Automated Regression Testing Software Options for Faster Releases

Automation is the future… present, whether you like it or not. AI and robots won’t be taking over the world anytime soon (fingers crossed), but the advent of automation is here to stay.

As Devs, we love automation - it not only helps speed up workflows by trimming the tedious stuff, but it reduces risks, streamlines processes, standardizes approaches, and gives back time from the mundane for more innovation. This is true for automated regression testing. It takes all the importance of regression testing, and allows development and QA teams to speed up the process by automatically running tests and gathering feedback, rather than relying on manual execution.

In this article, we’ll be going over what the ideal automated regression testing software is, and some of the most popular ones on the market today.

What to Look For in Automated Regression Testing Software

Regression testing is incredibly important, there’s no denying that. QA teams need to be able to fully ensure that new releases and features don’t affect the rest of the application. With automated regression testing tools, your QA teams can ensure that every inch of your application is covered while removing the hassle of writing and running all of your tests by hand.

However, when it comes to picking the right tool, there are some things you’ll need to look out for first. These are the criteria we think that any good automated regression testing tool should cover:

• Full Circle: Your testing tool needs to be able to encompass your entire testing cycle, from writing tests to creating detailed reports.

• Cross-Platform: You should be able to use your testing tool across the most popular platforms and devices, including browsers and mobile devices.

• Continuous Integration: Your tool should be able to integrate into your existing CI/CD pipeline.

• The Core Three: A good automated regression testing tool should always be easy to maintain, reliable with its performance and tests, and able to scale as needed.

With these four core tenets, you’ll be adequately equipped for any issues that may arise in your testing cycle, and you’ll be armed with ways to fix whatever comes your way. So let’s take a look at some of the best automated regression testing software and how they stack up against the rest.

Top Automated Regression Testing Software Options

We’ve picked out some of the best of the bunch for you today. It’s a real smorgasbord of options here, and each one has its own benefits for automated regression testing. 

Selenium

It’s no secret that Selenium and the tools surrounding it are powerhouses. It’s a household name in the testing world, and it’s certainly earned its recognition. Not only does it support all major browsers and operating systems, it comes with plenty of reusable modules to help speed up your regression testing.  However, Selenium is limited to only testing within browsers, making testing native apps impossible. It also lacks any sort of reporting, so you’ll need to create your own solution for detailed test reporting.

Watir

Short for Web Application Testing In Ruby, Watir is an open source Ruby library for testing web apps through simple tests, including automated regression testing.. Instead of being purely a testing tool, Watir acts as a platform to enable automated regression testing. Watir can automate regression test suites by acting just like a user would on a web page. It blends the power of Selenium with automation to run tests as a “do as I mean” approach, their way of defining how tests should be created and run.  

UFT One

Formerly known as Quick Test Professional (QTP), Unified Functional Test (UFT) is another big name in the testing world. Their software encompasses your entire project, featuring end-to-end testing that works across all browsers, devices, and operating systems. They leverage AI to help QA teams write and run tests, enabling teams to transition to automated regression testing. It also includes stellar reports for your teams to use. Unfortunately, though, UFT comes at a steep up-front cost, and the tool itself can be resource-intensive, so teams may struggle to get it up and running flawlessly or simply don’t have the budget for it.

Testsigma

Somewhat of a newcomer, Testsigma offers some stellar automated regression testing software that can cover your entire application. Their testing platform enables your QA team to write their tests in plain English language across almost any browser or device. Then, your teams can pick and choose which tests should be run based on your own criteria, empowering your teams with automated test regression. Testsigma can be run locally or in the cloud, giving you the flexibility to use it however you need to. Where Testsigma falls short is mostly with performance issues and poor reporting, so you’ll have to make a few sacrifices for flexibility.

Katalon Studio

Built atop the giants of Selenium and Appium, Katalon Studio boasts full end-to-end testing across all major platforms and devices. It enables automated regression testing for QA teams by transforming testing into simpler tasks with their low-code approach and focus on end-to-end testing. Their low-code solution makes it accessible for your QA team to write and run tests while also enabling experienced devs to create more in-depth tests with their Groovy scripting language.

Tricentis Tosca

Another big name for enterprise software, Tricentis Tosca is an AI-powered automated regression testing platform that fully adopted its AI overlords. Not only does it use AI to run and self-heal its tests, but it also uses it to analyze and run regression tests based on risk factors to reduce costs. Their platform also allows your QA team to create and provide data for your tests, synthetic or imported. They also include a web-based reporting system for dashboards, but it could stand some improvement.

Cerberus Testing

These dogs sure are barking, and they’re barking at bugs. Cerberus Testing is a test automation platform that aims to accelerate QA teams by making testing as easy as possible for everyone involved. You can enable automated regression testing with their modular and reusable testing steps, and then back it up with their robust reporting to see what tests still need to be worked on. Plus, their low-code solution makes writing tests accessible for anyone.

Launchable Predictive Test Selection

Regression testing, despite all the good it does, is a costly and time-consuming thing. But it doesn’t have to be, at least not with Launchable. Predictive Test Selection allows your developers and QA teams to run only the regression tests that are needed instead of wasting precious resources on tests that have already passed multiple times.

With Predictive Test Selection, Launchable’s machine-learning algorithm studies not only your source code but your tests and their results to pick and run the regression tests that matter most. With this, your overall testing cycle can be dramatically cut short, speeding up your development lifecycle. Plus, you’ll have access to robust and detailed reporting all within one central location.

Enhance Automated Regression Testing Software with Machine Learning Test Selection 

It’s easier for developers to test each new feature or change before pushing them into production with automated regression testing software. Your automated regression testing tool should ensure that every test case is validated and things will run according to plan. While automated regression testing software streamlines the execution of regression tests, your team can avoid manual test selection bottlenecks with enhanced test selection through machine learning.