How to Set Up Selenium WebDriver on Windows, Mac, and Linux

March 24, 2025

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Introduction

Selenium WebDriver is an essential tool for web automation testing. Whether you are using Windows, macOS, or Linux, setting it up correctly ensures smooth test execution. In this guide, you'll learn how to install Selenium WebDriver step by step on all three operating systems.

Step 1: Install a Programming Language

Selenium supports multiple programming languages like Java, Python, C#, and JavaScript. Choose the one you are comfortable with and install it on your system.

For Java Users

Download and install JDK (Java Development Kit).
Set the environment variable:

Windows: Add the JAVA_HOME path in system environment variables.
Mac/Linux: Add export JAVA_HOME=/path/to/java in .bashrc or .zshrc.

For Python Users

Download and install Python.
Verify installation using: python --version
Install Selenium WebDriver: pip install selenium

Step 2: Download the WebDriver for Your Browser

Browser	WebDriver Download Link
Google Chrome	ChromeDriver
Mozilla Firefox	GeckoDriver
Microsoft Edge	EdgeDriver
Safari	Pre-installed on macOS (`safaridriver`)

Step 3: Install Selenium WebDriver in Your Project

For Java (Using Maven)

<dependency>
    <groupId>org.seleniumhq.selenium</groupId>
    <artifactId>selenium-java</artifactId>
    <version>4.x.x</version>
</dependency>

For Python

pip install selenium

Step 4: Verify the Selenium WebDriver Setup

Python Example

from selenium import webdriver

driver = webdriver.Chrome()
driver.get("https://www.google.com")
print(driver.title)
driver.quit()

Java Example

import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;
import org.openqa.selenium.chrome.ChromeDriver;

public class SeleniumTest {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        System.setProperty("webdriver.chrome.driver", "path/to/chromedriver");
        WebDriver driver = new ChromeDriver();
        driver.get("https://www.google.com");
        System.out.println(driver.getTitle());
        driver.quit();
    }
}

Conclusion

Now you have successfully set up Selenium WebDriver on Windows, Mac, and Linux! 🚀 Start automating web applications using Selenium and take your testing skills to the next level.