Every software developer in the world tests its applications. After all, user satisfaction is paramount to an app’s success. However, many platforms still have their issues. Testers do their best to catch these defects before the app hits the market but some will always slip through the net, especially if the testers are only using manual testing processes.

No matter how good the manual testing procedure is, test automation software is always going to increase a tester’s efficiency, coverage, and effectiveness when testing an application.

Software testing processes have become more simple while using automated testing as it is more reliable being performed by scripts and tools, while, manual testing still can be inaccurate because of the possibility of human errors.

Today, we’ll be looking at how using automated testing can simplify the software testing process, saving testers time, and ensuring fewer defects go undetected before the app is available to customers.

Read on for more information.

What Is the Difference Between Automated and Manual Testing?

There are a few key differences between manual and automated testing.

Manual software testing is done entirely by hand. A person sits at their computer and combs through application screens, experimenting with many usage and input combinations, noting results compared to the expected behavior of the application, and recording their findings. Manual testing involves repeating processes through the development cycle, checking for changes in the source code and how operating environments and hardware configurations can affect app performance.

However, automated testing allows the tester to repeat predefined actions, compare app behavior results, and create reports on those results without human involvement. Once automated tests have been written, they can be replicated over and over while the tester moves on to other important testing processes. Automated testing tools can also perform tasks that would be impossible for manual testers, such as running multiple tests at the same time. As such, automated testing has been an essential part of any successful app development process.

However, while automated software testing is the best way to simplify the testing process, many organizations still view it as expensive or difficult to implement, especially if a company has a smaller budget or does not have the resources to commit to automated testing. Luckily, there are many open-source tools (like Selenium) that offer automated testing to companies regardless of their size or budget.

So, how does automated testing simplify testing tasks? Let’s find out.

How Does Automated Testing Simplify The Software Testing Process?

Automated Testing Saves Money and Time

As aforementioned, software tests are consistently repeated throughout the development process to ensure quality. Whenever the source code is modified, the test should repeat tests. Whenever the application is updated, it needs to be tested on multiple operating systems and devices. However, repeating tests so many times is both expensive and time-consuming. Automated tests can be repeated as often as required with no added cost or manpower. They are also much faster than manual testing. 

Automated testing reduces the time it takes to run software tests. Tasks that took days now only take hours, which also means companies save money.

Automated Testing Increases Test Coverage

Another way automated testing improves the software testing process is by increasing the scope and depth of tests, which directly translates to software quality. For example, arduous tests can be run without assistance; manual testers often avoid lengthy tests as they simply don’t have the time to run them. Tests can also be created in one browser, then run on multiple browsers or devices with different configurations.

Automated testing can analyze an application and view memory contents, files, data tables, and internal programming information to confirm whether the product behaves as required. Simply, test automation executes many complex test cases during test runs, providing unparalleled coverage that cannot be obtained through manual testing alone.

Automated Testing Improves Accuracy

No matter how diligent the tester, they’ll still make some mistakes during the manual testing process. Automated testing involves the same steps, but completes them precisely whenever they are executed. In addition, automated testing tools also record in-depth results for every test. As such, testers have more time to create different automated tests that target another aspect of the app development and help create a better, defect-free application.

Automated Testing Performs Tasks Impossible in Manual Testing

As we have already pointed out, automated testing performs numerous tasks that are simply impossible for even the biggest QA departments in the world. For example, automated testing can simulate thousands of virtual users interacting with an application at once, seeing how the app and network fare with a large amount of traffic.

Final Thoughts

As you can see, automated testing offers so many benefits to testing teams. Whereas manual testing is a slow and painstaking process, automated testing makes testers more efficient and productive, which eventually benefits everybody involved in the app development process, from the company to the user. 

In short, if you are looking to simplify software testing, automated testing is the way forward.

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