Why findElement by className in Selenium Java? - Purpose & Use Cases

The Big Idea

Discover how a simple method can save you from endless clicking and guessing in your tests!

The Scenario

Imagine you have a webpage with many buttons and links, all styled with the same class name. You want to click a specific button, but you have to look through the entire page manually to find it.

The Problem

Manually searching for elements by their class name is slow and tiring. You might click the wrong button or miss it entirely. It's easy to make mistakes, especially on complex pages with many similar elements.

The Solution

Using findElement by className lets your test automatically find the exact element with that class. It saves time, reduces errors, and makes your tests reliable and repeatable.

Before vs After

✗ Before

WebElement button = driver.findElement(By.xpath("//button[contains(@class, 'submit')]");

✓ After

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

What It Enables

This method enables fast, precise access to page elements by their class, making automated tests simple and robust.

Real Life Example

When testing a login page, you can quickly find the 'login' button by its class name and verify it works without hunting through the page.

Key Takeaways

Manual searching is slow and error-prone.

findElement by className automates element selection.

It makes tests faster, clearer, and more reliable.

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