Implicit vs. Explicit Waits in Selenium: When Should I Use Which?

How to Implement Delays in Selenium-WebDriver using Java: Implicit vs. Explicit Waits

In your Java Selenium-WebDriver project, you have encountered challenges with element location. You had added both implicit wait and a Thread.sleep, and while the latter resolved the issue, you seek a more suitable approach.

Implicit Wait vs. Explicit Wait

Selenium-WebDriver provides two types of waits:

• Implicit Wait: Configured once for the driver, it applies a waiting period before every WebDriver command.
• Explicit Wait: Used for specific conditions, it waits until a condition is met before proceeding.

Comparison

While implicit wait is convenient, it can lead to unnecessary delays if the element loads quickly. Explicit wait, on the other hand, provides more control and flexibility.

Recommended Approach: Explicit Wait

In your scenario, explicit wait is a more suitable solution due to the varying load times of your application's User Interface. The code example provided below demonstrates the use of an explicit wait:

<code class="java">import org.openqa.selenium.By;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.support.ui.ExpectedConditions;
import org.openqa.selenium.support.ui.WebDriverWait;

public class ExplicitWaitExample {

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        WebDriver driver = getDriver();

        WebElement textbox = new WebDriverWait(driver, 30)
                .until(ExpectedConditions.presenceOfElementLocated(By.id("textbox")));
    }
}</code>

This approach ensures that Selenium waits until the textbox element is present on the page before continuing, allowing you to avoid the use of a fixed waiting period.

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