Skip to main content

Get Web Element by CSS Selector

Command description

Find a unique element in a webpage or any of its frames with a CSS selector. A successful match receives an ms-rpa-id in the page DOM, and the command returns a WebElement.

Use this command when a stable CSS selector is already known, for example from the page source, browser developer tools, or AI analysis of the webpage structure.

Command Input Parameters

input parametersInput parameter typeDescription
Webpage ObjectWebPageWebpage in which to find the element
CSS SelectorstrCSS selector, such as #kw, .item[data-id="1"], input[name="q"]
Element Wait DurationnumberMaximum time to wait for exactly one matching element, in seconds

Command Output Parameters

Output parametersOutput parameter typeDescription
Web ElementWebElementMatching web element

Description

  • The selector is evaluated in the main page and all frames.
  • CSS selectors must match unique elements.
  • If there is no matching element, or multiple elements are matched, the search will continue until only one element is matched.
  • If zero or multiple elements still match when Element Wait Duration expires, the command raises an exception. Refine the selector so it matches exactly one element.
  • Use the returned WebElement with commands for clicking, input, reading properties, executing JavaScript, and other element operations.
  • Use standard browser CSS selector syntax; do not enter XPath.

Example

Find a search input on a webpage:

[
{
"children": [],
"in": {
"Browser Type": "'Google Chrome'",
"Match Method": "'Current Webpage'",
"Page Load Timeout": "30"
},
"out": {
"Webpage Object": "webPage"
},
"ins": "Get Open Webpage"
},
{
"children": [],
"in": {
"Webpage Object": "webPage",
"CSS Selector": "'#__docusaurus div.navbarSearchContainer_Bca1 > div > input'",
"Element Wait Duration": "10"
},
"out": {
"Web Element": "searchInput"
},
"ins": "Get Web Element by CSS Selector"
},
{
"children": [],
"in": {
"Webpage Object": "webPage",
"Web Input Element": "searchInput",
"Input Content": "'xxx'",
"Append Input": "False",
"Tab Key": "False",
"Enter Key": "False",
"Input Method": "'CDP Silent Input'",
"Click Element Before Input": "False",
"English Keyboard Layout": "False",
"Post-Input Delay": "1",
"Element Wait Duration": "30",
"Post-Click Delay": "1"
},
"out": {},
"comments": "Enter search content",
"ins": "Input into Web Element"
}
]

Reference