Benefits of UI Test Automation and Why You Should Care

User Interface (UI) testing, also known as Graphical User Interface (GUI) testing, focuses on debugging one of a software application's most sensitive and business-critical components.
The UI of your application will be accessed by all users, including employees and customers.
When user interface elements such as buttons, toolbars, text fields, and others stop working, the user experience and a company's reputation suffer significantly.

UI testing can be done manually; this was the preferred testing method in many cases. However, UI test automation has become the preferred method with the need for faster software development cycles and the introduction of increasingly complex testing scenarios.

This blog will provide a high-level overview of UI test automation and explain why it is important. We'll also discuss the advantages of using an automated testing solution before introducing Copado Robotic Testing for your testing project.

What is UI Test Automation?

The term "UI test automation" refers to using an automated testing tool to test the user interface of an application. This type of testing focuses on debugging the application's front-facing features with which users will interact. It should cover all potential user scenarios and ensure that the UI works as intended.

This testing will entail creating test cases with an automated testing tool and deploying them across multiple stages of development. When time and resources are limited, it’s best suited for repetitive tasks and can provide several advantages over manual testing.

Why is UI Testing Important?

UI testing ensures that users work as expected when interacting with your application's features. This procedure entails assessing the presence and functionality of numerous visual components such as buttons, menus, links, text fields, toolbars, and others.

When UI testing is incorporated into a standard testing workflow, the user experience and overall quality of your testing project improve. It ensures that your UI is bug-free and that all features are present, visible, and operational when users interact with your application.
This guarantees that users can easily navigate your application and access critical information.

Benefits of UI Test Automation

There are several key advantages to UI test automation listed below for review. 

Significantly Increases Test Coverage

Traditional testing methods can impede adequate software testing when testing time and resources are limited. You can significantly increase test coverage by delegating repetitive testing tasks from human testers to your automated testing tool.

Manual UI testing can be time-consuming and challenging to scale without automated testing. Automation enables testing teams to create test scripts to expand test coverage and perform UI testing within tight timeframes. This process ensures that bugs are not released into production where they can negatively impact the user experience.

Faster, Continuous Testing

Compared to traditional testing methods that rely on manual testing, automated testing helps perform software testing faster in all areas of application testing. Automated testing will enable your testing team to support faster-testing cycles, continuous testing, and the release of high-quality software. Further, when UI testing is easier to perform, it is more likely to be performed regularly rather than completely avoided. 

Reduces Human Error

Human error will be more likely in repetitive testing tasks performed by your testing team. When testing time is limited, UI test automation is a reliable way to ensure that your testing project will not encounter additional testing issues. UI test automation can give your testing team more control over test creation and execution while increasing the overall reliability of your test project.

Reusable Test Scripts

It's essential to understand that some automated testing tools include features that make test script maintenance easier. Because changes to your user interface can result in broken test scripts, selecting an automated testing tool that allows you to benefit from reusable test scripts is critical. When performing UI testing, select a tool that allows you to create and easily maintain test scripts, saving you time and resources.

Saves Time and Resources

UI testing will be required throughout the software development lifecycle. All supported operating systems, browsers, and hardware configurations will need to be tested again. These tests can be performed quickly and without additional resources thanks to automated testing. In many cases, automated testing will reduce testing time from weeks to days to hours.

Copado Robotic Testing

Low-code automated testing solutions, such as Copado Robotic Testing, make UI testing easier, allowing more users to participate in software testing. Low-code solutions eliminate the need for business users to have the specialized knowledge and programming experience required to design test scripts.

Copado Robotic Testing uses natural language keywords called QWords, which makes it more stable. Our low-code testing solutions make it easy for beginners to create test scripts while allowing pro-code users with more technical expertise to quickly expand on it for more complex and custom use cases.

A few benefits of Copado Robotic Testing for UI testing include:

• Improved scalability: A hyper-scalable test automation infrastructure with functionality to schedule test runs, helping you test 10x faster with 34x more coverage!
• Streamline test creation: A simple but powerful syntax for creating test automation scripts for multiple platforms. 
• Produce more readable scripts: Write test cases with high readability, usability, maintainability, and robustness using QWords.
• Less Maintenance: Self-healing AI eliminates broken tests and the need for manual maintenance allowing small teams to focus back on innovation.

Let Copado Be Your UI Test Automation Tool

If UI testing is not a part of your current software testing strategy, automated testing can help make the process easier for testing teams to produce high-quality software that provides the best user experiences. You should prioritize UI testing because bugs affecting UI functionality can result in costly fixes and damage a company's reputation.

Suppose you're still using manual testing methods or considering implementing an automated testing solution. In that case, Copado's cloud-based test automation solution can handle all testing scenarios required for end-to-end coverage, from the mobile user interface to user acceptance testing.

Copado Robotic Testing can run tests on any cloud, platform, browser, or device. Our low-code testing solution can provide today's development teams with the speed, coverage, and usability they need to de-risk their pipelines and provide seamless user experiences.

If you’d like to learn more about UI test automation and how Copado can support your current testing processes, contact us today!