10 Benefits of Selenium Test Automation

In Web Application Testing it is essential to address issues like website functionality, security, user interface, compatibility, and performance. Test Automation provides a framework to run tests with a combination of various forms of data to enhance test coverage.

Advantages of Selenium Test Automation

Selenium test automation is one of the many tools used for automated testing. But, along with the characteristic advantages of automated testing, Selenium has certain unique benefits that give it a competitive edge over others.

• Open Source

  One of the most important benefits of Selenium test automation is its Open Source Accessibility. As it is an open-source tool, anyone can download and use the source code. It can also be refactored based on project requirements. This improves the functionality of predefined functions and classes. Selenium has become the most dependable web automation tool because of the ease of developing test scripts to validate the functionality.

• Multi-Language Support

  This must be the absolute and most imperative factor for any skilled software individual to enter the Automation Testing domain. Testers normally use the most common languages for writing Selenium test automation code: C #, Java, PHP, Perl, Python, and Ruby. In most cases, enterprises may prefer to stick with the language already used by testers, thereby eliminating the need to learn a new language. But it is convenient to opt for a new language in several instances. Selenium test automation is invaluable in such situations. For instance, if the team is new or the software is being revamped, and the legacy language is now obsolete, Selenium allows the option to opt for a new and easier language for testing. Learn more about QTP to Selenium test automation and migration

• Multi-Browser Support

  Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Internet Explorer, Opera, and Edge are the most commonly used browsers worldwide and are compatible with Selenium test automation scripts. One can create Test scripts and execute them in these browsers without any changes in the script. That means it is not required to rewrite the scripts for every browser, just one script for all browsers, with the help of browser drivers.

• Platform Support

  Yes, one more advantage we get with Selenium! We need not bother about the system configuration. Once we create test scripts on any operating system, they can be executed on any other operating system. For example, if we create Selenium test automation scripts on the Windows platform, the same scripts can be executed on other platforms like Mac or Linux. This empowers QA Engineers/Testers to effectively write the scripts without paying much attention to the platform.

• Framework Availability

  Frameworks are like templates; they provide a structure to your scripts and help make code maintenance easy and increase code re-usage, higher portability, reduced script maintenance cost, and higher code readability. There are different frameworks like Data Driven Framework, Keyword Driven Framework, Hybrid Framework, etc.

• Remote Control/Parallel Text Execution

  Automated testing aims to save time and effort. Multiple test scripts should be executed in parallel to reduce the test execution time. With the help of Selenium Grid, multiple scripts can be executed on remote machines. This is one of the essential advantages of Selenium test automation. Additionally, we can use Online Selenium Grids, for example, Lambda Test, which helps access more than 2000 browser environments, over which we can run out tests and automate cross-browser testing. With the growing demand for testing deliverables, it is important to execute the test scripts quickly and efficiently.

• Flexibility

  There are a wide variety of frameworks that supports Selenium test automation when compared to other test automation tools in the same class. For example, Test management and controller activities (dependencies, grouping, etc.) are performed by other frameworks when we integrate (ex: TestNG, JUnit) with Selenium. Hence, it is more flexible and adaptable in automation development and maintenance.

• Reusability

  As we know, Selenium test automation scripts can be executed in multiple browsers and operating systems. Moreover, tests written in Selenium reduce the manual effort required to run them repeatably.

• Integrations

  Selenium test automation can be integrated with TestNG and Junit for managing test scripts and generating reports. Continuous Integration testing can be integrated with CI/CD tools like Jenkins, Maven, Docker, etc. To perform image-based testing, the Sikuli tool is used to integrate with Selenium test automation. Likewise, we can integrate many other tools with Selenium for better use.

• Regular Updates

  Selenium test automation is supported by an active community. The Selenium community regularly releases constant updates and upgrades. The finest part about having a community is that these updates and upgrades are ready to use and easy to understand. Selenium has received considerable support and recognition from various communities and vendors. This makes Selenium an Industry Standard Tool rather than only being considered open-source.

Conclusion

Because Selenium test automation is a complete package of various automated testing solutions, businesses all over the world have started using it for testing the simplest as well as the most complex software applications. With its numerous advantages and easy-to-use features, Selenium test automation is one of the best automation testing tools for the IT industry.