5 Types of Software Testing Tools to Improve Efficiency

While robust testing is a critical component of software development, it can also take a significant amount of time to ensure proper coverage. Fortunately, there are a range of tools available that can help your QA testing team improve efficiency and productivity, which can save you money and get your product to market faster.

1. Bug Tracking Tools

Having a place for your entire team to track bugs, communicate their status, and collaborate on solutions is a valuable tool for any software company. Choosing well-known and high-quality bug-tracking tools will also allow your team to integrate the software into the other tools in your suite to seamlessly manage and take care of your bugs.

Jira

A bug tracking tool developed by Atlassian, Jira combines bug tracking and project management. It works well with Agile workflows, and it allows users to create custom dashboards, track time to bugs, and set statuses. There is also a wide range of integrations and plugins available for developers looking to use their tool sets alongside Jira.

Bugzilla

A free and open-source solution, Bugzilla is a web-based platform that also offers a wide range of integrations. Although it is not as conducive for Agile workflows, it does offer useful access and control features, cross-platform compatibility, and workflow management tools.

2. Static Code Analysis Tools

The benefit of static analysis tools is that they allow you to find potential issues with your code before you even run it. This is especially useful for verifying that your code has strong security and compliance, especially when using open-source code.

Kiuwan

Kiuwan offers effective security and analysis software that is designed for QA testers. Its code analysis tools include differential reports, visual configuration models, Jenkins analysis, and integrations with other analyzers that help developers reduce their technical debt. Kiuwan also has static application security testing and software composition analysis tools for ensuring compliance and preventing security breaches.

3. Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) Tools

Continuous Integration and Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) contains a set of practices that help developers improve the efficiency and reliability of their development process. CI/CD can help improve collaboration through a shared process and, by focusing on automation, CI/CD can help reduce human error.

Travis CI

A cloud-based service that helps developers improve automation, Travis CI allows for auto-deployment on passing builds, works on Mac, Linux, and iOS, and enables parallel building with a Build Matrix. Travis CI also requires less code than other CI/CD tools, which helps developers be even more efficient.

Jenkins

An open-source CI/CD solution, Jenkins offers a rich ecosystem of 100s of plugins for tools like source code management and testing frameworks. It can be distributed across multiple machines, easily set up through its web interface, and works with Windows, Linux, macOS, and other systems.

4. Test Management Tools

These are software applications that are designed to help teams organize, manage, and control the testing process throughout the development lifecycle. They can also help QA teams with reporting and analysis.

TestRail

TestRail’s suite of test management tools allows developers to centralize their manual, exploratory, and automated tests all in one place for full visibility. By centralizing your tests, you can reduce duplication and ensure consistency throughout the testing process. TestRail includes custom fields, test case templates, coverage reports, and the ability to import and reuse test cases.

TestRail also features robust security and compliance tools including project-level administration, custom roles, a backup schedule, and an audit log.

5. Automation Testing Tools

Manual software testing can be extremely time-consuming, and automated testing tools can give your developers back a significant amount of time that could be better spent working on your code.

Ranorex Studio

Ranorex Studio is a test automation software that offers a suite of tools to run effective GUI tests. It can conduct tests in parallel on desktop, web, and mobile devices — including in emulation. Ranorex’s automation software includes record-and-replay tools for test execution, Ranorex Coach for test healing, and Ranorex Spy for machine-trained object recognition. Ranorex also features a flexible API interface for integrations, as well as built-in integrations with many of the software tools we’ve discussed above, including Jira and TestRail.

DesignWise

DesignWise software helps developers with a wide range of coding experience create effective tests for tools like Ranorex Studio. It includes a collection of Intelligent Automation algorithms and a control dial that helps developers create the exact amount of tests that they need to achieve optimal test coverage. That helps developers with one of the biggest challenges of software testing, creating wasteful and unnecessary tests that eat up your team’s time.

By bringing in less experienced team members to the test development process, your more experienced engineers can spend their time on other projects. DesignWise works with Gherkin language format, which allows developers with zero coding experience to write tests in natural language. When combined with Ranorex Studio, DesignWise can help development teams cut back testing times even further.

Try Ranorex Studio Today

Ready to start automating your software testing? Get a free trial of Ranorex today to experience its powerful tool set for yourself.