Top 40 Automation Testing Interview Questions for 2024

Automation Testing Interview Questions for Freshers

1. When is a good time to automate a test?

Under the following conditions, a test is worth automation.

• The test can be repeated.
• The tested feature's behavior does not change regularly.
• It takes time for a human tester.
• The test necessitates complex computations.
• The test confirms that the previous functionality did not break as a result of the new change.

2. When will you avoid automated testing?

Here are several circumstances in which a human tester can outperform an automated test suite in terms of software testing.

• The software or functionality under test changes regularly. It implies that you must frequently update your automated tests to keep them current. As a result, tests can soon become obsolete and cease to be useful.
• Exploratory testing is also not appropriate for automated testing. A human tester can investigate software considerably more thoroughly than a computer.
• Unless the automated tests are programmed or configured to check for UI flaws, they will not find any.

3. Mention the different parts of a test automation framework.

Automation testing demands the use of different software tools or frameworks. There are numerous alternatives from which to choose. Here are some characteristics to consider when evaluating these tools.

• Tools that are programmable (code-based) or code-free: Some tools necessitate programming knowledge, while others do not, allowing a non-coder tester to generate test cases with visual aid.
• Open Source vs. Commercial: The pricing of the tools varies greatly depending on the features they provide. Commercial products can be costly, but you get tech assistance when you need it. Although open-source software is free, you must conduct research when troubleshooting issues.
• Simple to use: Some automated testing solutions are notoriously difficult to use and necessitate substantial training before they can provide any value. Some are simple to use and can be used right away.

4. Should you automate all testing?

Although there are benefits to test automation, it is impractical to automate all forms of testing. User interface testing, usability testing, and accessibility testing are some types of testing that can only be carried out by a human tester.

5. What is a test environment?

A computer or server can test software, which is referred to as a test environment. The tester installs the team's newly created software, complete with all of its dependencies, on this machine to simulate the production environment. As a result, the programme can be tested in a real-world situation.

6. What is browser automation?

The process of mechanically opening a web application in a browser and carrying out some more operations automatically is known as "browser automation."

7. What is cross-browser testing?

In cross-browser testing, a sort of automated browser testing, the tester determines whether or not the online application will function properly on different browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari, and others.

8. Why do you need cross-browser testing?

You cannot control the browsers, platforms, or devices that your users may use to access your programme while using web apps. However, cross-browser testing guarantees that your web application will function across numerous platforms and devices using various iterations of popular web browsers.

9. What is automated regression testing?

In the Regression testing method, a tester ensures that no functionality from the old features has been broken. Its unique objective is to confirm that tested and developed functionality continues to function when a brand-new code has been added.

10. What are some of the best practices in test automation?

Here are a few best practices a team developing and testing software should follow to guarantee high-quality software.

• Select tasks to automate.
• Based on knowledge and expertise, assign test scenarios.
• Get rid of uncertainty.
• Select the appropriate tools and frameworks.
• Maintain test records in a database of bugs.

11. What is the test automation pyramid?

The test automation pyramid was initially developed by Martin Fowler and released in 2012. It is a method for figuring out how to employ the various types of testing automation most effectively. The test pyramid's fundamental tenet is to have a lot of user interface (UI) unit tests and a lot fewer comprehensive UI tests.

12. How would you explain the meaning of Automation Testing?

Generally, any process that reduces human effort is termed as automation. Automation Testing is a process of using software, bots, or any method to perform repetitive tasks to eliminate errors, bugs, or find any vulnerabilities in the script.

Automation testing plays a very crucial role in the software development process of continuous testing and continuous delivery when several updates are required regularly. Though in the software development process, testing is a separate field that requires expert professionals and the use of testing tools.

13. What are the general types of Automation tests used in the industry?

Depending on the need, many types of Automation tests are there:

• Unit Testing is performed at the development stage to find and overcome bugs in the process.
• Graphical User Testing (GUI) is performed to test the front-end or user interface of the application.
• Functional Testing is performed to test the ability of the functions present in the applications.
• Smoke Testing is performed to check if special feature stability with the overall product is feasible or not.
• Integration Testing is performed to test the integration of the new module with the overall application logically and ease of communication throughout the whole process.
• Regression Testing is performed to test the recent code that affects the current features of the application to avoid any conflict.

14. What are some good practices for automation testing?

Some of the best industry practices are

• Following naming standards throughout the script
• Use of appropriate comments
• Separating codes based on use
• Avoid duplicate cases
• Test scripts regularly
• Adhere to coding conventions

15. What is an automation testing framework?

An automation testing framework is a tool or software that follows the guidelines and best practices to ease the automation process. This framework consists of various functional libraries, object details, test data sources, methods, and reusable models to complement the testing.

16. How are the automation testing frameworks helpful?

Automation testing frameworks complement the process with numerous advantages.

• Consistency and reliability to get desired goals
• Helps implement uniform testing throughout the system
• Easy to manage large and complex code
• Able to add new cases 

17. What type of testing framework are available in the industry?

Several types of testing frameworks are there in the market depending on the need for the software:

• Data-driven testing
• Modularity-driven testing
• Keyword-driven testing
• Hybrid testing
• Model-based testing
• Code-driven testing
• Behavior-driven development

18. What are some ideal and nonideal cases for using Automation testing?

Automation is considered ideal in scenarios such as repetitive tasks, regression test cases, humongous data sets, smoke testing, etc. While Automation testing is ideally not suited for random testing, individual test cases, Application changing regularly, ad-hoc testing, exploratory, and user interface, etc. Time and ROI (Return on Investment) play a vital role in selecting the automation testing.

19. How would you map the success of automation testing?

Several factors can be used to check the effectiveness of automation testing, such as:

• Time-saving
• Reusability
• Quality of software
• Maintenance
• Installment costs
• Number of errors or bugs found
• Software or test coverage

20. How would you differentiate between manual testing and Automation testing?

Here are some major differences:

21. Do you expect automation testing to replace manual testing?

Both automation and manual are part of the overall testing process with their pros and cons. Though automated testing has added benefits, it still can't replace manual testing due to its limitation on several scenarios.

22. What are the main steps in the life cycle in Automation testing?

Here are the steps that one should follow while implementing automation testing in general.

• Define the goals for automation testing
• Define the scope of automation
• Select the types of automation testing and cases to be performed
• Build test scripts and test suits to check cases
• Execute with automation tools
• Record test logs in a specific report formats

23. What are some of the most popular tools you would use for automation testing?

Several automation tools are used in the industry based on the requirement of the software in general, such as Selenium, UFT, Appium, Ranorex, Watir, Tosca, and SoapUI, etc.

24. How would you select an automation tool?

As a testing expert, one should consider several factors before selecting the right automation tool.

• Understand project requirements
• Search list of tools to match these requirements
• Consider the budget for the testing
• Compare the tools for its unique solution, reusability, reporting, and ease of working for that project
• Select the tool based on a comparison that benefits your organization in every aspect.

25. Can we achieve 100% automation possible in any case scenario?

It is almost impossible to implement 100% automation to any testing procedures. Due to the presence of some real-life scenarios such as captcha matching that separates bots from humans or checking the background of the screen that will only take more time for more straightforward tasks. Manual testing is preferred in some cases. Generally, it is not recommended to use 100% automation in any case.

Automation Testing Interview Questions for Experienced

26. Who should be responsible for test automation? Developers or the QA?

The web creation, process execution, and server management of test scripts fall under the team's purview, which is a single entity tasked with delivering a high-quality software system. Therefore, developers and quality assurance specialists should work together and complement one another's abilities to undertake automation testing properly. 

27. What is Selenium? What are its pros and cons?

A well-known web automation tool that aids in browser automation and cross-browser testing is Selenium.

Advantages 

• It has excellent community support and is created in an open environment.
• Selenium enables you to test and operate your web application across a variety of browsers, including Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and more.
• Selenium is cross-platform; hence, it may be used on Windows, Mac OS, or Linus. 
• Selenium is language-neutral, i.e., you may use it with any of your preferred programming languages.

Disadvantages

• Selenium is challenging and takes a long time to learn.
• Selenium only supports online applications; it does not support desktop or mobile. 
• No dependable technical support since it's open-source software.
• Debugging Selenium programmes is more difficult than debugging other tools and frameworks.

28. What are the different components of Selenium?

Selenium is a framework and a collection of tools which works in conjunction to provide various forms of automation testing. Selenium WebDriver, Selenium Grid, and Selenium IDE are its main parts.

29. What is UI testing?

UI testing aims to ensure that the software provides a consistent user experience and that none of the screen's graphical or visual elements is damaged.

30. What is Protractor?

You can test your web apps end-to-end with Protractor, an open-source automated testing tool.

31. What is a test automation platform?

A test automation platform is a technology or system that makes automated software testing simple. It automates the entire process by utilizing programmes and scripts written by developers or testers.

32. What are some of the unique alternatives to Selenium?

Some of the alternatives to Selenium are:

• Cucumber
• Cypress
• Robot Framework

33. What is the Robot framework? Provide a brief overview of its architecture.

Robot Framework is a growing open-source automation testing framework mostly used for robotic process automation (RPA).

The Robot Framework is built in Python and is platform-independent. The majority of the libraries in the ecosystem are open-source as well. It stores test data in files and uses a framework-specific syntax to do so. A test suite has several tests.

34. What are the test library APIs provided by the Robot Framework?

There are three test library APIs in the Robot Framework.

1. Static API: A module or class containing methods that map directly to keyword names that take the same arguments as the methods that implement them.
2. Dynamic API: At runtime, the names of the keywords to implement and how to implement them are determined.
3. API Hybrid: It is a combination of static and dynamic API.

35. How will you automate the basic login in a web application?

1. Manually test the login to ensure that you understand all input fields, checkboxes, and buttons on the login screen.
2. Make a test dataset with the username and password combinations.
3. Create test cases that simulate the numerous paths a user could take in a real-world scenario.
4. Configure each test case in the tool to be manually invoked, and use the test data in step 2.
5. After each login attempt, check and validate the success/error messages and redirects.

36. What are some risks associated with automated testing?

Although test automation provides advantages such as efficient and speedy tests, there are a few concerns that a team should be aware of. They are as follows:

• ROI can be negative.
• Playing catch-up on the technology.
• There is a risk of maintenance.

37. What are the different phases in an automation testing life cycle?

• Determine the scope of automation testing.
• Select the appropriate automation frameworks and tools.
• Create a test plan and a test execution strategy.
• Create the testing environment.
• Test case development and execution.
• Test report analysis and generation.

38. What is CAPTCHA?

CAPTCHA is a sort of security that stands for Completely Automated Public Turing Test to Tell Computers and Humans Apart. The CAPTCHA's principal objective is to protect you against spam or denial-of-service attacks by bots/scripts by requiring you to complete a simple test that computers find difficult to understand.

39. How do you automate the testing of CAPTCHA?

It is not possible to automate CAPTCHA testing. That is the goal of every effective CAPTCHA technique.

40. What are some development practices to follow when writing automated tests?

There are a few critical development practices to follow when writing automated tests to ensure they are practical and efficient. 

• Firstly, tests should be written in a consistent and readable format so that they can be easily maintained and updated. 
• Secondly, tests should be granular and focused on specific functionality to avoid duplication and reduce the overall testing time. 
• Finally, tests should be run regularly and continuously to identify any issues as early as possible in the development process.

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Grow in Your Automation Testing Career

These Automation Testing Interview Questions will help you to check the level of preparations and help you gain that extra confidence to scale new heights for your automation testing career. You can also get a solid hand at automation testing and become an Automation Test Engineer. With our Automation Test Engineer Master’s program, you can advance your career and learn top skills demanded in the industry, including GIT, Selenium, Jenkins, and JMeter to apply engineering to software development processes and build quality products.