Manual Testing Tools for QA Engineers

Software testing is one of the essential steps on the way to the project release.
There are two primary ways of software testing: automation and manual. While each method has its advantages and disadvantages, its main goal is the same: to ensure the quality of the software.
Manual testing is the oldest and primary form of software testing.
It is the process of testing software application features and functions from an end-user perspective. Unlike automated testing, which uses a software program to conduct such tests, manual testing relies on the actions of a human.
Nowadays, in parallel with technology advancement more and more tests are becoming automated across different layers of the application under test. But despite this fact, the art and science of manual testing continue to be critical to software quality for the foreseeable results.

Manual Testing Tools

A wide range of manual testing tools is available to simplify the testing process and keep all tasks organized.
Here we have manual testing tools classified by categories:

Test Case Management Tools
A test case management tool helps organize, measure, report, and collaborate on manual testing projects. Testing usually involves a lot of documentation, and if the right tools and processes are not in place, things can quickly become disorganized. A good test case management tool can make testing a lot easier when it comes to keeping those assets organized and up to date.
Suggested test case management tools:
TestLodge -TestLodge is an accurate and simple way to organize testing documents. With TestLodge, we can write and manage test cases, requirements, test plans, and test suites.
It can also be perfectly integrated with certain third parties to provide accurate reporting results.
Zephyr – Zephyr works with Jira to help testing teams to leave spreadsheets behind and improve visibility into their test results.
TestLink – TestLink is an open-source test management tool. It pairs requirements with test cases and supports both manual and automated testing.

Issue Tracking Tools
Another essential manual testing tool for software testers is an issue tracker. As defects are found, testers need to write a good bug report for sending to the design and development teams to work on and fix them. There is a large quantity of issue tracking tools, and while each one is different, they all aim to solve the problem of helping to track issues easily and collaborate with teams on project work.
Suggested issue tracking tools:
Jira – Jira’s flexible framework with its customizable features makes it one of the most popular manual issue tracking tools for software testers.
Operating around Jira is easy, but at the same time complex, depending on the user and the mode of operation.
Basecamp – Basecamp is a project management favorite. With a single, all-in-one dashboard for organizing projects, teams, and corporate communications, Basecamp comes in handy with a live chat function, a message area, a to-do list, schedules, and documents, all on the all-inclusive dashboard. It can be used in multiple fields.
Trello – Trello is a project management and issue tracker tool that allows testers to create issues on a board. Trello can be set up in a basic form as well as be configured using more complex rules and automation.
Asana – Asana is another widely favored work management platform with numerous variations in application and is used by several of the world’s biggest companies.
Teamwork – Teamwork is a project and work management tool that can be easily customized to support the way teams like to work.

Cross Browser Testing Tools
Cross-browser testing tools often involve verifying that the UI elements are rendering correctly across multiple browsers, involves physically checking functionality and how the code responds in each browser. There are many cross-browser testing tools available today that can help testers to save time and effort, and make sure their web applications function properly on each browser.
Suggested cross-browser testing tools:
BrowserStack – BrowserStack is a widely used manual testing tool. It enables testers to quickly load their application to on-demand browsers and devices, which saves them a lot of time.
Sauce Labs – Sauce Labs is a continuous testing tool that offers simple cross-browser testing solutions.
Browser Shots – Browser Shots is a free tool where you can load a URL then receive screenshots showing how the site looks on various browsers.

API Testing Tools
API testing verifies that the API meets expectations regarding the application’s functionality, security, performance, and reliability. The process often involves repeatedly running the same API calls, which can be time-consuming. API testing helps testers expedite this process by saving and organizing frequently used API calls and scripts.
Suggested API testing tools:
SoapUI – SoapUI helps software testers test APIs more efficiently. SoapUI supports API load testing, API functional testing, and API performance testing.
Postman – Postman is an excellent tool for writing and storing API requests for testing. These requests can be executed manually or run in a sequence automatically.
REST Assured – Rest Assured is a java library that helps testers to validate RESTful API endpoints quickly.

Screen Capture Tools
Many software defects are cosmetic flaws or workflow issues that can be better understood visually, so screen capture tools are valuable when testing manually. Some screen capture tools have the facility to call out specific notes by marking up the image. Being able to generate an image or screen recording quickly in this manner helps software testers communicate bugs more accurately.
Suggested screen capture tools:
CloudApp – CloudApp is a screen recorder, screenshot creator, and animated .gif generator. It allows testers to capture what’s happening on the screen instantly then share it with their development teams.
Loom – Similar to CloudApp, Loom also generates screen recordings and videos, allowing testers to record what they are looking at on the screen.
Skitch – Skitch enables testers to capture screenshots quickly and annotate them for extra context.

Email Testing Tools
Email testing is an area that is often overlooked, but it is super important to make sure emails are functioning correctly and look good. Today, with automated emails and smart drip campaigns connected to software, email is just as much a part of the product as the application itself. This is why we’re including these email tools in our manual testing tools list.
Suggested email testing tools:
Litmus – Litmus is an excellent manual testing tool allowing testers to view how their emails render in different email clients, so avoiding testers having to sign up to numerous accounts and install email clients, thus saving time.
Mailtrap – Mailtrap is another practical manual testing tool that email testers love. Mailtrap does the work of a real SMTP server and prevents test emails from mistakenly landing in a real customer’s inbox.
Email on Acid – Email on Acid is a multi-featured email optimizing service that includes campaign analysis and cross-client testing for the performance of individual emails.

Conclusion

Productivity, organization, and the overall effectiveness of manual testing can be improved by using a combination of tools. Many of these tools are low cost or free, and will make a positive impact on manual testing workflows right away.