Learn end-to-end test automation by testing a real web application
Let the End-to-End Testing with TestCafe book guide you from your first test to a full test suite. Your tests will check your app the way your customers use it, so you can deliver faster with fewer bugs.
Updated for TestCafe v3.7.7
“End-to-End Testing with TestCafe is an excellent technical resource – a ‘must-have’ for TestCafe users.”
Delivering quality software quickly is hard.
You and your team push to ship your latest and greatest web application. But to get things done quickly, you cut corners, and the app goes out into the world without the testing it needs.
It feels like every time you put something into the hands of your customers, something breaks. Now you and your team have to find and fix those bugs while you keep building new features.
You take a look at how your team tests today. There's a list of scripted tests that someone runs through by hand. But who wants to spend their days mindlessly clicking around the same pages over and over again? The app has a few scattered unit tests, but those don't go through the whole system. This testing isn't enough, because the bugs keep on coming.
You know that an automated end-to-end test suite would catch these bugs before your customers do. But building one sounds like a lot of work. How do you even start?
Building high-quality software shouldn't have to be this painful.
Guess what? It isn't painful. What if you could start automating your tests in a way you can rely on? How would it feel to stop seeing the same bugs pop up again and again, and to get back the hours you spend on mind-numbing manual testing?
Sure, you could spend a long time figuring out on your own how to build an end-to-end test suite for your application. Fortunately, you don't have to.
End-to-End Testing with TestCafe puts what you need to get up and running with TestCafe in one place. Start automating your end-to-end tests today.
What You Will Learn About TestCafe
End-to-End Testing with TestCafe covers the ins and outs of the TestCafe testing framework using a real web application, so the examples show how you'd use TestCafe on an actual project.
TestCafe is a JavaScript testing framework for automating end-to-end tests. You write tests that go through your app's most important features in a web browser, the same way your customers would.
Once your tests are written, TestCafe can run through them any time you want to check that everything still works. You can stop going through boring scripted tests and clicking around by hand, hoping the bug you fixed a few weeks ago hasn't come back.
With TestCafe, you don't need to be an expert programmer. If you know the basics of modern JavaScript, you can start writing tests right away. And if you're still learning how to code, you can pick up TestCafe without much trouble.
In End-to-End Testing with TestCafe, you'll test a custom-built web application called TeamYap. TeamYap has most of the features you'll run into in web applications today. When you buy the book, you'll get access to TeamYap right away so you can practice what you learn.
Here are a few things you'll learn with this book:
Setting up a test suite with TestCafe
Learn how to set up TestCafe in your development environment. You'll go from installing TestCafe locally to writing your first end-to-end test.
Writing tests that navigate through your app
The book covers most of TestCafe's built-in actions, from clicking and filling out forms to uploading images and making requests to external services.
Running tests in different browsers
Run your tests in the browsers installed on your computer or in headless mode. You'll also see how to emulate mobile devices to check how your app looks on smaller screens.
Organizing your tests so they're easy to maintain
The more tests you write, the bigger your test suite gets. Learn how to organize shared code so your test suite doesn't turn into a tangled mess.
Testing your app as different users
You'll often have to log in with different accounts to test your app. See how TestCafe's user roles let you switch between them with a single line of code.
Debugging your tests
No matter how careful you are, something will go wrong with your test suite at some point. Learn how to debug your tests so you can find out what broke and fix it.
And much more!
These are only some of the topics in the book. End-to-End Testing with TestCafe starts with your first test and works up to advanced features like working with HTTP requests and iframes.
Table of Contents
- Chapter 1 What is TestCafe?
- Chapter 2 Setting up TestCafe
- Chapter 3 Introducing TeamYap
- Chapter 4 Fixtures and Test Organization
- Chapter 5 Hooks
- Chapter 6 User Roles and Authentication
- Chapter 7 Page Object Model
- Chapter 8 Selectors
- Chapter 9 Actions
- Chapter 10 Assertions
- Chapter 11 Browser Support
- Chapter 12 Configuration Options
- Chapter 13 Using Metadata
- Chapter 14 Working with HTTP Requests
- Chapter 15 Debugging TestCafe Tests
- Chapter 16 Working with iframes
- Chapter 17 Working with multiple browser windows
Follow the path to higher-quality web applications
End-to-End Testing with TestCafe shows you how to ship better web applications in less time.
Within a few chapters, you'll know enough to start writing end-to-end tests for your own web application. By the end of the book, you'll be able to build a test suite that covers the parts of your app your customers use most.
You'll also learn how to make TestCafe part of your team's development workflow, so your testing cycles get shorter and fewer bugs slip through to your customers.
I've seen this happen myself. On teams where I brought in TestCafe, we cut regression testing time by almost 50% while catching more bugs before they reached production. Imagine what you could do with 10 to 20 hours of your work week back.
Dennis guides the reader through all stages of modern web service testing. Numerous examples and a ‘simple to complex’ structure makes this book useful for both experienced testers/developers and those starting their end-to-end testing journey.
End-to-End Testing with TestCafe is structured well and offers a complete picture of TestCafe abstractions in plain language. Significant attention is paid to proper test project organization, long-term maintenance, and the involvement of multiple team members.
With End-to-End Testing with TestCafe, you will learn how to write reliable and maintainable tests, how to organize tests using the Page Object Model pattern, and how to debug tests more effectively. To help master the material, Dennis includes exercises at the end of each chapter.
End-to-End Testing with TestCafe is an excellent technical resource – a ‘must-have’ for TestCafe users.”
Buy the End-to-End Testing with TestCafe book
What's included
- The book (PDF and EPUB formats)
- Access to TeamYap
- Priority support through email
- Free book updates
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10 Ways to Simplify UI Testing
The team behind TestCafe held a webinar using material from the End-to-End Testing with TestCafe book. It shows how to write end-to-end tests that are easy to maintain and how the Page Object Model keeps your tests organized.
Watch it for a sneak peek at what's inside the book.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Who is this book for?
- The book is mainly for developers and testers who work on web applications and want to learn end-to-end test automation with TestCafe. It assumes you know the basics of modern JavaScript, but you don't need to be a "JavaScript expert" to follow along.
- What formats are available for the book?
- The book is available as a PDF and an EPUB file.
- Which version of TestCafe does the book use?
- The book's contents are updated for TestCafe v3.7.7. You'll get future updates of the book for free.
- How can I get support after buying the book?
- Anyone who buys the book can email me questions about it, and I'll get back to you quickly.
- Do you have a money-back guarantee?
- Yes! If you buy the book and don't find it useful, send me an email ([email protected]) with a copy of your receipt within 30 days of your purchase, and I'll refund what you paid.
- Do you offer any student discounts?
- I sure do! Please send me an email ([email protected]) and let's talk about it.
- I have another question that isn't answered here.
- My inbox is always open. Send me an email ([email protected]) with your question, and I'll be glad to answer it!
About the author
Dennis is a full-stack web developer and automation tester living in Osaka, Japan. He has over 20 years of experience building software products, most recently web applications for e-commerce companies and non-profit organizations. You can find Dennis on X and LinkedIn.
He is also the main author of Dev Tester, a blog that helps developers get better at test automation. You'll find plenty of articles about TestCafe there.
