Migrating Cypress Tests to Playwright
With the rise of modern web testing frameworks, many teams are making the switch from Cypress to Playwright for improved speed, flexibility, and broader testing capabilities. While Cypress remains a popular and developer-friendly tool for frontend testing, Playwright offers enhanced multi-browser support, headless execution, and better handling of modern web app challenges like iframes and authentication.
In this blog, we’ll walk through the process of migrating Cypress tests to Playwright, explore key differences, and provide best practices to ensure a smooth transition.
🔍 Why Migrate from Cypress to Playwright?
Before migrating, it’s important to understand the benefits Playwright offers:
Multi-Browser Support: Playwright supports Chromium, Firefox, and WebKit out of the box.
Auto-Waiting: Eliminates the need for manual waits and retries.
Headless Testing with Full Page Rendering: More efficient and realistic test simulation.
Powerful Selectors: Includes text, CSS, XPath, and role-based selectors.
Robust Authentication Handling: Supports context-level authentication, useful for multi-user scenarios.
🧱 Key Architectural Differences
Feature Cypress Playwright
Test Runner Browser-based Node.js CLI
Browser Support Chrome, Electron Chromium, Firefox, WebKit
Auto-Waiting Yes, limited Yes, comprehensive
Parallel Execution Requires Dashboard Built-in
Network Intercepts Yes More advanced and flexible
🚀 Step-by-Step Migration Guide
1. Install Playwright
Start by installing Playwright in your project:
bash
npm install -D @playwright/test
npx playwright install
This installs the testing library and downloads browser binaries.
2. Set Up Playwright Test Configuration
Create a playwright.config.ts file to define your browser setup, timeouts, and base URL.
typescript
import { defineConfig } from '@playwright/test';
export default defineConfig({
use: {
baseURL: 'http://localhost:3000',
headless: true,
browserName: 'chromium',
},
});
3. Rewrite Cypress Tests to Playwright Syntax
Cypress and Playwright use different syntax and command chains. Here's a simple migration example:
Cypress:
javascript
describe('Login', () => {
it('logs in the user', () => {
cy.visit('/login');
cy.get('input[name="username"]').type('admin');
cy.get('input[name="password"]').type('admin123');
cy.get('button[type="submit"]').click();
cy.contains('Dashboard').should('be.visible');
});
});
Playwright:
typescript
import { test, expect } from '@playwright/test';
test('logs in the user', async ({ page }) => {
await page.goto('/login');
await page.fill('input[name="username"]', 'admin');
await page.fill('input[name="password"]', 'admin123');
await page.click('button[type="submit"]');
await expect(page.locator('text=Dashboard')).toBeVisible();
});
4. Handle Fixtures and Custom Commands
In Cypress, fixtures are loaded using cy.fixture() while Playwright uses file system or setup hooks:
typescript
// Playwright example
test.beforeEach(async ({ page }) => {
await page.goto('/login');
});
Custom commands in Cypress (Cypress.Commands.add) can be translated into reusable utility functions or custom test functions in Playwright.
5. Integrate with CI/CD
Playwright provides built-in support for CI with automatic retries, screenshots, and trace files. Add this to your CI pipeline:
bash
npx playwright test --reporter=html
📌 Best Practices
Start Small: Begin by migrating low-complexity tests first.
Use Playwright Inspector: Debug failing tests using npx playwright codegen.
Optimize Selectors: Use role-based or data-testid selectors for more reliable tests.
Use Parallel Execution: Speed up test suites using Playwright’s built-in parallelism.
✅ Conclusion
Migrating from Cypress to Playwright brings modern advantages in speed, scalability, and cross-browser testing. While the syntax differs, the migration is straightforward for teams familiar with JavaScript/TypeScript. By starting with key test cases and gradually refactoring your suite, you can unlock powerful capabilities and future-proof your end-to-end testing strategy with Playwright.
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Read More: UI Component Regression Testing with PlaywrightRead More: Comparing TestCafe vs Playwrigh
Read More: Troubleshooting Playwright Failures in CI/CD
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