Ranking the Top Automation Testing Tools in 2024
The automation testing market size exceeded $15 billion in 2020 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 16%* between 2021-2027. This growth is largely attributed to the adoption of advanced testing methods, including DevOps and Agile methodologies. As more organizations invest in test automation, you risk being left behind if you do not.
While the goal is to improve the accuracy of your testing to keep up with competitors, this transition does not mean the end of manual testing. Human intuition and manual error-checking are still of great value. Instead, test automation boosts the efficiency of the testing process. Automation testing tools allow you to create better software and deliver it faster.
You can test at every stage of the delivery pipeline — but where do you begin?
Here are some of the top automation testing tools to consider in 2022, plus how to get started.
What Are Automation Testing Tools?
Back in the early 2000s, organizations began adopting agile practices, driving the adoption of tools that automated the building, testing, configuring, and deployment processes of software development. The issue was that separate teams performed functions operating within their silos, which led to DevOps and the creation of tools that ensured continuous delivery and product updates. Testing was an area that remained siloed, being a manual, time-consuming process.
This is how automation testing practices and tools first came about — and now, they’re here to stay, as 42.5%* of organizations report that test automation is an essential aspect of their QA process.
In the software industry, there is manual testing and automated testing. For manual testing, a QA team is responsible for testing the function of the software via a series of logical steps and test case scenarios. In comparison, automated testing is completed through an automation tool.
Automation testing tools aim to achieve faster release cycles, improving customer satisfaction and retention rates, which then influence revenue. Using automation testing tools ensures your application is responding and functioning as expected before it reaches your user base. Best of all, you can then deliver a higher quality product to the market without worrying about errors and bugs commonly associated with manual tests.
A test case should be automated under several conditions, including if:
- The task will be repeated
- The test is time-consuming and automation will save time
- The test is subject to human error
- The test has downtime between steeps
- There is repetition
- Testing tasks are difficult to perform manually
Related: What You Need to Know About Test Automation in 2022
What to Consider When Choosing Automation Testing Tools
Research shows that 25.9% of organizations surveyed found choosing the right tool the biggest challenge, followed by setting the right test automation approach.
Before choosing the right automation testing tools for your software project, you need to establish a test automation framework. Think of your framework as the foundation for your software testing process.
As automated software testing tools continue to evolve, implementing the right test tool can significantly increase your software testing process’s accuracy, efficiency, and coverage. That said, no two automation testing tools are identical. Before selecting the best tools, you must evaluate the features and strengths of each tool based on your goals, capabilities, and budget.
To choose the right tool, keep the following in mind.
Overall Project Specifications
First, focus on your requirements and project scope, such as:
- The type of software you’re testing
- The supported scripting languages, platforms, and browsers
- Internal expertise and skillsets available
Budget and Cost
- The higher quality of the tool, the higher the cost — but with that cost comes better reporting and quicker turnarounds
- Do you need to hire additional staff or specialists to help perform more complex testing? If so, what is your budget?
Type of Automated Testing Framework Used
- If your internal teams are not highly experienced with programming languages and skills, you may opt for a scriptless framework
- If you have expert-level QA testers on board for your project, you will more likely choose a coding framework
Visibility Into Test Results
- What kind of analysis reports do you want to have after the testing process is complete?
- Videos? Test reports? Screenshots?
- Choose a tool based on what you want the reports to show you — failed features, detected errors, etc.
Top 6 Automation Testing Tools
Knowing what you want out of an automation testing tool will help you choose the best option based on the considerations above. Focus on your company’s highest priority items when comparing tools, keeping each tool’s core capabilities in mind.
Here is a comparison of the top six automation tools to consider this year.
Katalon Studio
Katalon is the leading low-code test automation solution for API, web, desktop, and mobile apps. This all-in-one test automation solution allows you to scale with no limit. This versatile tool runs on macOS, Windows, and Linux and is easily integrated with JIRA, Kobiton, Slack, Git, qTest, and more.
- Has native CI/CD integrations.
- Offers effortless coding for testers that do not have strong coding skills.
- Has dual scripting interfaces — this is appealing to beginners, but there are additional options for coding experts. Beginners benefit from a codeless experience, where experts have access to infinite testing extension and customization.
- Powerful analysis reports and test recording capabilities.
- Built for continuous testing, as it seamlessly integrates into your ecosystem.
For a detailed workshop recap and more about Katalon Studio’s continuous testing capabilities, explore our Testing/Katalon blog category.
Read more: Workshop Recap: Katalon Studio for Web and API Continuous Testing.
Kobiton
Kobiton offers one of the fastest processes for testing mobile apps, along with the ability to perform web testing. Kobiton can also create automated tests from your manual tests, and the scripts created are executable on hundreds of devices.
- Test your app in a fraction of the time it would normally take so that you can deliver new releases 10x faster.
- Take a scriptless approach driven by AI and offer support for Selenium, Appium, XCUI, and more.
- Screenshot and recording capabilities.
- Automate visual and UX design without needing to write any code.
LamdaTest
LambdaTest is trusted by 600,000+ users, and for a good reason. This tool offers web applications and mobile app testing to accelerate your go-to-market speed. It is the most preferred tool when performing automated cross-browser testing.
- Allows users to run multiple tests in the cloud for over 3000+ browsers and operating systems using Selenium Gold.
- Seamless integration with program management, bug tracking tools, and CI/CD.
- Integrated debugging to help you debug in live testing.
- Locally hosted web testing and geolocation testing capabilities available.
Selenium IDE
Selenium is not a tool itself but rather a technology that becomes a very powerful tool when Selenium IDE, Selenium Webdriver, and Selenium GRID are combined. Selenium is an open-source umbrella project for several libraries and tools aimed to support web browser automation.
- Web-based automation tool that supports multiple operating systems and several browsers, including Firefox, Chrome, Safari, etc. Being a simple, turn-key solution, this tool works out of the box for any web app.
- Supports multiple programming languages, including PHP, JavaScript, Ruby, Python, Java, Perl, C#, etc., to create test scripts. Selenium Grid allows you to execute test cases on multiple remote machines and handle them from one central point.
- Integrates with other testing frameworks and CI/CD tools.
Tricentis Tosca
Tricentis Tosca is a software testing tool used to automate end-to-end testing for software applications. This comprehensive automation tool is for API, web, mobile, and desktop.
- Completely automated, entirely codeless, and driven by AI.
- A model-based testing approach that uses risk-based optimization with smart test design.
- Parallel and cross-platform testing.
- API scanning.
- Integrates with other testing frameworks and CI/CD tools.
TestComplete
TestComplete is an easy-to-use automated Ut testing tool driven by AI. Acting as a single tool for all your test automation needs, TestComplete is ideal for teams of all skill levels. Run automated tests for mobile, web, and desktop applications whether you’re a technical or non-technical user.
- Flexible use cases for test design — record and playback and scripting.
- Object identification that utilizes the power of AI.
- Parallel cross-browsers and cross-device testing.
- Integrates with other testing frameworks and CI/CD tools.
Why KMS?
Implementing automation helps teams of all sizes expand test coverage, boost team productivity, and increase overall business efficiency. However, keep in mind that automation testing can be a learning curve for the testing team.
If you want to accelerate your software development with confidence, KMS can help. We offer consultative feedback and processes that create faster delivery cycles, leading to higher revenue. Our software testing and QA services ensure your team delivers the highest-quality version of your product while benefiting from precision and speed.
We work with you to:
- Evaluate your platform to determine which tests should be automated
- Design your automation strategy
- Execute automation testing, which includes configuring automation tools
- Provide metric-driven reports
- Offer continued maintenance
Schedule a consultation to discuss your project and development needs.
Resources*
https://www.gminsights.com/industry-analysis/automation-testing-market
https://www.lambdatest.com/blog/challenges-in-automation-testing/
