Agent skill
writing-playwright-tests
Provides patterns for writing maintainable E2E test scripts with Playwright, focusing on selector strategies, page objects, and wait handling for legacy application retrofitting.
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Install this agent skill to your Project
npx add-skill https://github.com/majiayu000/claude-skill-registry/tree/main/skills/data/writing-playwright-tests
SKILL.md
Playwright E2E Testing Skill
1. Selector Strategy Hierarchy
Use selectors in this priority order for maximum resilience:
typescript
// BEST: Explicit test identifiers
page.getByTestId('submit-button')
// GOOD: Semantic role-based (accessible)
page.getByRole('button', { name: 'Submit' })
page.getByRole('heading', { level: 1 })
page.getByRole('textbox', { name: 'Email' })
// GOOD: User-visible text
page.getByText('Welcome back')
page.getByLabel('Email address')
page.getByPlaceholder('Enter your email')
// ACCEPTABLE: When above options unavailable
page.locator('[data-cy="element"]') // Cypress migration
page.locator('#unique-id') // Stable IDs only
// AVOID: Brittle structural selectors
page.locator('.btn-primary') // Classes change
page.locator('div > span:nth-child(2)') // Structure changes
page.locator('//div[@class="foo"]') // XPath fragile
Adding Test IDs to Legacy Apps
When retrofitting, add data-testid attributes incrementally:
html
<!-- Before: Relies on brittle class selector -->
<button class="btn btn-primary submit-form">Submit</button>
<!-- After: Resilient test identifier -->
<button class="btn btn-primary submit-form" data-testid="contact-form-submit">Submit</button>
Naming convention for test IDs:
{component}-{element}-{qualifier}
contact-form-submit
user-list-row-{id}
modal-confirm-button
nav-menu-toggle
2. Page Object Model
Basic Page Object
typescript
// pages/login.page.ts
import { Page, Locator } from '@playwright/test';
export class LoginPage {
readonly page: Page;
readonly emailInput: Locator;
readonly passwordInput: Locator;
readonly submitButton: Locator;
readonly errorMessage: Locator;
constructor(page: Page) {
this.page = page;
this.emailInput = page.getByLabel('Email');
this.passwordInput = page.getByLabel('Password');
this.submitButton = page.getByRole('button', { name: 'Sign in' });
this.errorMessage = page.getByRole('alert');
}
async goto() {
await this.page.goto('/login');
}
async login(email: string, password: string) {
await this.emailInput.fill(email);
await this.passwordInput.fill(password);
await this.submitButton.click();
}
async expectError(message: string) {
await expect(this.errorMessage).toContainText(message);
}
}
Page Object with Component Composition
typescript
// components/data-table.component.ts
import { Page, Locator } from '@playwright/test';
export class DataTableComponent {
readonly container: Locator;
readonly rows: Locator;
readonly searchInput: Locator;
readonly pagination: Locator;
constructor(page: Page, containerSelector: string) {
this.container = page.locator(containerSelector);
this.rows = this.container.getByRole('row');
this.searchInput = this.container.getByPlaceholder('Search');
this.pagination = this.container.locator('[data-testid="pagination"]');
}
async search(term: string) {
await this.searchInput.fill(term);
await this.searchInput.press('Enter');
}
async getRowCount(): Promise<number> {
return await this.rows.count() - 1; // Exclude header
}
async clickRow(index: number) {
await this.rows.nth(index + 1).click(); // Skip header
}
}
// pages/contacts.page.ts
export class ContactsPage {
readonly page: Page;
readonly table: DataTableComponent;
readonly addButton: Locator;
constructor(page: Page) {
this.page = page;
this.table = new DataTableComponent(page, '[data-testid="contacts-table"]');
this.addButton = page.getByRole('button', { name: 'Add Contact' });
}
}
3. Wait Strategies
Explicit Waits
typescript
// Wait for navigation
await page.waitForURL('**/dashboard');
await page.waitForURL(/\/users\/\d+/);
// Wait for network idle
await page.waitForLoadState('networkidle');
// Wait for element state
await expect(element).toBeVisible();
await expect(element).toBeEnabled();
await expect(element).toHaveText('Ready');
// Wait for element to appear
await page.waitForSelector('[data-testid="results"]');
// Wait for element to disappear
await expect(page.getByTestId('loading')).toBeHidden();
Waiting for Dynamic Content
typescript
// Wait for API response before asserting
await page.waitForResponse(resp =>
resp.url().includes('/api/contacts') && resp.status() === 200
);
// Wait for specific number of elements
await expect(page.getByRole('listitem')).toHaveCount(10);
// Custom wait with polling
await expect(async () => {
const count = await page.getByRole('row').count();
expect(count).toBeGreaterThan(5);
}).toPass({ timeout: 10000 });
Handling Loading States
typescript
async function waitForTableLoad(page: Page, tableLocator: Locator) {
// Wait for loading indicator to disappear
await expect(page.getByTestId('table-loading')).toBeHidden();
// Wait for at least one row
await expect(tableLocator.getByRole('row')).not.toHaveCount(0);
}
async function waitForModalClose(page: Page) {
await expect(page.getByRole('dialog')).toBeHidden();
}
4. Test Structure
Basic Test File
typescript
// tests/contacts.spec.ts
import { test, expect } from '@playwright/test';
import { ContactsPage } from '../pages/contacts.page';
test.describe('Contacts Management', () => {
let contactsPage: ContactsPage;
test.beforeEach(async ({ page }) => {
contactsPage = new ContactsPage(page);
await page.goto('/contacts');
});
test('displays contact list', async ({ page }) => {
await expect(contactsPage.table.rows).not.toHaveCount(0);
});
test('filters contacts by search', async ({ page }) => {
await contactsPage.table.search('John');
const rows = contactsPage.table.rows;
await expect(rows).toHaveCount(2);
});
test('opens contact details on row click', async ({ page }) => {
await contactsPage.table.clickRow(0);
await expect(page).toHaveURL(/\/contacts\/\d+/);
await expect(page.getByRole('heading', { level: 1 })).toBeVisible();
});
});
Test with Authentication
typescript
// tests/authenticated.spec.ts
import { test, expect } from '@playwright/test';
// Use authenticated state from fixture
test.use({ storageState: 'playwright/.auth/user.json' });
test.describe('Dashboard (authenticated)', () => {
test('shows user dashboard', async ({ page }) => {
await page.goto('/dashboard');
await expect(page.getByRole('heading', { name: 'Dashboard' })).toBeVisible();
});
});
5. Common Interactions
Form Interactions
typescript
// Text input
await page.getByLabel('Name').fill('John Doe');
await page.getByLabel('Name').clear();
// Select dropdown
await page.getByLabel('Country').selectOption('US');
await page.getByLabel('Country').selectOption({ label: 'United States' });
// Checkbox
await page.getByLabel('Accept terms').check();
await page.getByLabel('Accept terms').uncheck();
// Radio button
await page.getByLabel('Express shipping').check();
// Date picker (fill underlying input)
await page.getByLabel('Start date').fill('2024-01-15');
// File upload
await page.getByLabel('Upload file').setInputFiles('path/to/file.pdf');
await page.getByLabel('Upload file').setInputFiles(['file1.pdf', 'file2.pdf']);
Click Interactions
typescript
// Standard click
await page.getByRole('button', { name: 'Submit' }).click();
// Double click
await page.getByTestId('row-1').dblclick();
// Right click
await page.getByTestId('item').click({ button: 'right' });
// Click with modifier
await page.getByRole('link').click({ modifiers: ['Control'] });
// Force click (bypasses actionability checks)
await page.getByTestId('hidden-button').click({ force: true });
Keyboard Interactions
typescript
// Type with delay (for autocomplete)
await page.getByLabel('Search').pressSequentially('playwright', { delay: 100 });
// Special keys
await page.keyboard.press('Enter');
await page.keyboard.press('Escape');
await page.keyboard.press('Tab');
// Key combinations
await page.keyboard.press('Control+a');
await page.keyboard.press('Control+c');
6. Assertions
Element Assertions
typescript
// Visibility
await expect(element).toBeVisible();
await expect(element).toBeHidden();
// State
await expect(element).toBeEnabled();
await expect(element).toBeDisabled();
await expect(element).toBeChecked();
await expect(element).toBeFocused();
// Content
await expect(element).toHaveText('Hello');
await expect(element).toContainText('Hello');
await expect(element).toHaveValue('input value');
// Attributes
await expect(element).toHaveAttribute('href', '/home');
await expect(element).toHaveClass(/active/);
// Count
await expect(page.getByRole('listitem')).toHaveCount(5);
Page Assertions
typescript
// URL
await expect(page).toHaveURL('https://example.com/dashboard');
await expect(page).toHaveURL(/dashboard/);
// Title
await expect(page).toHaveTitle('Dashboard - App');
await expect(page).toHaveTitle(/Dashboard/);
Soft Assertions
typescript
// Continue test even if assertion fails
await expect.soft(element).toHaveText('Expected');
await expect.soft(page).toHaveTitle('Title');
// Check for any soft assertion failures
expect(test.info().errors).toHaveLength(0);
7. Configuration
playwright.config.ts
typescript
import { defineConfig, devices } from '@playwright/test';
export default defineConfig({
testDir: './tests',
fullyParallel: true,
forbidOnly: !!process.env.CI,
retries: process.env.CI ? 2 : 0,
workers: process.env.CI ? 1 : undefined,
reporter: [
['html'],
['json', { outputFile: 'test-results/results.json' }],
],
use: {
baseURL: 'http://localhost:3000',
trace: 'on-first-retry',
screenshot: 'only-on-failure',
video: 'retain-on-failure',
},
projects: [
{ name: 'chromium', use: { ...devices['Desktop Chrome'] } },
{ name: 'firefox', use: { ...devices['Desktop Firefox'] } },
{ name: 'webkit', use: { ...devices['Desktop Safari'] } },
],
webServer: {
command: 'npm run start',
url: 'http://localhost:3000',
reuseExistingServer: !process.env.CI,
},
});
8. Quick Reference
CLI Commands
bash
# Run all tests
npx playwright test
# Run specific file
npx playwright test contacts.spec.ts
# Run tests with UI mode
npx playwright test --ui
# Run in headed mode (see browser)
npx playwright test --headed
# Debug mode
npx playwright test --debug
# Generate code
npx playwright codegen http://localhost:3000
# Show report
npx playwright show-report
Common Patterns
typescript
// Retry flaky assertion
await expect(element).toBeVisible({ timeout: 10000 });
// Wait between actions (avoid unless necessary)
await page.waitForTimeout(1000);
// Get element text
const text = await element.textContent();
// Check element exists without waiting
const exists = await element.count() > 0;
// Screenshot for debugging
await page.screenshot({ path: 'debug.png', fullPage: true });
See REFERENCE.md for: Authentication fixtures, network mocking, visual regression, debugging traces, CI/CD integration, and legacy app retrofitting strategies.
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