Automation and corporate resilience go hand in hand. To achieve both, organizations look to automation testing tools that are built upon the principles of flexibility and efficiency, while also pairing those with added benefits like low expenses and error reduction. But what’s now considered “simple” automation is sometimes falling short.

As the market for software solutions is rapidly shifting away from supporting simple test execution, software engineering leaders are looking toward incorporating AI into the entire software cycle. To support AI-augmented software testing, organizations must establish a portfolio of multiple tools and capabilities. 

Over 70% of businesses would employ AI-augmented testing actively by 2025, up from 5% in 2021. If companies overlook the potential to use smart automation tools by 2025, they will likely spend twice as much time on defect remediation compared to competitors who use smart automation testing.

Advanced automated testing is possible with software testing tools, which is what we'll discuss in this post. Let's get started!

What is Test Automation?

Test automation is the process of using automation technologies to maintain test data, run tests, and review test results in order to improve software quality. As a result, test automation provides repeatable findings and data points. Automated tests have several major advantages, including ease of maintenance, the ability to efficiently employ resources during off-peak hours, and the ability to generate reports based on the completed tests, to mention a few.

In a nutshell, test automation is the process of automating the execution of tests, the management of test data, and the analysis of results in order to increase the quality of software. It's simply a quality-control metric that's automated.

There are several advantages to test automation, including:

• Test cycle times, as well as development and delivery schedules, are reduced.
• Regression coverage is improved.
• Ability to reallocate resources that would otherwise be spent on mundane testing tasks to activities that add more value.
• Human errors that may arise during manual testing are eliminated.
• Resource utilization is more efficient (as tests can be run at any time).
• Consistent techniques and procedures along with continuous integration efforts.
• Long-term costs for applications with a long life cycle are decreased.

Moving to test automation involves careful business planning and a thorough understanding of where it can and cannot add value. It's critical to set reasonable expectations for what test automation can accomplish and what you'll need to make it happen. Oftentimes, unrealistic expectations cause a lot of automation efforts to fail.

Automated Testing vs Manual Testing

Testing is, without question, critical to the success of any software development project. Project requirements, budget, timeline, experience, and suitability all influence and have a direct impact on the testing method used, whether human or automated. This all fits into the idea of three essential components in software development projects that teams focus on time, cost, and quality; the goal of each project is to reduce the cost and time it takes to complete it while maintaining high-quality outputs.

You might be wondering what the difference is between "manual testing" and "automated testing." Within each area, specific testing approaches such as black-box, white-box, integration, system, performance, and load testing are available. Some of these methods are better suited to humans, while others are better suited to machines.

In terms of return on investment, manual and automated testing are vastly different. Manually testing a new feature allows you to quickly and inexpensively learn more about the application's quality. As the test inventory expands and the frequency with which these tests must be done climbs, the total cost of manual tests rises. Test automation, on the other hand, has a higher upfront cost that decreases over time.

Here's a quick rundown of each style, along with some advantages and disadvantages:

Top 10 Tools for Automation Testing

AI-powered Automation Testing Tools

ACCELQ

ACCELQ has established itself as one of the most sought-after AI-powered test automation solutions that can automate Web UI, API, Mobile, and Desktop testing while also being codeless. ACCELQ customers include Fortune 500 firms from a variety of industries including Frontier, McKesson, Indigo Beam, Evolent Health, and more, that have used the software to significantly accelerate their automation ambitions.

No vendor locks, built-in frameworks, compatibility with all browsers, visual testing, full taxonomy, requirement mapping, in-sprint automation, limitless test agents, and up to 50% cost reductions are just a few of the important features of ACCELQ.

ACCELQ was founded by Mahendra Alladi in 2014 with headquarters in San Francisco, CA, US. The tool offers a 14-day free trial and pricing ranges based on the automation tool you require. For example, Automate Web starts at $390 per user per month while Automate API starts at $70 per user per month.

ACCELQ also offers a comprehensive set of resources that include blogs, video articles, and case studies. Additionally, the tool offers a robust help center and plenty of documentation covering Automate, Manual, API, learning videos, an extension library, and a command library. 

Eggplant

Software platform with AI-powered capabilities to automate entire testing procedures. Eggplant lets users build detailed models of complex systems and workflows and reduce the number of manual quality assurance jobs and errors. 

Eggplant helps testers cut test case setup and deployment time in half, run functional tests three times faster, run 19 million QA tests per year on your online retail sites, and automate as much as 75% of regression testing.

Distributed by Keysight Technologies, Eggplant is headquartered in Santa Rosa, CA, US, and it currently serves the aerospace and defense industry, automotive, communications, education, enterprise, government, semiconductor industry, and more. Some big-name clients include Cerner, Lockheed Martin, TJX Companies, Zebra Technologies, and more.

Worth mentioning, the site includes a resourceful library of documentation, videos, and more for the Eggplant suite of products including Eggplant Functional, Eggplant DAI, Eggplant Performance, Eggplant Manager, Eggplant Automation Cloud, and Eggplant Monitoring Insights, to name a few. 

IBM Rational Functional Tester

A commercially accessible automated testing tool is IBM's Rational Functional Tester. Siebel, Net, SAP, Java, PowerBuilder, Flex, and Dojo are just a few of the development environments it supports. The scripting languages Java and VB.Net are both supported.

IBM Rational Quality Manager (RQM) and Rational Functional Tester (RFT) are tightly integrated (test management tool). The application supports functional testing, regression testing, and data-driven testing. In Storyboard Testing, which is a unique feature of RFT, the test script is captured as a series of screenshots of the actions performed against the Application Under Test. The tester may make adjustments to the screenshots in order to improve the script.

In short, the tool’s key features are visual editing, advanced ScriptAssure technology, earlier data detection, test scripting, and integration with other software like IBM Jazz. Prominent clients using IBM’s testing tool include General Motors, Pfizer, Metlife, MAXIMUS, and many more.

We recommend that you take a dive at IBM’s Rational Functional Tester documentation for a full breakdown of the tool’s versioning as well as additional information, the tester forum, and support resources.

Kobiton

Regardless of how you prefer to automate, Kobiton makes Mobile and IoT Continuous Testing a reality. With an AI-driven scriptless approach and/or your choice of open-source and script-based tooling, you can easily automate Functional, Performance, Visual, and Compatibility testing. Well-known clients of Kobiton include Sunnova Energy, Medable, First National Bank, Full Stack Labs, and more.

Testers use Kobiton to ensure comprehensive quality and release at DevOps speed. Some of the key features of Kobiton include scriptless capture and execution automation, AI-assisted remediation, automated crash detection, visual validation, UX testing, seamless CI/CD integration, etc.

From retail, e-commerce, telco, insurance, financial, gaming, healthcare, and many more, Kobiton accelerates delivery and mobile app testing. Brought to users by KMS, the same founders of QASymphony and Katalon, Kobiton was made available in 2016.

Virtuoso

Virtuoso is a rapidly growing test automation platform that enables even the most challenging tests to be automated with ease. To position itself as a leader in the 'Quality First' software revolution, the solution employs AI and Natural Language Programming. Clients include Qualcomm, Intel, Northrop Grumman, and ON Semiconductor, to name a few.

The tool's goal is to give every software developer in the globe access to Virtuoso's full test automation platform, which can be used by anyone from manual testers to developers. According to the company, it has developed the most sophisticated and up-to-date QA automation platform in the industry.

Universal Web and Mobile Automation Testing

Appium

An open-source platform that automates native mobile, web, and hybrid apps on iOS, Android, and Windows desktop. Appium supports Safari on iOS and Chrome on Android, as well as the built-in 'Browser' app on Android, to access mobile web apps. 

A "webview" — a native component that allows interaction with web material — is wrapped in a wrapper in hybrid programs. Projects like Apache Cordova make it simple to create hybrid apps by combining web technologies and wrapping them in a native wrapper. 

Appium is "cross-platform," meaning you can use the same API to write tests for several platforms (iOS, Android, and Windows). This allows for code reuse between iOS, Android, and Windows test suites.

Since 2012, Appium has existed in some form or another. It's been directed by a variety of people and organizations, and it's even been written in three distinct programming languages. On paper, Appium was founded in 2015 and is currently headquartered in San Francisco, CA, US. Many testers turn to Appium given its expansive documentation and its well-known portfolio of clients that includes Wells Fargo, Walmart, Pearson, S&P Global and more.

Ranorex

Founded in 2007, Ranorex Studio is an all-in-one test automation solution that is simple for beginners yet powerful for advanced users. Use the dependable capture-and-replay tool to automate regression tests, drag-and-drop UI components, code modules for keyword-driven testing, or use the Studio's full IDE to develop tests in C# or VB.NET. 

The tool's Studio supports a wide range of technologies, including difficult-to-automate legacy desktop programs. To execute your tests, use a desktop, web, or mobile endpoint. You can test iOS and Android apps on real devices as well as simulators and emulators using Ranorex. 

The Ranorex Studio headquarters is Graz, Austria and it currently holds clients like Citrix, Canon, Siemens, Caterpillar, Sage, Continental, IBM, Lufthansa, Parsons, and many more. Ranorex Studio licenses are required and are locked to specific machines. For enterprises, Ranorex offers licences held on a license manager. In both options, there are several price points. The tool also offers plenty of resources like a GUI testing guide, a Mobile testing guide, a Regression testing guide, wikis, whitepapers, screencasts, templates, case studies, and more.

TestComplete

Based out of Somerville, MA, USA, TestComplete is a graphical user interface (GUI) test automation tool that can be used to test any desktop, internet, or mobile application by both technical and non-technical users. Client companies include Uline, Boeing, Danaher, and Select Medical, to name a few.

Code and codeless test creation using record and playback or scripts in your modern programming language of choice, superior object recognition using machine learning and AI, ability to test enterprise-grade apps like SAP, Oracle EBS, and Salesforce, parallel UI tests in the cloud and on local machines for CI/CD purposes, and tight integration with the client's test management, issue tracking, and version control systems are just a few of the platform's key features.

Cross Browser Automation Testing Tools

LambdaTest

Trusted by more than 1 million developers and quality analysts, the LambdaTest automation platform is a secure, reliable, and high-performance automation tool in the cloud and built with scalability in mind. 

With Lambda Test, users can leverage a scalable, secure, and dependable automation cloud to run automated browser tests. Test Selenium, Cypress, Appium, Hyperexecute, Playwright, and Puppeteer on 3000+ browsers and devices at scale.

The solution was released in 2017 in San Francisco, CA, US. The tool offers different pricing points based on the products it offers including manual testing, web automation testing, native app automation, HyperExecute, Visual Regression testing, test at scale, and enterprise pricing. Some companies currently using it include Lunchbox, Sanofi, myGwork, Relatient, and more.

Notably, the tool also offers a wealth of resources such as a learning hub, webinars, community & support, blogs, documentation, and certifications to name a few.

Selenium

With a history that dates back to 2007, Selenium is an open-source web automation tool that is in great demand and widely used right now. It is regarded as one of the best QA automation tools available because it can automate on a variety of operating systems, including Windows, Mac, and Linux, as well as browsers like Firefox, Chrome, and Internet Explorer, as well as Headless browsers.

Selenium test scripts can be written in a variety of programming languages, including Java, C#, Python, Ruby, PHP, Perl, and JavaScript. Selenium IDE, a browser add-on, has record and playback capabilities. Selenium WebDriver is a powerful tool that lets you create more complex and advanced automation scripts.

Selenium is favored by clients like IBM, Liberty Mutual Insurance, Citigroup, BNY Mellon, and more, thanks to helpful resources like documentation for WebDriver, Grid, IE Driver Server, IDE, Test Practices, and more.

Wrapping Up

Application leaders are employing continuous quality approaches and technology to improve software delivery and quality. Our goal with this essay was to assist you in comparing and contrasting ten popular functional software test automation solutions.

Still, there are a slew of other options to consider, many of which have powerful, cutting-edge AI capabilities. Please contact one of our Svitla experts for a consultation on the unique array of testing services we offer if you are unclear about which test instrument will benefit your business the best. With a wide range of talents and expertise, our testing professionals have worked on a variety of global, enterprise-grade, and startup-oriented projects, ensuring that they are well-equipped for your specific company's demands.