Tips for testing iOS apps. All you need to know about optimization of iOS app testing

Closed source

Compared to open-source Android, iOS is closed-source. It means that it can be modified, released, and used only by Apple Inc. This significantly simplifies iOS testing due to much less device fragmentation and, consequently, a fewer number of issues related to hardware fragmentation, back-compatibility, variety of screen sizes, and screen resolutions.

Single distribution platform

While Android apps can be downloaded not only from the official Google Play Store but also from websites and memory cards, iOS applications can be installed only from the Apple App Store. This approach significantly contributes to security and simplifies the security testing of iOS applications.

Review guidelines

Compared to the Google Play Store. Apple has indeed strict review guidelines for app submission in the Apple App Store. Therefore, iOS applications must undergo comprehensive compliance testing to make sure that they strictly adhere to the required guidelines.

Tip 1. Study your target market to maintain a proper testing environment

It is important to execute app testing on real mobile devices. Compared to the number of Android-powered devices available on the market today, the range of Apple devices is much leaner. Still, it is rather expensive and time-consuming to check app operation on all available iOS devices. The best thing you can do is to carry out market research and reveal the most widely-used iOS versions and device models. With this information, you can maintain your testing environment correspondingly to assure that your iOS app will run smoothly on the devices of the majority of your target users.

Tip 2. Pay particular attention to performance testing

Performance testing verifies the behavior of an application in terms of loading time, scalability, stability, etc., while it undergoes different workloads. The whole scope of performance tests must be carried out on an ongoing basis in order to guarantee an excellent user experience and make sure that there are still enough capabilities for user multiplication and further development. Performance testing is vital for both users and businesses.

Tip 3. Make the user experience a priority

Apple is all about convenience and user-friendliness. That is why for iOS applications, it is extremely important to live up to these high standards by providing an unmatched user experience. In these terms, the key areas to be tested are usability, scalability, accessibility, localization, GUI, etc.

Tip 4. Take advantage of automation testing

Probably there is no need to explain how automation testing can benefit the whole process and simplify the life and work of a QA team. So whenever it is relevant automate tests in order to drive the testing process, reveal more defects, enlarge test coverage, and save a ton of time. The thing you must remember in order to succeed with this is to choose the right automation tool or even a set of tools. Choose those that comply with your app requirements and testing needs. In the Apple universe, you can find a special framework for unit testing - XCTest, and a UI testing framework - XCUITest that, in fact, is built on top of XCTest. The other market leaders are Appium, Calabash, KIF, EarlGrey, etc.

Tip 5. Use the most reliable emulators/simulators

The golden rule says that efficient testing must be executed on real devices. Still, the reality is so that from time to time we all have to resort to the help of emulators/simulators. If there is an urgent need to check something, but there is no particular mobile device at hand, simulators/emulators are a lifesaver. Nevertheless, it is worth remembering that they cannot replace real devices and if you have to use them, choose at least the most reliable ones.

Tip 6. Always check the appetites of your iOS app

It is strongly advised to check the appetites of your iOS application under test. Pay attention to how fast it drains a battery, how much data it uses, and how much memory it consumes. It is of primary importance as end-users will not be happy if your iOS app extensively uses the resources of their devices.

Tip 7. Network testing is a must

End-users can use your iOS application across varied network conditions, which can have an impact on the app’s performance. Network testing can reveal issues that app users can experience in markets with slower network speeds.

So carefully test your app against Wi-Fi and mobile networks of various speeds. Pay attention to app behavior while you shift from one type of network to another, or when the connection is lost.