Skipping and focusing tests (.skip, .only) in Cypress - Practice Problems & Coding Challenges

Challenge - 5 Problems

❓ Predict Output

intermediate

What is the test execution result?

Consider this Cypress test code snippet:

describe('Suite A', () => {
  it('Test 1', () => {
    cy.log('Running Test 1')
  })

  it.skip('Test 2', () => {
    cy.log('Running Test 2')
  })

  it('Test 3', () => {
    cy.log('Running Test 3')
  })
})

Which tests will run when this suite executes?

Cypress

describe('Suite A', () => {
  it('Test 1', () => {
    cy.log('Running Test 1')
  })

  it.skip('Test 2', () => {
    cy.log('Running Test 2')
  })

  it('Test 3', () => {
    cy.log('Running Test 3')
  })
})

A Only Test 2 runs; Test 1 and Test 3 are skipped.

B All three tests run.

C Test 1 and Test 3 run; Test 2 is skipped.

D No tests run because of the skip.

💡 Hint

Remember that .skip prevents that specific test from running.

The .skip method tells Cypress to skip that particular test. So Test 2 is skipped, while Test 1 and Test 3 run normally.

❓ Predict Output

intermediate

Which tests run with .only?

Given this Cypress test suite:

describe('Suite B', () => {
  it('Test A', () => {
    cy.log('Running Test A')
  })

  it.only('Test B', () => {
    cy.log('Running Test B')
  })

  it('Test C', () => {
    cy.log('Running Test C')
  })
})

Which tests will execute?

Cypress

describe('Suite B', () => {
  it('Test A', () => {
    cy.log('Running Test A')
  })

  it.only('Test B', () => {
    cy.log('Running Test B')
  })

  it('Test C', () => {
    cy.log('Running Test C')
  })
})

A Only Test B runs; Test A and Test C are skipped.

B All tests run because .only does not affect execution.

C Test A and Test C run; Test B is skipped.

D No tests run because .only disables all tests.

💡 Hint

Think about how .only focuses on a single test.

The .only method tells Cypress to run only that test and skip all others in the suite.

❓ assertion

advanced

Which assertion correctly verifies a skipped test?

You want to write a test that confirms a test marked with .skip does not run.
Which assertion correctly checks that the skipped test's log is NOT present in the Cypress command log?

A cy.get('.command-log').should('not.contain', 'Running Skipped Test')

B cy.get('.command-log').should('contain', 'Running Skipped Test')

C cy.get('.command-log').should('have.length', 0)

D cy.get('.command-log').should('exist')

💡 Hint

Skipped tests do not produce logs, so the log text should be absent.

Since the skipped test does not run, its log message should not appear. The assertion checks that the log does NOT contain that message.

❓ framework

advanced

What happens if multiple tests use .only in Cypress?

In a Cypress test file, two tests are marked with .only:

it.only('Test 1', () => { cy.log('Test 1') })
it.only('Test 2', () => { cy.log('Test 2') })

What will Cypress do when running this file?

Cypress

it.only('Test 1', () => { cy.log('Test 1') })
it.only('Test 2', () => { cy.log('Test 2') })

A Only Test 1 runs; Test 2 is skipped.

B Only Test 2 runs; Test 1 is skipped.

C No tests run because multiple .only cause an error.

D Both Test 1 and Test 2 run; all other tests are skipped.

💡 Hint

Check how Cypress handles multiple .only tests.

Cypress runs all tests marked with .only and skips all others. Multiple .only tests run together.

🧠 Conceptual

expert

Why should you avoid committing .only in your Cypress tests?

What is the main risk of accidentally committing Cypress tests with .only to your shared code repository?

A It disables all tests, causing the suite to pass without running anything.

B It causes only the focused tests to run, skipping all others, which may hide test failures.

C It causes all tests to run twice, slowing down the suite.

D It automatically fixes flaky tests, which can mask real issues.

💡 Hint

Think about how .only changes which tests run.

Using .only runs only the focused tests and skips the rest. If committed, this can hide failures in skipped tests and give false confidence.