Leveraging the Benefits of Low-Code & No-Code QA Automation Testing

Picture this!

10 QA professionals test 100 test scripts manually to deliver an error-free product to a customer. However, while testing them manually, they had to struggle with complicated coding, causing delays and coding errors.

The customer, therefore, replaces the vendor with an organization following agile development methodologies such as low code and no code automation testing.

In evolving times like these, such agile techniques prove significant over manual testing methods.

They enable enterprises to deliver high-quality software within tight timelines, streamline testing processes, cut through coding complexity, and deliver a robust user experience.

This blog post deep dives into the concept of low-code and no-code automation testing. It also talks about making low code/no code testing the right fit for your business by effectively overcoming its limitations.

Let’s get started!

How Do Low-Code and No-Code Automation Testing Simplify QA Processes?

1. Speed the Assembly Line: Instead of writing complex code for each test, low code and no code testing techniques allow you to drag and drop modules while pre-built components let you build tests quicker.

2. Empowering Testers: With these automation testing techniques, non-technical testers can join the QA workforce. LC/NC testing processes are intuitive and visual, so even those without sound coding skills can contribute to doing valuable quality checks.

3. Continuous Quality Surveillance: Imagine having mini robots constantly inspecting every piece on the line. These testing processes work in a similar manner to make it easy to automate smaller, frequent tests while continuously ensuring quality.

4. Liberating Testing Professionals: Running standard tests repetitively can be exhaustive. However, with low code and no code testing, you can automate them. This, thus, allows the allocation of experienced QA specialists on more intricate tasks that require human attention and fine-tuning.

5. Accelerating QA Process: No more digging through lines of code for errors because LC/NC visual tools and clear debugging features make spotting and fixing issues easy. Using these automated techniques, you can quickly identify coding errors and a faulty circuit.

What Challenges Can You Encounter While Conducting Low-Code and No-Code (LC/NC) Testing?

1. Limited Customization: Pre-built components and workflows may not always perfectly cater to unique testing needs. This can potentially compromise thoroughness and require additional coding workarounds.

2. Scalability Constraints: Some LC/NC testing platforms struggle with handling the complexity of large-scale enterprise applications. This can lead to performance issues and limited test coverage.

3. Security Considerations: Over-reliance on vendor platforms raises concerns about data privacy and potential vulnerabilities. You need to carefully assess and evaluate the security features of every testing tool.

4. Integration Complexities: Integrating low-code/no-code testing solutions with existing CI/CD pipelines or other testing frameworks requires additional effort and expertise.

5. Lack of Advanced Features: Compared to traditional coding approaches, low-code/no-code tools lack advanced features for handling specific testing scenarios or niche data types.

1. Choose Testing Tools Wisely: Start by evaluating platforms for their scalability, complexity handling, and integration capabilities. Pick one that suits your application’s size and data needs.

2. Design Software Architecture Effectively: Design clear test architectures and maintain technical documentation to avoid complexities. Also, update tests regularly to reflect changes in your application and software.

3. Bridge Knowledge & Skill Gaps: Train non-technical testers regarding the best practices to conduct low-code and no-code testing effectively. When tackling complex scenarios, you should consider collaborating with developers to understand coding efficiently.

4. Prioritize Security from Third-Party Tools: Choose platforms with robust security features and clear data privacy policies. Implement regular security audits and keep an eye on potential vulnerabilities.

5. Implement Integration Solutions: You can also consider integrating your low-code and no-code testing tools with existing CI/CD pipelines and other testing frameworks to ensure a smooth QA process.

6. Test the Scope of Different Platforms: Before implementing a tool in your organization, conduct pilot projects to assess the platform’s suitability for your specific business needs and identify if it has any potential limitations.

Which Low-Code and No-Code Automation Testing Tools Can Enhance Your QA Practice?

Visual Scripting/Drag-and-Drop Tools: Eliminating code for drag-and-drop components and visual scripting, these tools make test creation intuitive and accessible, even for non-technical team members. Take a look at some of these tools:

1. Applitools: Simplifies building tests through drag-and-drop modules and visual elements.

2. Katalon Studio: Offers both codeless and coded testing, with a user-friendly visual editor for drag-and-drop test creation.

3. TestComplete: Provides a visual scripting interface for building automated tests across web, mobile, desktop, and API applications.

Keyword-Driven Testing Tools: These tools focus on user actions and expected outcomes without diving into coding details. Therefore, this clarifies test intent, simplifies collaboration, and improves test maintainability. Some of these are mentioned below:

1. Selenium IDE: A popular open-source tool for keyword-driven testing, capturing user actions and converting them into tests.

2. Robot Framework: Another open-source option, promoting keyword-driven testing with a simple syntax and extensibility.

Record and Replay Tools: Leveraging these tools, you can capture real-world user interactions and automatically convert them into tests, saving time and ensuring realistic test scenarios. These tools include:

1. Leapwork: Records user interactions and automatically generates tests, including mobile and web applications.

2. TestStudio: Captures user actions and converts them into reusable test steps, streamlining test creation and maintenance.

3. UiPath Test Suite: Offers record-and-playback functionality alongside AI-powered features for optimizing test scripts.

AI-Powered Testing Tools: It automates testing for your application’s interactions, guarantees seamless data flow, and facilitates integration between systems. Take a look at some of these tools:

1. Eggplant AI: Leverages AI to analyze tests and recommend improvements, identifying edge cases and optimizing test coverage.

2. Testim.io: Employs AI to suggest improvements and automate repetitive tasks, reducing manual effort in test maintenance.

Data-Driven & API Testing Tools: Feed your tests diverse data sets, testing various corner cases and edge situations thoroughly. This locates hidden bugs and ensures your software can handle a wide range of inputs. Here are some of the tools you can leverage:

1. SoapUI: Enables data-driven testing for API interfaces, facilitating efficient performance and functionality testing.

2. Squish GUI Tester: Offers data-driven testing functionalities for desktop and web applications, ensuring thorough testing with diverse data scenarios.

3. Postman: A popular tool for API testing, allowing you to build, send, and analyze API requests and responses.

4. Katalon Studio: Offers built-in capabilities for API testing alongside web and mobile application testing functionalities.

Mobile Testing Tools: Utilize dedicated features built within some low-code platforms or integrate with mobile testing frameworks to effectively test your mobile apps using the following testing tools.

1. Appium: An open-source framework for automating mobile app testing across various platforms and devices.

2. Kobiton: Provides cloud-based mobile testing infrastructure with automated device management and test execution.

3. Katalon Studio: Includes native and hybrid mobile app testing capabilities within its unified test automation platform.

How to Choose a Low-Code/No-Code Automation Testing Tool?

1. Test Management and Reporting: Ensure the tool you are choosing is strong enough to manage tests and generate reports. This will help your developers track test results, identify issues, and make decisions based on the data generated.

2. Mobile and Web Testing Support: The tool should be capable of testing both web and mobile applications. This will enable developers to validate the functionality and performance of various applications.

3. CI/CD Support: The tool should seamlessly integrate with CI/CD pipelines, enabling developers to automate testing processes and deploy applications quickly and efficiently.

4. Cost & Scope of Integration: Consider the tool’s pricing model as it can impact business decisions. Ensure that the tool integrates smoothly with other platforms, and allows developers to test applications without having to juggle multiple tools.

Key Takeaway

Low-code and no-code testing platforms are changing the way we ensure software quality. Implementing such agile techniques in your organization can help your developers and testers ensure that the software works well and is tested continuously from the early stages of the SDLC process.

The QA engineers at Grazitti Interactive can help you enhance your testing techniques using agile automation strategies such as LC/NC. Should you want to learn more about our QA services, please drop us a line at [email protected] and we’ll take it from there.