UI Testing: A Complete Guide With Techniques, Tools, & Best Practices

UI testing, or User Interface testing, is an important practice in software testing to observe how a user would interact with a software application. The test cases are those that check for correct functioning and the absence of defects in the visual functional and usability aspects of interfaces such as GUIs, CLIs, and VUIs.

1. TestInfrastructure&End-to-EndTestingCloud
UITesting:ACompleteGuideWith
Techniques,Tools,&BestPractices

2. UItesting,orUserInterfacetesting,isanimportantpracticeinsoftware
testingtoobservehowauserwouldinteractwithasoftwareapplication.The
testcasesarethosethatcheckforcorrectfunctioningandtheabsenceof
defectsinthevisualfunctionalandusabilityaspectsofinterfacessuchas
GUIs,CLIs,andVUIs.
Thesectionsthatavisitorviewsandinteractswithdirectlywhilevisitingasite
areknownasuserinterfaces.Oftentheveryfirstpointofcontactforavisitor
engagingwithawebsiteiswithitsinterface.Theappearanceofthisinterface
certainlyinfluencesfirstimpressions.Aneffective,intuitiveuserinterfacecan
changetheuserexperiencesignificantly,whileabadinterfacecanbringalot
ofdissatisfaction.Therefore,UItestingisextremelyimportantsothatall
websitesandwebapplicationsdeliverasmoothandeffectiveuser
experience.
WhatisUITesting?
UITesting,oruserinterfacetesting,isthetestingprocessinwhichthe
functionality,usability,andconsistencyoftheuserinterfaceinaparticular
softwareapplicationareverified.Thisprocessensureseveryactivitythatthe
usertriestoachievewiththeapplicationisperformedseamlessly,and
intuitively,andtheoutcomesarepresentedinapredictablemanner.Itchecks
thelayoutofgraphicsandtextonbuttons,inputfields,navigation,etc.
Forinstance:Doesaspecificmouseclickonthebuttoncausethecorrect
functionalitytobeexecuted?Istextreadableonalldevicesandallscreen
resolutions?Dolayoutsanddesignsfollowthesamepatternfordifferent

3. platforms?ThisUItestmakestheformerquestionsarisebyconsideringboth
theaestheticsandfunctionalityoftheapplicationatonce.
WhyisUITestingimportant?
UITestingisextremelyimportantfordeliveringahigh-qualityuser
experience.Herearesomereasonswhyitisindispensable:
●ImprovedUserExperience:Awell-testedUIavoidsauser’sworst
nightmares:brokenlinks,deadbuttons,ordistortedlayouts.Moreover,
anexcellentuserexperienceoftentranslatestohigherusersatisfaction,
increasedretention,andastrongerbrandimage.
●EnsuresFunctionality:UItestingensuresthatallfeaturessuchasinput
validation,dropdownmenus,orwaysofdatapresentation,areworking
correctlyinreal-timescenarios.EventhesmallesterrorinUI
functionalitycanleadtothefrustrationoftheusersorincorrectdata
processing.
●Cross-PlatformCompatibility:Today’sapplicationsshouldbe
compatiblewithalldevices,operatingsystems,andbrowsers.UItesting
willensuretheapplicationlooksandactsthesameonanyplatform,
thusallowingaccesstomoreusers.
●EarlyBugDetection:Duringthedevelopmentphase,catchingbugsnot
onlysavessignificantcostsbutalsotime.FixingUIissuesatlaterstages
orevenafterthereleaseoftheapplicationmightcostalotandcanalso
harmthebrandname.

4. ●BoostsAutomation:UItestingtoolshavebuiltthescopeforboosting
theautomationoftestexecution.Itfacilitatesrepetitiveoperationsto
beefficientlycarriedoutbyteams,therebyacceleratingthespeedof
testingwithaccuracyandconsistency.AutomatedUItestingtools
furtherquickenregressiontestswhenrunbythetester,thussaving
manuallyrelatedefforts.
WhatisWebUITesting?
WebUITestingistheprocedureoftestingwebapplication’suserinterface.
Thiskindoftestingassuresthatallcomponents,includingtextfields,images,
forms,andbuttons,inawebapplicationareworkingasexpectedand
renderedinauniformmanneracrossmultiplebrowsersanddevices.
KeyaspectsofwebUItestinginclude:
●BrowserCompatibility:Thewebapplicationshouldworkconsistentlyon
allpopularbrowsers(Chrome,Firefox,Safari,Edge).
●ResponsiveDesign:Makesurethattheapplicationisresponsiveand
canbeeasilydisplayedondifferentscreensizes,forexample,
computers,tablets,andmobilephones.
●LoadPerformance:Animplementationofmanysimultaneous
interactionswiththeUI,aswellaswhensubjectsaresubjectedtoheavy
traffic.
●SecurityAspects:TheUImustnotexposeanysecurityvulnerabilities,for
example,cross-sitescripting(XSS)orbaddatainput.
WhatisMobileUITesting?

5. ThescopeofMobileUITestingistoguaranteethattheuserinterfaceofa
mobileapplicationisrunningcorrectlyonnumerousdeviceswithvarious
screenresolutionsandoperatingsystemslikeiOS,andAndroid.MobileUI
testingchecksforusability,compatibility,andperformanceunderdifferent
conditions,suchasvaryingnetworkspeeds,apppermissions,and
backgroundappsrunningsimultaneously.
KeyaspectsofmobileUItestinginclude:
●DeviceCompatibility:Itensurestheappundertestisperformingwell
onseveraltypesofdevicesandscreenresolutions.
●TouchscreenResponsiveness:Ittestsuserinteractionslikeswipes,taps,
pinches,andzoomsforresponsivenessandaccuracy.
●Battery&Performance:ItcheckswhetherUIoperationsconsume
excessivebatteryorCPUresources.
●OfflineFunctionality:Itverifiestheapp’sbehaviorwhenthereislimited
ornonetworkconnectivity.
UITestingTechniques
MultipleapproachestoUItestingexistdependingonthescope,tools,and
goalsofatestingprocess.Themostcommonapproachesaremanualtesting,
automatedtesting,orsometimesboth.Eachoftheapproachesisdiscussed
infurtherdetailbelow:
1.ManualUITesting
InmanualUItesting,humantestersinteractwiththeapplication’suser
interfacetocheckwhetheritworksasexpected.Thisapproachisbestsuited

6. forexploratorytesting,wheretheaimistodiscovernewbugsthatautomated
testscan’tcover.
Pros:
●ExploratoryTesting:Humantesterscanexploreunchartedterritoriesof
theapplicationandallthebugsthatmightbeoverlookedby
automation.
●VisualEvaluation:testerscantestsubjectiveaspectsoftheUIsuchas
looksandfeel,design,andoveralluserexperience.
Cons:
●Time-Consuming:Itwillbeaverytime-consumingprocesswherethe
applicationislargeenoughtotesteverypartofitmanually.
●Error-Prone:Anotherkeydisadvantageofmanualtestingisthe
potentialforhumanerrorssincetestersmightnotnoticecertain
problems.
Manualtestingistypicallyusedintheinitialstagesofdevelopmentorduring
UIdesignchangeswhensubjectivejudgmentisrequired.
2.AutomatedUITesting
AutomatedUItestingusesspecializedtoolsandscriptstoexecutetestcases
ontheapplication’sUIwithouthumanintervention.Automatedtestingis
highlyeffectiveforrepetitivetasks,suchasregressiontesting,wherethe
samesetoftestsisrunmultipletimes.
Pros:

7. ●Efficiency:Automatedtestscanberunquicklyandrepeatedly,saving
timeandeffortinthelongrun.
●Accuracy:Automationishighlydependablebecauseiteliminatesthe
possibilityofhumanerror.
●Scalability:Itispossibletouseautomatedtestingforlargeapplications,
mainlywhenthefrequencyofupdatesornewreleasesisveryhigh.
Cons:
●InitialSetup:Writingandmaintainingautomatedtestscanbe
time-consuminginitially.
●LimitedScope:Automationmaymissedgecasesorsubtlevisualbugs
thatahumantesterwouldcatch.
AutomatedUItestingisidealforprojectsthatrequirefrequenttestingandfor
tasksthatdon’tneedhumanintuition,suchasregressionorperformance
testing.
ToolsforUITesting
InthissectionoftheUItestingtutorial,wewillexploresomeusefultoolsfor
testingtheuserinterfaceofyourwebsite.Thesetoolsinclude:

8. Testgrid:TestGridisanall-in-onetestplatformofferingautomatedUItesting
acrossweb,mobile,anddesktopapplications.Itprovidesrealdeviceand
browsertestinginthecloud;therefore,testuserscanrunbothmanualand
automatedtestsoverrealdevicesandbrowsers.TestGridisano-codesolution
thateasilyadaptstonon-technicalteams,butatthesametimeoffers
high-levelscriptingoptionsforexperienceddevelopers.
KeyFeaturesofTestgrid:
●Cross-BrowserandCross-DeviceTesting:Testyourapplicationona
widevarietyofdevicesandbrowserssimultaneously.
●No-CodeTestAutomation:Withitsintuitiveinterface,TestGridenables
teamstoautomateUItestswithoutneedingtowriteanycode,
althoughcodingoptionsareavailableforadvancedusers.
●ParallelExecution:Runmultipletestsatthesametimetoreducetest
cycletimesandincreaseefficiency.
●VisualTesting:TestGridprovidesvisualtestingfeaturesthatcapture
screenshotsandcomparethemtobaselinestodetectanyvisual
discrepancies.
●CI/CDIntegration:EasilyintegratewithpopularCI/CDtoolslikeJenkins,
GitLab,andmoretoensurecontinuoustestingthroughoutthe
developmentpipeline.
Selenium:Seleniumisanopen-sourceautomation
tooldesignedforwebautomationtesting.Itsupports
awiderangeofprogramminglanguages,browsers,

9. andplatforms.WithSelenium,youcanautomateUIteststoensureyour
websiteorwebapplicationperformscorrectly.Itiscapableofautomating
taskssuchaslaunchingabrowser,navigatingwebpages,fillingoutforms,
clickingonelementslikebuttonsandlinks,verifyingwebcontent,and
confirmingexpectedoutcomes.
Cypress:Cypressisanautomationtoolthat
simplifiesUItestingbyallowingyoutowrite
minimalcodewhilefocusingonkeytasks.Its
user-friendlyinterfaceenableseasymanagement
ofassertions,expectations,andasynchronous
operationswithoutneedingmultipletools.Cypress
isespeciallyeffectivefortestingcomponentsinframeworkslikeReactand
Angular,asitallowstestingwithoutlaunchingtheentireapplicationstack.
Puppeteer:PuppeteerisaNode.jslibrarythat
offersahigh-levelAPItocontrolheadlessChrome
andChromiumviatheDevToolsProtocol.It’s
commonlyusedforautomatingbrowsertasks,
evaluatingpageloadperformance,andcapturing
interactivescreenshotsduringUItesting.

10. Playwright:PlaywrightisaNode.jstoolforwriting,running,anddebugging
functionaltestsformodernwebapplicationswithease.Sincethetest
frameworkisseparatefromtheactualapplication,youcanwriteUIteststhat
simulateuseractionswithoutinvolvingtheserverordatabase.
Appium:Appiumisanopen-sourceframework
designedforautomatingUItestsofnative,hybrid,
andmobilewebapps.Itcanbeusedonreal
devicesoremulators/simulators,andtestscripts
canbewritteninvariousprogramminglanguages,
suchasPythonorRuby,usingtheAppiumJava
API.
HowtoCreateUITestScenarios
DevelopingUItestscenariosisveryimportanttoensureflawlessuser
experiencecreation.Well-structuredscenariosmimicthereal-lifeinteractions
withtheapplicationandbringcomprehensivevalidationofthefunctionality
oftheapplication.HereisastreamlinedapproachtocreatingstrongUItest
scenarios.

11. 1.UnderstandtheApplication’sCoreFunctionality
Startwithareviewofthedesigndocumentsoftheapplication,userstories,
andrequirements.Identifyimportantflows,forexample,login,submissionof
aform,therolesofauser,andcross-platformfunctionalitybetweenweband
mobileplatforms,whichshouldbetested.
2.BreakDownUIComponents
Breakdowntheuserinterfaceintosuchkeycomponentsasbuttons,forms,
dropdowns,andnavigationlinks.Thus,everyelementwillworkcorrectly
isolatedandinthecontextofoverallUI.
3.FocusonCriticalUserActions
Highlightimportantactivitiessuchasloginauthentication,validationof
forms,andpagenavigation.Forexample,makesurethatformsaccept
correctinformation,displayerrormessagesincasetheinputisincorrect,and
takeuserstotheappropriatepages.
4.SimulateReal-WorldBehavior
Themoretestcasesyoucreatemirroringcommonuser
behaviors—onboarding,addingitemstoyourshoppingcart,orfilteringdata.
Ifyouhaveworkflowssimulatingreallife,thereisagoodchancethatusability
problemscanbecaught.
5.TestEdgeCases
Specialcharactersinformfields,networkslowdowns,andtimeoutsmustbe
takenintoaccountaswell.ThesescenarioswillmakesuretheUIbehaves
graciouslywithanyunexpectedevents.

12. 6.AccountforCross-Browser/DeviceCompatibility
Allthescenariosshouldbetestedonarangeofbrowsers(Chrome,Firefox,
etc.)anddevices(desktop,mobile).Theyshouldensureresponsiveness,
layout,andcompatibilitywithvaryingdimensionsofscreensanddevices.
7.AutomateRepetitiveScenarios
Loggingandformsubmissionsaresimpletasksthatarerepetitiveandcanbe
automatedusingtoolssuchasTestGridorSeleniumsinceautomatedtests
aregenerallyfasterandhaveresultsconsistentindifferentenvironments.
BestPracticesforUITesting
ByadheringtothebestpracticesduringUItesting,deliverycanbeensuredin
termsofarobustanduser-friendlyapplication.Itwillalsohavethepotential
tomaximizetestcoverage,efficiency,andreliabilityofUIautomationtesting
byfollowingsuchguidelines.
●PrioritizeCriticalUserFlows:Focustobegiventothetestingofprimary
useractionssuchasloginorpaymentsordatasubmissionthatwould
highlyberelevanttotheapplication.Thiswould,therefore,mainlyfocus
moreonhighimpactareas.
●AutomateRepetitiveTasks:Thisisthroughtheuseoftoolssuchas
SeleniumandTestGridforautomatedrepeatedtestingondifferent
features.Time-savingandconsistentandreliabletestcoveragemainly
onstablefeatures.
●Cross-BrowserandDeviceTesting:Oneneedstoensurethatthe
applicationundertestworkswellondifferentbrowsers,including

13. Chrome,Firefox,anddifferenttypesofdevices,suchasdesktopor
mobile.Itcanhelpincatchingcompatibilityissuesandthusensure
thattheuserexperienceissmooth.
●SimulateReal-WorldScenarios:Simulatehowtheusercouldinteract
withtheUIthroughsometestcases,sayfillingupformsorjumping
betweenpages.Ithelpsdetectusabilityissueswhenauserinteractsin
real-worldconditions.
●KeepTestsUpdated:Testcasesarerevisedandupdatedaspartofthe
routinealongwithUIchanges.Ensurethatcurrenttestscriptsremain
relevantandefficientinidentifyingproblems.
Conclusion
UItestingplaysacriticalroleinthesoftwaredevelopmentlifecyclethat
appliestowardsthegoalofensuringapplicationsworkseamlesslyandare
userfriendlyonanydevice.Byfocusingonmainuserflows,repetitivework
automation,andensuringcross-browseraswellascross-devicecompatibility,
teamscanenhancethequalityandreliabilityoftheirproducts.WhetherUI
testingisdonebyhandorthroughtheautomatedsolution,itassuresall
functionalandvisualissuesarefound,therebysignificantlydecreasingthe
chancesofauser’sfrustrationforhigheroverallsatisfaction.Testingyour
applicationbasedonthebestpracticesalongwithtoolssuchasTestGridand
propertestscenariosaresuretoensurethatyourapplicationwillserve
towardsmeetingtheexpectationsofusers,thusleadingtoengagementand
long-termsuccess.

14. Source:Thisarticlewasoriginallypublishedattestgrid.io