When we talk about automation testing, a picture of improved software quality for all types of application development projects comes into mind. But the truth is every company using automation testing still does some amount of manual testing. Also, automation testing requires high initial investment but yields a higher ROI in the longer run. The team should be equipped with proper skills and training to be successful with using automation tools and methodologies

Now the question arises, why do companies still rely on manual testing and when automation testing is a better alternative to manual testing.

Manual testing

Let’s answer the first question, in this world of automation, manual testing is still preferred at some places. For certain teams time is a constraint, they do not have time to investigate alternatives to manual testing methodologies and tools. The testers lacks skill set needed to be successful with automation tools. Organizations may lack awareness about the viable manual testing alternatives and may also lack in budget to invest in automation tools and resources.

There are some application and functionality constraints which must be validated by humans. Cases where look and feel and usability are of prime importance manual testing is the only option. On the other hand applications which are in the development stage and are still evolving, creating manual scripts will definitely result in loss of time and effort. Also, those complex functionality applications where time and cost investment outweighs the automation benefits, hands on manual testing may be a better alternative.

Automation testing

Let us address the second question now, when is automation testing a good idea. Automation testing automates static and repetitive tests which remain unchanged from one cycle to another. For re-testing existing application functionalities (regression testing) that are already present when adding newer versions, automation testing is useful.

In cases where the quality of the build (smoke testing) needs to be assessed to decide deeper testing, automation testing comes into the picture.  For testing application functionalities where lots of inputs in terms of different data sets (data- driven testing) needs to be validated, automation testing may significantly reduce the manual effort and thus time. Also, there are no viable manual alternatives to load and performance testing.

Conclusion

Hence, testing teams should give careful thought when considering manual testing over automation testing or vice versa. Proper expectations must be set out of automation. One should not overestimate and not try to automate without support from development. At Xpertladr, we specialize in providing the right skill set for manual and automation testing.

Get in touch with our experts to fulfill your testing needs at info@xpertladr.com.