Testing / Playwright Interview questions

What is the difference between expect().toBeVisible() and isVisible()?

Both check visibility, but they're built for different purposes and behave very differently under the hood.

expect(locator).toBeVisible()	locator.isVisible()
Retries until true or timeout	Checks once, immediately
Throws a descriptive error on failure	Returns a plain boolean, never throws
Meant to be the test's actual verification step	Meant for conditional branching in test logic

Using isVisible() as if it were an assertion is a common source of flaky tests, because it returns false instantly if the element simply hasn't rendered yet, instead of waiting for it - it's built for "if this happens, do X" logic, not for proving something is true.

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Which of these will keep retrying until an element becomes visible or times out? locator.isVisible()

✗ Try again if not.

expect(locator).toBeVisible()

✓ Correct! Well done.

Neither one retries

✗ Try again if not.

A common flakiness cause is: Using toBeVisible() for verification

✗ Try again if not.

Using isVisible() as if it were a retrying assertion

✓ Correct! Well done.

Never calling either method

✗ Try again if not.

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