How to select best automation testing tool?Evaluation criteria to choose right test automation tool.

How to select best automation testing tool?Evaluation criteria to choose right test automation tool.
best-automation-testing-tool

Introduction Automation Testing 

All software teams test their products, yet the final release of the product have defects. Although most test engineers try to solve these issues in the testing environment itself, they often make their way into the final product.

All these complications impact the effectiveness of manual testing and make it inefficient. This is where automation testing comes in the picture, it can help software teams optimize testing procedures and improve effectiveness, efficiency, and coverage. 

As the name suggests, automation testing automates manual testing activities which are repetitive in nature. It validates if software is functioning appropriately and meeting requirements before it is released into production. 

Types of Test Automation Tools 

Selecting the right type of automated software testing tool is important to decide the best fit for your project. Here are the three types of test tools and their descriptions. Read on.  

  1. Open-Source Tools 
    Open source tools are programmes in which the source code is freely available (no need to worry about licenses) for usage and/or modification from its original design. These tools are available for any phase of the testing process. However, these tools will have few and limited features when compared to commercial tools.
  2. Commercial Tools 
    Commercial tools are a pay to use the software. These tools are business-focused and full-featured. They provide greater functionality, robust security, and quick vendor support than open-source tools.  
  3. Custom Tools 
    Customized tools or custom tools are tailor-made software. In some testing projects, the testing environment and the testing process varies as they have special characteristics. Both open-source and commercial tools won’t meet the requirement. In such a scenario, testers need to consider this type of tool.  

The Importance of the Software Testing Tool Selection: 

Deciding on implementing automated software testing is easy but choosing the right testing automation tool is challenging. Because the success of a product lies in it. Here comes the importance of the selection criteria of software testing tools. The right tool  

  • reduces the time to automate 
  • offers reusability of code 
  • improves the quality and accuracy of the software/application 
  • improves test coverage  
  • reduces manual efforts 
  • minimizes maintenance cost 
  • generates higher ROI 

What Are The Benefits Of Automation Testing Tool? 

Let us have a look at the top benefits of test automation tools for software  

  • Test automation needs Minimal human intervention is needed. 
  • Automation testing is more reliable, faster in execution, versatile, and more powerful. 
  • Performing regression testing using manual testing could consume lot of time, so Automation testing can help in time consumption and speed up the testing process. 
  • Automated testing provides developers with more free time. Automation testing gives developers more time to focus on larger issues in the development process. 
  • One of the biggest benefits of automation testing is reusability of test scripts. It saves lot of time, money and human resources. 
  • Using Test automation engineers can cover a wide range of tasks to test the application. 
  • Comparing to manual testing, automation testing is affordable in the long run

When Do You Prefer Automation Testing For Your Software? 

Prefer Automation testing over Manual Testing in the following scenarios. 

  • There may be many cases where a tester has to do a repetitive test, it could be time consuming. In this type of case, automation testing comes in handy and takes care. 
  • Using automation testing does not mean it totally avoids human error, but it reduces the human errors to minimal. 
  • To perform Non-functional testing such as performance testing, load testing, and stress testing 
  • Regression Testing Automation testing is useful for testing responsive user interface components. In Test Automation, it automates the test scripts to test the software by quantifying the distance between images, design elements, and as well as the relative alignment of these components with each other. 
  • To stimulate a vast number of users for performance testing 
  • Other critical functionalities which we can’t rely on manual testing 

So, let’s dive into top automation testing tools that ease repetitive tasks. 

Types Of Test Automation Tools 

There are mainly 3 types of automated software testing tools such as 

  • Open-source automation tools: It is a software-licensing model in which the source code of the software is free to use and managed by the community. Anyone can use the source code and programmers can modify it as per their requirement under certain restrictions. 
  • Commercial software test automation tools: It is pay software and is used for commercial purposes. It has more features, security, and support than open-source automation tools. Users will be charged based on the number of users or licenses. Only the users who have purchased the license can access the software code. 
  • Custom framework: There will be some niche projects that a single open-source or commercial automation testing tool that can’t fulfil the testing needs. This type of project requires the capabilities of both types of automation testing tools. This is because of the diverse testing environment and processes. In such a scenario, the QA teams need to develop customized solutions. This custom framework will be complicated and requires technical expertise and profound knowledge of the latest automation and software testing technologies and tools. 

Okay, then how do you know the right test automation tool for your software and applications? 

Automation Testing Tool Selection Criteria 

Before selecting best automation testing tool for your software , these are the criteria everyone should follow 

Automation Testing Tool Selection
  1. Features: 
    To find out the right tool for your testing needs, you must take into consideration the most important aspects mentioned here.
    1. Supported platforms
      Selecting different test automation tools for different types of platforms is easy but difficult to handle. It is expensive as well. So, it is preferable to choose a tool that supports all the above three platforms. 
    2. Programming languages
      If you select an automation tool, you must learn the tool and the language used in it. Know the number of writing scripts languages such as Java, C#, Python, JavaScript, and Ruby used in the tool. If you have skilled resources for those languages, it won’t be a problem. If you do not have, it adds cost for training your staff. If you have budget constraints, make sure to select the language which is familiar to your resources to minimize the learning curve for them. 
    3. CI/CD integration capabilities
      The purpose of CI/CD is to reduce the TTM (Time to Market) by building software or application fast, testing it fast, and making the final product bug-free. So, the tool you choose must support CI and DevOps tool integration. Otherwise, it reduces the test effectiveness in Agile projects where speed is the top-most priority. 
    4. Cross-browser testing tools 
      The tool must be compatible with all the latest browsers because all your users won’t use a single browser and the same version. So, the tool you choose must have the capability to use the same test cases (test case reusability) across all browsers and their various versions and to ensure the same quality across all browsers. Script maintenance and usability, 
    5. Technical support
      Check for the training material, tutorials, and videos of the automation testing tool you chose. Check their medium of communication to your queries such as phone, email, or forum. And check whether they are available round-the-clock to answer your queries and solve technical issues. 
    6. Keyword and Data-Driven testing
      Test data and test scripts are separated in data-driven testing frameworks, making it easy to maintain and update the test data at any moment without affecting the test scripts. Changes to the test scripts can also be made without affecting the test data. And keyword-driven testing is an extension to data-driven testing. The test framework needs to be expanded as the complexity of the project grows. So, make sure the tool you choose can be connected to any data source. 
  2. Budget: 
    The more complex test automation tool you go with, the more it will cost your team. Define the budget you can allocate for test automation and choose the right test automation tool accordingly. In case you do not have proper resources, you can always go with the open-source tools. 
  3. Right Tool: 
    Test automation is far more technical. The lack of skills in the team can be a bottleneck for the company and the team. If the decision is to use the open-source testing tools as they require more advanced technical knowledge. Going through these questions will avoid you purchasing the testing software which your team cannot properly utilize. So, selecting the right automation testing tool that fits the skills and knowledge of your QA team members is necessary. 
  4. Test Reports: 
    All commercial and open-source test automation tools generate detailed reports on the issues and bugs. However, it might not be enough for your team. Selecting a right one that help the team find and diagnose test coverage and the root of the issues should be utmost priority. 
  5. Training Materials: 
    Most of the automation tools in the market often comes with documentation, guidelines, training materials and tutorials. To have a seamless intervention, it is crucial to have materials that will help them adapt and utilize the tool and its maximum capabilities. Tools that provide support materials should be give higher preference. 
  6. Experience and Learning curve: 
    It is always good to prioritize programming skills. A team must handle and perform certain tests in a test automation tool. The tool must be suitable for your project, but it might be too complex or too technical for the team. The learning of any new tool is important, the less the learning curve is easy it’s to adapt.  
    If you are looking for the best automation testing tool that fulfills the above criteria, then QATTS will be the right option for  your organization.  

Best Test Automation Tool: Qatts 

QATTS (Quality Assurance Total Testing Software) is a leading cloud-based software automation testing tool. Its features include 100% cloud testing solutions, Data-driven Strategy, Functional testing, API testing, Test Data Management, Agile- CI/CD Integration, Database testing, Web Interface, Low code automation, Multi-branch support, Flexible execution, and Real-Time Insights, etc. 

It’s easy to use interface that lets you create, modify, and run test suites. And its multi-code branch support helps you manage test automation separately. You will be charged only based on the number of test cases. 

With this cloud-based software, you can get improved test coverage and ROI. This tool has a little learning curve as it offers low code solutions. 

Besides, there are many other tools you can consider such as Selenium, Katalon Studio, SoapUI, Appium, HPE Unified Functional Testing (UFT) or UFT One, Cucumber, Test Complete, and many more. 

Many projects fail because of not picking the right test automation tool for their requirements. So, study each tool thoroughly and check whether it meets your testing needs or not. Then, choose the best fit for your project. 

Test Automation Services – Qatts 

Qatts is an automation testing company in the UK & US that provides full software automation testing services and makes certain test automation of apps & websites with the latest automation tools.  By opting Qatts software test automation services the following are the benefits you will get 

  • It includes Processes (Frameworks, Methodologies, Best practices), People (Expert QA team/Managers), and Tools (QATTS). 
  • We, QATTS, handle everything related to automation testing. Our dedicated QA experts analyze your testing needs and design & develop a test automation strategy that improves your ROI. 
  • This service is affordable. It minimizes hiring costs and you will be charged based on the number of test cases you require. 

Conclusion: 

To sum up, there is a necessity to adopt automation solutions for your applications and software. It’s quality!. As the businesses are releasing software and applications at a jet speed, it has become the need of the hour for the QA team to test and ensure quality in line with the releases. 

Choose the right  automation testing tool which plays a key role in getting success in your software testing project. 

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