Automated testing is becoming more prevalent in the application testing process, replacing many slow processes and increasing efficiency among testing teams in nearly every industry. Within this article, we’ll be asking what automation testing is and looking at its advantages and disadvantages compared to manual testing. We’ll also look at the pros and cons of manual testing to provide a balanced overview of the testing methods available to QA teams.
Read on for more information.
What Is Automation Testing?
Automation testing involves writing test scripts to automate the testing process. Testers use relevant automated testing tools to create these scripts and provide greater coverage when testing an application, reducing testing time and saving money in the long run.
This type of testing relies on automated scripts running as expected to generate reports on the app’s overall health. One of the best things about automated testing is performing repetitive tasks and regression tests without requiring a manual tester. That being said, some manual effort is still needed to create the test scripts in the first place.
What Is Manual Testing?
Manual testing is the traditional method of testing software by hand. QA testers scour the application to find bugs during the development stage. The tester runs through all aspects of the app or software, executing test cases and creating reports without any automated testing tools. This method allows for a more intuitive approach to application development.
Differences between the Types of Testing
Simply put, there are numerous differences between automated manual testing.
Firstly, manual testing is done by a human tester, while automated testing requires scripts and an automated tool or framework. However, automated tools still require a person to create the scripts. In addition, manual testing is not always accurate as there will be more human errors, while automated testing is more reliable – automated tools don’t get tired!
Manual testing also takes a lot longer, whereas automated testing can run the same tests at a much quicker pace. Manual testing does not require any programming knowledge, which is not the case for automated testing – testers need a certain skill level to develop automated test scripts.
What Are the Benefits of Automated and Manual Testing?
There are many advantages to automated and manual testing.
Advantages of Automated Testing
- Automated testing helps you find many more bugs than manual testing. In addition, automated tests increase test coverage and can scour parts of applications that manual testing cannot reach, covering even the tiniest units.
- Also, automated tests do not need to rest and won’t make any silly mistakes; the testing process is much quicker and more efficient. In addition, automated tests use software tools and do not suffer from lapses in conversation like human testers.
- Beneficially, automated tests can be recorded and used in similar testing operations, saving plenty of time in later builds.
- Testers can expect accurate results quickly, allowing testers to dedicate time to other practices.
Advantages of Manual Testing
- You can get accurate and fast feedback on the application’s status thanks to manual testing.
- You don’t have to spend money on automation tools or hiring new staff.
- You can use human intuition and rely on your judgment, benefiting certain UI tests.
- Manual testing lets you test small changes quickly; there is no need to create a new automated test, which would be less efficient.
What Are the Drawbacks of Automated and Manual Testing?
While there are many pros to automated and manual testing, there are also many cons. These include the following.
Disadvantages of Automated Testing
- When humans are less involved in the testing process, you may overlook certain visual aspects of the application. Automated tools cannot account for UI features like font size and color, button sizes, contrast, image alignment, etc.
- Automation tools are very expensive, which will take up a significant portion of your testing budget.
- While automation testing tools can make processes more efficient, they are not 100% foolproof just yet. So expect your automation tools to have limitations.
- Testers will also need to debug and rerun automated tests if they fail, which can be slow and costly.
Disadvantages of Manual Testing
- Manual testing is less reliable than automated testing as humans will always make more errors than an automated testing tool.
- In addition, you cannot record your manual testing process, which means you cannot reuse the same method for another build unless you write down the exact steps as you go.
- Some testing tasks are difficult to perform manually (such as repeated tests), which can take a lot of time, leaving no room for other creative testing tasks.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, there are many pros and cons to automated and manual testing. As such, testers should incorporate both testing methods into their testing strategy, reaping the benefits of both while limiting their drawbacks as well.
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