Top 50 Manual Testing Interview Questions and Answers you must know in 2023

Preparing for a Manual Testing Interview?

This paper covers all the aspects of manual testing interview questions. These questions are thoroughly researched and are suggested by industry experts in the field of software testing. The questionnaire given below will help the candidate to gain knowledge and take up the manual testing interview with great confidence.

In the present world, the advancement of digitization has led to the revolutionization of digital products which are enabled with software. These products have made our lives easier. The activities that were earlier carried out by humans are now automatically performed by digital products with minimal human intervention. Therefore, to build the software that is installed in these digital products, we have to follow certain steps. This is called the software development life cycle(SDLC). This cycle has mainly five phases. And indeed, one of the phases in SDLC is the software testing phase.

A peek into Manual Testing

Software testing is the process of finding bugs or defects in the developed product. This testing is performed to compare the expected outcome with the actual outcome of a particular task in the system, or a process and report the errors found in the system. This software testing can be performed by executing the system/software components using manual or automated tools. Further, it depends on the requirements whether to use manual testing or automated tools. In fact, there is a lot of demand for candidates with skills pertinent to manual testing. Hence, given below are the manual testing interview questions that will come in handy before attending an interview

Manual Testing Interview Questions and Answers

Basic Manual Testing Interview Questions

1. Why is software testing required?

IT companies develop software, but everyone wants to develop error-free products. There are several reasons to test the software before software deployment

• Increase the quality of software
• Testing before deployment makes software cost-effective
• Reduce the risk of getting defects after deployment
• To check software adaptability
• Software testing helps to optimize business

2. What is manual testing?

Manual testing is a process that is conducted with the intention of finding the defect, then fixing the defect. So that, we can enhance the quality of the application.

3. What are the three prime methods of manual testing?

• Black box testing: this testing can be done by a person who does not have the knowledge of coding. Here, only the working of a final product is examined.
• White box testing: here the candidate should know the structure of the existing software and he should also have knowledge of the internal coding.
• Grey box testing: it is a combination of both black box testing and white box testing. It is mainly done by a candidate who has knowledge of both coding and testing.

4. What are the types of black box testing?

The two types of black box testing are Functional testing and Non-functional testing.

5. List two differences between functional and non-functional testing?

Functional Testing	Non-Functional Testing
Functional testing is testing the functionality of the software application under test.	Non-functional testing is testing the characteristics of the software.
It checks the basic functionality mentioned in the functional specification document.	It checks how fast the response is or how much time the software takes to perform any operations.

6. Describe the types of Functional testing?

Positive functional testing: In this type of testing, we give valid input to the input field and verify whether the outputs are correct or not.

Negative functional testing: This testing is used to identify the behavior of the software performance when unintended input is passed as an input to the software.

7. What are the examples of functional testing?

A few of the examples of functional testing are as mentioned below

• Unit testing
• Smoke testing
• Sanity testing
• Integration testing
• Interface testing
• System testing
• Regression testing
• User acceptance testing

8. What is the difference between Re-testing and Regression testing?

Re-Testing	Regression Testing
Re-testing is carried out to verify defect fix.	Regression testing is done to check if the fixing of the defect has not impacted other functionalities of the application that was working fine before applying the code changes.
Re-testing involves executing test cases that failed earlier.	It involves executing test cases passed in earlier builds i.e. functions that were working in earlier software
It involves re-running failed test cases that are associated with fixing the defect and being verified	This does not involve verifying defect fix but only executing regression test cases

9. What are the types of Non-Functional testing?

• Compatibility testing
• Configuration testing
• Documentation testing
• Installation testing
• Load testing
• Performance testing
• Recovery testing
• Security testing
• Scalability testing
• Stress testing
• Usability testing and
• Volume testing

10. Explain briefly compatibility testing and usability testing.

Compatibility testing: It is non-functional testing in which testers test the software in a different hardware and software environment like in different browsers, in different operating systems, and sometimes in different hardware environments.

Usability testing: It is also a type of non-functional testing in which testers test the feasibility of the software to be used by the end user. 

11. What do you mean by the feasibility of software in usability testing?

Feasibility of the software refers to the user-friendliness of the application, like whether the application is easy to understand and use, whether the application is pleasant looking to the end user, and so on.

12. What is the difference between Smoke testing and Sanity testing?

Smoke Testing	Sanity Testing
Smoke Testing is a wide approach where all areas of the software application are tested without getting in-depth	Sanity Software Testing is a regression testing that focuses on a small set of areas of functionality in the software application
The test cases for smoke testing of software can be either manual or automated	Sanity test is generally without a test script or test cases
This testing is done to ensure whether the main functions of the software applications are working or not	This testing is done whenever a quick round of software testing can prove that the software application is functioning according to the requirements of the business or not

13. What is performance testing? What are the types of performance testing?

Performance testing is done to check the performance of the system based on the throughput, scalability, etc. the three types of performance testing are

• Load testing
• Stress testing
• Volume testing

14. What is Beta Testing?

Beta Testing is pre-release testing and is done before the release in the market. It is the last stage of testing. When the software passes Beta Testing, it can be successfully released to the general public. 

15. List a few differences between Alpha and Beta testing.

Alpha Testing	Beta Testing
Alpha Testing is conducted within the organization	This testing is conducted at the place of the client i.e. outside the organization
In Alpha Testing, the developer will be present while testing	In Beta Testing, the development team will not be present while testing as it is tested on the client’s side

16. What are use cases?

Use cases describe the functional requirements of software from the end user perspective. They are generally created by a business analyst. Use cases help the developers and testers in understanding the application well.

17. How is the test case different from the test scenario?

Test Case	Test Scenario
A test case is how it is tested	The test scenario is what to be tested
The test case consists of sets of input values	It is nothing but a test procedure
We derive the test case from the test scenario	Test scenario contains multiple test cases

18. What is a testbed in manual testing?

The testbed is the environment where the application can be tested. It is a combination of hardware and software. It includes a processor, RAM, operating systems, browsers, databases, etc.

19. How is software testing different from debugging? List a few differences.

Software testing	Debugging
Software testing identifies the presence of defects and shows the failures caused by the defects.	Debugging finds, analyses, and removes the cause of failures.
This test is carried out on the coding as well as other artifacts	Debugging is carried out only on the code.
Testors(testing engineers) carry out this software testing.	programmers(coders) carry out debugging.

20. What is the root cause of the bug?

A few of the main causes of the defects are human errors, code complexity, time crunch, environmental conditions, and heterogeneous and interconnected technologies. So, it is important to understand how the bugs enter the system in the first place. So that we can prevent new defects and detect the existing defect.

21. What is the difference between severity and priority?

The impact caused on the business workflow due to the bug in the software is called the severity. If a bug has been raised and its impact is more, then it is a high severity bug. If the impact of the bug on the customer business is less, then it is called a low severity bug.

Real-time manual testing interview questions

22. What is the difference between a project and a product?

The project is for single customer requirements. Whereas, the product is for market industry requirements.

23. How will you confirm if the application is meeting all the requirements?

If all the test cases are cleared and if there are no open defects, then we can confirm to the client the application has met all the requirements.

24. How will you identify related functionalities in regression testing?

As per the decision table, we can identify the functionalities that are interrelated. And, once the bug is fixed we will refer to the decision table and execute the test cases accordingly in the part of regression testing.

25. When will you stop your test?

All the testing cases are passed and if there are no open issues, then only the testing will be stopped. This is as per the traceability.

26. What is Adhoc testing?

When there is not enough time, we will test functionalities that are important by selecting them randomly. And, later we verify if the application is working properly or not according to the customer requirements. 

However, the Testing team will give conditional sign-off for the production release. 

But, if we have more time, the tester will do random testing on the functionality and intention to break the application functionality 

27. What is the use of the test plan, and what are the different sections in it?

A test plan is used for scheduling the testing activities from the beginning to the ending with clear dates and with the scope of testing. The different sections are resource requirements, software, hardware, defect management, traceability matrix, and risk and contingency plan.

28. What is the bug life cycle?

The different phases involved, like the identification of a bug from the starting to the ending, are called the bug life cycle. Accordingly, the phases include New, reject, deferred, open, fixed, reopen, and, closed.

29. What is the testing life cycle?

The activities that are followed in testing from beginning to end are called the testing life cycle. However, different phases of the testing life cycle are

• Test plan
• Development of test
• Test execution
• Results analysis
• Bug tracking
• Reporting

30. What is a deferred bug?

If a tester is not able to fix the bug in the current release, due to lack of time. Whereas, he will be fixing it in future releases. And hence, the development team will be giving the status as deferred.

31. What is the difference between verification and validation?

The quality assurance technique is nothing but verification. And, here we verify if all the documentation is according to the requirements or not. The quality control technique is nothing but validation. Here, we will perform text executions and verify whether it is working according to the requirements or not.

32. What are the drawbacks of the waterfall model?

It does not have a verification technique

whenever there is a change in the existing requirement, it should be started from the beginning again.

There is no bottom to up.

If the requirements are unstable, then time and budget will be very high.

33. Which reports are sent from the testing team?

The reports sent are daily, weekly, monthly, test summary reports, test closure reports, and, bug reports.

34. What are test case design techniques?

• Boundary value analysis
• Equivalence partitioning
• Error guessing
• Decision table

35. what are the different metrics?

• Test coverage
• remark/defect ratio
• Defect severity index

36. What are stub and driver?

Due to lack of time, the development team will not be able to develop the module which is used for integration between multiple modules. However, they will use temporary programs calling them stub in the top-down approach and the driver as a bottom-up approach.

37. What are the responsibilities of the product owner(PO)?

Accountable for product success

Defines all product features

Responsible for prioritizing product features

Maintains the product backlog

Ensures team working on highest valued features

Advanced manual testing interview questions

38. What is a test closure report?

A test closure report is a summary of all the tests that were carried out during the software development life cycle. Either way, it gives an elaborate analysis of defects removed and the errors found. And so, this report contains the total number of experiments executed, a number of imperfections discovered, a number of imperfections settled, a number of bugs not settled, and so forth.

39. What is the difference between static and dynamic tests?

Static test	Dynamic test
These tests are performed without executing or running the software.	The dynamic tests are performed by executing or running the software code.
Many of the artifacts created all over the Software Development Life Cycle(SDLC) like the designs, documents, code, and user interface are capable and are being static tested	These tests are concerned only with testing the functionality of the executing code.
This test is distributed all over the Software Development Life Cycle.	The dynamic test is done only after the coding phase of the SDLC is completed.

40. What are the fields in a bug report?

• A distinctive ID
• A short description of the bug/defect
• Section of the application
• Severity
• Steps in reproduction: exact test data, details about how to arrive at the error, time at which defect was found, any of these will help to meet the issue
• Screenshot
• Question Answer: just in case any post-testing questions regarding this issue

41. What does video/audio-related testing include?

• Password controlled or not
• Various types of environment
• compatibility with browser
• Screen resolution
• Speed of internet connection
• Particular options on a video like play, stop, mute, etc.
• Size of the video
• Comments to the videos
• Interoperability- interface with social networking sites
• Buffering speed
• Embedded video

42. What does mobile application testing include? Explain briefly.

• Verify if the application works well with multiple devices and multiple carriers
• Usage of the features on a mobile screen
• Test the app on different mobile platforms like ios and android
• Installing, uninstalling, and launching the app with internet and without internet, testing the functionality
• Internet connections- wifi, 4G, etc

43. How to get maximum productivity from an offshore team?

• The main focus is to ensure that all the testers know about the sections and that there is no skill concentration in one place. Also, involve peer reviews in the test script, and error meetings. These sessions are going to make sure that everyone knows about the application for the best possible event
• Additionally, by motivating the idea of teamwork we can have all the team members coordinate and help each other for better results.
• Following up regularly with meetings also helps the process very much.

44. If you do not have input documentation for testing. How do you overcome this challenge?

If certain standard documents like Functional Specification Document(FSD) and Business Requirement Document(BRD) are not available, then, the tester has to depend on some other points for reference. 

• Screenshots, the application’s previous versions, Wireframes, etc
• Another factor that helps a lot is to talk to the business analysts or the developers and get approval on our understanding or clarify in case of any doubts.
• When these situations don’t work, we can conceptualize the application with the help of our previous application experience and create a fundamental list of test scripts.
• Once the testing phase comes up we can manage (Make the already created scripts perfect) test case and set up a portion of test cycle time. Now we have the document for the next phases.

45. What do you mean by configuration management?

Configuration management (CM) is a process of systems engineering that constantly maintains system resources, servers, computer systems, software, and product performance. The configuration Management system records the changes made in the system. And ensures that the progress of the system is as intended even though changes are made over time.

46. What are release notes?

When the tester gives the software to the end user. he will give a release note to the consumer. This release note consists of

• The bugs present in the software.
• The defects found in the previous release and which they resolved.
• Steps for Installation.
• The platforms in which they have tested the software, i.e., compatibility test.

47. How is bug leakage different from bug release?

When the end user finds the defects in the software, which was released into the market is called bug leakage. Since these defects were not identified during software testing and carried along with the software.

On the other hand, when a particular version of the software is released in the market with defects that are known already and are intended to get fixed in the later stages. This is called a bug release.

48. What is the requirement traceability matrix?

Requirement Traceability Matrix(RTM) is a table that associates high-level requirements with any of the detailed requirements, test cases, or test plans. requirement traceability matrix helps in making sure 100% test coverage.

49. What is the software testing life cycle?

The number of activities (tasks) performed during the testing of software is called the software testing life cycle. In this, the software has to go through six different stages

• Requirement analysis and validation: The documents containing the requirements are being analyzed to understand the scope of testing and also requirements are validated to understand their correctness and applicability.
• Planning: This is the phase, in which the strategy for testing is defined and efforts required for testing with automation technique, and the tool is also selected.
• Design and Analysis: In this phase, the test cases are designed, test data is prepared and then automation scripts are implemented.
• Test environment setup: here a test environment which is closely simulating the real-world conditions is prepared.
• Execution phase: here, the test cases are prepared, and defects are reported and tested again once they are resolved.
• Closure and reporting: this is nothing but a test closure report prepared to have the final test outcome learning, summary, and test metrics.

50. What do you mean by test harness? Why do we need a test harness?

The test harness is the gathering of all test scripts and test data that are associated with unit testing and integration. Although, this involves drivers and stubs that are needed for testing software components and integrated modules.

Henry Harvin’s Software Testing Course

The software testing course certification by Henry Harvin is meant for developers from beginner level to intermediate levels, who want to gain knowledge and skill by implementing tools and testing techniques for their project development. This certification is a series of courses that helps to master and gain knowledge in software testing and coding. This course curriculum will improve your learning experience as a software testing expert. Upon completion of the course, you will be career-ready with an applied learning experience. You will be able to communicate your start-up ideas to the developers in a better way.

Finally, with software testing course certification from Henry Harvin, you can get into different job roles like software tester, software researcher, user researcher, product quality controller, usability specialist, and more.

Conclusion

Now let’s conclude the discussion of manual testing interview questions

Manual testing is a part of software testing, and this software testing is a crucial component of software development. While doing manual testing, the test engineer needs to be patient and creative. Here the tester should play a role similar to the end user and execute all the test cases as per the customer’s point of view. This manual testing plays a vital role while testing software applications. In fact, it is one of the most satisfying and challenging jobs in the IT industry. This paper consists of carefully collected manual testing interview questions which will help the candidate to get ready for the interview.

FAQs