Select Class in Selenium [2026]

Learn what is select class in Selenium, how to implement it and how it helps handle dropdown in selenium, along with examples.

December 17, 2025 25 min read
Get Started free Maximize ROI of AI in QAMaximize ROI of AI in QA
Select Class in Selenium How to handle dropdown in Selenium
Home Guide Select Class in Selenium [2026]

Select Class in Selenium [2026]

Most testers assume using the Select class in Selenium is straightforward—find the dropdown, select a value, and move on. I thought the same until a simple dropdown started failing without warning.

A test that had been stable suddenly broke. I added waits, tweaked locators, reran the test repeatedly, and still wasted hours chasing the issue.

The problem wasn’t Selenium or the browser—it was how I was handling the dropdown.

Once I understood how the Select class actually works, those failures disappeared.

Overview

The Select class in Selenium is designed specifically to interact with HTML <select> dropdown elements, providing built-in methods to choose options reliably instead of relying on clicks or custom logic.

How to Use the Select Class (Quick Steps)

  • Locate the <select> element using a Selenium locator
  • Create a Select object using that WebElement
  • Choose an option using text, value, or index

Example Code (Java)

WebElement dropdown = driver.findElement(By.id("country"));

Select select = new Select(dropdown);

select.selectByVisibleText("India");

Common Select Class Methods

  • selectByVisibleText(String text)- selects the option matching the displayed text
  • selectByValue(String value) – selects the option using the value attribute
  • selectByIndex(int index) – selects the option based on its position
  • getOptions()- returns all available dropdown options

Methods for Multi-Select Dropdowns

  • isMultiple() – checks if multiple selection is allowed
  • selectByVisibleText() / selectByValue() – select multiple options
  • deselectAll() / deselectByVisibleText() – clear selected options

Limitations of the Select Class

  • Works only with native HTML <select> elements
  • Cannot handle custom or JavaScript-based dropdowns
  • Requires a different approach for non-standard UI components

This article breaks down how to use the Select class correctly and why it’s essential for reliable dropdown handling in Selenium.

What is Select Class in Selenium?

In Selenium, the Select class provides the implementation of the HTML SELECT tag. A Select tag provides the helper methods with select and deselect options. As Select is an ordinary class, its object is created by the keyword New and also specifies the location of the web element.

Select Class Syntax in Selenium:

Select objSelect = new Select();

In the select class syntax above, it clearly states that Select class is asking for an element type object for its constructor, i.e it will create an object of the select class.

While the Select class simplifies interactions with standard HTML <select> elements, dropdown behavior can still differ across browsers and operating systems.

Verifying these interactions on real browser environments helps catch issues that don’t appear locally.

Platforms like BrowserStack Automate make it easier to run Selenium tests against real devices and browsers, with logs and recordings that highlight exactly how dropdowns behave during execution.

Struggling to handle Selenium dropdowns?

Flaky dropdowns break tests. Validate Select class interactions on real browsers and devices.

How to use Select Class in Selenium?

Selenium offers Select Class which can be used to select value in the dropdown list. There are different methods in the Select Class which can be used to perform different actions in the dropdown element. It allows you to select the option based on its text, index, and value, select multiple options, or deselect all.

According to Sarah Thomas, an expert software tester, a common mistake is using the Select class blindly on every dropdown. The most reliable approach is to first confirm the element is a native HTML <select> and then rely on Select class methods instead of custom clicks or JavaScript workarounds, which helps keep Selenium tests stable and predictable.

Also Read: How to handle Dropdown in Selenium without Select Class

Different Select Class Methods to handle Select Dropdown in Selenium

The following are the most commonly used select class methods in selenium to deal with a drop-down list:

Select Class Methods in Selenium

1. selectByVisibleText: selectByVisibleText(String arg0): void

This select class method is used to select one of the options in a drop-down box or an option among multiple selection boxes. It takes a parameter of String which is one of the values of Select element and it returns nothing.

Syntax: 

obj.Select.selectByVisibleText(“text”);

Example:

Select objSelect =new Select(driver.findElement(By.id("search-box")));
objSelect.selectByVisibleText("Automation");

2. selectByIndex: selectByIndex(int arg0) : void

This method is similar to ‘selectByVisibleText’, but the difference here is that the user has to provide the index number for the option rather than text. It takes the integer parameter which is the index value of Select element and it returns nothing.

Syntax: 

oSelect.selectByIndex(int);

Example:

Select objSelect = new Select(driver.findElement(By.id("Seacrch-box")));
Select.selectByIndex(4);

3. selectByValue: selectByValue(String arg0) : void

This method asks for the value of the desired option rather than the option text or an index. It takes a String parameter which is one of the values of Select element and it does not return anything.

Syntax: 

oSelect.selectByValue(“text”);

Example:

Select objSelect = new Select(driver.findElement(By.id("Search-box")));
objSelect.selectByValue("Automation Testing");

4. getOptions: getOptions( ) : List<WebElement>

This method gets all the options belonging to the Select tag. It takes no parameter and returns List<WebElements>.

Syntax: 

oSelect.getOptions();

Example:

Select objSelect = new Select(driver.findElement(By.id("Search-box")));
List <WebElement> elementCount = oSelect.getOptions();
System.out.println(elementCount.size());

5. getFirstSelectedOption()

This method helps fetch the first selected option from the dropdown. It is especially usefyl while working with multi-select dropdowns, where you can select multiple options. This method returns the first selected option as a WebElement.

Syntax:

oSelect.getFirstSelectedOption();

Example:

Select objSelect = new Select(driver.findElement(By.id("country")));

WebElement firstOption = objSelect.getFirstSelectedOption();

System.out.println(firstOption.getText());

6. getAllSelectedOptions()

This method fetches all selected options in a multi-select dropdown. It returns of list of all selected options as List<WebElement>.

Syntax:

oSelect.getAllSelectedOptions();

Example:

Select objSelect = new Select(driver.findElement(By.id("skills")));

List<WebElement> selectedOptions = objSelect.getAllSelectedOptions();

for (WebElement option : selectedOptions) {

    System.out.println(option.getText());

}

7. deselectAll()

This method helps deselect all selected options in a multi-select dropdown. If called on a single-select dropdown, it throws an exception.

Syntax:

oSelect.deselectAll();

Example:

Select objSelect = new Select(driver.findElement(By.id("languages")));

objSelect.deselectAll();

8. deselectByIndex

This method can be used in a multi-select dropdown to deselect an option at the specified index. It takes an integer parameter and returns nothing.

Syntax:

oSelect.deselectByIndex(int);

Example:

Select objSelect = new Select(driver.findElement(By.id("courses")));

objSelect.deselectByIndex(2);

9. deselectByValue

This method is used to deselect an option according to the value attribute of the option tag. It takes a string parameter and returns nothing.

Syntax:

oSelect.deselectByValue("value");

Example:

Select objSelect = new Select(driver.findElement(By.id("cities")));

objSelect.deselectByValue("blr");

10. deselectByVisibleText

This is used to deselect the option displaying the specified visible text. It takes a string parameter and returns nothing.

Syntax:

oSelect.deselectByVisibleText("text");

Example:

Select objSelect = new Select(driver.findElement(By.id("fruits")));

objSelect.deselectByVisibleText("Apple");

How to Select multiple items in Dropdown with the Select command?

The multiple select attribute is a boolean expression. This method specifies that multiple options can be selected at once. These options vary for different operating systems and browsers.

  • For Windows: Press the control (ctrl) button to select multiple options.
  • For Mac: Hold down the command button to select multiple options.

Use the isMultiple method to select multiple commands.

isMultiple(): boolean – This method informs whether the Select element supports multiple selection options at the same time or not. This method accepts nothing and returns a boolean value (true/false).

Syntax: 

objSelect.isMultiple();

Example:

Select objSelect = new Select(driver.findElement(By.id(Element_ID)));
objSelect.selectByIndex(index);
objSelect.selectByIndex(index);
// Or can be used as
objSelect.selectByVisibleText(text);
objSelect.selectByVisibleText(text);
// Or can be used as
objSelect.selectByValue(value);
objSelect.selectByValue(value);

Now let’s look at a real-time example of the select command.

Read More: How to find element by XPath in Selenium with Example

How to Select Value from Dropdown in Selenium using Select Class: with Example

In this example, let’s explore how to select a value in a drop-down list using the Select class in Selenium.

import org.junit.Test;
import org.openqa.selenium.By;
import org.openqa.selenium.JavascriptExecutor;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebElement;
import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.support.ui.Select;

public class SelectExample {
@Test
public static void main(String[] args) throws InterruptedException {
System.setProperty("webdriver.chrome.driver", "Path_of_Chrome_Driver");
WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();
driver.get("https://www.browserstack.com/");
driver.manage().window().maximize();
WebElement developers_dropdown = driver.findElement(By.id("developers-menu-toggle"));
Select objSelect = new Select(developers_dropdown);
objSelect.selectByIndex(2);
Thread.sleep(3000);
driver.navigate("https://www.browserstack.com/");
WebElement solutions_dropdown = driver.findElement(By.id("solutions-menu-dropdown"));
Select solutions = new Select(solutions_dropdown);
solutions.selectByValue("4000");
Thread.sleep(3000);
WebElement solutions_d = driver.findElement(By.id("solutions-menu-dropdown"));
Select s1 = new Select(solutions_d();
s1.selectByVisibleText("Geolocation Testing"); 
}
}

The code above will direct Selenium to navigate to the BrowserStack home page and select the values from the drop-down lists available on the Developers and Solutions tabs as shown in the below figure.

Try Testing Code on BrowserStack Automate for Free

Select class in selenium

Select class in selenium webdriver
Since drop-down lists are a common feature on most websites, using the Select class in Selenium is quite useful when it comes to testing that option in websites. This article aims to take users through the process and help them thoroughly test websites to ensure optimal user experience in all possible aspects.

Talk to an Expert

Test Selenium Dropdowns on Real Browsers with BrowserStack Automate

When you write Selenium scripts for dropdowns using the Select class, they may work locally but behave differently on other browsers or operating systems—especially when hidden overlays, timing issues, or browser quirks are involved.

BrowserStack Automate helps you catch these inconsistencies early by running your Selenium tests on real desktop browsers and mobile devices.

  • Real browsers and devices: Execute tests on thousands of real devices and browsers, covering different versions and OS combinations so you can validate Select class behavior in real-world environments.
  • Parallel test execution: Run hundreds of tests simultaneously to greatly reduce overall execution time—especially useful when your suite has many dropdown-related cases across different platforms.
  • Seamless CI/CD integrations: Integrate your existing Selenium tests with popular CI/CD tools like Jenkins, GitHub Actions, and GitLab for fully automated regression and release pipelines.
  • Secure local testing: Test applications that are hosted behind firewalls or in development environments, so you can validate dropdowns even before deploying to staging or production.
  • Rich reporting and debugging tools: Access video recordings, screenshots, logs, and network traces for every test run. These insights help you see exactly how dropdowns were interacted with on remote browsers and trace failures back to their root cause quickly.

Using BrowserStack Automate alongside Selenium ensures your Select class interactions aren’t just passing locally—but are truly cross-browser compatible and reliable in real user conditions.

Try BrowserStack Now

Conclusion

The Select class in Selenium offers a seamless way to handle dropdown elements via methods like selectByIndex(), selectByVisibleText(), getFirstSelectedOption(), etc. It makes interaction with both single-select and multi-select dropdowns much easier. This makes form automation more efficient and reliable. Furthermore, you can use tools like BrowserStack to scale and streamline your Selenium tests and access wide variety of test environments.

Useful Resources for Selenium

Methods, Classes, and Commands

Configuration

XPath

Locators and Selectors

Waits in Selenium

Frameworks in Selenium

Miscellaneous

Best Practices, Tips and Tricks

Design Patterns in Selenium: Page Object Model and Page Factory

Action Class

TestNG and Selenium

JUnit and Selenium

Use Cases

Types of Testing with Selenium

Tags
Automation Testing Selenium Selenium Webdriver

On This Page

Related Guides

View all guides
Dropdown Tests Failing Across Browsers?
Unreliable dropdowns break Selenium tests. Validate Select class behavior on real browsers and devices.

Get answers on our Discord Community

Join our Discord community to connect with others! Get your questions answered and stay informed.

Join Discord Community
Discord

Test Automation on Real Devices & Browsers

Try BrowserStack Automate for Automation Testing for websites on 3500+ real Devices & Browser. Seamlessly Integrate with Frameworks to run parallel tests and get reports on custom dashboards