Achieving Reliable E2E Tests in Cypress: Overcome cy.wait Pitfalls

Cypress tests often become flaky when developers assume cy.wait('@alias') waits for every new request. It doesn’t. Aliases capture only the first match, so later waits may resolve instantly. The fix: re-intercept before each occurrence or use times: 1 to create one-shot intercepts that “consume” themselves. But the real solution is avoiding network waits altogether. Instead, rely on user-visible, accessible UI states (spinners, aria-busy, disabled buttons, status messages). This makes tests stable, realistic, and far more reliable than waiting on network events.