Selenium Python Cheat-sheet

Introduction to Selenium

Selenium is a powerful tool for automating web browsers. It is a popular open-source framework used for automated testing of web applications across different browsers and platforms. You can write test scripts in various programming languages, including Python, JavaScript, Java, C#, and Ruby.

Selenium WebDriver

This is the most widely used component. It allows you to programmatically control a web browser (e.g., Chrome, Firefox, Edge) as if a human were interacting with it. It is commonly used for end-to-end testing.

Selenium IDE

A browser extension for Chrome/Firefox, it provides a simple record-and-playback tool for creating test cases without coding. It's good for beginners.

Selenium Grid

Selenium Grid allows you to run tests on multiple machines and browsers in parallel. This is useful for speeding up test execution and cross-browser testing.

Common Use Cases

Automated testing of websites and web applications

Regression testing (to ensure old features still work)

Continuous Integration/CI/CD pipelines

1. Setup & Installation

Install Selenium & WebDriver Manager

pip install selenium webdriver-manager

Import Required Modules

  
from selenium import webdriver  
from selenium.webdriver.chrome.service import Service  
from selenium.webdriver.chrome.options import Options  
from webdriver_manager.chrome import ChromeDriverManager  
from selenium.webdriver.common.by import By  
from selenium.webdriver.common.keys import Keys  
from selenium.webdriver.common.action_chains import ActionChains  
from selenium.webdriver.support.ui import WebDriverWait  
from selenium.webdriver.support import expected_conditions as EC

Launch Chrome Browser

Basic setup

  
driver = webdriver.Chrome(service=Service(ChromeDriverManager().install()))   
driver.get("https://example.com")

With options (maximized, headless)

You can launch the browser with specific options, such as maximizing the window or running in headless mode (without a GUI).

  
chrome_options = Options()   
chrome_options.add_argument("--start-maximized")   
chrome_options.add_argument("--headless")   # Run without GUI  
driver = webdriver.Chrome(service=Service(ChromeDriverManager().install()), options=chrome_options)

2. Locating Elements

To interact with elements on a web page, you first need to locate them. Selenium provides several methods for this.

Locator	Method	Example
ID	`find_element(By.ID, "id")`	`driver.find_element(By.ID, "username")`
Name	`find_element(By.NAME, "name")`	`driver.find_element(By.NAME, "email")`
Class Name	`find_element(By.CLASS_NAME, "class")`	`driver.find_element(By.CLASS_NAME, "btn")`
Tag Name	`find_element(By.TAG_NAME, "tag")`	`driver.find_element(By.TAG_NAME, "input")`
Link Text	`find_element(By.LINK_TEXT, "text")`	`driver.find_element(By.LINK_TEXT, "Sign Up")`
Partial Link Text	`find_element(By.PARTIAL_LINK_TEXT, "partial")`	`driver.find_element(By.PARTIAL_LINK_TEXT, "Sign")`
CSS Selector	`find_element(By.CSS_SELECTOR, "selector")`	`driver.find_element(By.CSS_SELECTOR, "#login .btn")`
XPath	`find_element(By.XPATH, "xpath")`	`driver.find_element(By.XPATH, "//input[@name='username']")`

3. Interacting with Elements

Send Text to Input Field

  
element = driver.find_element(By.ID, "username")   
element.send_keys("testuser")

Clear Input Field

  
element.clear()

Click a Button/Link

  
driver.find_element(By.ID, "submit-btn").click()

Check if Element is Displayed/Enabled/Selected

  
element = driver.find_element(By.ID, "checkbox")   
print(element.is_displayed())   # True/False  
print(element.is_enabled())     # True/False  
print(element.is_selected())    # True/False (for checkboxes/radio buttons)

Get Element Text & Attributes

  
element = driver.find_element(By.ID, "header")   
print(element.text)   # Get visible text  
print(element.get_attribute("href"))   # Get attribute value

4. Dropdowns (Select Class)

For interacting with dropdowns (HTML select elements), Selenium provides the `Select` class.

  
from selenium.webdriver.support.select import Select  
  
dropdown = Select(driver.find_element(By.ID, "country"))   
dropdown.select_by_visible_text("USA")   # Select by text  
dropdown.select_by_value("us")          # Select by value  
dropdown.select_by_index(1)             # Select by index

5. Handling Alerts & Popups

Selenium allows you to interact with JavaScript alert, confirm, and prompt dialogs.

Accept alert

  
alert = driver.switch_to.alert  
print(alert.text)   # Get alert text   
alert.accept()      # Click OK

Dismiss alert

  
alert.dismiss()

Send text to prompt

  
alert.send_keys("Yes")   
alert.accept()

6. Waits (Implicit & Explicit)

Web pages often load dynamically, so it's crucial to implement waits to ensure elements are present and interactive before attempting to interact with them. Explicit waits are preferred over `time.sleep()` for better efficiency.

Implicit Wait (Global Wait for All Elements)

  
driver.implicitly_wait(10)   # Wait up to 10 sec for elements

Explicit Wait (Wait for a Specific Condition)

Explicit waits allow you to wait for a specific condition to be met before proceeding.

  
from selenium.webdriver.support.ui import WebDriverWait  
from selenium.webdriver.support import expected_conditions as EC  
  
element = WebDriverWait(driver, 10).until(   
    EC.presence_of_element_located((By.ID, "dynamic-element"))   
)

Common Expected Conditions:

`EC.presence_of_element_located` (Element exists in DOM)

`EC.visibility_of_element_located` (Element is visible)

`EC.element_to_be_clickable` (Element is clickable)

`EC.title_contains("Welcome")` (Page title contains text)

7. Keyboard & Mouse Actions

Keyboard Actions (Send Special Keys)

  
from selenium.webdriver.common.keys import Keys  
  
driver.find_element(By.ID, "search").send_keys("Selenium" + Keys.ENTER)

Mouse Actions (Hover, Drag & Drop, Right-Click)

The `ActionChains` class allows you to perform complex mouse interactions.

  
from selenium.webdriver.common.action_chains import ActionChains  
  
element = driver.find_element(By.ID, "menu")   
action = ActionChains(driver)   
action.move_to_element(element).click().perform()   # Hover & Click   
action.context_click(element).perform()            # Right-Click   
action.drag_and_drop(source, target).perform()     # Drag & Drop

8. Handling Frames & Windows

Switch to Frame

Web pages can contain iframes. You need to switch to the frame to interact with elements inside it.

  
driver.switch_to.frame("frame-name")   # By name, ID, or index  
driver.switch_to.default_content()     # Switch back to main page

Switch to New Window/Tab

When a new window or tab opens, you can switch the driver's focus to it.

  
driver.find_element(By.LINK_TEXT, "Open New Tab").click()   
driver.switch_to.window(driver.window_handles[1])   # Switch to new tab   
driver.close()   # Close current tab   
driver.switch_to.window(driver.window_handles[0])   # Switch back

9. Screenshots & Cookies

Take Screenshot

  
driver.save_screenshot("screenshot.png")

Manage Cookies

Selenium allows you to add, get, and delete cookies.

  
# Add cookie   
driver.add_cookie({"name": "test", "value": "123"})   
  
# Get cookies   
print(driver.get_cookies())   
  
# Delete cookies   
driver.delete_all_cookies()

10. Closing Browser

Close Current Window

  
driver.close()       # Close current window

Quit Entire Browser Session

  
driver.quit()        # Quit entire browser session

Final Notes

Always use `try-finally` to ensure the browser closes properly.

Prefer Explicit Waits over `time.sleep()` for better efficiency.

Use XPath/CSS Selectors for complex element locating.

Selenium Python Script Examples

Example (1) : Demonstrate the usage of the below:

Importing Selenium webdriver module

Importing time module

Adding option to start Chrome browser

Initializing Chrome browser

get() - method/function

sleep() - method/function

quit() - method/function

title - property

  
# First Selenium Program  
  
from selenium import webdriver  # Import the main Selenium webdriver module  
from selenium.webdriver.chrome.service import Service  # Import Service class to manage ChromeDriver service  
from selenium.webdriver.chrome.options import Options  # Import Options class to set Chrome browser options  
from webdriver_manager.chrome import ChromeDriverManager  # Import ChromeDriverManager to automatically manage ChromeDriver  
import time  # Import time module to use sleep for delays  
  
chrome_options = Options()  # Create an instance of Chrome Options  
chrome_options.add_argument("--start-maximized")  # Add option to start the Chrome browser maximized  
# chrome_options.add_argument("--headless")  # (Optional) Run Chrome in headless mode (without UI)  
  
# Initialize Chrome browser using ChromeDriverManager to auto-download driver and apply options  
driver = webdriver.Chrome(service=Service(ChromeDriverManager().install()),  
                        options=chrome_options)  
  
# Open the specified URL in the Chrome browser  
driver.get("https://skillzam.com")  
  
# Get the title of the current web page and store it in a variable  
webTitle = driver.title  
print(webTitle)  # Print the page title to the console  
  
# Pause the execution for 2 seconds to allow the page to load or for visual confirmation  
time.sleep(2)  
  
# Close the browser window and end the session  
driver.quit()

Example (2) : Demonstrate the usage of the below:

Importing 'By' class

Importing 'Keys' class

find_element() - method/function

send_keys() - method/function

clear() - method/function

close() - method/function

current_url - property

Keys.RETURN - property

  
from selenium import webdriver  # Import Selenium's webdriver to control the browser  
from selenium.webdriver.chrome.service import Service  # Import Service class to manage the ChromeDriver  
from selenium.webdriver.chrome.options import Options  # Import Options to customize Chrome's behavior  
from webdriver_manager.chrome import ChromeDriverManager  # Automatically handles downloading and setting up ChromeDriver  
from selenium.webdriver.common.by import By  # Import By class to locate elements on a web page  
from selenium.webdriver.common.keys import Keys  # Import Keys class to simulate keyboard key presses  
import time  # Import time module for adding delays  
  
chrome_options = Options()  # Create an Options object to set Chrome browser settings  
chrome_options.add_argument("--start-maximized")  # Set Chrome to start in maximized window  
  
# Initialize the Chrome browser with the specified options and automatically managed driver  
driver = webdriver.Chrome(service=Service(ChromeDriverManager().install()),  
                          options=chrome_options)  
  
# Open the Google homepage  
driver.get("https://google.com")  
  
# Print the title of the page (should be "Google")  
print(driver.title)  
  
# Locate the search bar using its 'name' attribute (name="q" is used by Google's search bar)  
search_bar = driver.find_element(By.NAME, "q")  # Find the search input field  
search_bar.clear()  # Clear any pre-existing text in the search bar  
search_bar.send_keys("getting started with python")  # Type the search query into the search bar  
search_bar.send_keys(Keys.RETURN)  # Press "Enter" to submit the search  
  
# Print the current URL after the search is performed  
print(driver.current_url)  
  
# Close the browser window  
driver.close()

Example (3) : Demonstrate the usage of the below:

Importing 'By' class

Importing 'Keys' class

find_element() - method/function

send_keys() - method/function

clear() - method/function

close() - method/function

current_url - property

Keys.RETURN - property

  
from selenium import webdriver  # Import Selenium's webdriver to control the browser  
from selenium.webdriver.chrome.service import Service  # Import Service class to manage the ChromeDriver  
from selenium.webdriver.chrome.options import Options  # Import Options to customize Chrome's behavior  
from webdriver_manager.chrome import ChromeDriverManager  # Automatically handles downloading and setting up ChromeDriver  
from selenium.webdriver.common.by import By  # Import By class to locate elements on a web page  
from selenium.webdriver.common.keys import Keys  # Import Keys class to simulate keyboard key presses  
import time  # Import time module for adding delays  
  
chrome_options = Options()  # Create an Options object to set Chrome browser settings  
chrome_options.add_argument("--start-maximized")  # Set Chrome to start in maximized window  
  
# Initialize the Chrome browser with the specified options and automatically managed driver  
driver = webdriver.Chrome(service=Service(ChromeDriverManager().install()),  
                          options=chrome_options)  
  
# Open the Google homepage  
driver.get("https://google.com")  
  
# Print the title of the page (should be "Google")  
print(driver.title)  
  
# Locate the search bar using its 'name' attribute (name="q" is used by Google's search bar)  
search_bar = driver.find_element(By.NAME, "q")  # Find the search input field  
search_bar.clear()  # Clear any pre-existing text in the search bar  
search_bar.send_keys("getting started with python")  # Type the search query into the search bar  
search_bar.send_keys(Keys.RETURN)  # Press "Enter" to submit the search  
  
# Print the current URL after the search is performed  
print(driver.current_url)  
  
# Close the browser window  
driver.close()