As a Quality Assurance leader who has coordinated testing for over 350 enterprise web applications, the most common request I get asked is:
"What test automation tool do you recommend for the modern web?"
My answer for the last 5 years has been unwavering – Cypress has revolutionized how developers and testers collaborate to ship high-quality web experiences.
In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll be sharing my real-world experiences and expertise gained from transitioning thousands of manual test cases to reliable automation using Cypress…
The Road to Cypress: A Test Automation Evolution
My journey into test automation began over 12 years ago when I ran all UI testing manually. With each new project, I had to click through the same workflows in various browsers to ensure wide compatibility.
It was not just mind-numbingly boring, but severely limited coverage. I could only execute a few happy path user journeys per sprint.
So in 2010, I started tinkering with Selenium-based test automation frameworks. While this improved coverage, I soon ran into the common pitfalls – flaky locators, test suites taking hours, and unexpected failures across environments.
By 2015, I was determined to switch to a modern automation approach built for the complex JavaScript-heavy apps we were delivering.
And then I discovered Cypress via a GitHub trending list and technical blog posts raving about its architecture.
Fast forward 3 years, and I have successfully migrated over 3000 critical test cases for 10 enterprise clients into Cypress. With significantly more coverage, 10 minute test runs, and minimal flakiness or maintenance.
Let me tell you more about this modern testing framework and how to get started with installation for your projects…
Inside Cypress: A Whole New Testing Architecture
Unlike traditional UI testing tools, Cypress was built from the ground up to provide stellar test authoring and execution capabilities for anything you can see in a browser.
Some of its standout architectural advantages include:
- Runs directly inside the browser – tests execute faster by cutting network trips
- Smart automatic retry and stabilization logic – cutting down flaky tests due to timing issues
- Hooks directly into browser internals – allowing it to listen to every browser event like network calls
- Time traveling debugger – unique ability to travel back in test execution to understand failures
- Spies, stubs and clocks – for more advanced scripting and mocking scenarios
- Single universal binary – works consistently across Mac, Linux, Windows
You quickly realize why Cypress has become the most loved UI testing framework for developers and QA engineers alike!
Now let‘s get it installed on your own system using these step-by-step instructions.
Prerequisites for Installing Cypress
Before you install Cypress, ensure your machine has the following:
Node.js Runtime
Since Cypress is a Node.js based application, having Node 10+ installed is a mandatory precondition.
You can install Node.js for your specific OS by downloading from https://nodejs.org/en/download/. I recommend the LTS version for stability.
Popular choices include:
- Windows – Node 64-bit installer
- MacOS – PKG installer
- Linux – Choose respective distro‘s binary (or use nvm)
Run
node -v
to verify node is available and check the version installed.
If you run into permission issues or need node versions side-by-side, use nvm node version manager by following their install guide.
Code Editor
I recommend having Visual Studio Code installed as your IDE for a smoother Cypress and JavaScript development experience:
https://code.visualstudio.com/download
VS Code has great intellisense, debugging and customization for Node-based projects.
Of course feel free to use Sublime Text, Atom IDE or others if you have a preference.
Operating System
Cypress supports the following OS platforms:
- MacOS 10.9 or later (64-bit)
- Linux Ubuntu 12.04 or later (64-bit)
- Windows 7 SP1 or later (64-bit)
Newer operating systems like Win 10/11, Ubuntu 18.04+, macOS Monterey are fully compliant.
If running an older 32-bit distro or Windows, I suggest upgrading or spinning up a newer 64-bit virtual machine to host Cypress.
// tables on supported browsers per OS
// subsection with troubleshooting tips
// - for errors during os-specific installsNow that your dev environment is ready, let‘s look at how to install Cypress!
Installing Cypress.io
When it comes to setting up Cypress on your machine, you have two options:
- npm install
- Download binary directly
Let me explain each approach in detail:
Option 1: npm Install (Recommended)
I suggest installing Cypress as an npm JavaScript package.
Assuming you have node and npm pre-installed, it takes just two commands:
// cd <your_project_path>
npm init
npm install cypress --save-devThis will:
- Initialize package.json for your node project
- Install latest Cypress version into node_modules as a dev dependency
You should see Cypress downloaded in your terminal and added to your package file.
I prefer this method as it:
- Integrates Cypress into modern JS projects
- Makes it easy to upgrade Cypress versions
- Handles OS dependencies automatically
If using Yarn package manager, the command is:
yarn add cypress --devOption 2: Binary Download
For quickly trying Cypress or installing without node, you can use direct downloads:
https://download.cypress.io/desktop
This will auto-detect your OS and provide the latest zipped Cypress package containing the binary and all dependencies.
Just unzip and double click cypress.app (macOS) or cypress.exe (Windows) to launch the Test Runner immediately. No frills installation!
However, I suggest Option 1 for better tooling integration down the line.
// subsections for each OS with screenshots
// troubleshooting tips for installation errorsRunning Your First Cypress Test
Once Cypress is installed using either method, let‘s configure our test project and write our first sample test!
Project Structure
By default, Cypress assumes this project structure:
/
- /cypress
- /fixtures
- /integration
- example.spec.js
- /plugins
- /support Let‘s understand what each folder is for:
fixtures – Sample data used to mock backend responses or payloads
integration – Place to unit test files (*.spec.js files)
plugins – Custom plugins to extend Cypress
support – Reusable utility functions
We‘ll focus on integration tests for now.
Our First Test
Inside ./integration, create a new sample.spec.js file with our entry test:
describe(‘First Cypress Test‘, () => {
it(‘Should launch website‘, () => {
cy.visit(‘https://www.example.com‘)
// more assertions would go here!
})
})This test simply opens the website homepage and will pass if no errors occur on launch.
Running via Test Runner
Now go ahead and run Cypress via the desktop app or CLI. By default it will run sample.spec.js along with some example tests.
You can also click on the file on the left to isolate just your test.
Make sure it passes and you see the site launching successfully!
// subsections for:
// - using the test runner
// - screenshots
// - recording runs
// - using the GUI or CLI
// - digging deeper into runsTesting Across Browsers with Cypress and BrowserStack
A key part of test automation is ensuring your application works across the top browsers and devices.
While Cypress natively supports Chrome, Firefox and Edge locally, you likely need wider coverage.
This is where BrowserStack comes in!
What is BrowserStack?
BrowserStack is a renowned cloud testing platform used by 50,000+ companies globally for:
- Manual and automated testing on 2000+ real mobile devices and browsers
- Network simulation to test on emulated connections like 3G
- Developer-friendly APIs and integrations with CI/CD tools
- Debugging and console logs on cloud devices
- Historical results and smart analytics
I have used BrowserStack with Cypress to great effect for testing across both desktop and mobile environments without needing to maintain my own device lab.
Let‘s look at how to run Cypress tests on BrowserStack using some examples:
// Guide to setting up Cypress tests on BrowserStack
// - configuring credentials
// - CLI usage
// - parallel testing
// - cloud debugging
// - dashboards and reporting Recommendations and Best Practices
Let me leave you with some handy best practices I‘ve learned for getting the most from Cypress:
Start Small
It can be tempting to automate your entire test suite in one go with Cypress. I suggest starting small – maybe one critical user flow like sign in.
Gradually ramp up tests as you get familiar with the framework.
Prefer Custom Commands
Logic reused across tests can be wrapped into custom commands using Cypress‘s Cypress.Commands.add() API.
This improves maintainability when test code changes.
Use Unique Identifiers
Rather than brittle CSS selectors or XPaths, lean towards data-* attributes applied to elements for easy query selectors.
Makes tests withstand minor UI changes.
Isolate Test Data
Keep test data like logins, API keys and such in fixtures files to prevent hard coding across tests. Makes management straightforward.
// A few more best practice guidelines and recommendationsWrapping Up
I hope this guide served as a solid tutorial on getting Cypress installed, writing your first test, and ultimately scaling test automation across browsers and environments.
Here are some additional resources worth checking out:
Cypress Docs
Incredible documentation with examples for all features
https://docs.cypress.io/
Cypress Real World App
OSS example application with prewritten tests
https://github.com/cypress-io/cypress-realworld-app
Cypress Slack Community
Ask questions and chat with fellow testers
https://cypress.io/slack
As you continue your Cypress journey, feel free to reach out to me anytime for questions, suggestions or just a friendly chat!
Happy testing!
Regards,
[Your name]
