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Raju Dandigam
Raju Dandigam

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8 Cypress Plugins Shaping Modern Testing in 2025

#cypress #webdev #testing #javascript

Cypress continues to dominate the web testing ecosystem in 2025. Its plugin ecosystem has matured and now plays a vital role in enabling high-quality, scalable, and developer-friendly testing pipelines.

Here are 8 Cypress plugins that have stood out this year—based on adoption, developer feedback, and impact on modern testing workflows.

1. eslint-plugin-cypress: Enforcing Cypress Best Practices

Why It Matters

This plugin enforces Cypress-specific linting rules to catch anti-patterns like misuse of async/await, unnecessary waits, and missing assertions.

Installation 

npm install --save-dev eslint-plugin-cypress
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Setup 

// eslint.config.js
import pluginCypress from 'eslint-plugin-cypress';
export default [pluginCypress.configs.recommended];
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  • Prevents flaky tests
  • Works with ESLint v9+
  • Cypress core team recommendation

2. cypress-real-events: Simulate True User Behavior

Why It Matters

Simulates native browser events like hover, tab, and realClick that synthetic events miss.

Installation 

npm install --save-dev cypress-real-events
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Usage 

import 'cypress-real-events';
cy.get('button').realClick();
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  • Mimics real user actions
  • Great for UIs involving hover, tab, modals
  • Chromium-based support

3. @cypress/code-coverage: Know What You're Testing

Why It Matters

Helps you visualize what code paths are actually covered by your tests.

Installation 

npm install --save-dev @cypress/code-coverage
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Setup 

import codeCoverageTask from '@cypress/code-coverage/task';

export default defineConfig({
  e2e: {
    setupNodeEvents(on, config) {
      codeCoverageTask(on, config);
      return config;
    }
  }
});
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  • Works with component & E2E tests
  • Istanbul support
  • LCOV and HTML reports

4. @testing-library/cypress: User-Focused Testing

Why It Matters

Provides queries like getByRole, findByText aligned with user interaction patterns.

Installation 

npm install --save-dev @testing-library/cypress
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Setup 

import '@testing-library/cypress/add-commands';
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Example 

cy.findByRole('button', { name: /submit/i }).click();
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  • Encourages accessible and maintainable tests
  • Framework-agnostic
  • Enhances readability

5. cypress-axe: Automated Accessibility Checks

Why It Matters

Brings automated WCAG audits into your CI pipeline.

Installation 

npm install --save-dev cypress-axe axe-core
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Usage 

cy.injectAxe();
cy.checkA11y();
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  • Catches a11y issues early
  • Supports custom axe rules
  • Works with CI/CD

6. cypress-vite: Use Your Vite Config

Why It Matters

Improves alignment and performance for Vite-powered apps.

Installation 

npm install -D cypress-vite
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Setup 

import { defineConfig } from 'cypress';
import { vitePreprocessor } from 'cypress-vite';

export default defineConfig({
  e2e: {
    setupNodeEvents(on, config) {
      on('file:preprocessor', vitePreprocessor());
    },
  },
});
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  • Faster builds
  • Aligns app and test config
  • Native Vite support

7. cypress-mochawesome-reporter: Better Test Reports

Why It Matters

Creates rich HTML reports with screenshots and logs.

Installation 

npm install -D cypress-mochawesome-reporter
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Setup 

reporter: 'cypress-mochawesome-reporter'
import 'cypress-mochawesome-reporter/register';
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  • Helpful for non-dev stakeholders
  • Works with CI pipelines
  • Generates HTML + JSON output

8. @cypress/grep: Advanced Filtering With Tags

Why It Matters

Lets you run or skip tests by tags, beyond what --spec allows.

Installation 

npm install -D @cypress/grep
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Usage 

npx cypress run --env grepTags=@smoke
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it('works correctly @smoke', () => {...});
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  • Enables modular test runs
  • Useful for CI workflows
  • Tag-based control

Final Thoughts

Cypress plugins continue to raise the bar for end-to-end and component testing. These 8 tools can help you:

  • Improve test coverage
  • Speed up local + CI runs
  • Catch accessibility gaps
  • Write maintainable tests your team loves

Which plugin do you rely on most? Let me know in the comments 👇

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