright install`
- a fresh machine, container, or CI runner where only `pip install playwright` ran
- it worked on your laptop but fails in Docker

## When it does NOT apply

- import errors mean the Python package itself is missing
- `cannot find Chrome binary` style errors are selenium's wording, different tool
- the browser starts but pages fail to load (network/proxy problem, not this)

## Compatibility

All playwright 1.x Python. The exact exception path moved between releases (`_api_types` vs `_errors`), but the message and fix are identical.

## Variant phrasings

### `BrowserType.launch: Executable doesn't exist`

The same failure worded from the launch call site. Same fix.

### `Executable doesn't exist at .../firefox-...`

You asked for Firefox without installing it. `playwright install firefox`, or install everything with bare `playwright install`.

## Why it happens

Playwright deliberately splits the driver (PyPI package) from the browsers (downloaded binaries) so one pip install does not drag hundreds of megabytes. The split means `pip install playwright` alone is never sufficient to launch anything; the `playwright install` step is mandatory and is the single most skipped step in every Playwright setup guide.

## Edge cases

- In Docker, run `playwright install --with-deps chromium` so the OS libraries the browser needs come along too.
- `PLAYWRIGHT_BROWSERS_PATH` changes where browsers are cached. If it points somewhere empty in CI, you get this error despite a local install working.
- Version skew: if you upgrade the pip package but not the browsers, delete the old ms-playwright folder and reinstall to avoid mismatched builds.