Selenium vs. Opkey: Coupa Test Automation
Tags: coupa, test, automation
Published: 2023-10-19 14:20:04

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Is Selenium the right choice when it comes to Coupa test automation? How have the options for testing evolved recently? In this blog, we’ll discuss the pros and cons of Selenium as a Coupa test automation platform. We’ll also highlight how Opkey can be an ideal test automation platform for Coupa, and why we are Coupa’s only official testing partner.   

**Why Is Coupa Testing Critical**?

A robust and healthy Coupa testing program is critical because of the following reasons:

**System stability**: Organizations use Coupa to manage their expenses, procurement, and invoicing. Any glitch in the Coupa functionality can lead to financial losses, disruptions in business operations, payment errors, or compliance violations.

**Operational efficiency**: Business users rely on Coupa to fulfill their day-to-day tasks. User Acceptance Testing (UAT) plays a critical role in ensuring that business users can operate the Coupa system seamlessly.

**Compliance fulfillment**: Many organizations need to comply with the regulations. Otherwise, they can be slapped with hefty penalties. Testing ensures that Coupa complies with these regulations, reducing the risk of legal and financial penalties.

**Integrations**: Coupa supports seamless integration with ERP or accounting systems. Testing ensures that integrations work seamlessly, preventing data synchronization errors and process breakdowns.

**Security**: Users in Coupa can have different roles. It means that you can limit the functionality of users based on what they can/ can't do. Security testing ensures that users have appropriate privileges.

**Regression testing**: Coupa releases three updates per year that are mandatory for all customers. Each update requires regression testing to ensure it does  not negatively impact existing business operations. 

As you’re now aware that testing is critical to maximizing return on Coupa investment, let’s analyze Selenium and Opkey as test automation platforms for Coupa.‍

**Selenium for Coupa Test Automation**

Selenium has been a traditional choice for testing teams as a test automation platform. 

**Selenium Pros** 

- It is available as an open-source platform.
Selenium supports multiple programming languages - JAVA, Python, and C#.

- Selenium’s strong suit is web GUI testing. The Selenium automation suite includes tools such as Selenium IDE and Selenium Grid.

- Selenium IDE makes setup easier with record-and-play functionality, while Selenium Grid allows you to perform parallel testing.

**Selenium Cons**

- Selenium is developed with a programming mindset. It is only accessible for technical  users (and those who know how to code). Business users and other team members cannot use it, thus limiting the possibilities of who can test. 

- Selenium uses element properties like ID, Class, XPath, Tag Name, & CSS Selector to identify controls on the screen to perform actions. However, Coupa's web pages often contain dynamically generated IDs and classes for HTML elements. Since Selenium relies on these locators to interact with web elements, any change in the UI can lead to broken tests.

- Coupa uses iframes for certain functionalities. Selenium has to switch between these iframes to interact with elements inside them, which can be tricky to handle as it requires extensive coding knowledge. 

- Your QA teams may require custom reports on Coupa testing. However, Selenium lacks that functionality and requires third-party applications for reporting. 

**Opkey for Coupa Test Automation**

Test automation is the new wave of revolutionary technology that is changing the possibilities when it comes to ERP testing. We’re talking faster, more personalized, more secure testing that meets your organization where you are. 

Opkey, as opposed to Selenium, has gained popularity for Coupa testing for the following reasons:

- Opkey is an official Coupa partner. 

- Opkey comes with 30,000+ prebuilt test accelerators, of which 500 are just for Coupa across Supply Chain, Finance, & Procurement modules.  

- Opkey is a No-Code test automation platform with a smooth learning curve. Business users can easily operate Opkey without any technical know-how.

- Opkey helps organizations pinpoint what, in their Coupa environment, is changing with each update, so they can prioritize testing on their most at-risk processes. 

- Opkey’s self-healing technology makes test script maintenance effortless, as its built-in AI automatically identifies broken scripts and heals them automatically without requiring human intervention. 

- Opkey supports 14+ ERPs and 150+ technologies to deliver end-to-end coverage. 

- Opkey offers advanced reporting and troubleshooting capabilities that are audit-friendly.