What is Manual Testing and Automation testing?
There are key differences between manual and automated testing. Manual Testing vs Automation Testing has become a real talk of the town these days. The rapid rise of artificial intelligence, its horizon of scope, and problem-solving abilities are really making us, humans, question the limitations of our own capabilities in various fields; including software testing. If you are a software enthusiast, learning from manual testing tutorial, but are concerned about the implications of automated QA testing, then this article is just for you!Â
In this article, we will discuss Manual Testing vs Automation Testing: Which is Better? We will provide you with a thorough study of what is manual testing and automation testing. Its impact, the advantages and disadvantages of manual testing, and more. We will also provide all the valuable insights that our team of experts has gathered over the past few years.Â
What Is Manual Testing?
Manual testing is the traditional branch of software testing where software professionals, engineers, and experts, determine potential risks or flaws of a software during its developmental stages. It is done by manually setting up test cases, and scenarios and executing tests on software from an end-user perspective. The aim of manual testing is to identify those bugs or glitches that software may have before it is released into the marketplace so that the user experience is not hampered.
What Is Automated Testing?
Automated testing is comparatively a newer sibling to manual software testing. In automated testing instead of humans, machines run the necessary tests to determine whether a software is error-free or not. Automated testing is highly efficient when it comes to reducing the time of each test performed. However, its proficiency in responding to software from an end-user perspective is still not at par with human intelligence. This is the reason why manual testing and automation testing has become the new hot topic of discussion.
Difference Between Manual vs Automation Testing
The biggest difference between manual and automation testing is the use of artificial intelligence over human intelligence. To delve deep into the subject – Manual vs Automation Testing – we first need to understand how they are different from each other. In some cases, machine intelligence has proven to be more efficient, but in others, human intelligence has been more accurate. So let’s look into the difference between manual testing and automation testing.
How Manual Testing Works?
There are various steps involved in the process of Manual Testing Services. But to put it simply, manual testing is full-fledgedly dependent on QA experts and software analysts. These people come together and set up test cases or scenarios to test the efficiency of a software application.
How Automated Testing Works?
In automation testing, the process is pretty simple and direct. The tester (who can be a developer themselves) writes a test script to automate the execution of the test. The test script instructs the machine on how to validate a feature or an outcome of the software.
Let’s Compare Manual Testing vs Automation Testing
However, manual vs automated testing can also be seen in a different way. For instance, Manual testing is slow, tedious, and prone to human errors. Whereas, automation testing is fast, and scalable, but lacks a human perspective. Both of them have their own set of strengths and weaknesses, but both are important in the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC). To understand these differences better let’s compare manual and automated testing:
| Manual Testing vs Automation Testing | ||
| Comparison Criteria | Manual Testing | Automation Testing |
| Approach | Human Testes called QA experts/analysts manually set up and execute tests on software | With the help of tools and scripts, software is tested automatically. |
| Initial Setup Time | Depends on the size and the requirement of a project. May vary from a few hours to days. | Even for large and more complex projects it does not take more than 6-7 hours. |
| Human Involvement | Heavily dependent on qualified and experienced human testers. | Requires human involvement initially and after the tests are done. Not during the test execution. |
| Speed and Efficiency | Slow, tedious, and time-consuming. | Significantly faster than the manual testing process. |
| Project Life Cycle Stage | May or may not get delayed. | There is hardly any possibility of the Project Life Cycle getting delayed. |
| Cost and Budget | Investment is needed in human resources. | Investment is needed in tools like selenium, appium, etc. |
| Time and Resource Constraints | In the absence of QA testers, time and budget may get wasted. | Even in the absence of a QA tester, testing is completed without any constraints. |
| Skill Set Requirements | Highly skilled engineers, specialists, analysts, testers, etc. are required. | A developer with advanced knowledge of automated tools and test scripts can perform these tests. |
| Test Strategy and Planning | Manually done after analyzing project requirements. | All of the instructions are put into a test script after the project requirement study. |
| Test Data Management | It is done in traditional ways like using Excel sheets, and so it may be inaccessible sometimes. | It is easily available to the stakeholders from the automated tool dashboards. |
| Test Environment | Built according to end-user experience, considering all the plausible responses to the software. | End-user experience is prioritized, but all scenarios may not be covered. |
| Test Case Design | Dependent on checklists, guidelines, etc. | Dependent on frameworks like Keyword, DataDrive, etc. |
| Test Coverage | Can only test a limited permutation and combination of OS and devices. | Can test all the permutations and combinations of OS and Devices. |
| Test Execution Reliability | Owing to human error, it is less reliable. | Due to the use of automated tools, it is more reliable. |
| Test Maintenance | Test cases need to be preserved, scenarios need to be controlled, all factors need to work out to validate a certain feature. | There is no such need for test maintenance as everything happens automatically. |
| Test Automation Tools | Not required. | Heavily dependent on automation tools. |
| Early Detection of Bugs | Ideal for early detection of bugs. | Not ideal as it lacks human perspective. |
| Industry Standards and Compliance | Best maintained in manual testing. | Not so well maintained in automation as it only tests the software’s efficiency. |
| Complex Test Scenarios | Meets all kinds of test case scenarios as human testers use their creativity and perspective. | May not meet all kinds of scenarios as it lacks human interpretation. |
| Adaptability to Change | Not very flexible to change. | Very flexible as it is only a matter of changing the test script. |
| Continuous Integration and Delivery (CI/CD) | Possible but very tedious and slow. | Ideal for CI/CD methodology. |
| Reporting and Analysis | Best in manual testing as human interpretations can help foresee issues more accurately. | May not be so reliable as it lacks human analytical prowess. |
| User Feedback Incorporation | Ideal in this case as human users can be integrated into the testing process to give direct feedback. | Not suitable as it runs independently of human efforts. |
| Decision Criteria | Ideal choice for Ad Hoc, Usability, and Exploratory testing. | Ideal choice for Regression Testing, Load testing, etc. |
When we compare manual and automated testing in this manner, we can understand that it is really very important to choose the right product testing methodology to develop highly functioning software.
Automated vs Manual Testing Pros and Cons
So from the above comparison table, we can understand that neither automation testing nor manual testing is invincible. They both offer their own set of pros and cons. Let’s look at what they are:
Manual Testing Pros and Cons
The advantages and disadvantages of manual testing are as follows:
Benefits of Manual Testing:
- High-level accuracy for visual feedback
- More budget friendly
- Human intuition is at play
- Testers do not need high-level knowledge of coding
Limitations of Manual Testing:
- Less reliable as it is prone to human error
- Too much time consuming
- Slow, tedious, and not ideal for large complex projects
Automated Testing Pros and Cons
The advantages and disadvantages of automated testing are as follows:
Benefits of Automation Testing:
- Very fast and very efficient
- Provides a lot better test coverage
- Handles large and complex projects very easily
- Independent of human supervision
Limitations of Automation Testing:
- Does not provide any human insight
- Not ideal for visual feedback
- In case there is a bud in the test script, debugging becomes another issue
When to use Manual and Automation Testing?
With all the insights we have gained so far, it would be fair to say that manual testing and automated testing as their own terms of use. For certain scenarios automated tests may be better, for other cases, manual tests may be a better option. Let’s look at when to use manual and automation testing:
For Flexibility:
When a project requires a lot of flexibility, manual testing is the best choice. It can be argued that manual testing may not be as accurate as automation. However, human testers are more efficient in expanding the horizon of test cases, if need be, to help build robust software.
For Short-Term Projects:
Short-term projects usually run on a limited budget. Since automation testing costs a lot, for short-term projects, manual testing is again the better choice. For basic bug detection and making sure that the software is secure, user-friendly, robust, etc. human testers are enough. After the software is launched, if there is a necessity to make the software more advanced, automation testing can be introduced as a CI/CD methodology.
For usability:
When it comes to usability, what is fundamental is focusing on ‘users’. Since users are humans as well, manual testing is yet again the ideal choice. Computers do not have original thoughts or interpretations. Only a human tester can ideally step into the shoes of an end-user.
Manual Testing vs Automation Testing Which is Best?
Manual testing is best when it comes to UI or UX testing, ad-hoc or exploratory testing. Automation testing is best when it comes to regression testing, load testing, scalability, accuracy improvement, saving time, and a lot more cases. But it does not win against human intelligence. Rather it compliments manual testing processes.
What I mean to say is that, over the years, our QA experts have been considering and incorporating various open-source automated tools in their manual testing processes. As the Best Quality Assurance And Software Testing Company, we have seen a significant rise in accuracy, reduction in time consumption, and efficiency in detecting bugs that the human eyes missed out. With this data, we have come to the conclusion that in the Manual vs Automation Testing debate as quality QA testers, we must try to learn how to use automated tools to increase the efficiency of manual testing.
By Nilofar Jargela
I am co-founder & CEO at Inevitable Infotech – IT service provider. Established in 2018, Inevitable Infotech is the brainchild of technocrats having over a decade’s experience in building smart IT solutions.
