Cross browser testing (CBT) is essentially exactly what it says. It is all about making sure your web application or website works properly and looks as it should, across different web browsers through testing. Not everyone uses the same car, and the same goes for web browsers. You have Chromium based ones which are now the most popular. But there’s also Firefox, Safari, Microsoft Edge, and even the odd Internet Explorer (IE) is still kicking about! In December 2024 IEs usage was showing at 0.16% globally, so that’s probably an edge case! That’s before we even think about VPN or other security ones like DuckDuckGo, Opera or mobile versions. Extensions like NordVPN and others can also influence CBT.
The reason this is so important is that these different browsers can sometimes interpret web code in slightly different ways. When we say web code we mean all the different technologies like HTML (HyperText Markup Language), CSS (Cascading Style Sheets), JavaScript and many others. What looks good in one browser using one or a combination of web code, might be not so good or even broken in another. As software testers, we need to make sure that however someone is browsing or on whichever device, they get a consistent experience.
This means we need to test our software on a range of browsers, and ideally on different versions where possible, because things can change with updates. We're looking for things like layout issues with responsive design, where elements might be in the wrong place, functionality problems, where something works in one browser but not another, and even performance differences. It's about ensuring that everyone gets a similar quality experience, regardless of their browser preference. It’s a bit like making sure your instructions are clear no matter who is reading them!
The reason this is so important is that these different browsers can sometimes interpret web code in slightly different ways. When we say web code we mean all the different technologies like HTML (HyperText Markup Language), CSS (Cascading Style Sheets), JavaScript and many others. What looks good in one browser using one or a combination of web code, might be not so good or even broken in another. As software testers, we need to make sure that however someone is browsing or on whichever device, they get a consistent experience.
This means we need to test our software on a range of browsers, and ideally on different versions where possible, because things can change with updates. We're looking for things like layout issues with responsive design, where elements might be in the wrong place, functionality problems, where something works in one browser but not another, and even performance differences. It's about ensuring that everyone gets a similar quality experience, regardless of their browser preference. It’s a bit like making sure your instructions are clear no matter who is reading them!
