1. Fit for Purpose: Ensure the tool aligns with your automation needs, whether it's web, API, mobile or database automation.
2. IDE Support: Compatibility with your preferred IDE, such as Visual Studio or IntelliJ IDEA, facilitates seamless integration and a familiar development environment. For some of you this point might look very obvious since by default we start with an IDE for any kind of development. In my recent experience of exploring API testing tools, I could realise that there are quite a lot of plugins which comes default with IDE and provide decent support for doing API testing but since those are extensions, we may not be able to use all the default features of IDE.
3. Debugging Capabilities: Effective debugging capabilities are essential for identifying and resolving errors during automation script development. As added in the previous point, for open sourced framework we may not need to care much, but tools like Thunder Client VS code extension, Insomnia etc debugging is still a challenge.
4. Data Storage Mechanism: Understand how and where the tool stores the data added by user, especially for commercial tools, to ensure data security and ease of maintenance. For example, popular API testing tool like postman saves the collection in a big fat json which is challenging to manage and maintain in version control.
5. CLI (Command Line Interface) Support: Ensure the tool provides a robust command-line interface for seamless integration with CI systems. We are very much used to of running automated tests from IDE, but our ultimate goal is running everything is from CI, so that capability should be supported independently by the tool you have selected. In one of my recent trial of Thunder Client Extension for API testing, I could found that CLI execution support is under paid license.
6. Version Control Compatibility: Verify the tool's compatibility with version control systems for effective collaboration. Again this is also part of IDE, but if you want to use some low code tools make sure to check this point before hand. The example I added in point 4 still hold good here. The collection json file generated by postman is very difficult to manage when multiple people are collaborating.
7. Hooks/Fixtures Support: Assess support for hooks or fixtures to enhance test setup and teardown flexibility.
8. CI/CD Integration: Confirm compatibility with Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment pipelines you are using in the project.
9. Reporting Capabilities: Evaluate the tool's reporting features to facilitate result analysis.
10. Community Reach: Consider community presence around the tool that offers valuable support, knowledge sharing, and resources for troubleshooting and best practices.
11. Development Experience: Gauge the tool's ease of use and development experience to ensure efficiency in building and maintaining automation scripts.
12. Security Assessment: Conduct a thorough security check for existing vulnerabilities, particularly critical for open-source tools.
13. Scalability Requirements: Analyse the tool's scalability to accommodate the evolving needs of your project.
14. Parallel Execution Capability: Evaluate the tool's ability to execute tests in parallel, optimising test suite execution time.
15. Test Data Management: Assess how the tool handles test data, ensuring efficient management and usage.
16. Documentation Quality: Examine the comprehensiveness and clarity of the tool's documentation for ease of understanding and troubleshooting.
17. Cost and Licensing: Understand the tool's cost structure and licensing terms to align with your project budget and policy.
18. Customisation Options: Evaluate the level of customisation the tool allows to adapt to specific project requirements.
19. Proof of Concept (PoC): Conduct a proof of concept to test the tool in a controlled environment. Use a small-scale project or a pilot phase to assess the tool's effectiveness.
20. Feedback from Stakeholders: Gather feedback from team members who will be using the tool. Consider their opinions and experiences to make an informed decision.
on these checklist items. Assign weightage to each criterion on a scale of 1 to 5, reflecting its importance
to your project. Summing up the scores for each tool will help in objectively identifying the most
suitable tool that aligns with your project needs. This approach ensures a balanced consideration of
various factors, guiding you towards an informed decision.