Selenium WebDriver Java | What happens if you use Implicit and Explicit Wait together
Using Implicit Wait and Explicit Wait together in Selenium WebDriver is NOT recommended because
it can create unexpected wait times and unpredictable behavior.
What is Implicit Wait?
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driver.manage().timeouts().implicitlyWait(Duration.ofSeconds(10));
Applied globally to the driver
Waits for element presence
Used for all findElement() calls
What is Explicit Wait?
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WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, Duration.ofSeconds(10));
wait.until(ExpectedConditions.visibilityOfElementLocated(By.id("username")));
Applied to specific element
More controlled and condition-based
Uses polling mechanism (default 500ms)
What Happens When You Use Both Together?
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Suppose:
driver.manage().timeouts().implicitlyWait(Duration.ofSeconds(10));
WebDriverWait wait = new WebDriverWait(driver, Duration.ofSeconds(15));
wait.until(ExpectedConditions.visibilityOfElementLocated(By.id("username")));
What actually happens?
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Every time Explicit Wait polls, it internally calls findElement().
But because Implicit Wait is set to 10 seconds:
Each poll can wait up to 10 seconds
Explicit wait timeout becomes unpredictable
Total wait can exceed expected 15 seconds
Problems You May Face
-----------------------
Test execution becomes slow
TimeoutException takes longer than expected
Hard to debug wait behavior
Flaky test cases
What Is the Best Practice?
----------------------------
Use Explicit Wait wherever required
Prefer WebDriverWait with proper conditions
For framework → Use Wait Utility class
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