Most users nowadays access websites on their mobile devices. Likewise, a large percentage of users prefer mobile apps to web applications. Your website must deliver optimal user experience across various browsers, operating systems, and devices to keep the visitors engaged and convert them into customers. You have to perform a variety of tests for automated web application testing to assess the website’s functionality, load, usability, compatibility, and security. Also, you must repeat the tests under varying user conditions to produce accurate and reliable test results.
You can always accelerate the entire testing process by using robust automated web application testing tools and frameworks. The testing tools make it easier for you to find the defects and performance issues in the web application rapidly. Also, you can use the web application testing tools repeat tests under varying conditions, enhance test coverage, and simplify test report generation. You also have option to choose from several widely used web application testing tools and frameworks.
10 Tools You Must Consider for Automated Web Application Testing
1) Selenium
Despite being an open source automated testing suite, Selenium helps you to automate functional testing of websites efficiently. It supports many popular operating systems, browsers, programming languages, and databases. You even have option to choose Selenium WebDriver or Selenium IDE according to your precise needs. Selenium web application testing professionals can use Selenium IDE to accelerate bug reproduction script creation and create scripts for automated exploratory testing. On the other hand, Selenium WebDriver helps you to create browser based regression automation tests and distribute the tests across various environments.
2) Katalon Studio
You can use Katalon Studio to automate testing of web applications and mobile apps. The features provided by the free test automation framework help you to set up project, create and run tests, view test reports, and maintain tests. The record-and-playback tool provided by Katalon Studio to record various actions and generate scripts automatically based on keywords. Katalon Studio further allows you to run tests on multiple browsers and operating systems with varying configurations and datasets. Also, it helps you to update, manage, and maintain the test cases without putting extra time and effort.
3) HP UFT
The licensed functional automated testing software supports only Windows platform. But it supports an array of popular web browsers, along with mobile platforms like iOS and Android. HP UFT (Unified Functional Testing) software allows you to test web applications developed with Java, .NET, and Silverlight. It further accelerates web application testing by supporting distributed test execution. The new execution engine used by the latest version of UFT even allows you to run distributed tests on multiple machines and real or virtual web servers. You also have option to simplify test script creation and maintenance by opting for keyword driven testing.
4) Apache JMeter
The open source load testing tool is written in Java. But Apache JMeter currently supports all major platforms, servers, and protocol types. You can even use the tool to evaluate the website’s performance under varying user loads on a single server, group of servers, or network places. The Test IDE provided by JMeter will help you to accelerate test plan recording, building, and debugging. You even have option to extend JMeter according to your precise needs using specific plug-ins and extensions.
5) WebLOAD
WebLOAD is designed with features to accelerate enterprise scale load testing. The IDE and tools provided by the commercial load testing framework makes it easier for you to build load tests. WebLOAD further helps you to identify and analyze the performance bottlenecks by displaying load testing results on the dashboard. You even have option to perform load testing both on-premise and in the cloud. WebLOAD even allows you to choose from a number of solutions – Java Load Testing, .NET Load Testing, ORACLE Forms, Continuous Integration, and Web Services and APIs – according to your precise needs.
6) SiteDigger
The free McAfee tool helps you to evaluate security of your website more effectively. Unlike other security testing tools, SiteDigger evaluates the security of websites based on Google’s cache. It reads and searches Google’s cache to identify the errors, vulnerabilities, configuration problems, and proprietary information about your website. The real-time results provided by SiteDigger helps you to prevent targeted security attacks by eliminating all vulnerabilities in the website.
7) Netsparker
At present, Netsparker is one of the most widely used security scanners for websites, web applications, and web services. You have option to choose from both desktop and cloud editions of Netsparker. The Netsparker Desktop uses proof-based vulnerability scanning technology. It is also designed with a built-in penetration testing and reporting tools. Hence, it enables you to focus extensively on getting the vulnerabilities fixed. On the other hand, Netsparker Cloud provides built-in enterprise workflow tools to accelerate security scanning of multiple websites.
8) Browsera
The choice of web browser differs from one user to another. Hence, you need to make the website’s layout and user interface accessible on major web browsers. The licensed automated browser compatibility testing tool helps you to identify layout differences and scripting errors across multiple browsers. In addition to testing various web pages, Browsera can also report layout problems and JavaScript errors from individual browsers. You can even use Browsera to perform cross-browser compatibility testing on-premise and in the cloud.
9) SpringTrax
Often broken links affect the website’s user experience and search engine ranking adversely. While testing a web application, you must identify and repair all 404 page not found errors. Also, you need to check the quality of links consistently to prevent user abandonment. SpringTrax makes it easier for you to find all 404 errors on the website, prioritize the 404 errors according to business impact, and get the 404 errors fixed. At the same time, you can also use the licensed tool to monitor 404 errors consistently.
10) W3C CSS Validation Service
You can always combine HTML, CSS and JavaScript to make the website responsive and accessible on both computers and mobile devices. CSS will make it easier for you to resize, enlarge, shrink, or hide website content according to the underlying device. The CSS Validation Service provided by W3C makes it easier for you to validate only CSS or HTML with CSS. You can further validate CSS simply by entering the URL of a specific page. The online CSS validator further allows you to set options like profile, medium, warnings, and vendor extension.
On the whole, you have option to choose from several open source and licensed automated web application testing tools. But you must remember that each web application testing tools has its own pros and cons. Also, you cannot use a single tool to evaluate various aspects of the web application. Also one needs to understand the importance of Manual testing as well and need to coordinate the manual and automated testing efforts. Hence, you must spend some time in evaluating the pros and cons of each web application testing tools according to precise needs of the project.
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