getgauge/taiko

Taiko is a Node.js library for automating web browsers in tests. It was built by the team at ThoughtWorks, the same company behind a test framework called Gauge. Taiko controls Chromium-based browsers (Chrome, Edge, Opera) and Firefox, and is designed to make automated tests easier to write and less likely to break when a website's code changes. The main thing that sets Taiko apart from similar tools is how it finds elements on a page. Instead of requiring you to inspect a web page's HTML and hunt for CSS ids or XPath expressions, Taiko lets you refer to things the way a person would: click the button that says "Submit", write into the field labeled "Username", check the box near the word "Remember me". Taiko figures out which element you mean. This approach means tests stay readable and do not need constant updates just because a developer rearranged the page layout. Taiko also handles the timing problems that make browser tests flaky. When a page fires off a background network request after you click something, Taiko automatically waits for that request to finish before running the next step. You do not have to sprinkle "wait" commands through your test scripts. Another useful feature is the interactive recorder. You type Taiko commands one at a time in a terminal, watch the browser execute them live, and then ask Taiko to turn your session into a script file. That script is plain JavaScript and can be run later in headless mode (no visible browser window), which makes it practical for running tests in automated build pipelines. For more complex test setups, Taiko can intercept network requests and return fake data or redirect them to a test server, without needing a separate mock server running. The library is free and open source under the MIT license.