# Flow control and logic overview

While standard Flows represent linear user journeys, real-world testing often requires dynamic behavior. This section covers the tools that allow your tests to adapt to different application states, platform requirements, and data environments.

### Core pillars of Flow architecture

To build scalable tests, you will utilize five pillars:

#### **Selection**

Identify UI elements with precision. Before building the test logic, you must master [how to use Selectors](/maestro-flows/flow-control-and-logic/how-to-use-selectors.md) to ensure Maestro can reliably find and interact with the correct parts of your application screen.

#### **Modularity**

Avoid repeating yourself, you can use [Nested Flows](/maestro-flows/flow-control-and-logic/nested-flows.md) to extract common journeys, like Login or Onboarding, into separate files. You can then call these "subflows" across your entire suite using the `runFlow` command.

#### **Conditional execution**

Not every test step should run every time. [Conditions](/maestro-flows/flow-control-and-logic/conditions.md) allow you to execute actions based on element visibility, platform (iOS vs. Android), or custom JavaScript expressions.

#### **Repetition** 

Handle dynamic lists or "polling" scenarios with [Loops ](/maestro-flows/flow-control-and-logic/loops.md)to repeat actions until a goal is met. Complement this with [Wait Commands](/maestro-flows/flow-control-and-logic/wait-commands.md) to ensure your tests only proceed when the UI is stable, eliminating flakiness from slow network loads.

#### **Environment and l**ifecycle

Manage test data externally using [parameters and constants](/maestro-flows/flow-control-and-logic/parameters-and-constants.md), allowing the same Flow to run in Staging, QA, or Production. Use [Hooks ](/maestro-flows/flow-control-and-logic/hooks.md)(`onFlowStart`, `onFlowComplete`) to automate setup and teardown tasks, such as clearing app state or granting [Permissions](/maestro-flows/flow-control-and-logic/permissions.md).


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