Difference between Sanity Testing and Regression Testing

This tutorial will teach you about Sanity Testing and Regression Testing. Simple examples will be used to explain the difference between Sanity Testing and Regression Testing.

Most of the time, the meanings of Sanity Testing and Regression Testing are muddled. Initially, these two tests are "quite different" and are conducted at different times of a testing cycle.

So before going into details, let's see their definition first.

What is Sanity Testing?

Sanity Testing refers to the analysis and testing of modified software. Sanity Testing is a subset of Regression Testing; although Regression Testing focuses on a broad range of application domains, Sanity Testing focuses on just a subset of functionality. It evaluates the product's quality and preparedness for further testing.

Sanity Testing examines the software product after adding or modifying certain features. Typically, this testing is conducted after getting a somewhat stable software release.

Features:

• Simple: Easily conceived and executed.
• Unscripted: It is often not scripted.
• Undocumented: It is often not documented.
• Deep testing: limited functionality is thoroughly examined.

Advantages:

• It assists us in identifying deployment and compilation concerns.
• It is more affordable than other methods of software testing.
• It expedites the detection of crucial functionality issues.
• Sanity testing does not need any documentation. Therefore, it may be conducted in less time.

Disadvantages:

• Sanity testing focuses only on the software's instructions and functionalities.
• It does not delve into the design structure, making it exceedingly difficult for developers to comprehend how to remedy flaws discovered during sanity testing.

What is Regression Testing?

Regression Testing is the in-depth analysis and testing of all software product/system functions after any code changes, bug patches, modifications, updates in functionality, etc. It verifies and certifies that the latest modifications to the software product have no negative impact on its other features.

Regression Examination is the comprehensive testing of the functionality conducted after Sanity Testing has verified certain functionality. These tests are conducted on stable builds.

Features:

• The addition of a new requirement to an existing feature.
• A new function or feature is introduced.
• The codebase is modified to eliminate bugs.
• The source code is optimized for performance enhancement.

Advantages:

• Regression testing increases the quality of a product.
• This testing type may be automated.
• It assures that the resolved flaws and problems do not reappear.
• This testing ensures that the alterations do not affect the functionality of previously tested programs and identifies any side effects.

Disadvantages:

• Without an automated tool for regression testing, the testing procedure would be lengthy.
• Every minor update to the code must undergo regression testing since even a tiny part of the code might cause software faults.

Sanity Testing vs. Regression Testing

Conclusion

In summary, the main difference between sanity testing and regression testing is the scope and depth of the testing that is performed. Sanity testing is a quick and shallow form of testing that is used to ensure that the basic functionality of a software application is working properly, while regression testing is a more thorough form of testing that is used to ensure that changes to the code do not introduce any new bugs or issues, and that the existing functionality of the software application is still working as expected.

Related Questions

1. Is sanity testing done before regression testing?

After conducting sanity tests of any updated feature, regression testing is performed, leading to Quality Assurance and associated functions. It is exclusive to the QA team. The last phase in the testing cycle, regression testing, examines the product's overall behavior.

2. Why is sanity testing a subset of regression testing?

Regression testing is a subset of sanity testing. After obtaining the software build, sanity testing is conducted to verify that the newly introduced code modifications function as intended. This test is a checkpoint to assess whether or not testing for the build may continue.

3. What is the purpose of a regression test?

Regression testing is conducted to determine whether the upgrades or modifications introduced new bugs into the current functionalities. This action would secure the software's unity. Re-testing precedes regression testing procedures in a typical software development process.

4. Which tool is used for regression testing?

Selenium is one of the most effective and well-known browser-based regression testing tools and is well-suited for frequent regression testing. It supports many programming languages, testing frameworks, and third-party libraries and is, therefore, very adaptable.