Playwright E2E Testing Initialization Skill

Playwright E2E Testing Initialization

Sets up Playwright for end-to-end testing in Next.js and React applications.

When to Use

This skill should be used when:

Adding E2E tests to a Next.js project
Setting up browser automation testing
Creating user flow tests for critical paths
Integrating E2E tests with CI/CD pipeline

What It Does

Installs Playwright and browsers
Creates configuration (playwright.config.ts)
Sets up test directory (e2e/)
Creates example tests for common flows
Adds Bun scripts for running tests
Updates CI/CD to run E2E tests

Quick Start

Example prompt:

Add Playwright E2E tests to this project

Or be specific:

Set up E2E tests for the authentication flow

Installation

bun add -D @playwright/test
bunx playwright install chromium

Configuration

playwright.config.ts

import { defineConfig, devices } from "@playwright/test";

export default defineConfig({
  testDir: "./e2e",
  fullyParallel: true,
  forbidOnly: !!process.env.CI,
  retries: process.env.CI ? 2 : 0,
  workers: process.env.CI ? 1 : undefined,
  reporter: [["html", { open: "never" }], ["list"]],
  use: {
    baseURL: "http://localhost:3000",
    trace: "on-first-retry",
    screenshot: "only-on-failure",
  },
  projects: [
    { name: "chromium", use: { ...devices["Desktop Chrome"] } },
  ],
  webServer: {
    command: "bun run dev",
    url: "http://localhost:3000",
    reuseExistingServer: !process.env.CI,
    timeout: 120 * 1000,
  },
});

Test Structure

e2e/
├── home.spec.ts          # Homepage tests
├── auth.spec.ts          # Authentication flow
├── navigation.spec.ts    # Navigation tests
└── fixtures/
    └── test-data.ts      # Shared test data

Example Tests

Generate project-specific tests for the actual routes in the codebase. Standard Playwright test patterns (navigation, auth flows, form submission, fixtures) are well-documented at https://playwright.dev/docs/writing-tests — focus inline tests on the project's concrete pages and critical user flows rather than generic examples.

Bun Scripts

Add to package.json:

{
  "scripts": {
    "e2e": "playwright test",
    "e2e:ui": "playwright test --ui",
    "e2e:headed": "playwright test --headed",
    "e2e:debug": "playwright test --debug",
    "e2e:report": "playwright show-report"
  }
}

CI/CD Integration

GitHub Actions

Add to your CI workflow:

- name: Install Playwright Browsers
  run: bunx playwright install --with-deps chromium

- name: Run E2E tests
  run: bun run e2e
  env:
    CI: true

- name: Upload Playwright Report
  uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
  if: always()
  with:
    name: playwright-report
    path: playwright-report/
    retention-days: 7

Best Practices

Focus E2E tests on critical user flows: auth, core features, payment/checkout, error handling.
Use data-testid attributes for selectors — do not rely on CSS classes or text content.
Use Page Object Model for reusable page interactions (e2e/pages/).
Keep tests independent: each test sets up and cleans up its own state.
Use test.extend fixtures for shared setup (authenticated sessions, seeded data).

Troubleshooting

Tests timing out

Increase timeout in config:

timeout: 60000, // 60 seconds

Elements not found

Use waitFor:

await page.waitForSelector('[data-testid="element"]');

Flaky tests

Add retries and use toPass:

await expect(async () => {
  await expect(page.locator("text=Success")).toBeVisible();
}).toPass({ timeout: 10000 });

Integration with Other Skills

| Skill | Integration | |-------|-------------| | testing-cicd-init | Sets up unit tests first | | testing-expert | Provides testing patterns | | debug | Investigates flaky tests and failing browser flows |

Agent Skills: Playwright E2E Testing Initialization

Install this agent skill to your local

Skill Files