findElement by className in Selenium Java

Introduction

We use findElement by className to quickly find a web page element using its CSS class name. This helps us interact with buttons, text boxes, or other parts of a webpage during testing.

You want to click a button that has a specific class on a webpage.

You need to check if a message with a certain class appears after an action.

You want to enter text into a field identified by its class name.

You want to verify the style or presence of an element with a known class.

You want to automate navigation by clicking links styled with a class.

Syntax

Selenium Java

WebElement element = driver.findElement(By.className("class-name"));

Replace "class-name" with the actual class attribute value of the element.

This finds the first element matching the class name on the page.

Examples

Finds the first element with class submit-btn, often a submit button.

Selenium Java

WebElement button = driver.findElement(By.className("submit-btn"));

Finds an alert message element by its class.

Selenium Java

WebElement message = driver.findElement(By.className("alert-message"));

Finds a text input field using its class name.

Selenium Java

WebElement inputField = driver.findElement(By.className("input-text"));

Sample Program

This program opens a browser, goes to a test page, finds a button by its class name submit-btn, and prints if it is visible or not. It handles the case if the element is missing.

Selenium Java

import org.openqa.selenium.By;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebElement;
import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;

public class FindElementByClassNameExample {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        // Set path to chromedriver executable if needed
        // System.setProperty("webdriver.chrome.driver", "path/to/chromedriver");

        WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();
        try {
            driver.get("https://example.com/testpage");

            // Find element by class name
            WebElement button = driver.findElement(By.className("submit-btn"));

            // Check if button is displayed
            if (button.isDisplayed()) {
                System.out.println("Button found and visible.");
            } else {
                System.out.println("Button found but not visible.");
            }

        } catch (Exception e) {
            System.out.println("Element not found: " + e.getMessage());
        } finally {
            driver.quit();
        }
    }
}

Important Notes

Class names should not contain spaces; if the element has multiple classes, use only one class name at a time.

If multiple elements share the same class, findElement returns the first one found.

Use findElements to get all elements with the same class name.

Summary

findElement by className helps locate a single web element using its CSS class.

It returns the first matching element or throws an error if none found.

Useful for interacting with buttons, inputs, or messages identified by class.

Practice

1. What does the Selenium method findElement(By.className("btn-primary")) do in a test script?

easy

A. It finds an element by its HTML tag name "btn-primary".

B. It finds all web elements with the CSS class "btn-primary" on the page.

C. It finds the first web element with the CSS class "btn-primary" on the page.

D. It finds an element by its ID "btn-primary".

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the method purpose

   The method findElement locates a single element on the page.

2. Step 2: Analyze the locator type

   Using By.className("btn-primary") targets elements with the CSS class "btn-primary".

3. Final Answer:

   It finds the first web element with the CSS class "btn-primary" on the page. -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   findElement + className = first matching element [OK]

Hint: findElement with className returns first matching element [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing findElement with findElements (plural)
• Using className to find by ID or tag
• Expecting multiple elements returned

2. Which of the following is the correct syntax to find an element by class name "login-button" in Selenium Java?

easy

A. driver.findElement(By.classname("login-button"));

B. driver.findElement(By.className("login-button"));

C. driver.findElement(By.class_name("login-button"));

D. driver.findElement(By.class("login-button"));

Solution

1. Step 1: Recall correct method usage

   The correct method to locate by class name is By.className() with capital N.

2. Step 2: Check syntax correctness

   driver.findElement(By.className("login-button")); uses the exact correct syntax: By.className("login-button").

3. Final Answer:

   driver.findElement(By.className("login-button")); -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Correct method name is className with capital N [OK]

Hint: Use By.className with capital N for correct syntax [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using By.class instead of By.className
• Wrong method casing like class_name or classname
• Missing quotes around class name

3. Given the HTML snippet:

<button class="submit-btn primary">Submit</button>

What will the following code return?

WebElement btn = driver.findElement(By.className("primary"));
System.out.println(btn.getText());

medium

A. Submit

B. primary

C. submit-btn

D. NoSuchElementException

Solution

1. Step 1: Locate element by class name "primary"

   The button has class "primary" among others, so it matches.

2. Step 2: Get the text of the found element

   The getText() method returns the visible text inside the button, which is "Submit".

3. Final Answer:

   Submit -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   findElement by className finds element, getText returns inner text [OK]

Hint: getText() returns visible text inside found element [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Expecting class name as text output
• Confusing class attribute with element text
• Assuming exception if multiple classes present

4. What is wrong with this Selenium Java code snippet?

WebElement element = driver.findElement(By.className("btn primary"));

It tries to find an element with classes "btn" and "primary".

medium

A. The syntax is correct; it finds elements with both classes.

B. It should use findElements instead of findElement.

C. It should use By.id instead of By.className.

D. className locator cannot contain spaces; it matches only one class.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand className locator rules

   The By.className locator accepts only a single class name without spaces.

2. Step 2: Identify the error in locator usage

   Using "btn primary" with space is invalid and causes an error; it cannot find elements with multiple classes this way.

3. Final Answer:

   className locator cannot contain spaces; it matches only one class. -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   className accepts single class only, no spaces [OK]

Hint: Use single class name without spaces in className locator [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Trying to find multiple classes with space-separated string
• Expecting findElement to accept compound class selectors
• Confusing className with CSS selector syntax

5. You want to click the first button with class "nav-item active" on a page. Which is the best way to do this using Selenium Java?

hard

A. driver.findElement(By.cssSelector(".nav-item.active")).click();

B. driver.findElement(By.className("nav-item active")).click();

C. driver.findElement(By.className("nav-item")).click();

D. driver.findElement(By.xpath("//button[@class='nav-item active']")).click();

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand limitation of className locator

   The By.className locator cannot handle multiple classes separated by spaces.

2. Step 2: Use CSS selector for multiple classes

   The CSS selector .nav-item.active matches elements with both classes and works correctly.

3. Step 3: Compare other options

   driver.findElement(By.className("nav-item active")).click(); is invalid due to space in className; driver.findElement(By.className("nav-item")).click(); matches only one class; driver.findElement(By.xpath("//button[@class='nav-item active']")).click(); uses XPath but is less concise.

4. Final Answer:

   driver.findElement(By.cssSelector(".nav-item.active")).click(); -> Option A

5. Quick Check:

   Use CSS selector for multiple classes, not className [OK]

Hint: Use CSS selector for multiple classes, not className [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using className with multiple classes separated by space
• Using only one class when both are needed
• Ignoring CSS selectors as a better alternative