In Selenium’s JavaScript bindings, find the element and await its getAttribute() method:
const element = await driver.findElement(By.css('a.example'));
const href = await element.getAttribute('href');One important detail: Selenium’s getAttribute() can fall back to a same-named DOM property when the HTML attribute is absent. Use getDomAttribute() to read only the attribute, or getProperty() to read the live DOM property. Selenium’s JavaScript WebElement API documents these methods.
Choose the method that matches what you want to read
An HTML attribute is part of an element’s markup, while a DOM property represents the element’s current state in the browser. The values can differ. For example, an input’s initial value attribute may not match the value currently displayed after a user or script changes it.
| Method | What it reads | Fallback behavior | When absent |
|---|---|---|---|
element.getAttribute(name) in Selenium JavaScript |
Attribute value when present | May return a same-named property if the attribute is absent | Returns null if neither is set |
element.getDomAttribute(name) |
HTML/DOM attribute only | No property fallback | Returns null when absent |
element.getProperty(name) |
Current DOM property | Reads the property rather than substituting the attribute | See the property value returned by the browser; do not assume it is the markup attribute |
Native browser element.getAttribute(name) |
DOM attribute value | No Selenium property fallback | Returns null when absent |
Use Selenium’s getDomAttribute() when the test is specifically about markup, getProperty() when it is about the live state, and Selenium’s getAttribute() when its compatibility behavior is what you need. Selenium’s WebElement reference describes the binding methods; the native DOM method’s return behavior is documented by MDN.
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Read an attribute with Selenium’s JavaScript API
Locate the element, then await the result. Selenium’s JavaScript WebElement methods are asynchronous and return promises.
const { Builder, By } = require('selenium-webdriver');
async function readHref() {
const driver = await new Builder().forBrowser('chrome').build();
try {
await driver.get('https://example.com');
const link = await driver.findElement(By.css('a.example'));
const href = await link.getAttribute('href');
console.log(href); // string, or null if neither attribute nor property is set
} finally {
await driver.quit();
}
}
readHref();Replace a.example with a selector that identifies the element on the page you are testing. If you already have a driver, the essential operation is simply:
const element = await driver.findElement(By.css('a.example'));
const value = await element.getAttribute('data-state');Read only the attribute or only the live property
Attribute only: getDomAttribute()
Use this when the assertion concerns whether the attribute exists in the DOM, without Selenium substituting a same-named property:
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const hrefAttribute = await element.getDomAttribute('href');
if (hrefAttribute === null) {
console.log('The href attribute is absent');
}Current state: getProperty()
Use this when you need the live DOM property, which can reflect changes made after the page loaded:
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const currentValue = await element.getProperty('value');For form controls, this distinction is useful when a test needs to check what is currently entered or selected rather than the initial markup. Do not use a property result as proof of what the original HTML contained.
Run native JavaScript in the browser
If you explicitly want the browser’s native DOM Element.getAttribute(), pass the Selenium element to executeScript(). WebDriver runs the script in the page context and exposes the supplied element as arguments[0]. Selenium’s element-information guide explains JavaScript execution through WebDriver.
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const hrefAttribute = await driver.executeScript(
'return arguments[0].getAttribute("href")',
element
);
console.log(hrefAttribute); // string, or null if the attribute is absentThis native DOM call returns the attribute’s string value or null when it is absent. Unlike Selenium’s wrapper getAttribute(), it does not fall back to a same-named property; see MDN’s Element.getAttribute() reference.
Handle absent and boolean attributes
Check explicitly for null; an absent lookup is not guaranteed to produce an empty string or false. Selenium documents boolean attributes as returning the string "true" when present and null when absent.
const disabled = await element.getDomAttribute('disabled');
if (disabled !== null) {
console.log('The disabled attribute is present');
}For native JavaScript, getAttribute() returns the attribute value or null if it is missing. The exact return semantics therefore depend on which API you call, not just on the shared method name.
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Troubleshoot common problems
- The value is
null. The attribute may be absent, and Selenium’sgetAttribute()may also have no corresponding property value to return. If absence matters, check=== null; usegetDomAttribute()to test the attribute specifically. - The value differs from the page’s initial HTML. You may be reading a live property or a changed DOM. Use
getDomAttribute()for the current DOM attribute, or inspect the current property withgetProperty()when the test concerns browser state. - The result is a promise rather than the value. Await the Selenium JavaScript method, such as
await element.getAttribute('href'), or handle it with.then(). - The element cannot be found. Check that the selector matches an element in the current page and that navigation or rendering has completed before calling
findElement(). This is a locator or timing issue, separate from attribute retrieval. - A boolean check behaves unexpectedly. Selenium’s documented result for a present boolean attribute is the string
"true", not a JavaScript boolean; the absent result isnull.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Does Selenium JavaScript getAttribute return a string?
It returns a string when it finds a value and can return null when neither the attribute nor a same-named property is set.
Is Selenium getAttribute the same as JavaScript Element.getAttribute()?
No. Selenium’s WebElement method may fall back to a same-named property; the native DOM method returns the attribute value or null.
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