Low Code vs No Code Test Automation: What is preferred?

Since the beginning, software development has always been a developer-centric field. Developers responsible for building applications are supposed to have deep knowledge of design systems and coding languages. But today, the tides are changing. Low-code and no-code platforms allow people with no coding experience to build applications. These platforms help to visually develop, collaborate and deploy applications faster with no coding required.

This new technology uses a visual approach with drag-and-drop interfaces to help developers and non-developers easily interact with the software under development. The no-code platform has all the necessary built-in features that make it easy to build applications without coding knowledge.

But why are low-code or no-code platforms gaining popularity?

As per a Forrester survey:

• 80% of respondents spend half of their time reworking
• 78% feel that the business is out of sync with project requirements and stakeholders should be more involved
• Only 55% feel that the business requirements are clear to them
• Less than 20% feel that the business need is properly described in the requirement process

The above takeaways from the Forrester survey clearly show a gap between the business needs and the product requirements. There is a growing feeling that both development and business stakeholders need to collaborate better to build a product efficiently. This has been the approach behind the BDD (Behavior Driven Development).

Collaboration between the development and business stakeholders in software development forms the foundation of low-code/no-code platforms. It helps bridge the technical gap between users and enables collaboration better with developers.

What is Low-Code Test Automation?

Low-code automation allows developers to test applications quickly by planning, generating, and executing end-to-end tests. Low-code tools require little coding knowledge and are more useful for developers. These platforms allow the user to automate processes in the application with little coding knowledge, unlike the mainstream test automation frameworks based on test scripts.

Although there are visual elements to test such applications via low-code automation platforms, coding is still required when more specific and complex interactions are involved.

While only 10% to 15% of companies use these platforms to test software, as opposed to traditional coding, the market and adoption rates for these tools are growing. Gartner estimates that 65% of all app development functions will be performed on low-code platforms by 2024.

Reasons for using Low-Code platforms

While low code platforms are gaining traction in the market, there are multiple reasons to use low-code platforms:

• Fosters digital innovation and transformation
• Protects against technology churn
• Avoids technical debt
• Enable citizen developers to improve internal processes

Advantages of Low-Code Test Automation

• Ease of use: Since less coding knowledge is required, it’s easier for citizen developers to use.
• Improves productivity: The drag-and-drop interface takes less time to build processes and achieves faster results.
• Improves agility: Since it is easy to build and amend changes, agile changes to processes can be made without having to worry about changing complex code.

Limitations of Low-Code Test Automation

• It is slow because there is a dependency on developers for complex test scenarios
• Depending on the platform, there are limited options for customization

What is No-Code Test Automation?

No-code is a software testing approach where test automation is achieved without writing a single line of code. These platforms cater to testers, QA specialists, Automation Engineers, or non-technical users who may not know any programming languages but want to test an application for specific use cases.

No-code automation platforms allow both technical and non-technical users to automate processes through interactive graphical user interfaces instead of traditional computer programming. It involves drag and drops that imitates a user’s interactions.

Reasons for using No-Code platforms

With no-code platforms gaining popularity among non-tech people, there are multiple reasons to use no-code platforms:

• Quicker turnaround while building software products
• It is possible to make products without any engineers
• Users control their product outcomes without depending on developers
• It is more accessible and affordable since, no-code platforms provide a visual interface for development on a single platform.

Advantages of no-code test automation

• Easy automation: When automation is designed with visual UI workflows, all code is generated under the hood making automation easy to learn and implement. A tester can start automating cases as soon as UI development is completed without wasting time going through complex coding practices and frameworks.
• Low maintenance and high scalability: Automating tests with visual UI workflows, inherently following current business rules and best practices, make it easy to scale.
• Minimal resource allocation: When testers don’t have to spend much time automating their regression tests by writing code, they have more time for exploratory testing of the application. With codeless automation, there’s no need to involve developers in creating UI tests, which is more cost-effective.

Limitations of no-code test automation

• Software functionality is limited to what is provided by the platform
• If tests aren’t modular or readable, then maintenance becomes difficult

Low-Code vs No-Code Test Automation: Differences

One simple reason why low-code/non-code is preferable is because of the pressure to build quality products quickly. Gartner predicts that by 2023, over 50% of medium to large enterprises will have adopted a low-code or no-code as one of their strategic application platforms and that low-code will be responsible for more than 65% of software development by 2024.

Choosing a low-code or no-code platform depends on many factors. No-code test automation tools enable testers to write and manage tests without many skill requirements. But low-code test automation platforms provide more flexibility, customization and help achieve higher test coverage.

Is Low Code better than No Code?

Low-code platforms provide more flexibility than no-code platforms. They allow developers to customize and extend applications with coding when needed, balancing visual development and traditional coding. On the other hand, no code platforms restrict developers to visual interfaces and pre-built components, limiting customization options.

1. Speed of Development: No code platforms are designed to enable rapid application development by empowering non-technical users to build applications without writing code. They provide a visual interface with drag-and-drop functionality, making it faster to create simple applications. Low code platforms require some coding knowledge but still offer visual tools and pre-built components that can speed up development compared to traditional coding.
2. Technical Expertise: No code platforms are tailored explicitly for non-technical users, allowing individuals without coding skills to create applications. On the other hand, low-code platforms assume a certain level of coding knowledge and are typically used by developers with some programming experience.
3. Maintenance and Scalability: Low-code platforms offer greater control over the underlying code, which can facilitate application maintenance and scalability. Since custom code can be written, developers have more flexibility to optimize performance, debug issues, and make changes as needed. While easier to maintain in terms of initial development, no code platforms may have limitations when scaling and handling complex application requirements.

Key Product Features in this Alpha Release:

• Intuitive Test Recorder: Specify the URL to test and perform actions on your website, just like manual testing. The recorder automatically captures the corresponding steps for you.
• Visual Validation: Easily verify complex assertions by just adding visual validations during recording.
• Intelligent Step Timeout: Detect optimal wait time-out based on network requests and page navigations and waits for elements to become actionable.
• Self-healing: Eliminate the need for manual test updates when changes are detected.
• Cloud Execution: Create test suites from your recorded tests and execute them on BrowserStack cloud.
• Testing on Dev Environments: Record websites on your internally hosted environments and replay them on the cloud with minimal setup.

BrowserStack Low-Code Automation covers all aspects of the testing lifecycle, including test development, test execution, and test reporting. Sign up now to harness the full potential of low-code!

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