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.

Practice

1. Which XPath function would you use to locate elements whose attribute contains a specific substring anywhere within it?

easy

A. starts-with()

B. ends-with()

C. contains()

D. equals()

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of contains()

   The contains() function checks if an attribute or text contains a given substring anywhere inside it.

2. Step 2: Compare with other functions

   starts-with() checks only the beginning, ends-with() is not standard XPath 1.0, and equals() is not an XPath function.

3. Final Answer:

   contains() -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Substring anywhere = contains() [OK]

Hint: Use contains() for substring anywhere inside attribute [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing contains() with starts-with()
• Using ends-with() which is not standard XPath 1.0
• Trying to use equals() as XPath function

2. Which of the following is the correct XPath syntax to find a button element whose id attribute starts with "submit"?

easy

A. //button[contains(@id, 'submit')]

B. //button[@id*='submit']

C. //button[@id^='submit']

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

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the correct XPath function for 'starts with'

   The function starts-with() is used to check if an attribute starts with a substring.

2. Step 2: Check syntax correctness

   //button[starts-with(@id, 'submit')] is correct XPath syntax. Options B and C use invalid XPath operators.

3. Final Answer:

   //button[starts-with(@id, 'submit')] -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Starts with = starts-with() [OK]

Hint: Use starts-with(@attr, 'text') for prefix matching [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using contains() instead of starts-with() for prefix
• Using CSS selector syntax like ^= in XPath
• Incorrect function syntax or missing parentheses

3. Given the following HTML snippet:

<input type="text" id="user_email" value="[e-mail]"/>

What is the result of this XPath query?
//*[@id[contains(., 'user')]]

medium

A. Syntax error due to incorrect XPath function usage

B. Selects all elements with any id attribute

C. Selects the input element because its id contains 'user'

D. Selects no elements because 'user' is not in the value attribute

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze the XPath syntax

   The XPath //*[@id[contains(., 'user')]] is syntactically incorrect because @id is an attribute node and cannot be used as a function or have predicates applied directly like this.

2. Step 2: Correct XPath syntax

   To check if the id attribute contains 'user', the correct XPath is //*[@id[contains(., 'user')]] is invalid; instead use //*[contains(@id, 'user')].

3. Final Answer:

   Syntax error due to incorrect XPath function usage -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Attribute predicates must be correctly formed [OK]

Hint: Use contains(@id, 'user') not @id[contains()] [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using predicates directly on attribute nodes
• Assuming . refers to attribute value in this context
• Incorrect predicate syntax

4. You wrote this XPath to find links starting with "http":
//a[contains(starts-with(@href, 'http'))]
Why does this XPath fail to find any elements?

medium

A. Because @href attribute is missing

B. Because contains() cannot wrap starts-with() function

C. Because starts-with() requires two arguments

D. Because the syntax is correct but no links start with 'http'

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand function nesting rules in XPath

   The contains() function expects two string arguments, but here it wraps starts-with() which returns a boolean, causing a syntax error.

2. Step 2: Correct usage

   Use either starts-with(@href, 'http') alone or contains(@href, 'http'), but not nested.

3. Final Answer:

   Because contains() cannot wrap starts-with() function -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Do not nest contains() and starts-with() [OK]

Hint: Do not nest XPath functions like contains(starts-with()) [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Nesting contains() and starts-with() incorrectly
• Assuming starts-with() returns string for contains()
• Ignoring function argument requirements

5. You want to locate all <div> elements whose class attribute starts with "alert" but excludes those that contain "dismiss" anywhere in the class. Which XPath expression correctly achieves this?

hard

A. //div[starts-with(@class, 'alert') and not(contains(@class, 'dismiss'))]

B. //div[contains(@class, 'alert') and not(starts-with(@class, 'dismiss'))]

C. //div[starts-with(@class, 'alert') or not(contains(@class, 'dismiss'))]

D. //div[contains(@class, 'alert') or contains(@class, 'dismiss')]

Solution

1. Step 1: Use starts-with() to match class beginning

   The expression starts-with(@class, 'alert') selects elements whose class attribute begins with "alert".

2. Step 2: Exclude elements containing 'dismiss'

   The not(contains(@class, 'dismiss')) excludes elements whose class contains "dismiss" anywhere.

3. Step 3: Combine conditions with and

   Both conditions must be true, so use and to combine them.

4. Final Answer:

   //div[starts-with(@class, 'alert') and not(contains(@class, 'dismiss'))] -> Option A

5. Quick Check:

   Starts with alert AND no dismiss = //div[starts-with(@class, 'alert') and not(contains(@class, 'dismiss'))] [OK]

Hint: Combine starts-with() and not(contains()) with and [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using or instead of and causing wrong matches
• Mixing contains() and starts-with() incorrectly
• Forgetting to negate contains() for exclusion