Automating Flutter apps outside of the built-in Flutter test framework can indeed be challenging at times.

For automating a Flutter mobile app, I recommend using a framework like Patrol Test. This test framework is capable of testing Flutter mobile apps and capturing elements. However, please note that setting it up can be somewhat complex and may require some additional time and effort.

In the past, I’ve used other automation tools to automate Flutter apps, specifically for the web. These tools typically required adding a line of code to enable the ability to capture elements. While my experience with this approach is primarily web-based, I’m not entirely sure how it would translate to mobile app automation. If you have access to the Flutter code repository, you can check out this blog post I wrote, which details the process of enabling that line of code.

Once you have enabled this line, you could build a debug APK and use a tool like Appium to inspect elements. With Appium, you can potentially write tests against these elements