XPath with attributes in Selenium Python - Practice Problems & Coding Challenges

Challenge - 5 Problems

❓ locator

intermediate

Identify the correct XPath to locate a button by its attribute

Given a button element with type='submit' and class='btn-primary', which XPath expression correctly locates this button using both attributes?

Selenium Python

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

A //button[@type='submit' @class='btn-primary']

B //button[@type='submit' && @class='btn-primary']

C //button[@type='submit' or @class='btn-primary']

D //button[@type='submit' and @class='btn-primary']

💡 Hint

Use and to combine multiple attribute conditions in XPath.

XPath uses and to combine multiple attribute conditions. Option D correctly uses and. Option D uses or, which matches elements with either attribute, not both. Option D is missing a logical operator, causing syntax error. Option D uses &&, which is invalid in XPath.

❓ assertion

intermediate

Assertion on element text using XPath with attribute

You want to assert that a div with attribute data-status='active' contains the text "Active User". Which assertion code snippet using Selenium in Python is correct?

Selenium Python

element = driver.find_element(By.XPATH, "//div[@data-status='active']")
actual_text = element.text
# Assertion here

A assert actual_text == "Active User"

B assert actual_text = "Active User"

C assert actual_text.equals("Active User")

D assert actual_text != "Active User"

💡 Hint

Use Python's equality operator for assertions.

Option A correctly uses Python's equality operator == for assertion. Option A uses assignment = inside assert, causing SyntaxError. Option A uses Java-style equals method, invalid in Python. Option A asserts inequality, which is opposite of the requirement.

❓ Predict Output

advanced

Output of XPath locator count with attribute filter

What is the output of the following Selenium Python code snippet if the page contains 3 input elements with type='checkbox' and 2 with type='radio'?

Selenium Python

checkboxes = driver.find_elements(By.XPATH, "//input[@type='checkbox']")
print(len(checkboxes))

A 2

B 5

C 3

D 0

💡 Hint

XPath filters elements by attribute value exactly.

The XPath selects only input elements with type='checkbox'. There are 3 such elements, so output is 3. Option C counts all inputs, which is incorrect. Option C counts radios only. Option C is zero, which is wrong.

🔧 Debug

advanced

Identify the error in XPath with attribute syntax

Which option contains an XPath expression that will cause a syntax error when used in Selenium?

A //input[@name='email' and @required]

B //div[@class='container' or]

C //a[@href='https://example.com']

D //span[@data-id='123']

💡 Hint

Look for incomplete logical operators in XPath.

Option B ends with or without a second condition, causing XPath syntax error. Options B, C, and D are valid XPath expressions.

❓ framework

expert

Best practice for locating elements with dynamic attributes in Selenium

In a web app, the id attribute of a button changes dynamically but always contains the substring submit-btn. Which XPath locator is best to reliably find this button?

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

B //button[@id='submit-btn']

C //button[starts-with(@id, 'submit-btn')]

D //button[@id]

💡 Hint

Use XPath functions to match partial attribute values.

Option A uses contains() to match any id containing 'submit-btn', handling dynamic parts. Option A matches exact id, which fails if dynamic. Option A matches only if id starts with 'submit-btn', which may fail if substring is in middle. Option A matches any button with id, too broad.