Gone are the days when testing your app on a single browser was more than sufficient. In these dynamic times, users today have multiple device and browser options to explore your website, relishing the unique experience each one offers. So, they refuse to compromise on their experience and will never settle for an app that does not level up to their standards. Recent research proves that 88% of people will not return to a website if they receive a poor user experience.
Hence, ideally, your website must perform flawlessly, regardless of whatever browser or device your users choose. If your application fails to deliver optimal performance across all platforms, users may quickly desert your website and move to your competitor’s sites. This could impact your business’s sales and revenues and dent your hard-earned reputation. So, evidently, cross-browser testing is something you cannot overlook while developing software.
Cross-browser testing evaluates the compatibility of your website across different browsers and their different versions while ensuring consistent performance across all devices and operating systems.
Why is cross-browser testing important?
Imagine developing a new website for your business, which looks exceptional on your favorite browser but seems lackluster when shown to a customer on another device. You notice issues like text going out of alignment and images not loading properly, causing you embarrassment. This is caused by not identifying compatibility errors that are browser-specific.
The solution for these issues lies in cross-browser testing, which tests how your website will appear and function when using:
- Different device variations
- Assistive tools
- The different browser and operating system combinations
Now that you realize how vital cross-browser testing is, your next step is to search for a reliable tool that aligns with your testing requirements.
When conducting cross-browser testing, you have two options: a cloud-based testing tool or a solution that can be installed on-premise. With in-house testing, procuring, setting up, and maintaining an extensive number of browser and device combinations would be challenging. You would need to spend a lot of effort, time and money involved in doing so, making it an impractical option.
The better alternative would be to conduct cloud-based cross-browser testing, which provides exceptional advantages that are too valuable to ignore.
Advantages of cloud-based cross-browser testing
Let us now delve into the top benefits of cloud-based cross-browser testing that will provide you with a more comprehensive and efficient testing experience.
1.Reduced maintenance and set-up costs
Setting up the infrastructure for cross-browser testing would mean physically purchasing the devices, resulting in huge expenses. However, with a cloud-based solution, there would be no need to set up the infrastructure physically as they would be hosted on the cloud. Moreover, you can access the facilities for a far lesser cost compared to what you would spend to set up the infrastructure.
Even during maintenance or upgrades, the devices need to be updated with software or hardware, requiring more investment of money, time, and effort. Contrarily, with cloud-based testing, you can upgrade your infrastructure and devices easily just by choosing from the provider’s website.
2.Scale your testing easily
With the testing needs evolving continuously, there is a need for your test environment also to match up to the changing requirements. When you use cloud-based testing tools, you can easily accommodate more devices and platforms just by clicking your choices to begin testing.
Similarly, you can scale down whenever you want by unsubscribing the devices you do not need. Thus, cloud-based testing allows you to seamlessly scale your testing without effort by just making a few clicks.
3.Reliable and stable testing environment
The downside of on-premise cross-browser testing is that wear or tear of devices can unexpectedly lead to downtime, disrupting your testing process. Even the upgradation of browsers and OS to keep up with the new releases and versions can lead to downtime. Similarly, accidents, outages, or disasters can also add to environment instability, causing delivery delays.
To avoid this, it would be better to use a cloud-based testing solution with many servers and backups that assure you of a stable and reliable testing environment. Moreover, your service provider will easily take care of any upgrades when you require them.
4.Allows parallel testing and non-stop test case execution
Cross-browser testing can be time-consuming when there are thousands of devices involved. However, when you conduct it on the cloud, you can access all the devices at any time of the day and conduct all the tests in parallel, saving precious time.
With cloud-based cross-browser testing, you achieve greater test coverage in lesser time. Moreover, it facilitates better team collaboration without disruptions in the workflow.
5.Perfect for collaboration between remote teams
Team collaboration is a critical factor in these times, where each testing team operates from different geographical locations. When you employ cloud-based cross-browser testing, collaboration between teams is easier since they can easily access the cloud-device lab at any time from any part of the world.
With cloud-based testing, remote testing teams can also access test cases, test reports, and all other related information whenever required.
6.Speedier software delivery
When you conduct cross-browser testing in an in-house lab, the testing process becomes time-consuming, and the quality of your testing may also not be up to expectations.
Contrarily, in cloud-based testing, you are assured not only of quality but the overall testing time is significantly reduced due to reasons like parallel testing, greater test coverage, and no time wastage due to infrastructure set-ups. Due to the decrease in the duration of the software development process, you can quickly deliver error-free products faster to the market.
Conclusion
All these priceless benefits must have convinced you that cross-browser testing on the cloud is a more feasible option than in-house testing. However, one needs to remember that to get optimal results for your testing, you must employ the right cross-browser testing platform that perfectly aligns with your business’s unique needs.
TestGrid platform is the preferred way for users across the world to perform cloud-based end-to-end testing including, codeless automation testing and even cross-browser testing. With its AI-powered capabilities and simple interface, TestGrid surpasses all other testing tools in terms of efficiency, accuracy, speed, and user-friendliness.
With TestGrid, you can effortlessly run codeless tests on more than 1000 real browsers, OS, and devices. You can safely bypass emulators and simulators since you get access to numerous real devices on TestGrid’s cloud anytime you want, regardless of your location.
TestGrid’s AI-based intelligence will supercharge your overall testing process by accelerating your cross-browsing efforts, enabling you to launch glitch-free, perfect apps with confidence.