Selecting Dropdown Values in Selenium WebDriver Using Java

For beginners in Selenium WebDriver, selecting values from dropdowns can be a common challenge. Here's a comprehensive guide to address this scenario effectively:

HTML Structure:

First, let's consider the HTML structure of a dropdown:

Last 4 WeeksLast 52 WeeksDate RangeWeek RangeMonth RangeYear To Date

Element Identification:

To identify the dropdown using Selenium WebDriver, you can use the By.id() locator:

WebElement dropdown = driver.findElement(By.id("periodId"));

Creating a Select Object:

Now, to select values from the dropdown, you need to wrap the WebElement into a Select object:

Select dropdownSelection = new Select(dropdown);

Selecting Options:

Once you have a Select object, you can select options in three ways:

• selectByVisibleText: Select by the visible text of the option:

dropdownSelection.selectByVisibleText("Last 52 Weeks");

• selectByIndex: Select by the index of the option:

dropdownSelection.selectByIndex(1); // 0-based index, so "Last 52 Weeks" is at index 1

• selectByValue: Select by the value attribute of the option:

dropdownSelection.selectByValue("l52w");

Handling Visibility Issues:

If you encounter "Element is not currently visible" errors, it could be due to the dropdown being hidden initially. You can use WebDriverWait to wait for the element to become visible before interacting with it:

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, 10);
wait.until(ExpectedConditions.visibilityOfElementLocated(By.id("periodId")));

Conclusion:

With these techniques, you can effortlessly select dropdown values in Selenium WebDriver using Java, even in complex scenarios with hidden or dynamic elements.