How to Click on SVG Elements in Selenium WebDriver Using XPath

What are the best practices for clicking on SVG elements using Selenium WebDriver and XPath?

Interacting with SVG elements in Selenium WebDriver can present challenges, especially when it comes to clicking on specific shapes like circles or rectangles. This issue is often due to the way browsers handle SVGs and mouse events. In this guide, we will explore practical solutions for successfully clicking on SVG elements using XPath.

// JavaScript code to click on the SVG element
JavascriptExecutor jsExecutor = (JavascriptExecutor) driver;
jsExecutor.executeScript("arguments[0].click();", mapObject); // mapObject is the SVG element

Causes

• Selenium WebDriver does not support direct interaction with SVG elements due to JavaScript event handling limitations.
• The mouse event might not be correctly simulated over the SVG elements, resulting in failures when trying to trigger events like click or context-click.

Solutions

• Use JavaScript to trigger the click event on the SVG elements directly. This can be done by executing JavaScript code to click on the desired element.
• Retrieve the element's position and size and use Actions class to move to the element and perform the click action. This often helps if the element is obscured or not interactable.

Mistake: Not waiting for the SVG element to be interactable before trying to click it.

Solution: Implement an explicit wait to ensure the element is present and visible.

Mistake: Failing to use the correct XPath syntax for SVG elements.

Solution: Always check the XPath expression carefully, using tools like browser developer tools to verify it.