Why Cypress auto-retries reduce flakiness - Test Your Understanding

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the code to make Cypress wait and retry the assertion automatically.

Cypress

cy.get('.button').should('[1]')

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Await

Bhave

Cbe.visible

Dcontain

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'wait' instead of 'be.visible' causes syntax errors.

Using 'contain' checks text, not visibility.

The should('be.visible') command tells Cypress to retry until the element is visible, reducing flakiness.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the code to retry clicking a button until it becomes enabled.

Cypress

cy.get('#submit').should('not.be.disabled').[1]()

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Aclick

Btype

Cwait

Dfocus

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'type' tries to enter text, which is invalid for buttons.

Using 'wait' does not perform the click action.

The .should('not.be.disabled') retries until the button is enabled, then click() succeeds reliably, reducing flaky failures.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the code to properly retry the assertion that the element contains text.

Cypress

cy.get('.message').should('[1]', 'Hello')

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Ahave.text

Bcontain

Ccontains.text

Dhas.text

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'have.text' requires exact match, which may cause flakiness.

Using 'contains.text' is not a valid Cypress assertion.

The correct assertion is should('contain', 'Hello') which retries until the text appears.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to create a retrying assertion that checks the element's CSS property.

Cypress

cy.get('.alert').should('[1]', '[2]', 'red')

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Ahave.css

Bcontain

Ccolor

Dbackground-color

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'contain' instead of 'have.css' causes assertion failure.

Using 'color' instead of 'background-color' checks wrong property.

The assertion should('have.css', 'background-color', 'red') retries until the element's background color is red.

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to create a retrying test that waits for an API call and asserts its status.

Cypress

cy.intercept('GET', '/users').as('[1]');
cy.wait('@[2]').its('[3]').should('eq', 200);

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

AgetUsers

BusersCall

Cresponse.statusCode

Dresponse

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using different alias names causes wait to fail.

Checking 'response' instead of 'response.statusCode' does not assert status code.

The alias getUsers is used to wait for the API call, and response.statusCode asserts the HTTP status code 200, retrying until success.

Practice

1. Why does Cypress automatically retry commands during test execution?

easy

A. To wait for elements to become ready and reduce test flakiness

B. To slow down tests for better readability

C. To randomly change test data during execution

D. To skip tests that are likely to fail

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand Cypress command retries

   Cypress retries commands automatically to wait for elements to appear or become ready before continuing.

2. Step 2: Connect retries to test stability

   This retry behavior helps reduce flaky tests caused by timing issues or slow page loads.

3. Final Answer:

   To wait for elements to become ready and reduce test flakiness -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Auto-retries improve stability = B [OK]

Hint: Auto-retry means waiting for elements, not slowing tests [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking retries slow down tests intentionally
• Believing retries change test data
• Assuming retries skip tests

2. Which of the following is the correct Cypress command syntax that benefits from auto-retries?

easy

A. cy.click('.btn')

B. cy.waitFor('.btn').click()

C. cy.find('.btn').click()

D. cy.get('.btn').click()

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify valid Cypress command syntax

   The correct command to get an element and click it is cy.get('.btn').click().

2. Step 2: Understand auto-retry usage

   cy.get() automatically retries until the element appears, making tests less flaky.

3. Final Answer:

   cy.get('.btn').click() -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Correct command with auto-retry = A [OK]

Hint: Use cy.get() for auto-retry, not cy.waitFor or cy.click [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using non-existent commands like cy.waitFor
• Confusing cy.find with cy.get
• Trying to click directly with cy.click('.btn')

3. Consider this Cypress test snippet:

cy.get('#submit').click()
cy.get('.result').should('contain', 'Success')

What happens if the '.result' element appears after 2 seconds?

medium

A. Test fails immediately because element is not found

B. Cypress retries and waits up to default timeout, then passes if element appears

C. Test passes without checking the '.result' element

D. Test throws a syntax error

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze Cypress auto-retry behavior on assertions

   Cypress retries cy.get('.result') and the assertion until the element appears or timeout expires.

2. Step 2: Understand timing and test outcome

   If '.result' appears within the default timeout (usually 4 seconds), the test passes after retrying.

3. Final Answer:

   Cypress retries and waits up to default timeout, then passes if element appears -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Auto-retry waits for element = D [OK]

Hint: Cypress waits and retries assertions before failing [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming immediate failure if element not found instantly
• Thinking test passes without checking element
• Expecting syntax errors from valid code

4. You wrote this Cypress test:

cy.get('.list-item').click()
cy.get('.detail').should('be.visible')

But the test sometimes fails because '.detail' is not visible immediately. What is the best fix?

medium

A. Add explicit wait like cy.wait(5000) before checking '.detail'

B. Rely on Cypress auto-retry by keeping the code as is

C. Use cy.get('.detail', { timeout: 10000 }).should('be.visible')

D. Replace cy.get with cy.find to speed up test

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify problem with visibility timing

   The '.detail' element is not visible immediately, causing flaky failures.

2. Step 2: Use timeout option to extend auto-retry wait

   Adding { timeout: 10000 } to cy.get() lets Cypress retry longer before failing.

3. Final Answer:

   Use cy.get('.detail', { timeout: 10000 }).should('be.visible') -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Extend timeout for retries = A [OK]

Hint: Extend timeout in cy.get instead of adding fixed waits [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Adding fixed waits which slow tests unnecessarily
• Ignoring retries and expecting instant visibility
• Using cy.find incorrectly

5. You want to test a button that appears only after a network call finishes. Which approach best uses Cypress auto-retries to reduce flakiness?

hard

A. Use cy.get('button').should('be.visible') without extra waits

B. Add cy.wait(10000) before checking the button

C. Use setTimeout in test to delay checking button

D. Manually refresh the page until button appears

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand Cypress auto-retry for dynamic elements

   Cypress automatically retries cy.get() and assertions until the button appears or timeout.

2. Step 2: Avoid fixed waits or manual delays

   Using fixed waits or manual delays slows tests and can cause flakiness if timing changes.

3. Final Answer:

   Use cy.get('button').should('be.visible') without extra waits -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Rely on auto-retry, avoid fixed waits = C [OK]

Hint: Trust Cypress retries instead of fixed waits or manual delays [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Adding long fixed waits that slow tests
• Using setTimeout which is not Cypress-friendly
• Refreshing page manually instead of waiting