How To Selenium: Use Explicit Wait in Selenium WebDriver

Welcome to the second post of our new How To…Series. Each month on the first Tuesday of the month, we will post a new blog post to take you through a step-by-step guide on how to address a particular aspect of a tool, platform or device that you might need to address in your testing. The series continues with Alec Siminiuc on difference aspects of Selenium that you might need to cover as part of your testing. This looks at Explicit Wait Selenium WEbdriver.

Read other posts in the series:

How To…Select Elements In Selenium WebDriver Scripts

How To…Take Screen Shots in Selenium

How To…Manage Exceptions In Selenium WebDriver

How To…Execute Javascript In Selenium

If you think you would like to help your fellow testers and want to write a How To… post then get in touch: hello [at] testhuddle.com

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Explicit Waits in Selenium WebDriver

 

explicit waits selenium Webdriver flow

 

Test automation scripts should synchronise with the web site every time they interact with website elements.

The synchronisation is done using explicit waits and expected conditions.

Why do we need Explicit Wait?

Lets take the simplest Selenium WebDriver method:

driver.findElement(locator)

How does it work?

findElement() tries finding the element matched by the locator in the browser DOM.

If the element is found in the browser DOM, findElement() returns it.

Otherwise, findElement() fails.

findElement() works well if the website is fast.

But if the website is slow and elements are not in the browser DOM when findElement() is executed, findElement() will fail.

We need a way of interacting with website elements that waits until the website elements are in the browser DOM.

 

What are Explicit Wait?

An explicit wait object uses the WebDriverWait class.

It gets 2 parameters:

  • the driver object
  • a timeout

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, timeout);

The explicit wait works by waiting until an expected condition is reached.

The expected condition is created using the ExpectedConditions class:

wait.until(ExpectedConditions.condition(parameters));

To explain how an explicit wait works, I will use the following example:

WebDriverWait wait;

wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

WebElement element;

element=wait.until(ExpectedConditions.elementToBeClickable(locator));

1. the wait object is created using the driver object and a 10 seconds timeout as parameters.

2. the until() method will start a timer.

3. the until() method verifies if the expected condition is met:
element matched by the locator is in the browser DOM and is clickable

4. If the condition is met, the until() method returns the found element;
the explicit wait process finishes successfully

5. If the condition is not met and the timer did not reach yet the timeout value, the process continues from step 3

6. if the condition is not met and the time reached the timeout value, the explicit wait finished with an error

explicit wait

When can we use Explicit Wait?

Explicit waits can be used in the following cases:

1. find single web element

2. find multiple web elements

3. check web page title and url

4. check element’s status

5. interact with frames (not included in this article)

 

Find single web elementThe following expected conditions can be used for finding a web element.

It is recommended that they are used instead driver.findElement().

 

elementToBeClickable

static ExpectedCondition elementToBeClickable(By locator)
static ExpectedCondition elementToBeClickable(WebElement element)

Defines an expectation for checking that an element is visible and enabled such that you can click it.

Example

The next 2 lines of code search for the element matched by the locator.

If the element can be found in the browser DOM and has the clickable status within 10 seconds, it is returned and saved in a WebElement variable.

The locator can be by xpath, css, id or name locator.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

WebElement element = wait.until(ExpectedConditions.elementToBeClickable(locator));

 


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presenceOfElementLocated

static ExpectedCondition presenceOfElementLocated(By locator)

Defines an expectation for checking that an element is present on the DOM of a page.

Example

The next 2 lines of code search for the element matched by the locator.

If the element can be found in the browser DOM within 10 seconds, it is returned and saved in a WebElement variable.

The locator can be by xpath, css, id or name locator.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

WebElement element = wait.until(ExpectedConditions.presenceOfElementLocated(locator));

 

visibilityOfElementLocated

static ExpectedCondition visibilityOfElementLocated(By locator)
static ExpectedCondition visibilityOf(WebElement element)

Defines an expectation for checking that an element is present on the DOM of a page and visible.

Example

The next 2 lines of code search for the element matched by the locator.

If the element can be found in the browser DOM and is visible within 10 seconds, it is returned and saved in a WebElement variable.

The locator can be by xpath, css, id or name locator.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

WebElement element = wait.until(ExpectedConditions.visibilityOfElementLocated(locator));

 

find multiple web elements

The following expected conditions can be used for finding multiple web elements.

It is recommended to use them instead of driver.findElements().

 

visibilityOfAllElementsLocatedBy

static ExpectedCondition> visibilityOfAllElementsLocatedBy(By locator)

static ExpectedCondition> visibilityOfAllElements(List elements)

Defines an expectation for checking that all elements present on the web page that match the locator are visible.

Example

The next 2 lines of code search for all elements matched by the locator.

If element(s) can be found in the browser DOM and is (are) visible within 10 seconds, they are returned and saved in a list of WebElement variables.

The locator can be by xpath, css, id or name locator.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

List elements = wait.until(ExpectedConditions.visibilityOfAllElementsLocatedBy(locator));

 

presenceOfAllElementsLocatedBy

static ExpectedCondition> presenceOfAllElementsLocatedBy(By locator)
Defines an expectation for checking that there is at least one element present on a web page.

Example

The next 2 lines of code search for all elements matched by the locator.

If element(s) can be found in the browser DOM within 10 seconds, they are returned and saved in a list of WebElement variables.

The locator can be by xpath, css, id or name locator.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

List elements = wait.until(ExpectedConditions.presenceOfAllElementsLocatedBy(locator));

 

check web page title and url

The following expected conditions can be used for checking the web page title and url.

It is recommended that they are used instead of driver.getTitle() and driver.getCurrentUrl().

 

titleContains

static ExpectedCondition titleContains(java.lang.String title)

An expectation for checking that the title contains a case-sensitive substring

Example

The next 2 lines of code verify if the page title contains a keyword.

If the keyword is included in page title within 10 seconds, the explicit wait returns true.
Otherwise, the explicit wait returns false.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

assertTrue(wait.until(ExpectedConditions.titleContains(keyword)));


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titleIs

static ExpectedCondition titleIs(java.lang.String title)

Defines an expectation for checking the title of a page.

Example

The next 2 lines of code verify if the page title is equal to a specific value.

If the page title is equal to a specific value within 10 seconds, the explicit wait returns true.
Otherwise, the explicit wait returns false.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

assertTrue(wait.until(ExpectedConditions.titleIs(titleValue)));

urlContains

static ExpectedCondition urlContains(java.lang.String fraction)
Defines an expectation for the URL of the current page to contain specific text.

Example

The next 2 lines of code verify if the page url contains a keyword.

If the keyword is included in the page url within 10 seconds, the explicit wait returns true.
Otherwise, the explicit wait returns false.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

assertTrue(wait.until(ExpectedConditions.urlContains(keyword)));

Info

urlToBe

static ExpectedCondition urlToBe(java.lang.String url)
An expectation for the URL of the current page to be a specific url.

Example

The next 2 lines of code verify if the page url is equal to a specific value.

If the page url is equal to a specific value within 10 seconds, the explicit wait returns true.
Otherwise, the explicit wait returns false.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

assertTrue(wait.until(ExpectedConditions.urlToBe(urlValue)));

 

urlMatches

static ExpectedCondition urlMatches(java.lang.String regex)
Expectation for the URL to match a specific regular expression

Example

The next 2 lines of code verify if the page url matches a regular expression.

If the page url matches the regular expression within 10 seconds, explicit wait returns true.
Otherwise, the explicit wait returns false.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

assertTrue(wait.until(ExpectedConditions.urlMatches(regularExpression)));

 

 

check elements status

These expected conditions can be used for verifying the element’s status.

They are ideal for being used in assertions.

 

elementSelectionStateToBe

static ExpectedCondition elementSelectionStateToBe(By locator, boolean selected)

static ExpectedCondition elementSelectionStateToBe(WebElement element, boolean selected)

Defines an expectation for checking if the given element is selected.

Example

The next 2 lines of code verify if the element is selected.

If the element is selected within 10 seconds, the explicit wait returns true.
Otherwise, the explicit wait returns false.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

assertTrue(wait.until(ExpectedConditions.elementSelectionStateToBe(locator, true)));

 

elementToBeSelected

static ExpectedCondition elementToBeSelected(By locator)
static ExpectedCondition elementToBeSelected(WebElement element)
An expectation for checking if the given element is selected.

Example

The next 2 lines of code verify if the element is selected.

If the element is selected within 10 seconds, the explicit wait returns true.
Otherwise, the explicit wait returns false.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

assertTrue(wait.until(ExpectedConditions.elementToBeSelected(locator)));

 

invisibilityOfElementLocated

static ExpectedCondition invisibilityOfElementLocated(By locator)
An expectation for checking that an element is either invisible or not present on the DOM.

Example

The next 2 lines of code verify if the element is invisible.

If the element is invisible within 10 seconds, the explicit wait returns true.
Otherwise, the explicit wait returns false.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

assertTrue(wait.until(ExpectedConditions.invisibilityOfElementLocated(locator)));

 

invisibilityOfElementWithText

static ExpectedCondition invisibilityOfElementWithText(By locator, java.lang.String text)
Defines an expectation for checking that an element with text is either invisible or not present on the DOM.

Example

The next 2 lines of code verify if the element is invisible.

If the element is invisible within 10 seconds, the explicit wait returns true.
Otherwise, the explicit wait returns false.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

assertTrue(wait.until(ExpectedConditions.invisibilityOfElementWithText(locator, text)));

Info

stalenessOf

static ExpectedCondition stalenessOf(WebElement element)
Wait until an element is no longer attached to the DOM.

Example

The next 2 lines of code verify if the element is no longer included in the browser DOM.

If the element is no longer included in the DOM within 10 seconds, the explicit wait returns true.
Otherwise, the explicit wait returns false.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

assertTrue(wait.until(ExpectedConditions.stalenessOf(element)));

 

textToBePresentInElement

static ExpectedCondition textToBePresentInElement(WebElement element, java.lang.String text)

static ExpectedCondition textToBePresentInElementLocated(By locator, java.lang.String text)
An expectation for checking if the given text is present in the element that matches the given locator.

Example

The next 2 lines of code verify if a keyword is included in an element.

If the keyword is included in the element within 10 seconds, the explicit wait returns true.
Otherwise, the explicit wait returns false.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

assertTrue(wait.until(ExpectedConditions.textToBePresentInElementLocated(locator, keyword)));

 

textToBePresentInElementValue

static ExpectedCondition textToBePresentInElementValue(By locator, java.lang.String text)

static ExpectedCondition textToBePresentInElementValue(WebElement element, java.lang.String text)

Defines an expectation for checking if the given text is present in the specified elements value attribute.

Example

The next 2 lines of code verify if a keyword is included in the value attribute of an element.

If the keyword is included in the value attribute of the element within 10 seconds, the explicit wait returns true.
Otherwise, the explicit wait returns false.

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);

assertTrue(wait.until(ExpectedConditions.textToBePresentInElementValue(locator, keyword)));

 

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About the Author

Alex

Software Tester from Vancouver, Canada. Blogs on test automation topics for manual testers on http://test-able.blogspot.ca When not testing or creating test automation scripts for my clients, I teach manual testers programming with Java and test automation with Selenium WebDriver.
Find out more about @alexsiminiuc