Top 10 Automation Testing Tools to Look Out in 2020

1. Introduction

Maintaining quality and speed together for a software project requires automation testing tools by industries. Using the right QA testing automation tools help to deliver high-quality working products to customers. Let us discuss the 10 best tools for automation testing to practice in 2020 to make a software project a big success.

Deciding on the right QA testing tool is really tough and you have to pay harder if your choice goes wrong. When deciding on the best tools for automation testing, you must check tool constraints and how you can fix these problems. These constraints may include testing environments, limited support for programming languages or operating systems, frameworks, etc.

Also, you have to check the level of technical skills and costs of the automated QA testing tools. When deciding on the QA testing automation tools, you must be able to balance constraints as needed by a software project. However, it is difficult to compromise all types of constraints for a single QA tool.

2. The History Behind the Automation and Machine tools

Think of the industrial revolution in Europe during the late 18th century. The introduction of machine tools increased work efficiency and manual work was also reduced to a larger extent. One of the best discoveries was suggested by Henry Ford, the first automobile. Earlier, his small plant was not able to satisfy a wider need for customers. 

Henry Ford wanted to introduce something out-of-the-box where manufacturing costs can be reduced and productivity can be increased. As a result, he tried various mass production techniques that make it possible to create a greater number of products at very lower rates. It was a significant profit for the Company and a model T was created every 24 seconds at a cost of $450. You would not believe but most of the cars were replaced by the T model and it was 1914 when more than 50 percent of the total automobile market was overtaken by Henry Ford in the USA.

Besides a manufacturer, Henry Ford was an exceptional manager too. His automation ideas and business techniques were adopted by thousands of businesses worldwide. Software industries also adopted his automation ideas and improved the overall quality of software products to a satisfying level. It gave new wings to the IT industry and identifying or fixing bugs became easier like never before. 

The objective of this article is to make you familiar with what are the different automation tools for software testing and learn about the most amazing automation testing tools to practice in 2010 and beyond. There is no clear idea of how many types of automation testing tools but we will discuss the best tools for automation testing here that can be used with all types of software testing projects.

3. Challenges in Software Manual Testing

Software testing is not easy but it comes with plenty of issues and challenges. If we talk about manual testing, it is more prone to errors than usual. Further, it created boredom and time-consuming too. If you can repeat test case execution then things may become a bit easier and comfortable for you.

When using automation testing tools, you can repeat the execution of test cases and complete your work much faster like never before. Here is a quick look at business challenges and technical challenges while developing a software product.

Business Challenges:

• The cost of the project becomes larger when you have to perform manual testing throughout the project.
• The level of risks may increase and few bugs are left untreated when performing manual testing.
• Sometimes, versions are released frequently and manual testing is highly time-consuming and a tiring process.

Technical Challenges:

• Frequent releases create versioning problems and many bugs are ignored by mistake.
• There is inconsistency in executing test data as every new test case takes time to build.
• There are browser compatibility issues and it takes time in checking a software app across different platforms.

By looking at all these issues, the IT sector decided to address these issues closely. They decided to opt for amazing automation testing tools that are not only efficient but cost-effective tool

Read: What is Unit Testing? Unit Testing Tutorial Guide for Beginners

Outcomes:

After the adoption of automated testing tools, the following improvements were noticed by the team

• There was a significant reduction in project costs
• The test coverage was enhanced largely.
• Test cycle time was reduced from 15 days to 3 days.

You can see the benefits itself and must have realized why Automated testing tools are vital for any software project.

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4. Why use QA testing automation tools?

Using specialized testing tools according to the nature of a project has multiple benefits as given below.

• It helps to reduce the routine manual tasks and test cases can be automated and reused throughout the testing process.
• The testing accuracy can be maintained to a higher level.
• Automation testing is faster that can save your overall time, money, and effort.

Sign up for QA online training classes now to know all about QA automated testing tools.

5. How to decide on the best automated QA testing Tools?

Deciding on the right QA testing tool is really tough and you have to pay harder if your choice goes wrong. When deciding on the best tools for automation testing, you must check tool constraints and how you can fix these problems. These constraints may include testing environments, limited support for programming languages or operating systems, frameworks, etc.

Also, you have to check the level of technical skills and costs of the automated QA testing tools. When deciding on the QA testing automation tools, you must be able to balance constraints as needed by a software project. However, it is difficult to compromise all types of constraints for a single QA tool. Here are some more convincing facts to keep in mind while selecting the best automated testing tool for your software project.

• Nature of a project: You have to check the nature of a project in the first step like either it is a web app, mobile app, desktop app, or any other software app.
• Purpose of Testing: You have to check why you want to use automated testing tools. Are you going to check the frontend or backend? Would you like to check the behavior or functionality of a software app?
• Community: While deciding the best tool for your project, don’t forget to pay attention to the community. it is the place where expert people share their experiences worldwide.

Moving ahead, we will discuss the complete list of the latest automation testing tools that are largely adopted by companies worldwide.

6. Latest Tools for Automation Testing

After deep research and continuous efforts, we have prepared a list of latest tools for automation testing that are frequently used by top industries and it can witness amazing career opportunities too in the software testing space.

1. Selenium WebDriver
2. Protractor
3. JMeter
4. Appium 
5. Travis CI
6. Cucumber
7. UFT/QTP
8. Work Soft
9. Telerik Test Studio
10. IBM Rational Functional Tester

Read: What is Software Testing & Different Types of Software Testing?

6.1 Selenium WebDriver

It is one of the best automated testing tools that allows taking certain actions on the text. It is compatible across multiple browsers which makes it the most suitable for testing web-based apps. When using Selenium WebDriver, multiple test cases can be covered together than usual. 

Key Features:

• The tool is universal in nature and it can be used with almost any programming language. 
• Selenium has millions of users worldwide and joining the Selenium community can always give you multiple benefits.
• Selenium is an open-source tool and it can be customized quickly based on project needs.

6.2 Protractor

This tool is considered amazing for end-to-end testing and considered suitable Angular JS projects. Test cases in the protractor tool can be written using the JavaScript programming language that is used worldwide. So, finding a JavaScript professional is not tough who can use the Protractor automated testing tool. 

Key Features:

• When using Protractor, identifying and fixing bugs is much easier. 
• Testers can build their own test cases quickly if needed. When there is proper communication among developers and testers then using Protractor can be more efficient than usual. 
• As we have already discussed that Protractor is a perfect tool for AngularJS apps. It is also suitable for apps created on the top of other technologies. 

6.3 JMeter

JMeter is an Apache-based product considered more suitable for load testing. It is generally required for testing web-based apps to check the behavior of a software program. It works completely at a different level and makes you sure how an application will work in real-time. 

Key Features:

• The tool has the ability to discover bugs at an earlier stage and fix them quickly in less budget.
• The tool is easy to use and has a user-friendly interface that can be learned by anyone.
• When using JMeter, executing test cases, generating visual reports, or tables is a matter of minutes.

JMeter is a wonderful choice when you want to automate the testing for any software project and there is no skilled professional to manage the work. Here, JMeter can work as a skilled professional in your team.

6.4 Appium

When you are using a tool for testing native apps, hybrid, or web apps then Appium could be the amazing choice to consider. 

Key Features:

• It is an alternative to Selenium WebDriver but more suitable for mobile use.
• While using Appium, the same API can be used to test an application across multiple operating systems.
• You can always reuse the test cases and you don’t have to limit yourself to one programming language when testing a software application.

6.5 Travis CI

Continuous Integration has become a widely adopted approach today where developers can integrate their code into a shared repository several times. After each integration, test cases should be executed to identify all possible errors and try to fix them at an early stage.

Key Features:

• Travis CI tool can automate the continuous integration process nicely.
• It helps to execute test cases without human intervention and saves a lot of time and resources. As soon as some error is detected, it will notify you. 
• The tool should be used by testers or developers over time.

6.6 Cucumber

It is an open-source tool that is available free of cost and generally supports the behavior-driven development. Also, it can support multiple languages too. So, you don’t restrict yourself to a single programming language while using Cucumber automated testing tools.

Key features:

• Cucumber helps to run the code over different frameworks.
• Test scripts are generally written in simple languages like English or Gherkin.
• It can support multiple programming languages together.

6.7 HPE Unified Functional Testing (UFT)

UFT is considered one of the best tools for automation testing that brings developers and testers together makes functional testing more effective and simpler.

Read: Database Testing Interview Questions and Answers for Fresher and Experienced

Key features:

• While using UFT, a piece of code is generally written in VB script programming language.
• IT can support data-driven or functional testing for any software app.
• It is compatible with various platforms or browsers according to the nature of a project.

6.8 Work Soft

It is again one of the best options for automation testing and generally recommended for Agile or DevOps projects. This tool is suitable for complex test cases not simpler ones. You don’t have to write much code while using the Work Soft tool and it supports continuous testing.

Key features:

• This tool can be used at any stage of the SAP project.
• It can test complex user interfaces too like color, features, design, etc.
• It is an integrated test-data management tool for continuous integration or testing.

6.9 Telerik Test Studio

It is again an important tool in the list loved by both developers and testers. It can be used to check mobile or web apps as needed.

Key features:

• The tool can support multiple languages together like VB.net or C# etc.
• Test cases can be written in different programming languages according to the nature of a project.
• It stimulates the parallel test execution and helps in generating amazing reports too.

6.10 IBM Rational Functional Tester / RFT

It is a commercial testing tool introduced by IBM and it helps in creating functional or regression test cases too. Further, it supports GUI testing, data-driven testing, and more.

Key features:

• The tool has storyboard features where you can see or edit tests.
• It majorly supports two programming languages, Java and the VB.NET.
• It can be effectively integrated with more IBM tools as needed.

Register for a demo class now and learn to use different automation testing tools at your fingertips!

7. Next Steps:

In this blog on “latest tools for automation testing”, we have listed a few automated testing tools that are frequently used by industries. There are more options as well but you need to be very careful while choosing the most suitable one for you and don’t forget to consider parameters while deciding on the best automated QA testing tool.

There is no software program that can cure 100 percent errors but it is necessary to check it for various bugs and fix those errors at an early stage. Here, using the best tools can be a more convenient and trusted option for you. To practice these tools, you may join some online training classes and master all fundamental skills.