` elements anywhere in the document. ```xpath theme={null} /html/body/div ``` Selects `

` elements that are direct children of ``. ### Selecting by Attributes ```xpath theme={null} //div[@class='price'] ``` Selects divs with `class="price"`. ```xpath theme={null} //a[@href] ``` Selects all `` elements that have an `href` attribute. ### Extracting Text ```xpath theme={null} //h1/text() ``` Extracts the text content of `

` elements (without HTML tags). ```xpath theme={null} //div[@id='content']//text() ``` Extracts all text within the content div. ### Extracting Attributes ```xpath theme={null} //img/@src ``` Extracts the `src` attribute from all images. ```xpath theme={null} //meta[@property='og:price:amount']/@content ``` Extracts Open Graph price metadata. ## Practical Examples ### Monitor Product Price ```html HTML Structure theme={null}

Gaming Laptop
$1,299.99
``` ```xpath XPath Filter theme={null} //span[@class='price']/text() ``` ```text Output theme={null} $1,299.99 ``` ### Extract Multiple Fields ```xpath theme={null} //div[@class='product']/h2/text() //span[@class='price']/text() //div[@class='stock']/text() ``` Each XPath expression on a new line extracts different fields. ### Monitor RSS Feed Items Automatic default namespace handling: ```xpath theme={null} //item/title/text() //item/description/text() ``` Works directly with RSS feeds without namespace handling. Requires `local-name()` for elements in default namespace: ```xpath theme={null} xpath1://[local-name()='item']/[local-name()='title']/text() xpath1://[local-name()='item']/[local-name()='description']/text() ``` ## Advanced Techniques ### Conditional Selection ```xpath theme={null} //div[contains(text(), 'In Stock')] ``` Selects divs containing "In Stock" text. ```xpath theme={null} //h2[contains(@class, 'product')]/text() ``` Selects h2 elements where class contains "product". ```xpath theme={null} //div[@class='product' and @data-available='true'] ``` Selects divs matching BOTH conditions. ```xpath theme={null} //span[@class='sale' or @class='discount'] ``` Selects spans matching EITHER condition. ```xpath theme={null} //div[@class='item' and not(@class='hidden')] ``` Selects items that are NOT hidden. ```xpath theme={null} //li[1] ``` Selects the first `
` element. ```xpath theme={null} //li[last()] ``` Selects the last `
` element. ```xpath theme={null} //li[position() > 2] ``` Selects all `
` elements after the second one. ### Parent and Sibling Navigation ```xpath theme={null} //span[@class='price']/parent::div ``` Selects the parent div of the price span. ```xpath theme={null} //h2[@class='title']/following-sibling::p[1] ``` Selects the first paragraph following the title. ```xpath theme={null} //span[@class='label']/preceding-sibling::input ``` Selects input elements before the label. ### Regular Expression Matching changedetection.io supports EXSLT regex functions: ```xpath theme={null} //div[re:match(text(), 'Price: \$\d+\.\d{2}')] ``` Matches divs with text matching the price pattern. ```xpath theme={null} //a[re:test(@href, 'product/\d+')] ``` Selects links where href matches the pattern. ## Working with Namespaces ### RSS/Atom Feeds ```xml RSS Feed Example theme={null} My Feed First Item Item description ``` ```xpath XPath (Default - Automatic) theme={null} //item/title/text() //item/description/text() ``` ```xpath XPath 1.0 (Manual) theme={null} xpath1://[local-name()='item']/[local-name()='title']/text() ``` ### Handling CDATA Sections Some RSS feeds wrap content in CDATA: ```xml theme={null} HTML content here
]]> ``` changedetection.io automatically processes CDATA sections. The XPath `//description/text()` will extract the content. ## Combining Include and Remove Filters ```xpath Include Filter theme={null} //article[@class='main'] ``` ```xpath Remove Filter (Subtractive Selectors) theme={null} xpath://div[@class='advertisement'] xpath://aside[@class='sidebar'] xpath://script ``` This extracts the main article while removing ads, sidebars, and scripts. Remove filters must use the `xpath:` or `xpath1:` prefix explicitly. ## Testing XPath Expressions ### Using Browser DevTools 1. Open DevTools Console (F12) 2. Use `$x()` to test XPath: ```javascript theme={null} $x('//div[@class="price"]/text()') ``` 3. Verify the results ### Online XPath Testers * [XPath Tester](https://www.freeformatter.com/xpath-tester.html) * [Code Beautify XPath](https://codebeautify.org/Xpath-Tester) * Use sample HTML/XML to test expressions Online testers typically use XPath 1.0. Use `xpath1:` prefix in changedetection.io for compatibility. ## Common Patterns ### Pattern: Extract Plain Text ```xpath theme={null} //div[@id='content']//text() ``` Use case: Get all text without HTML tags. ### Pattern: Monitor Table Data ```xpath theme={null} //table[@class='pricing']//tr[2]/td[3]/text() ``` Use case: Extract specific table cell (row 2, column 3). ### Pattern: Get Meta Description ```xpath theme={null} //meta[@name='description']/@content ``` Use case: Extract page meta description. ### Pattern: Track Stock Status ```xpath theme={null} //div[@class='availability' and contains(text(), 'In Stock')] ``` Use case: Check if "In Stock" appears. ### Pattern: Extract Link URLs ```xpath theme={null} //a[@class='download']/@href ``` Use case: Get download link URLs. ## Common Pitfalls Pitfall #1: Forgetting text() ```xpath theme={null} //div[@class='price'] ``` Returns the entire element with HTML tags. Better: ```xpath theme={null} //div[@class='price']/text() ``` Extracts just the text content. Pitfall #2: Case Sensitivity XPath is case-sensitive! ```xpath theme={null} //Div[@Class='Price'] # Wrong //div[@class='price'] # Correct ``` Pitfall #3: Namespace Issues with RSS If your XPath returns nothing from an RSS feed: Problem: Using XPath 1.0 without `local-name()` ```xpath theme={null} xpath1://item/title/text() # May fail ``` Solution 1: Use default XPath (2.0/3.0) ```xpath theme={null} //item/title/text() # Automatic namespace handling ``` Solution 2: Use `local-name()` with XPath 1.0 ```xpath theme={null} xpath1://[local-name()='item']/[local-name()='title']/text() ``` ## When to Use XPath Good for: * Monitoring RSS/Atom feeds * Extracting text without HTML tags * Complex conditional filtering * Navigating to parent elements * XML documents * When you need regex matching * Extracting specific attributes Not ideal for: * JSON APIs (use [JSON filtering](/extraction/json-filtering) instead) * When CSS selectors are sufficient (simpler syntax) * When you want visual selector support ## XPath vs CSS Selectors | Feature | XPath | CSS Selectors | | - | - | - | | Text extraction | `//div/text()` | Not possible | | Parent selection | `//span/parent::div` | Not possible | | Attribute extraction | `//@href` | Not directly | | Conditional logic | `[contains(@class, 'x')]` | Limited | | Visual selector | ❌ Not available | ✅ Available | | RSS/XML feeds | ✅ Excellent | ❌ Not suitable | | Learning curve | Steeper | Easier | ## Real-World Examples ```xpath theme={null} //div[@itemprop='aggregateRating']//span[@itemprop='ratingValue']/text() ``` Extracts structured rating data from product pages. ```xpath theme={null} //item/title/text() //item/pubDate/text() ``` Monitors RSS feed items for new headlines and dates. ```xpath theme={null} //script[@type='application/ld+json']/text() ``` Extracts JSON-LD structured data, which can then be filtered with JSON filters. ```xpath theme={null} //table[@class='data']//tr[position() > 1]/td[2]/text() ``` Extracts second column from all data rows (skipping header). ```xpath theme={null} //section[@id='downloads']//a/@href ``` Extracts all download link URLs from a specific section. ## Debugging Tips ### Returns Empty Results 1. Check if you're using the right XPath version 2. For RSS/XML, try switching between `xpath:` and `xpath1:` 3. Use `local-name()` for namespaced elements 4. Verify element exists (check browser's element inspector) 5. Test in browser console: `$x('your-xpath-here')` ### Returns Unexpected Content 1. Add `/text()` to extract only text content 2. Use `[1]` or `[last()]` to get specific positions 3. Add more specific conditions with `[@attribute='value']` 4. Check if you need `//` (any level) vs `/` (direct child) ## Related Topics * [CSS Selectors](/extraction/css-selectors) - Simpler alternative for HTML content * [JSON Filtering](/extraction/json-filtering) - Extract data from JSON responses * [RSS Monitoring](/extraction/xpath) - Specific guide for RSS feeds This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.