Handle confirmation alert on delete action

Preconditions (2)

Step 1: Locate the delete button for the first item in the list

Step 2: Click the delete button

Step 3: Wait for the confirmation alert to appear

Step 4: Verify the alert text is 'Are you sure you want to delete this item?'

Step 5: Accept the confirmation alert

Step 6: Verify the item is removed from the list

✅ Expected Result: The confirmation alert appears with correct text, and after accepting it, the item is deleted from the list

Automation Requirements - Selenium with Python

Assertions Needed:

Alert text matches expected confirmation message

Item is no longer present in the list after accepting alert

Best Practices:

Use explicit waits to wait for alert presence

Use Selenium's Alert API to handle confirmation alerts

Use clear and maintainable locators (e.g., By.CSS_SELECTOR or By.ID)

Avoid hardcoded sleeps

Use try-except to handle unexpected alert absence

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
from selenium.common.exceptions import TimeoutException
from selenium.webdriver.common.alert import Alert
import unittest

class TestConfirmationAlertHandling(unittest.TestCase):
    def setUp(self):
        self.driver = webdriver.Chrome()
        self.driver.get('https://example.com/items')  # Replace with actual URL
        self.wait = WebDriverWait(self.driver, 10)

    def test_delete_item_confirmation_alert(self):
        driver = self.driver
        wait = self.wait

        # Locate the delete button for the first item
        delete_button = wait.until(EC.element_to_be_clickable((By.CSS_SELECTOR, '.item .delete-btn')))
        delete_button.click()

        try:
            # Wait for alert to be present
            alert = wait.until(EC.alert_is_present())

            # Verify alert text
            alert_text = alert.text
            self.assertEqual(alert_text, 'Are you sure you want to delete this item?')

            # Accept the alert
            alert.accept()

            # Verify the item is removed from the list
            # Wait until the first item is no longer present or list updates
            wait.until(EC.invisibility_of_element_located((By.CSS_SELECTOR, '.item')))

            # Optionally, check the count of items decreased
            items = driver.find_elements(By.CSS_SELECTOR, '.item')
            self.assertTrue(len(items) < 1, 'Item was not deleted')

        except TimeoutException:
            self.fail('Confirmation alert did not appear')

    def tearDown(self):
        self.driver.quit()

if __name__ == '__main__':
    unittest.main()

This test script uses Selenium with Python's unittest framework to automate the confirmation alert handling.

setUp: Opens the browser and navigates to the items page.

test_delete_item_confirmation_alert: Clicks the delete button on the first item, waits explicitly for the alert, verifies the alert text, accepts the alert, then waits for the item to be removed from the list and asserts the deletion.

Explicit waits ensure the test waits only as long as needed for elements or alerts, avoiding fixed delays.

tearDown: Closes the browser after the test.

This approach follows best practices by using explicit waits, proper locators, and handling exceptions to make the test reliable and maintainable.

Common Mistakes - 4 Pitfalls

Using time.sleep() instead of explicit waits for alert presence

Not verifying the alert text before accepting

Using brittle locators like absolute XPath for delete button

Not handling the case when alert does not appear

Bonus Challenge

Now add data-driven testing with 3 different items to delete, verifying alert handling for each.

Show Hint