What is WebDriver in Selenium? Explained with Java

Selenium is one of the most popular tools for automating web applications. At the heart of Selenium lies something called WebDriver—but what is it, and how does it work?

In this blog, we’ll explain:

What Selenium WebDriver is
Why it's important
How it works
And how to use it in Java, step by step

✅ What Is Selenium WebDriver?

Selenium WebDriver is an open-source tool used to automate browser actions, just like a real user.

With WebDriver, you can write code to:

Open a browser
Click buttons
Fill out forms
Check page content
Navigate between pages
Test if your web app works correctly

It controls the browser directly, making it faster and more reliable than older Selenium versions (like Selenium RC).

🌐 Supported Browsers

Selenium WebDriver can automate:

Chrome
Firefox
Safari
Edge
Opera
Headless browsers (no UI)

🧠 How WebDriver Works

WebDriver works by using a browser-specific driver (like ChromeDriver or GeckoDriver) to send commands to the browser and get responses.

Flow:

You write test code in Java (or another language)
WebDriver sends commands to the browser driver
The driver talks to the browser using native APIs
Browser performs the action (click, navigate, etc.)
The result is sent back to your code

🛠️ Basic Setup in Java

🔹 Step 1: Add Selenium to Your Project

If you're using Maven, add this to pom.xml:

<dependency>
  <groupId>org.seleniumhq.selenium</groupId>
  <artifactId>selenium-java</artifactId>
  <version>4.20.0</version>
</dependency>

🔹 Step 2: Download WebDriver Executable

You need to download the browser driver:

Chrome: chromedriver
Firefox: geckodriver

Place the driver .exe in your system PATH or specify its location in code.

🔹 Step 3: Write Your First Test

Here’s a simple Java program using Selenium WebDriver:

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

public class FirstSeleniumTest {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        // Set the path to chromedriver (if not in system PATH)
        System.setProperty("webdriver.chrome.driver", "C:\\path\\to\\chromedriver.exe");

        // Create a new instance of Chrome browser
        WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();

        // Open a website
        driver.get("https://example.com");

        // Print page title
        System.out.println("Page title is: " + driver.getTitle());

        // Close the browser
        driver.quit();
    }
}

🔍 Common WebDriver Methods in Java

Method	Description
`get(String url)`	Opens a webpage
`getTitle()`	Returns page title
`getCurrentUrl()`	Returns current page URL
`findElement(By locator)`	Finds a single web element
`findElements(By locator)`	Finds multiple web elements
`click()`	Clicks a button or link
`sendKeys("text")`	Types text into input fields
`navigate().back()`	Goes back to previous page
`close()`	Closes current tab
`quit()`	Closes all browser windows and ends session

🔑 Example: Filling a Login Form

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

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

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

        WebElement username = driver.findElement(By.id("username"));
        WebElement password = driver.findElement(By.name("password"));
        WebElement loginBtn = driver.findElement(By.className("login-button"));

        username.sendKeys("testuser");
        password.sendKeys("securepassword");
        loginBtn.click();

        driver.quit();
    }
}

🧪 Why Use WebDriver?

Supports real browser testing
Can handle dynamic web pages (JavaScript-heavy)
Easy to integrate with JUnit/TestNG, CI/CD, and reporting tools
Language bindings available for Java, Python, C#, JavaScript, Ruby, etc.

📚 Bonus Tips

Use Waits (Implicit/Explicit) for handling delays and dynamic elements
Combine with TestNG/JUnit for test management
Use Page Object Model (POM) for maintainable test code
Run tests in headless mode for CI pipelines

🔚 Conclusion

WebDriver is the core of Selenium automation. It allows you to interact with browsers like a real user—only faster and more consistent.

Using WebDriver with Java helps you:

Write clean automated tests
Check if your web app works correctly
Save time in regression and manual testing

Learn Selenium with Java Training Course

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