grafana/k6 · error

missing required argument 'text'

Error message

missing required argument 'text'

What it means

FrameLocator.getByText(text) in the k6 browser module requires a non-nullish first argument; the mapping layer throws before any browser communication. The text (string or RegExp) is the locator's only search criterion for finding elements by their text content, with options only refining matching behavior. Playwright's getByText has the same mandatory argument.

Source

Thrown at internal/js/modules/k6/browser/browser/frame_locator_mapping.go:62

				return nil, errors.New("missing required argument 'role'")
			}
			popts := parseGetByRoleOptions(vu.Context(), opts)

			ml := mapLocator(vu, fl.GetByRole(role.String(), popts))
			return rt.ToValue(ml).ToObject(rt), nil
		},
		"getByTestId": func(testID sobek.Value) (*sobek.Object, error) {
			if k6common.IsNullish(testID) {
				return nil, errors.New("missing required argument 'testId'")
			}
			ptestID := parseStringOrRegex(testID, false)

			ml := mapLocator(vu, fl.GetByTestID(ptestID))
			return rt.ToValue(ml).ToObject(rt), nil
		},
		"getByText": func(text sobek.Value, opts sobek.Value) (*sobek.Object, error) {
			if k6common.IsNullish(text) {
				return nil, errors.New("missing required argument 'text'")
			}
			ptext, popts := parseGetByBaseOptions(vu.Context(), text, true, opts)

			ml := mapLocator(vu, fl.GetByText(ptext, popts))
			return rt.ToValue(ml).ToObject(rt), nil
		},
		"getByTitle": func(title sobek.Value, opts sobek.Value) (*sobek.Object, error) {
			if k6common.IsNullish(title) {
				return nil, errors.New("missing required argument 'title'")
			}
			ptitle, popts := parseGetByBaseOptions(vu.Context(), title, false, opts)

			ml := mapLocator(vu, fl.GetByTitle(ptitle, popts))
			return rt.ToValue(ml).ToObject(rt), nil
		},
		"locator": func(selector string, opts sobek.Value) mapping {
			return mapLocator(vu, fl.Locator(selector, parseLocatorOptions(rt, opts)))
		},

View on GitHub (pinned to 93accf6570)

Solutions

1. Pass the text string or RegExp: frameLocator.getByText('Welcome back')
2. Default or validate content/i18n-sourced values before the call (const text = i18n.welcome ?? 'Welcome')
3. Fix the undefined variable or missing translation key
4. For fuzzy matches use a RegExp, e.g. getByText(/welcome/i), instead of omitting the argument

Example fix

// before
const msg = page.frameLocator('#frame').getByText(welcomeKey); // welcomeKey is undefined

// after
const welcomeKey = 'Welcome back';
const msg = page.frameLocator('#frame').getByText(welcomeKey);

const text = expected.welcome;
if (!isTextSelector(text)) throw new Error('expected.welcome is required for getByText');
frameLocator.getByText(text);

function isTextSelector(v) {
  return (typeof v === 'string' && v.length > 0) || v instanceof RegExp;
}

try {
  loc = frameLocator.getByText(maybeText);
} catch (e) {
  if (/missing required argument 'text'/.test(String(e.message))) {
    throw new Error(`expected text missing; fixture key='${key}'`);
  }
  throw e;
}

When it happens

Trigger: Calling page.frameLocator('iframe').getByText(), passing null/undefined explicitly, or passing a text variable that is undefined because the content fixture or i18n lookup returned nothing.

Common situations: Assertion helpers that receive an optional message parameter, localized-content tests with missing translation keys, or template literals that evaluate to undefined.

Related errors

• missing required argument 'altText'
• missing required argument 'label'
• missing required argument 'placeholder'
• missing required argument 'role'
• missing required argument 'testId'

AI-assisted analysis of grafana/k6@93accf6570 (2026-08-15). Data as JSON: /api/errors/73d59bfcabc52054. Report an issue: GitHub.