XPath functions (contains, starts-with) in Selenium Java - Practice Problems & Coding Challenges

Challenge - 5 Problems

❓ locator

intermediate

Locate element using contains() function

Which XPath expression correctly locates a button element whose class attribute contains the word 'submit' anywhere in its value?

A //button[@class='submit']

B //button[contains(@class, 'submit')]

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

D //button[starts-with(@class, 'submit')]

💡 Hint

Use contains() to find attribute values that include a substring anywhere.

The contains() function checks if the attribute contains the substring anywhere. Option B correctly uses contains(@class, 'submit') to find any button whose class attribute includes 'submit'.

Option B uses starts-with(), which only matches if the class starts with 'submit'.

Option B checks the button's text, not the class attribute.

Option B matches only if the class attribute exactly equals 'submit'.

❓ locator

intermediate

Locate element using starts-with() function

Which XPath expression correctly locates an input element whose id attribute starts with 'user_'?

A //input[contains(@id, 'user_')]

B //input[contains(text(), 'user_')]

C //input[@id='user_']

D //input[starts-with(@id, 'user_')]

💡 Hint

Use starts-with() to match the beginning of an attribute value.

The starts-with() function matches elements whose attribute value begins with the specified string. Option D correctly uses starts-with(@id, 'user_').

Option D uses contains(), which matches anywhere in the string, not just the start.

Option D matches only if the id exactly equals 'user_'.

Option D incorrectly checks the element's text content.

❓ Predict Output

advanced

XPath with contains() and attribute matching

Given the following HTML snippet:

<div class="menu-item active">Home</div>
<div class="menu-item">About</div>
<div class="menu-item active">Contact</div>

What is the number of elements matched by the XPath //div[contains(@class, 'active')]?

A 0

B 3

C 2

D 1

💡 Hint

Count div elements whose class attribute includes 'active'.

The XPath //div[contains(@class, 'active')] selects all div elements whose class attribute contains the substring 'active'.

In the snippet, two div elements have class 'menu-item active'.

Therefore, the XPath matches 2 elements.

❓ assertion

advanced

Assertion on element text using XPath starts-with()

You want to assert that a heading element's text starts with 'Welcome'. Which XPath expression should you use in your Selenium assertion to locate this element?

A //h1[starts-with(text(), 'Welcome')]

B //h1[contains(@text, 'Welcome')]

C //h1[contains(text(), 'Welcome')]

D //h1[starts-with(@text, 'Welcome')]

💡 Hint

Use starts-with() on the text() node, not on an attribute.

Option A correctly uses starts-with(text(), 'Welcome') to check if the heading's text starts with 'Welcome'.

Options B and D incorrectly use @text, which is not a valid attribute.

Option A uses contains(), which checks if the text contains 'Welcome' anywhere, not just at the start.

🔧 Debug

expert

Identify the error in XPath expression

Consider the following XPath expression used in Selenium:
//a[contains(@href, 'login') and starts-with(text(), 'Log')]
What is the most likely reason this XPath might fail to locate the intended element?

A The text() function may not match if the element contains nested tags or extra whitespace.

B The expression is correct and will always locate the element if it exists.

C The text() function cannot be used with starts-with() in XPath.

D contains() cannot be combined with starts-with() in the same XPath expression.

💡 Hint

Consider how text() behaves with nested elements or formatting.

Option A is correct because text() returns only the immediate text node. If the <a> element contains nested tags or extra whitespace, starts-with(text(), 'Log') may not match as expected.

Option A is incorrect; starts-with() can be used with text().

Option A is incorrect because the XPath can fail due to text node issues.

Option A is incorrect; contains() and starts-with() can be combined with and.