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Cypress App

press

Trigger native key events in your application to simulate keyboard interactions.

A keydown, press, and keyup event will be dispatched directly to the browser window.

Unlike cy.type(), which is best for typing character keys, cy.press() will dispatch real keyboard events rather than simulated ones. This command is especially useful when testing focus management and keyboard navigation patterns which are critical for accessibility testing and great keyboard UX.

Currently, the only key supported is Tab.

caution

Supported Browsers: This command is supported in chromium browsers and Firefox versions >= v135. WebKit is not supported. This command will fail if executed in a browser that does not support it.

Syntax​

cy.press(key)
cy.press(key, options)

Signature​

interface PressCommand {
  (
    key: KeyPressSupportedKeys,
    options?: Partial<Cypress.Loggable> & Partial<Cypress.Timeoutable>
  ): void
}

Usage​

Correct Usage

cy.get('input.first').focus()
cy.press(Cypress.Keyboard.Keys.TAB)
cy.get('input.second').should('have.focus')

Incorrect Usage

cy.get('input.first').focus()
cy.press(Cypress.Keyboard.Keys.TAB)
  // Errors because press yields null
  .should('have.focus')

Arguments​

key (String)

The key to press. The supported values are available on Cypress.Keyboard.Keys, and may change from time to time. It's recomended that you reference these values from Cypress.Keyboard.Keys rather than passing in a string.

Supported Keys​

ReferenceValue
Cypress.Keyboard.Keys.TAB"Tab"

options (Object)

Pass in an options object to change the default behavior of .press().

OptionDefaultDescription
logtrueDisplays the command in the Command log
timeoutdefaultCommandTimeoutTime to wait for cy.press() to resolve before timing out

Yields Learn about subject management​

  • cy.press() yields null.

Examples​

Test focus order of tab​

it('moves focus to the next form element when pressing Tab', () => {
  cy.visit('/my-login')
  cy.get('input.email').type('username')
  cy.press(Cypress.Keyboard.Keys.TAB)
  cy.get('input.password').should('have.focus')
})

Test autocomplete of search input with tab​

it('autocompletes search input when pressing Tab', () => {
  cy.get('[data-cy="search"]').type('cy')
  cy.press(Cypress.Keyboard.Keys.TAB)
  cy.get('[data-cy="search"]').should('have.value', 'cypress')
})

Notes​

Transient activation​

By dispatching native keyboard events to the browser, this command will cause the browser to enter Transient activation state.

If your application prevents the default behavior of the beforeunload event, this may cause issues when navigating away from the current page.

History​

VersionChanges
14.3.0Added the .press() command

See also​

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