Web serial | Frontend Practical Guide

Browser support

Feature	Desktop				Mobile
Feature	Chrome	Edge	Firefox	Safari	Chrome Android	Safari iOS
`api.Navigator.serial` Experimental	89	89			138
DOM API
`Serial` Experimental The Serial interface of the Web Serial API provides attributes and methods for finding and connecting to serial ports from a web page.	89	89			138
`getPorts` Experimental The getPorts() method of the Serial interface returns a Promise that resolves with an array of SerialPort objects representing serial ports connected to the host which the origin has permission to access.	89	89			138
`requestPort` Experimental The Serial.requestPort() method of the Serial interface presents the user with a dialog asking them to select a serial device to connect to. It returns a Promise that resolves with an instance of SerialPort representing the device chosen by the user.	89	89			138
`requestPort (allowedBluetoothServiceClassIds option)` Experimental `allowedBluetoothServiceClassIds` option	117	117			138
`requestPort (filters bluetoothServiceClassId)` Experimental `filters` `bluetoothServiceClassId` property	117	117			138
`SerialPort` Experimental The SerialPort interface of the Web Serial API provides access to a serial port on the host device.	89	89			138
`close` Experimental The SerialPort.close() method of the SerialPort interface returns a Promise that resolves when the port closes.	89	89			138
`connect_event` Experimental The connect event of the SerialPort interface is fired when the port connects to the device.	89	89			138
`connect_event (bluetooth rfcomm)` Experimental Bluetooth RFCOMM serial ports dispatch `connect` events	130	130			138
`connected` Experimental The connected read-only property of the SerialPort interface returns a boolean value that indicates whether the port is logically connected to the device.	130	130			138
`disconnect_event` Experimental The disconnect event of the SerialPort interface is fired when the port disconnects from the device.	89	89			138
`disconnect_event (bluetooth rfcomm)` Experimental Bluetooth RFCOMM serial ports dispatch `disconnect` events	130	130			138
`forget` Experimental The SerialPort.forget() method of the SerialPort interface returns a Promise that resolves when access to the serial port is revoked.	103	103			138
`getInfo` Experimental The getInfo() method of the SerialPort interface returns an object containing identifying information for the device available via the port.	89	89			138
`getInfo (bluetoothServiceClassId)` Experimental `bluetoothServiceClassId` return value property	117	117			138
`getSignals` Experimental The SerialPort.getSignals() method of the SerialPort interface returns a Promise that resolves with an object containing the current state of the port's control signals.	89	89			138
`open` Experimental The open() method of the SerialPort interface returns a Promise that resolves when the port is opened. By default the port is opened with 8 data bits, 1 stop bit and no parity checking. The baudRate parameter is required.	89	89			138
`readable` Experimental The readable read-only property of the SerialPort interface returns a ReadableStream for receiving data from the device connected to the port. Chunks read from this stream are instances of Uint8Array. This property is non-null as long as the port is open and has not encountered a fatal error.	89	89			138
`setSignals` Experimental The setSignals() method of the SerialPort interface sets control signals on the port and returns a Promise that resolves when they are set.	89	89			138
`writable` Experimental The writable read-only property of the SerialPort interface returns a WritableStream for sending data to the device connected to the port. Chunks written to this stream must be instances of ArrayBuffer, TypedArray, or DataView. This property is non-null as long as the port is open and has not encountered a fatal error.	89	89			138
`serial` Experimental The serial read-only property of the WorkerNavigator interface returns a Serial object which represents the entry point into the Web Serial API.	89	89			138
Other
`html.elements.iframe.allow.serial` Experimental	89	89			89
`http.headers.Permissions-Policy.serial` Experimental The HTTP Permissions-Policy header serial directive controls whether the current document is allowed to use the Web Serial API to communicate with serial devices, either directly connected via a serial port, or via USB or Bluetooth devices emulating a serial port.	89	89			89

1+Supported (version) Not supported ※Has note Sub-feature descriptions sourced from MDN Web Docs (CC BY-SA 2.5)

Syntax

JAVASCRIPT

const port = await navigator.serial.requestPort();
await port.open({ baudRate: 9600 });
const reader = port.readable.getReader();
const { value } = await reader.read();
console.log('Received:', new TextDecoder().decode(value));

Use cases

Use Web serial

Use Web serial when standard HTML needs a more specific platform feature, semantic signal, or browser capability.
Handle edge cases

Apply Web serial to solve a focused requirement without redesigning the whole page architecture.

Cautions

Test Web serial in your target browsers and input environments before depending on it as a primary behavior.
Provide a fallback path or acceptable degradation strategy when support is still limited.

Browser support

Syntax

Use cases

Use Web serial

Handle edge cases

Cautions

Accessibility

Related links