Cross Browser Testing: A Complete Guide
Different browsers can display the same website in completely different ways. What seems great in Chrome can be broken in Safari, and what works in Firefox just might fail in Edge.
Cross browser testing ensures that your website works consistently across all the browsers before your potential users see problems. That way, the team can catch browser-specific issues ahead of time, preventing them from affecting the user experience or tarnishing the outlook of your brand.
This blog directs to giving you all possible answers about cross browser testing-from the very basics to the actual implementation of cross browser testing into your development workflow.
What is Cross Browser Testing?
Cross Browser Testing is simply a process of analyzing whether the website or web application works consistently across a range of different web browsers, browser versions, and devices. Each browser interprets the website code
Since a browser interprets a website's code (HTML, CSS, Javascript) differently from other browsers, a site may look or behave differently if viewed on Chrome as opposed to Safari or Firefox. Cross browser testing weeds out and corrects these discrepancies before product release.
They ensure the user will be presented with a smooth and uniform user experience irrespective of whichever browser or device is being used, from the layout to interaction and responsiveness, including the functioning of all interactive elements.
Cross browser testing can be done manually by opening the website with different browsers and on different devices or automated using tools like Selenium, BrowserStack, or Playwright. It is a crucial quality assurance step that helps the teams find out compatibility issues earlier to improve accessibility and give a glossier finish to the product for more eyes.
Why is Cross Browser Testing Important?
Cross Browser Testing ensures that your application is functional as well as appears to be intended across all characterized platforms, especially important for user-facing interfaces where usability, accessibility, and design consistency matter.
Here’s why it really matters:
Varied Browser EnginesBrowsers often run their own rendering engines (Blink, WebKit, Gecko) that interpret HTML/CSS/JS differently. More than 30% of users are non-Chrome customers, so the neglect of this category may result in users suffering from a bad experience.
Multiple Versions of Browsers in UseNot all users update their browsers to the latest version, especially users in the enterprise environment. Your app should support an older version so there is broader compatibility.
Cross-Platform RenderingA site may behave differently with the same browser across Windows, macOS, or Linux. The differences in rendering, font, and GPU usage make operating system testing a priority.
The User Experience Drives the Business OutcomeA broken feature or improper layout lashes out on users. 88 percent of users never return after a bad experience. Poor browser support means lost conversion and revenue.
SEO and Accessibility at RiskCompatibility issues may hurt SEO and accessibility. Some engines render pages differently, and accessibility tools may differ from one browser to another, affecting compliance and usability.
What Features are Analyzed in a Browser Test?
In cross-browser testing, the attributes of a website or an application are tried against cross-browser functionality, design, and performance over the set of browsers and operating systems. Some features to consider: Layout consistency, design consistency, functionality verification, performance testing, and accessibility check.
Here is a detailed breakdown:
GUI Consistence Alignment, layout, font rendering, spacing, and visual elements must be checked. But browsers vary widely in implementing CSS, which mostly leads to inconsistencies.
JavaScript Functionality Validating dynamic behaviors such as form validation, interactive elements, or some third-party scripts may be required, as browsers may interpret a JS feature differently.
Performance Differences Find Issues related to loading times, caching, or JS execution that could differently affect the user experience on each browser.
Third-Party Integration Make sure that all payment services, analytics services, or social login services are compatible with all the major browsers.
Responsiveness and Mobile Behavior Testing has to be done on various screen sizes and on mobile browsers to validate the expected working of responsive breakpoints, touch gestures, or mobile-specific functionalities.
Form Handling Check for the interaction of form fields in terms of file upload, and submission on any browser.
How Do I Select Browsers for Testing?
Selecting the right browsers for Cross-Browser Testing is crucial to ensure your website works seamlessly for your target users. Here's how you can smartly select browsers for testing:
1. Understand Your Users
Start by analyzing your real users through tools like Google Analytics or Hotjar. This will tell you which browsers, devices, and operating systems your audience uses most. Prioritizing testing based on this data ensures you're focusing on actual user behavior, not assumptions.
2. Look at Global and Regional Trends
Use sources like StatCounter or W3Counter to understand the broader browser market share. Chrome usually dominates globally, but Safari, Firefox, and Edge have strong user bases depending on region and device type. This helps you decide which additional browsers to include beyond your user analytics.
3. Don’t Forget Older Versions
While testing on the latest browser versions is a must, many users—especially in enterprise or institutional settings—may still use older versions. Tools like BrowserStack allow you to test across versions without needing to install each one locally.
4. Cover All Major Browser Engines
Different browsers use different rendering engines—Blink (Chrome, Edge), WebKit (Safari), and Gecko (Firefox). Testing across these ensures your code behaves consistently, no matter how the browser interprets it.
5. Consider Special Use Cases
Some industries still rely on legacy browsers like Internet Explorer 11 or use Edge in IE mode. If your web app is used in banks, government portals, or older corporate systems, you’ll need to factor these into your testing matrix.
6. Test Across Devices
Your users won’t all be on desktop. Make sure to test on mobile browsers like Chrome for Android and Safari for iOS, as well as tablets. Responsive design checks are essential for a seamless cross-device experience.
How is Cross Browser Testing Done?
Cross-browser testing is important to provide every user a smooth and consistent experience regardless of location or access medium to the site.
Step 1:Â Determine Target Browsers and Devices
The very first step is finding where to test : meaning, the most commonly used browsers, devices, and platforms by your audience. Use Google Analytics or StatCounter to find out what are the most common user combinations.
This includes:
Browsers: Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, and Opera, and Internet Explorer.
Devices: iPhones, Android phones, tablets, and desktops.
Operating System: Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS.
Step 2: Write Test Cases
Once you know where to test, you’ll need to determine what to test by careful testing with clear and consistent test cases. One can draft exactly what should be tested in each browser. A test case mostly includes: Layout & Design (e.g., whether elements are correctly aligned, font is readable, and images render correctly), Functionality (e.g., forms, buttons, and sliders work, and proper navigation), Performance (e.g., load speed and responsiveness), and Accessibility (e.g., screen readers work well , smooth keyboard navigation, proper ARIA labels). Proper test cases ensure that testing of all browser and device combinations are done in exactly the same way.
Step 3: Selection of Testing Method
You can perform testing in two general ways: manual and automated.
Manual Testing: Involves opening your website on each target browser and device, interacting with it just like a user would. This method is great for spotting visual issues, layout problems or other strange browser-specific behaviors.
Automated Testing: Automation saves time with repetitive tasks and large projects. Tools like Selenium, Cypress, and Playwright allow you to prepare scripts that automatically pass test cases across browsers.
Most teams use a mix of both: manual testing for design and usability, automation for functionality and regression.
Step 4. Set Up the Test Environment Then comes setting up your test environment, and you have several options.
Real Devices: Testing on real devices gives the most accurate results, but it’s often expensive and time-consuming.
Emulators and Simulators: They imitate mobile or tablet behavior. They are useful during development but might not capture all the nuances of real-world scenarios.
Cloud-Based Platforms: BrowserStack, LambdaTest, and SauceLabs offer online access to an extensive array of browsers and devices so one need not invest in physical hardware. These tools also let you run both manual and automated tests, take screenshots, record bugs, and even simulate network conditions. Most teams now use cloud-based testing as it is cost-effective and scalable.
Step 5: Run Tests and Report Issues
With your test cases prepared and the test environment configured, go ahead to run your tests and report any bugs.
Cover every possible browser-device combination.
If you find a layout shift, a broken link, a missing image, or a JavaScript error, document it properly — include the browser, device, OS version, clear steps to reproduce, and ideally, a screenshot or screen recording.
You may select from various bug tracking applications that will organize the whole process. Such tools include Jira, Trello, and Bugzilla.
Step 6: Debug and Retest
Once the bugs are reported, developers start fixing them.
When the fixes have been pushed, the testers:
Retest the same scenarios to check if the bugs are really fixed.
This might repeat a few times, especially when they add new features or after major updates.
How to Record JSON API Calls from Web App Interactions?
In this blog, we’ll be exploring cross-browser testing, but let’s take a look at something interesting — the way to record API test cases.
Is it possible to record an API call while interacting with your favorite website? Yes, now it is possible with the Keploy API Test Recorder using the Chrome extension.
How to Try the API Test Recorder:
To know more Chrome Extension check the docs:Â https://keploy.io/docs/running-keploy/api-testing-chrome-extension/
You can also export and filter the URL based on your requirements. Feeling confused? Don’t worry, just give it a try!
When is Cross Browser Testing Done?
Cross Browser Testing is a process undertaken throughout the development cycle to make sure that the website works perfectly well on all major browsers. The main stages where cross browser testing is performed usually include:
During Development
Developers make quick runs of tests for early incompatibility cases all along feature-building.
Testing Before Release
Before a major release, all test suites are run against all supported browsers.
These will include automated checks and manual validations of the UI.
Post-Deployment Monitoring
Compatibility issues are tracked through real-user feedback and monitoring tools.
The purpose of this testing method is to detect any issues caused by new upgrades to browsers or unforeseen environments.
Regression Testing
Regression testing is done after code changes to check whether old functionalities still work on all browsers.
It becomes critical for applications that have a dynamic JavaScript or rather complex UI behavior in them.
Scheduled Maintenance Testing
Conducted periodically at weekly or monthly intervals to detect issues due to browser updates or third-party changes.
Such tests prevent gradual degradation of performance or layout over time.
Who Does Cross Browser Testing?
In cross-browser experiments, many roles contribute to assurance during the functioning of various platforms.
Quality Assurance Engineers Designs test cases, executes manual tests, and maintains the automated test suites. Some might have more focus diverted toward automation, while some might use more of their time for manual testing and user experience.
Developers Frontend developers check their code with browsers and perform basic checks with dev tools. Backend developers test the APIs to make sure that the APIs behave or respond consistently amongst browsers on the server side.
DevOps Engineers They set up infrastructure , manage CI/CD pipelines as well as integrate cloud testing platforms to ease browser testing.
Product Managers & Business Analysts They define browser support on the basis of end-user needs and market data, prioritizing compatibility instructions to the technical team.
Specialized Testing Teams Large companies have specialized teams working solely on browser compatibility, tools, and best practices.
Some of the Other Useful Blogs for Your Reference:
Getting Started With Selenium Ide-https://keploy.io/blog/community/getting-started-with-selenium-ide
Continuous UI Testing Pipeline: Browserstack With Github Actions-https://keploy.io/blog/community/continuous-ui-testing-pipeline-browserstack-with-github-actions
How To Do Frontend Test Automation Using Selenium-https://keploy.io/blog/community/how-to-do-frontend-test-automation-using-selenium
Conclusion
Essentially, cross browser testing is a pivotal practice that ensures smooth functioning of a web application across a broad array of browsers, devices, and operating systems. Given the multiple intricacies involved in present day web development, it simply cannot afford to be optional anymore.
An effective cross-browser testing approach leans on the selection of browsers based on user analytics, a blend of manual and automated testing, and the integration testing into the development workflow. The contribution made to such an investment might translate to a better user experience, fewer support issues, and more confidence in the application's stability.
Cross browser testing is an ongoing process that evolves with your application, your users, and, of course, the browser world out there. Start with those browsers that matter to your users; set up automated tests for repetitive scenarios; and slowly scale up testing coverage along with your application and team.
FAQs
1. How many browsers should I test on?
Test on browsers the analytics show about 95–98% of your users use. The usual list consists of Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge for both desktop and mobile. Somewhere around 6 to 8 browser configurations will do.
2. What's the difference between cross browser testing and responsive testing?
Cross-browser testing is about making sure that the application behaves the same way across various browsers and versions. Responsive testing is about checking layout responsiveness over screen size.
3. Should older browser versions be tested?
Depends on your audience. If analytics show a substantial number of users indeed use the older versions, then put them under test. Usually, the current version, including the past 2-3 major versions for each browser, is supported.
4. How often should one perform cross browser testing?
Cross browser testing must be integrated throughout your development lifecycle. Lightweight compatibility checks should be performed during development, heavy testing before major releases, and regression testing on a regular basis for maintenance. Automated tests can be run at every code commit, while manual tests usually come in dedicated test phases and shortly before production deployments.
5. Can cross browser testing be completely automated?
Complete automation Complete automating is neither practical nor recommended . Manual testing remains essential for user experience evaluation, visual design assessment, and exploratory testing scenarios. The most effective approach combines automated testing for repetitive scenarios with manual testing for areas requiring human judgment and creativity.
