XPath with text() in Selenium Python - Build an Automation Script

Verify button click using XPath with text()

Preconditions (1)

Step 1: Open the web page at 'https://example.com/sample-form'

Step 2: Locate the button element using XPath with text() matching 'Submit'

Step 3: Click the 'Submit' button

Step 4: Verify that the page URL changes to 'https://example.com/form-submitted'

✅ Expected Result: The 'Submit' button is found and clicked successfully, and the page navigates to the expected URL.

Automation Requirements - Selenium with Python

Assertions Needed:

Verify the button is located using XPath with text()

Verify the button click leads to the expected URL

Best Practices:

Use explicit waits to wait for the button to be clickable

Use By.XPATH locator with text() function

Avoid hardcoded sleeps

Use clear and descriptive variable names

Automated Solution

Selenium Python

from selenium import webdriver
from selenium.webdriver.common.by import By
from selenium.webdriver.support.ui import WebDriverWait
from selenium.webdriver.support import expected_conditions as EC

# Initialize the Chrome driver
with webdriver.Chrome() as driver:
    driver.get('https://example.com/sample-form')

    wait = WebDriverWait(driver, 10)

    # Wait until the button with text 'Submit' is clickable
    submit_button = wait.until(
        EC.element_to_be_clickable((By.XPATH, "//button[text()='Submit']"))
    )

    # Click the button
    submit_button.click()

    # Wait until URL changes to expected
    wait.until(EC.url_to_be('https://example.com/form-submitted'))

    # Assert the URL is correct
    assert driver.current_url == 'https://example.com/form-submitted', f"Expected URL to be 'https://example.com/form-submitted' but got {driver.current_url}"

This script uses Selenium WebDriver with Python to automate the test case.

First, it opens the sample web page.

Then it waits explicitly for the button with the exact text 'Submit' using XPath //button[text()='Submit']. This ensures the element is present and clickable.

After locating the button, it clicks it.

Then it waits until the URL changes to the expected URL https://example.com/form-submitted.

Finally, it asserts that the current URL matches the expected URL, confirming the navigation happened correctly.

Using explicit waits avoids timing issues and makes the test reliable.

Common Mistakes - 3 Pitfalls

Using hardcoded sleep instead of explicit waits

Using XPath without text() to locate the button

Not verifying the URL after clicking the button

Bonus Challenge

Now add data-driven testing with 3 different button texts: 'Submit', 'Send', 'Confirm'. Verify each button click navigates to its respective URL.

Show Hint

Practice

1. What does the XPath expression //button[text()='Submit'] select in a web page?

easy

A. A button element containing the word 'Submit' anywhere inside

B. Any element with the attribute text='Submit'

C. A button element with the exact visible text 'Submit'

D. All buttons regardless of their text

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the XPath syntax

   The expression //button selects all button elements in the page.

2. Step 2: Analyze the text() condition

   The predicate [text()='Submit'] filters buttons whose visible text exactly matches 'Submit'.

3. Final Answer:

   A button element with the exact visible text 'Submit' -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   XPath with text() matches exact visible text [OK]

Hint: Use text() to match exact visible text in XPath [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing attribute matching with text()
• Assuming partial text matches work
• Ignoring case sensitivity in text()

2. Which of the following is the correct XPath syntax to select a link (<a>) with the visible text exactly 'Home'?

easy

A. //a[contains(text(), 'Home')]

B. //a[text()='Home']

C. //a[@text='Home']

D. //a[text() = Home]

Solution

1. Step 1: Check the correct use of text() function

   The correct syntax to match exact text is text()='Home' inside square brackets.

2. Step 2: Identify syntax errors in other options

   //a[contains(text(), 'Home')] uses contains() which matches partial text, not exact. //a[@text='Home'] incorrectly treats text as an attribute. //a[text() = Home] misses quotes around 'Home'.

3. Final Answer:

   //a[text()='Home'] -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Exact text match requires text()='value' with quotes [OK]

Hint: Exact text match uses text()='value' with quotes [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using contains() instead of text() for exact match
• Treating text as an attribute
• Missing quotes around text value

3. Given the following HTML snippet:

<div>
  <span>Login</span>
  <span>Logout</span>
  <span>Login</span>
</div>

What will be the result of this Selenium Python code?

elements = driver.find_elements(By.XPATH, "//span[text()='Login']")
print(len(elements))

medium

A. 2

B. 1

C. 3

D. 0

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify elements matching XPath

   The XPath //span[text()='Login'] selects all <span> elements with exact text 'Login'. There are two such spans in the HTML.

2. Step 2: Count the matched elements

   The find_elements method returns a list of matching elements. Its length is 2.

3. Final Answer:

   2 -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Count of spans with text 'Login' = 2 [OK]

Hint: Count elements with exact text using find_elements and len() [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming only one element matches
• Confusing find_element with find_elements
• Ignoring exact text match requirement

4. You wrote this XPath to find a button with text 'Cancel': //button[text()='Cancel']. But your test fails to find the button. What is the most likely reason?

medium

A. The button text has extra spaces or different case

B. The XPath syntax is invalid

C. The button element does not exist on the page

D. The text() function matches partial text only

Solution

1. Step 1: Check XPath syntax correctness

   The XPath //button[text()='Cancel'] is syntactically correct, so syntax error is unlikely.

2. Step 2: Consider text matching behavior

   The text() function matches exact visible text including spaces and case. If the button text has extra spaces or different case (e.g., ' cancel ' or 'CANCEL'), it won't match.

3. Final Answer:

   The button text has extra spaces or different case -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Exact text match fails if spaces or case differ [OK]

Hint: Check exact text including spaces and case for text() [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming text() matches partial or case-insensitive text
• Ignoring leading/trailing spaces in text
• Blaming XPath syntax without checking text content

5. You want to select a <div> element that contains exactly the text 'Error: Invalid input' but the text may have leading or trailing spaces. Which XPath expression correctly handles this using text() and normalize-space()?

hard

A. //div[normalize-space()='Error: Invalid input']

B. //div[text()='Error: Invalid input']

C. //div[contains(text(), 'Error: Invalid input')]

D. //div[normalize-space(text())='Error: Invalid input']

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the problem with spaces

   Text may have extra spaces, so exact text()='Error: Invalid input' won't match if spaces differ.

2. Step 2: Use normalize-space() to trim spaces

   normalize-space(text()) removes leading and trailing spaces before comparison, ensuring correct match.

3. Step 3: Evaluate options

   //div[text()='Error: Invalid input'] fails if spaces differ. //div[contains(text(), 'Error: Invalid input')] matches partial text, not exact. //div[normalize-space()='Error: Invalid input'] uses normalize-space() without text(), which may fail if element has multiple text nodes.

4. Final Answer:

   //div[normalize-space(text())='Error: Invalid input'] -> Option D

5. Quick Check:

   Use normalize-space(text()) for exact text ignoring spaces [OK]

Hint: Use normalize-space(text()) to ignore extra spaces in XPath [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Not trimming spaces before text comparison
• Using contains() for exact match
• Applying normalize-space() incorrectly