findElement by xpath in Selenium Java - Cheat Sheet & Quick Revision

Recall & Review

beginner

What does findElement(By.xpath()) do in Selenium?

It locates the first web element on the page that matches the given XPath expression.

beginner

Write a simple XPath to find a button with the text 'Submit'.

XPath: //button[text()='Submit'] finds a button element whose visible text is 'Submit'.

intermediate

Why is XPath useful compared to other locators like ID or class name?

XPath can locate elements based on complex conditions like text, attributes, or hierarchy, even if IDs or classes are missing or dynamic.

beginner

What happens if findElement(By.xpath()) does not find any matching element?

It throws a NoSuchElementException, causing the test to fail unless handled.

beginner

How to write an XPath to find an input element with attribute name='email'?

XPath: //input[@name='email'] selects an input element with the attribute name equal to 'email'.

What does driver.findElement(By.xpath("//div[@id='main']")) do?

A Finds all <div> elements with id 'main'

B Finds the element with class 'main'

C Finds the element with tag 'main'

D Finds the first <div> element with id 'main'

The XPath selects the first

element whose id attribute equals 'main'.

Which exception is thrown if findElement(By.xpath()) finds no element?

A NoSuchElementException

B ElementNotVisibleException

C TimeoutException

D NullPointerException

If no matching element is found, Selenium throws NoSuchElementException.

Which XPath finds a button with text 'Login'?

A //button[text()='Login']

B //button[@text='Login']

C //button[contains(text(),'Login')]

D //button[@value='Login']

The XPath //button[text()='Login'] matches a button whose exact visible text is 'Login'.

What is the best practice for XPath locators?

A Use absolute XPath starting from root

B Use relative XPath with unique attributes

C Use XPath with index only

D Use XPath with random attributes

Relative XPath with unique attributes is more stable and easier to maintain.

Which XPath selects all <input> elements with type 'checkbox'?

A //input[type='checkbox']

B //checkbox

C //input[@type='checkbox']

D //input[@checkbox='true']

XPath //input[@type='checkbox'] selects input elements with attribute type equal to 'checkbox'.

Explain how to use findElement(By.xpath()) to locate a web element and what happens if the element is not found.

Think about how Selenium searches the page and error handling.

Describe best practices for writing XPath expressions for Selenium tests.

Consider what makes locators reliable and easy to update.