---
title: "Select an option in a native dropdown"
sidebarTitle: "Select"
description: "Pick an option in a native select element, by visible text, by position, or by attribute. Legacy step, prefer Click on modern dropdowns."
lastUpdated: "2026-09-23"
---

> **For AI agents:** the complete documentation index is at [llms.txt](/llms.txt). Append `.md` to any page URL for its markdown version.

<Danger>
  **Deprecated.** This step no longer appears in the step palette. Existing tests that use it keep running. For new tests, use [Click](/tests/actions/web/click) to open the dropdown and click the option, which also works for custom (non-native) dropdowns.
</Danger>

Pick an option in a native `<select>` element, by visible text, by position, or by attribute.

## Parameters

| Parameter | Required | Description |
| ----------- | ---------- | ------------- |
| Target element | Yes, unless a manual selector is set | Natural-language description of the select element. |
| Manual selector | No | XPath or CSS selector, used when AI is disabled or as the saved selector. |
| Select option by | Yes | `visible_text` (default), `index`, or `attribute`. |
| Value | When by is `visible_text` | The option's visible text. |
| Index | When by is `index` | The option's position, starting at 0. |
| Attribute name and value | When by is `attribute` | The HTML attribute to match, for example `value` = `FR`. |
| AI usage | No | `inherit` (default, follows the test strategy), `smart`, or `always`. |
| Ignore error on this step | No | The run continues with the next step if this one fails. Default: off. |

## Results and metrics

- **Timing**: start, end, and duration (in seconds) recorded in the step result.
- **Status**: failed if the element or the requested option cannot be found.
- **Screenshot**: captured after the selection.

## What's next?

<Columns cols={2}>
  <Card title="Click" icon="arrow-pointer" href="/tests/actions/web/click">

    The current way to pick dropdown options

</Card>
  <Card title="Fill input" icon="keyboard" href="/tests/actions/web/input">

    Type into searchable dropdowns

</Card>
</Columns>