Hire Selenium developers pre-screened for technical and cultural fit

Software development relies heavily on testing. However, manual testing and fixing bugs is often time-consuming and labor-intensive, with the added risk of human error. With automation, businesses can reduce the associated time, cost, and risk.

Selenium, an open-source automation testing framework, tests web applications across browsers and platforms. If an organization develops web application projects, hiring Selenium developers boost efficiency when writing automated scripts that execute tests.

Selenium helps developers testing web applications more effectively than if they tried to do so manually. This allows businesses to scale up, creating better-functioning applications on a consistent basis. However, hiring a Selenium developer is typically challenging because of the high level of technical knowledge necessary to excel in this role. Managers may struggle to hire Selenium developers who meet qualifications, especially if they don't have a firm grasp of the technical knowledge themselves.

What Is Selenium Development?

Selenium development is a type of software development that involves writing scripts and programs to automate tests for web applications. This development involves using Selenium, a suite of tools that automate web browsers, helping to identify errors in a web application’s code before releasing the product into production and ensuring the application functions as expected.

Using Selenium allows businesses to develop higher-quality applications in a shorter timeframe than their competitors. Selenium developers catch errors, locate those errors, and bolster applications expeditiously, leaving companies relying on manual testing way behind.

Developers use Selenium to simulate end-user interaction with a web application to identify and rectify bugs and improve the overall user experience. They write scripts to monitor web applications and take specific actions, such as clicking buttons and filling out forms.

Organizations use Selenium for a range of projects, such as:

• Web scraping: To extract data from web pages automatically
• Regression testing: To test the stability of a website after introducing any changes
• Performance testing: To measure the performance of a web application
• Repetitive tasks: To automate common web-based tasks such as logging in and out of a web application

Why Selenium?

Software testing is an arduous process that takes intensive human effort. Selenium automation provides an alternative to manual testing techniques. Automated testing is less time-consuming than manual testing while still ensuring web applications run smoothly and function as expected.

Software engineers use Selenium for both functional testing and regression testing. Software developers choose this top-quality, web-based testing framework because it executes large numbers of test cases in a short amount of time. This means that software engineers are saved from running manual test scripts every time their coding slightly changes. Additionally, programmers more easily follow application testing best practices without falling behind on deadlines or incurring large amounts of technical debt.

Benefits of Selenium

Selenium has a proven track record for running quality application automation tests. But the Selenium webdriver does more than just save developers time. It also reduces human errors, allowing software engineers to walk away with a higher quality product than if they made it without Selenium. Some of the top benefits of Selenium include:

• Ease of use: Selenium developers have run extensive API testing to verify the application is easy to use, allowing developers to create and execute test scripts as effectively as possible.
• Provides language and framework support: Selenium supports coding and automation testing in a number of languages, including Python, Javascript, Java, and Ruby.
• Offers multi-browser support: Selenium automates testing regardless of the user’s preferred browser.
• Supports parallel testing: Selenium allows developers to run multiple tests in parallel, saving them even more time than test automation alone.

What Does a Selenium Developer Do?

A Selenium developer or Selenium Automation Tester is generally responsible for designing, developing, and executing automated test scripts to ensure a web application functions optimally. While this is the primary responsibility of Selenium developers, their daily tasks may vary depending on the project requirements and the size of an organization.

When hiring Selenium developers, note that their typical tasks and responsibilities might include the following:

• Writing test scripts in languages such as Java, Python, JavaScript, and Ruby
• Analyzing test results and providing detailed reports
• Setting up and maintaining a test environment
• Debugging scripts to identify and fix errors
• Collaborating with software developers, testers, product owners, and others to ensure the quality of the product

Required Skills and Qualifications

A qualified Selenium developer needs a number of technical skills beyond just knowing Selenium’s API. For example, they are to be proficient at a minimum of one programming language (usually Java, Python, or C#), though it may be prudent to specify proficiency in the programming language a development team uses most often.

Candidates should also be familiar with the purpose behind testing automation, as well as proficient with testing tools like TestNG, JUnit, or NUnit. Continuous integration tools like Jenkins, Travis CI, or CircleCI are also critical for Selenium developers, as integration testing is one of the key job requirements for Selenium developers. And, while not mandatory, it’s often helpful for Selenium developers to be proficient in version control systems like Git.

In addition to these critical technical skills, qualified Selenium developers should also have great communication skills to discuss test results with team members, as well as problem-solving skills to unpack test results in a meaningful way.

Popular Selenium Languages and Libraries

Selenium is designed to support a number of programming languages and libraries. The right choice for a given team will depend on the programming languages and libraries they use when developing web applications in the first place. Aspiring Selenium developers can diversify their skill sets by becoming proficient in a number of these related languages and libraries.

Related Languages

Selenium was designed to support a large number of programming languages. These include:

• Java: Selenium was developed in Java, making this the most popular go-to programming language for Selenium developers.
• Python: Python is a simple, versatile programming language, which makes it a great choice for running tests in Selenium.
• Ruby: Ruby is a great programming language for end-to-end application testing. Teams who like to use one programming language for every stage in application development may choose to use Ruby in Selenium.
• C#: This programming language is great for testing how web applications work across multiple platforms, including Windows, iOS, and Android.
• JavaScript: JavaScript is designed to interact with HTML on a website. Developers hoping to use JavaScript in conjunction with Selenium will need to install JavascriptExecutor in Selenium.

Related Libraries

Libraries in programming are sets of pre-written code or functions that developers use to perform common tasks without having to write the code from scratch. When used alongside specific programming languages, these libraries help extend Selenium's capabilities.

• Java: Selenium was developed in Java. As a result, Java libraries may be the most compatible libraries with Selenium development software. There is an abundance of pre-written Java code developers use in conjunction with Selenium.
• Python: Selenium WebDriver with Python allows users access to standard Python commands as pre-written code within Selenium, allowing Python programmers to get the most out of these testing tools.
• Ruby: The Selenium WebDriver gem is useful for doing testing in Ruby. This gem incorporates Ruby libraries into Selenium.

How Does Selenium Fit Into Modern Front-end Development?

Selenium is one of the top open-source frameworks for automated testing in popular browsers. The right Selenium developer uses this framework to perform a number of critical testing tasks, all of which are designed to confirm reliability on different browsers, assess application performance, and improve user experiences.

Selenium developers accomplish these tasks in a variety of ways, including:

• Visual testing: Selenium developers combine Selenium’s framework with visual testing tools to compare screenshots of web pages, identify visual differences, and verify that front-end visuals remain consistent regardless of any changes to back-end coding.  
• Cross-browser testing: Because Selenium works in a variety of browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge, developers use the framework to make sure users have the same brand experience regardless of which browser they use.
• Performance testing: Selenium simulates user interactions to confirm the application behaves as expected and performs well under stress.
• Regression testing: As back-end developers make changes, programmers use Selenium to perform regression testing and avoid new updates ruining old features.

Selenium also integrates with DevOps to provide teams with fast feedback on the quality of code changes. It’s used as a part of Test Driven Development (TDD) approach, which is an approach where developers write tests before programmers write codes. A TDD approach helps spark conversations about how applications are supposed to behave, encouraging programmers to write code with front-end functionality in mind.

How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Selenium Developer?

A mid-level Selenium developer with four to six years of experience earns an average salary between $69,000 and $120,000 in the U.S. However, this figure can change significantly depending on the type of job, location, and industry. Salaries may also vary when considering factors like annual bonuses, stock or equity options, retirement contributions, or healthcare packages.

Selenium automation testers in other countries, such as Latin America, receive significantly lower salaries because the cost of living in these countries is so much lower than in the United States. On average, developers from these countries earn 30% to 50% less than their U.S. counterparts despite having the same qualifications and skills. Revelo provides access to some of the top Selenium developers from Latin American countries, helping organizations find the perfect candidate for their projects.

Featured Tool: Tech Team Budget Calculator

Finding Selenium Developers for Your Project?

Hiring the right Selenium developer for your project is a nuanced skill that requires some knowledge on your part. While it’s important to write a compelling job description and come prepared with strong interview questions, it’s equally important to understand which Selenium development tasks your project requires.

Work with your development team to determine which tasks are most important to you in terms of front-end development. Come prepared with how you anticipate a Selenium developer folding into your existing team. For example, if your team exclusively works with Python, you need to search for a Selenium developer trained in using Selenium and Python together.

Consider keeping a member of your application development team on your hiring committee. This team member may be better suited to asking the types of high-end technical questions necessary to evaluate Selenium developer candidates.  Remember that Selenium developers don’t have to meet certain educational standards, so applicants often have drastically different baseline knowledge levels. 

Keeping a knowledgeable team member on the hiring committee helps you make initial assessments about how much different candidates know about automated testing methodologies, as well as about your team’s preferred languages and libraries.

Why Hire Selenium Developers With Revelo?

Top Selenium developers, especially those with the requisite credentials, are challenging to find. Moreover, it takes time and effort for your organization to vet potential candidates and find an ideal candidate for your project.

Revelo helps you find a highly-skilled Selenium developer for your project quickly and easily. We have an extensive network of pre-vetted remote software engineers from Latin America with experience in Selenium and other programming languages. Our experts use an extensive vetting process to ensure we include only the most qualified and skilled candidates in our talent pool. Once you select your ideal hire from our shortlist, we assist in ongoing tasks such as payroll, benefits administration, taxes, and local compliance so you can focus on growing your business.

Contact Revelo today to hire selenium developers for your upcoming projects.