Selenium WebDriver allows us to automate web applications by interacting with web elements. One common way to find these elements is using their name attribute through By.name().

🔎 What is the name Attribute in HTML?

The name attribute is used to reference form elements during submission. Although not required to be unique like id, it's often used consistently in web forms.

<input type="text" name="username" />

✅ When to Use By.name()?

  • ✅ When elements have a descriptive and consistent name attribute
  • ✅ When id is missing or dynamic
  • ✅ Works well with forms, especially login, signup, search fields

📌 Syntax in Java

driver.findElement(By.name("element_name"));

💡 HTML Example

Below is a simple HTML login form using the name attribute:

<form>
  <input type="text" name="username" />
  <input type="password" name="password" />
  <input type="submit" name="login" value="Login" />
</form>

💻 Selenium + Java Example

import org.openqa.selenium.By;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebElement;
import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;

public class LoginByName {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        System.setProperty("webdriver.chrome.driver", "path/to/chromedriver");
        WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();

        driver.get("https://example.com/login");

        // Locate elements using name
        WebElement username = driver.findElement(By.name("username"));
        WebElement password = driver.findElement(By.name("password"));
        WebElement loginBtn = driver.findElement(By.name("login"));

        // Interact with them
        username.sendKeys("testuser");
        password.sendKeys("testpass");
        loginBtn.click();

        driver.quit();
    }
}

✅ Best Practices

Tip Why?
Use By.name() if id is missing name is still a reliable and readable option
Use WebDriverWait for dynamic elements Ensure elements are loaded before accessing
Validate uniqueness Ensure that only one element uses the name to avoid ambiguity

🕒 Using Wait with By.name()

WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, Duration.ofSeconds(10));
WebElement username = wait.until(ExpectedConditions.visibilityOfElementLocated(By.name("username")));

⚠️ Common Issues

Issue Solution
NoSuchElementException Element not loaded yet → Use waits
Multiple elements with same name Use findElements() to handle multiple matches
name not present Use alternative locators like id, xpath

📌 Example: Handle Multiple Elements

List<WebElement> options = driver.findElements(By.name("gender"));
options.get(0).click();  // Click on the first gender option

📚 Summary

  • By.name() is a simple and readable way to locate elements in Selenium.
  • Works best with forms and when id is not available.
  • Always verify that the name is unique if using findElement().

🚀 What's Next?

Explore more Selenium locators: