When writing tests, prioritize semantic and accessibility-based selectors over data attributes or generic selectors. Use accessible names, roles, and text content to select elements, as these selectors validate both functionality and accessibility simultaneously. **Preferred approach:** ```javascript // Good - validates both functionality and accessibility cy.contains('button', 'Choose Editor').click() cy.findByRole('button', { name: 'Save Settings' }).click() // Acceptable when semantic selectors aren't sufficient cy.get('[data-cy="choose-editor"]').click() // Avoid - fragile and doesn't validate accessibility cy.get('.btn-primary').click() cy.get('button').first().click() ``` **Key benefits:** - Tests fail when accessibility is broken (missing labels, incorrect roles) - More resilient to styling changes that don't affect functionality - Self-documenting - tests show expected user-facing behavior - Encourages better accessibility practices in the codebase **When to use data selectors:** - Complex components where semantic selection is ambiguous - Temporary testing during rapid prototyping (but update later) - Cases where multiple elements share the same accessible name Ensure your tests validate meaningful behavior rather than just element presence. A test that only checks if a component renders without validating its actual functionality provides limited value and may give false confidence.