Negative assertions (not) in Cypress - Cheat Sheet & Quick Revision

Recall & Review

beginner

What is a negative assertion in Cypress?

A negative assertion checks that something does NOT happen or exist, like an element not being visible or not containing certain text.

beginner

How do you write a negative assertion to check an element is not visible in Cypress?

Use .should('not.be.visible') on the element to assert it is hidden or not visible on the page.

intermediate

Example:
cy.get('#submit').should('not.be.disabled')
What does this check?

It checks that the element with id 'submit' is not disabled, meaning it should be enabled and clickable.

beginner

Why use negative assertions in testing?

Negative assertions help confirm that unwanted states or elements are absent, ensuring the app behaves correctly by not showing errors or disabled buttons when it shouldn't.

intermediate

Write a Cypress negative assertion to check that a button does NOT contain the text 'Submit'.

Use cy.get('button').should('not.contain', 'Submit') to assert the button does not have the text 'Submit'.

Which Cypress command checks that an element is NOT visible?

A .should('not.be.visible')

B .should('be.hidden')

C .should('not.exist')

D .should('be.visible')

The correct commands to check an element is not visible are .should('not.be.visible') and .should('be.hidden').

What does cy.get('#login').should('not.be.disabled') verify?

A The login element is disabled

B The login element is visible

C The login element is enabled

D The login element does not exist

The assertion checks that the element with id 'login' is NOT disabled, meaning it is enabled.

Why are negative assertions important in tests?

A To confirm elements are present

B To check unwanted states are absent

C To speed up tests

D To ignore errors

Negative assertions confirm that unwanted states or elements are absent, ensuring correct app behavior.

Which is the correct way to assert a button does NOT contain the text 'Cancel'?

A cy.get('button').should('have.text', 'Cancel')

B cy.get('button').should('contain', 'Cancel')

C cy.get('button').should('not.have.text', 'Cancel')

D cy.get('button').should('not.contain', 'Cancel')

Use .should('not.contain', 'Cancel') to assert the button does NOT contain the text 'Cancel'.

What happens if a negative assertion fails during test execution?

A Test fails

B Test passes

C Test is skipped

D Test retries automatically

If a negative assertion fails, it means the unwanted condition was found, so the test fails.

Explain how to use negative assertions in Cypress with examples.

Think about how to confirm something is NOT present or NOT true.

Describe a real-life scenario where negative assertions help improve test quality.

Imagine testing a form where a submit button should only be enabled after filling fields.

Practice

1. What does the Cypress command cy.get('button').should('not.exist') check for?

easy

A. It checks that the button is disabled.

B. It checks that the button is visible on the page.

C. It checks that the button is not present in the page DOM.

D. It checks that the button is clickable.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the command should('not.exist')

   This assertion checks that the selected element does not exist in the DOM at all.

2. Step 2: Apply to the element button

   The command cy.get('button').should('not.exist') verifies that no button element is present in the page.

3. Final Answer:

   It checks that the button is not present in the page DOM. -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   should('not.exist') = element absent [OK]

Hint: Use 'not.exist' to check element absence in DOM [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing 'not.exist' with 'not.be.visible'
• Thinking it checks if element is disabled
• Assuming it checks element visibility

2. Which of the following is the correct Cypress syntax to assert that an element with id #modal is hidden?

easy

A. cy.get('#modal').should('not.be.visible')

B. cy.get('#modal').should('not.visible')

C. cy.get('#modal').should('be.hidden')

D. cy.get('#modal').should('not.exist')

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify correct negative visibility assertion

   In Cypress, to check if an element is hidden but still in the DOM, use should('not.be.visible').

2. Step 2: Check each option's syntax

   cy.get('#modal').should('not.exist') checks for absence, not hidden. cy.get('#modal').should('be.hidden') uses invalid assertion be.hidden. cy.get('#modal').should('not.visible') has incorrect syntax not.visible.

3. Final Answer:

   cy.get('#modal').should('not.be.visible') -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Hidden element = should('not.be.visible') [OK]

Hint: Use 'not.be.visible' to check hidden elements [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using 'not.exist' to check hidden instead of absent
• Writing incorrect assertion names like 'be.hidden'
• Missing 'be' in visibility assertion

3. Consider this Cypress code snippet:

cy.get('.alert').should('not.exist')
cy.get('.alert').should('not.be.visible')

What will happen if the element .alert is present but hidden?

medium

A. The first assertion fails, the second passes.

B. The first assertion passes, the second fails.

C. Both assertions pass.

D. Both assertions fail.

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze should('not.exist') when element is present but hidden

   This assertion fails because the element exists in the DOM, even if hidden.

2. Step 2: Analyze should('not.be.visible') when element is hidden

   This assertion passes because the element is present but not visible.

3. Final Answer:

   The first assertion fails, the second passes. -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Existence vs visibility differ: exist fails, visibility passes [OK]

Hint: Existence and visibility are different checks [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming 'not.exist' passes if element is hidden
• Confusing visibility with existence
• Thinking both assertions behave the same

4. You wrote this Cypress test:

cy.get('.popup').should('not.exist')

But the test fails even though the popup is hidden. What is the likely problem?

medium

A. The selector '.popup' is incorrect.

B. The popup element exists but is hidden, so 'not.exist' fails.

C. The test should use 'should('not.be.visible')' instead.

D. Cypress cannot check hidden elements.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand difference between 'not.exist' and hidden elements

   'not.exist' fails if element is present in DOM, even if hidden.

2. Step 2: Apply to the popup element

   The popup is hidden but still in DOM, so assertion fails because element exists.

3. Final Answer:

   The popup element exists but is hidden, so 'not.exist' fails. -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   'not.exist' means element absent, hidden still exists [OK]

Hint: Hidden elements still exist; use 'not.be.visible' for hidden check [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using 'not.exist' to check hidden elements
• Assuming hidden means not in DOM
• Ignoring difference between visibility and existence

5. You want to verify that a div with class .notification is neither present nor visible on the page. Which Cypress code correctly checks both conditions?

hard

A. cy.get('.notification').should('not.exist').and('not.be.visible')

B. cy.get('.notification').should('not.exist'); cy.get('.notification').should('not.be.visible')

C. cy.get('.notification').should('not.be.visible')

D. cy.get('.notification').should('not.exist')

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand that if element does not exist, it cannot be visible

   If the element does not exist in the DOM, it is automatically not visible.

2. Step 2: Check which assertion covers both absence and visibility

   Using should('not.exist') alone is enough to confirm element is absent and thus not visible.

3. Final Answer:

   cy.get('.notification').should('not.exist') -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Not existing means not visible too [OK]

Hint: Check 'not.exist' alone to confirm absence and invisibility [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Chaining 'not.exist' with 'not.be.visible' unnecessarily
• Running two separate assertions causing flaky tests
• Using only 'not.be.visible' when element might exist