If you’re thinking of creating your test automation framework, you should reconsider your decision. It is preferable to use one or more available open-source solutions in most circumstances.
When building a shared set of best practices, assumptions, and standard tools and libraries, you don’t have to create one specific to your development environment. Minor flaws can cause significant issues. A framework will help you make your test automation code reusable, manageable, and stable.
For Continuous Integration and Continuous Delivery (CI/CD), over three-quarters of enterprises have test automation integrated into their CI/CD processes. This helped developers know whether a new code change has broken the application. 75% of firms say they can do test automation at least once every two weeks, with 40% of testers participating in the testing process. How frequently does test automation take place in your organisation?
Given the increasing need for such tools, there should be no surprise that many different automated testing frameworks are available. We’ve compiled a list of the top ones available in 2022 and a description of the features each provides. Consider giving it a shot if you think it would be of assistance in improving your automated testing game.
Serenity
An alternative name for Thucydides is Serenity BDD (previously Thucydides), a Java-based framework for BDD tools like Cucumber and JBehave. Its purpose is to simplify the process of building automated acceptance and regression tests more straightforwardly.Keeping your test scenarios high while including lower-level implementation information in your reports is another advantage of this approach.
Serenity is a wrapper that sits on top of the Selenium WebDriver and the BDD toolsets. It makes developing BDD and Selenium tests easier since it abstracts away a lot of the boilerplate code that you may otherwise have to write to get things up and running.
It also includes a wealth of built-in functionality, such as handling WebDriver management, a managing state between steps, capturing screenshots, running tests in parallel, and facilitating Jira integration, among other things. You can accomplish all this without writing a single line of code.
Features of Serenity
• Serenity has long been renowned for its in-depth reporting.• It performs the function of a wrapper: Serenity takes advantage of the features of current frameworks to make testing more effortless than it has ever been. In addition, it has a built-in Selenium web testing capability.
• Support for RestAssured: RestAssured support for REST API testing and Screenplay pattern support for building maintainable tests are included.
• Serenity has support for parallel testing, which allows for more efficient testing.
• Integrations: Serenity has a large number of pre-configured integrations.
WebdriverIO
WebdriverIO is a popular and widely used test automation framework compatible with Webdriver and Chrome Devtools protocols. It is built on the Node.js framework and is free and open-source. You can automate Selenium tests either locally or in the cloud with LambdaTest or any cloud-based solution like it.A cross-browser testing tool hosted in the cloud, LambdaTest allows software developers to evaluate the quality and performance of their web apps across more than 2000 internet browsers and OS system combinations.
Even though WebdriverIO is a relatively recent contribution to the open-source community, it has amassed many GitHub users. It has an astonishing number of GitHub stars and forks. When writing this post, WebdriverIo had 7.1k Stars and 2k Fork, with the current version being v7.15.0.
If you want to learn more about Selenium WebdriverIO, you may go through the Selenium WebdriverIO tutorial.
Features of WebdriverIO:
• WebdriverIO provides extensive support, including the WebDriver protocol, Chrome Devtools for Chromium applications, and Puppeteer.• Support for a wide range of applications: This browser testing framework can support any mobile or online application that has been designed using contemporary web technologies and frameworks such as Vue and React.
• Smart selector embedded in the framework: The smart selector embedded in the framework may be used to quickly choose a specific selection belonging to a particular library or development framework without leaving the framework. For example, the react$ command may pick components from the React library.
• Google lighthouse integration: The @wdio/devtools-service plugin makes it simple to combine WebdriverIO with the Google lighthouse search engine. The frontend performance metrics and Progressive Web Apps (PWA) apps may also be measured using this interface.
• Easy to learn: WebdriverIO gives users a familiar interactive surface; it is pretty simple to learn how to use it.
Katalon Studio
Katalon Studio is a well-known and free test automation solution for online, mobile, API, and desktop testing applications (Windows). In addition to removing the need for complicated training to design and maintain a different testing framework, Katalon Studio also provides low-code and scripting approaches.Because everything is pre-installed, users may devote their time and energy to testing activities, reducing their time and effort to create, execute, and maintain tests.
Feature of Katalon Studio:
• Java and Groovy are two programming languages that are supported.• Compatibility with operating systems: Windows, macOS, and Linux
• Record and Playback and Manual and Script Modes allow flexible and rapid test design.
• To troubleshoot failing tests, use the debugging UI and intelligent reporting.
• Test artefacts (test cases, objects, keywords, and so on) that may be reused thanks to the Page Object Model (POM) architecture and Test Artifact Sharing
• Cross-browser testing (Headless testing on Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari) and Cross-Platform Mobile Testing are among the approaches that are supported. BDD, DDT, and Keyword-Driven Testing are among the methodologies that are supported (iOS, Android)
• Make it possible to import projects from Selenium, SoapUI, and Postman.
• Native integrations with continuous integration and delivery systems (such as Jenkins, Bamboo, Azure DevOps, CircleCI, and others), as well as with application lifecycle management systems (e.g., Jira)
• At Katalon Academy, you may learn to use Studio in actual projects by following a step-by-step tutorial.
Cypress
Cypress advertises itself as “quick, simple, and trustworthy testing for everything that runs in a browser,” according to its main website. Even though these are solemn obligations made to consumers, Cypress has been able to deliver on its promises time and again. This open-source platform provides a comprehensive end-to-end testing experience with plenty of tools for executing Cypress automated testing.Cypress is a front-end testing framework that is both fast and highly efficient. It is built on Javascript, one of today’s most popular web programming languages. And this is one of the reasons why it is included in our list of the best test automation frameworks.
For JavaScript-based applications, Cypress is one of the most rapidly expanding frameworks, according to the State of JS Survey 2020. Cypress 8.6.0 is the most recent version available when writing this blog post. The Cypress project is hosted on GitHub, where it has 34.2k Stars and 2k Forks as of this writing.
Features of Cypress:
• Local testing: Cypress includes a local test runner that may execute automated tests on the system in a local environment.• Parallelisation capabilities: Cypress provides the ability to execute tests in parallel.
• AWS code build and CircleCI are two prominent, continuous integration platforms that may be used with the browser testing framework.
• Recording features: Cypress makes it easy to record automation tests, and continuous integration code runs.
• Package in its entirety: Using Cypress, you can build end-to-end tests, integration tests, and unit tests, among other things.
• Autonomous waiting: Using the browser testing framework, you may avoid writing sleep and waiting for the instructions code. Cypress has automatic waiting without the need for async.
• Automatic screenshots: When a test case fails, screenshots are automatically taken and stored in the database.
Selenium
Among those familiar with web-based and open-source test automation, Selenium is almost certainly the first name that comes to mind. To be more specific, Selenium wouldn’t be classified as a tool but an open-source library.Because of the Selenium WebDriver, the Selenium IDE, the Selenium Grid, and the recent release of Selenium 4, this is the top choice for coding aficionados.
Feature of Selenium:
• Supported languages include Java, JavaScript (Node.js), Groovy (Scala), Python (Python), C# (C#), and Ruby.• Advanced tests scripted in Eclipse, Visual Studio, or NetBeans can be imported.
• Cross-platform compatibility with macOS, Windows, and Linux allows for seamless execution.
• Add-ons and plugins that can be customised
• It is possible to integrate with Ant, Maven, TestNG, JUnit, NUnit, and other similar tools.
EarlGrey
EarlGrey is a framework for testing iOS native applications. Xamarin develops it. It can work on the program’s user interface by utilising its automated testing capabilities. EarlGrey works with the XCUITest framework, and the tests must be written in either Objective-C or Swift, according to the company. In its current version, EarlGrey is at version 2.2.1, and the latest version is compatible with XCUITest and includes intriguing synchronisation features for testers working on iOS-based applications.EarlGrey had 7.1k Stars and 2k Forks on GitHub when writing this article, and the most recent version was 2.2.1 at the time of writing.
Features of EarlGrey:
• EarlGrey operates by automatically tracking changes in the UI and network requests. This is called automatic tracking.• EarlGrey is a white box in nature: EarlGrey is a white box in the natural world. It implies that the application may be queried directly from the tests themselves.
• Available from within XCode: EarlGrey may be accessed and used directly from XCode.
• Highly stable: Before conducting tests on the target user interface components, EarlGrey checks to ensure they’re reliable. As a result, the test is quite durable.
• Checking for visibility: The browser testing framework provides the capability of making a snapshot differential comparison to determine whether or not UI components are visible.
• Using app-level touch elements rather than element-level touch elements and swipes to simulate user-type interactions when testing the application, EarlGrey can save time and money compared to using element-level touch elements.
Appium
Appium, which has a suffix identical to Selenium’s, is an open-source framework that should be remembered while performing mobile automated testing. Appium is a widely sought-after solution for eliminating the need for recompiling apps and automating APIs in various applications, including native, mobile web, and hybrid applications.Feature of Appium:
• Selenium can run on any programming language that it can run on. This includes Java, PHP, Objective-C (C#), Clojure, JavaScript with Node.js, Python, Perl, or C#, which Selenium can run on.• The JSON Wire Protocol is being utilised to increase the programming language’s flexibility.
• Scripts for automated testing may be executed on both the iOS and Android platforms.
• It is possible to test programs without having the source code available.
Cucumber
Using the BDD language to generate automation tests, Cucumber is one of the most powerful test automation frameworks available. BDD tests are similar to the English language in that, instead of shouting out the syntax or command, we write English phrases in place of it in the test. This, on the other hand, is turned to pure code in the background.Cucumber was initially built for the Ruby programming language. Still, it now supports a wide range of languages for Selenium automation testing using Cucumber and is considered one of the most acceptable test automation frameworks. In addition, you may use some of the Cucumber best practices to get the most out of the tool to maximise its potential.
A recent poll on open-source found that BDD practitioners’ preferences are vastly different from the data they see. Cucumber is the most popular alternative, with 70% of developers preferring it, followed by SpecFlow, used by many TypeScript and JavaScript coders.
Features of Cucumber:
• Cucumber is compatible with several programming languages, including Ruby, Java, and.NET.• Cucumber does not require the knowledge of sophisticated programming languages to be used in its execution.
• Component reuse: Cucumber encourages component reuse by writing generic codes that can be used across multiple platforms.
• Due to the clarity of the code, the automated testing framework may be used to incorporate individuals from a variety of different teams in the testing process. This improves the overall quality of the exam.
Robot Framework
Robot Framework, which uses Python as its primary programming language, is an open-source framework for acceptance testing and robotic process automation (RPA). It is healthy knowledge that the Robot Framework is related to free mobile and desktop application testing tools.Feature of Robot Framework:
• Python, Jython (Java), PyPy, and IronPython are among the programming languages that are supported (.NET)• Compatibility with operating systems: Windows, macOS, Unix, and Linux
• Developers can use Eclipse, RIDE (Robot Framework IDE), or text editors to create tests.
• You can significantly reduce your coding time using keyword-driven testing, autocomplete completion, and syntax highlighting; you can dramatically reduce your coding time.
• Integration with the Appium and Selenium testing frameworks
Galen Framework
A framework built on the Selenium platform, the Galen Framework is open-source, has its specific language, and is built on the Galen framework. One of the most effective ways to introduce the Galen framework is to cite the first sentence of its landing page, which reads, “Automated testing of the look and feel of your responsive website.” This line highlights three unique selling points of the Galen framework: it works with automated testing, it has a good look and feel, which means it has a good layout and user interface, and it is explicitly designed for responsive websites.Galen had 1.4k Stars and 169 Forks on GitHub when writing this article, and the most recent version was 2.4.4 at the time of writing.
Features of Galen Framework:
• Web page components’ placement may be appropriately tested using the Galen testing framework, which is now among the most effective test automation frameworks.• Designers that specialise in responsive design: This automation framework is an expert in executing responsive testing on websites that have been created.
• A syntax that is easy to understand: The framework uses the Galen Specs language, which is easy to understand, easy to create, and easy to analyse.
• Compatible with Selenium Grid: Because the framework is consistent with Selenium Grid, you can run your tests on the cloud using LambdaTest and benefit from both the cloud’s and Selenium’s outstanding features.
• Flexible: If the tester utilises JavaScript tests, they may develop their bespoke, sophisticated tests to help them test more effectively. Galen also includes several useful features for running JavaScript tests.
Conclusion
A single article just can’t cover all of the open-source test automation frameworks and tools. This list of best tools and frameworks stands out to me, but it is essential to remember that not all devices and frameworks are created equal. The two areas in which these frameworks and tools excel are their support for various operating systems and their support for different scripting languages.
As automation testing gains traction, new challenges and opportunities will emerge and new ways of approaching them. For example, artificial intelligence, robotic process automation, and machine learning are predicted to increase dramatically in the next several years. As a result, it’s good to think about the advantages and hazards of automation in your company, including test-automation frameworks and robotic process automation solutions.