Reasons to Use Robot Framework for Test Automation
Published: 2020-04-17 14:17:04

Software development companies automate the testing process to increase accuracy and speed, enabling them to deliver high-quality digital products on short notice.

Robot Framework is one of the most popular automated testing technologies. It is open-source and can be used on both user and programming interfaces, and it has strong community support. Experienced QA engineers value Robot for its extendibility and wide range of customization features.

With Robot, you can choose your preferred programming language. You can even use English words as keywords, which makes RF an easy-to-master option for beginners, since you don’t need much programming knowledge to start writing your first scripts.  

This post lists the main reasons to use Robot Framework for automated testing.

## Active Community
Learning something new is always easier when you have seasoned specialists to advise you about useful tools and industry best practices.
* You can join RF communities on Stackoverflow, GitHub, and Slack to stay abreast of the latest updates, find questions and answers on virtually any topic related to RF’s launch and uses, as well as detailed tutorials and source code.
* By reading [case studies](https://clever-solution.com/case-studies/test-automation-for-a-car-leasing-platform) you can see how theoretic knowledge can be put into practice.
* You can attend the RoboCon convention that is held annually in Helsinki.
Try to take part in open-source RF development sprints and workshops.

## Availability and Frequent Updates
You can acquire Robot Framework for free, along with all the libraries and extensions supplied by the community. But be sure to check contributors’ comments to avoid having to fix bugs resulting from low-quality code. You can also visit the official [foundation](https://robotframework.org/foundation/) website that supports FR’s development and the release of new versions.

## Integrations
Depending on your project’s requirements, the testing environment can be customized with third-party libraries. Special libraries for UI testing, database testing, and HTTP request testing are available in the public domain. Expand your stack by trying a special [Selenium library](https://github.com/robotframework/seleniumlibrary) for RF that lets you use Selenium functionality when testing apps.

## Documentation
RF’s documentation found on their [official website](https://robotframework.org/#documentation) is accurate, well-structured, and easy-to-read, so new users are able to quickly tap into the technology. Apart from textual instructions, it includes videos, demos and online courses.

Also, RF lets you  create your own documentation. When building third-party libraries and extensions, contributors can document the process and outcomes in a unified format that the community can understand.

## Custom Keywords
Teams using unique functionality or datasets not provided in the basic toolkit may need to script them using custom keywords. This can be done using Python or any other programming language that binds to Python.

## Comprehensive and Understandable Test Reporting
Easy-to-read RF reports can be understood by anyone, including QA engineers, product owners, stakeholders, and other parties who lack programming knowledge. Each report explains the test’s purpose, features and verified data, along with other important details.

## Reusable User Stories
User stories make user experience the center of attention when designing, developing, and testing apps. They can be reused by different teams to ensure consistency. Also, you’ll save loads of time by scripting tests at the development stage. Once the code is written, it can be verified with a ready-made autotest. All user stories can be kept in a catalog for use by product managers to write new stories.

That sums up the key advantages of Robot Framework. Use this cutting-edge technology to simplify and accelerate your QA processes.