Top-5 reasons to use both manual testing and test automation: when and what type to use – Tech Digest

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Testing is an essential part of any software development project. The quality of the application and accordingly its success with the end-user depends on it. Testing is divided into two key types: manual and automation. Nowadays the most effective way to ensure the quality of an application is to combine both types of testing. In this article, we explain why this is the best option for product testing, as well as look at the features, advantages, and disadvantages of each type of testing, and find out when to use which type of testing.

Most companies, even having implemented and set up test automation, still use manual testing. Here are 5 key reasons why:

Now lets figure out what manual testing and test automation are in detail.

Manual testing is a process where software is tested manually, without any automation tools or scripts. Manual testers check whether the functionality of the application and its design corresponds to the test plans. Testers also develop test cases and implement them manually, and prepare reports based on the results of their execution. As a result, visible and hidden software defects are identified.

They say test automation will soon completely replace manual testing. Despite this fact, it is very likely that manual testing will never go away. Here are proofs:

Despite these advantages, manual testing is not a universal testing type. The main disadvantages of this type of testing are:

Test automation is a type of testing in which tests are executed using automation tools and scripts. Automation allows you to carry out in cases where manual testing is too time-consuming or not suitable for other reasons.

As you know, automation increases the efficiency of software development in terms of saving time and human resources. Here is a list of the key benefits of test automation:

However, test automation faces certain challenges that you need to be aware of in order to ensure the highest possible quality of the project.

In manual testing, the tester executes test cases manually. He describes scenarios and edge cases and then tests them.

In test automation, this work is automated. Scripts and tools are used that, once configured, automatically perform the steps required to test the script.

Key differences between the two types of testing by parameters:

As a summary, lets consider when manual testing is preferable, and when test automation (here we agree with how Vilmate blog looks at it).

Exploratory testing. Studying the functionality of a new product from different perspectives is only possible through manual testing. This allows you to inspect a wide range of paths, thus identifying defects that would otherwise be missed by scripts. Exploration is a manual process, any member of the project team can contribute to it. Specialized knowledge for test automation is not required here, but the opinions of different team members are welcome. New functionality that is still in development and is gradually evolving and changing needs testing, but automated tests are not yet viable here.

Usability testing. Testing for usability is something that can potentially be automated, but the execution by a human is more effective in this case. The absence of disappointment is the main criterion that helps to decide whether a product is convenient or not. And this is a subjective assessment that should follow specific guidelines for making decisions about usability issues.

Random (monkey) testing. It is performed informally, with the aim to find out any loophole in the system. Random testing can only be performed manually. Unlike test automation, which only tests what is predictable and proves that the program works as expected through the combined efforts of automated test developers, manual random testing is convenient in a different way. It allows the tester to act as a real user who can find bugs through (pre)guessing bugs. If applied individually, specialized testing will not be sufficient to ensure software quality, but it will add support for other QA activities. Sometimes this method can be mixed with exploratory testing. The former, however, focuses more on negative testing.

Short-term project testing. Its not a good idea to start automated tests when the project is planned as a short-term effort. Manual testing will be enough to meet the basic needs of such a project. This can lead to wasted resources and automation becomes useless. Automation means higher maintenance and management costs, as well as additional man-hours, scripting, rewriting, which may not balance with the potential ROI of a small project.

Regression testing. Test automation is a good option to check if already existing versions of an application can work after a new version of the application is released. By automating regression testing, the QA team can count on benefits such as increased test coverage, recurring test results, increased test efficiency due to faster test execution, and continuous use of regression tests.

Performance testing. The execution of load tests should be supported by automation tools. For example, if you need to simulate the use of an application by any number of concurrent users, automate this process. There are no viable manual alternatives here. The QA team creates load test scripts and develops the corresponding test scripts. End-user behavior is simulated with scaling loads up to thousands of concurrent users. This way you understand how well the application performs under load, and see the problems that the end-user may have.

Repeatable functional test cases. The ability to spare manual testers from repetitive execution of the same tests is the basis for the cost-effectiveness of automation. Routine, repetitive tests should not be performed manually. This is time-consuming and a resource for many bugs. If the task does not change on different test cycles, then it can be executed by scripts.

Jun 29, 2022Tech Digest Correspondent

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Top-5 reasons to use both manual testing and test automation: when and what type to use - Tech Digest