30 Days of API Testing - Day 27: What advice would you give to someone looking to get started with API testing

30 Days of Testing
,
1

Just one advice I would give to my friends who looking to get started with API testing, it is:
Let join “30 Days Of API Testing” challenge :wink:

3 Likes
2

30 Days of API Testing Day 27 challenge is:

What advice would you give to someone looking to get started with API testing?

I wrote a Club post similar to this a little over a year ago.

I don’t think my own recommendations have changed much but I’m keen to see what recommendations others have for this more generally. I jumped straight into apps to practice on but I’m sure there are better suggestions of beginner reading or videos or podcasts to get to grips with it all.

2 Likes
3

I convinced that every newcomer should begin with theory (http in the whole, headers, status codes, api types etc.)
But in order for it not to be a naked theory, it is worth choosing any website to open the developer panel (F12) and try to sort out all the requests, responses, http methods, headers, status codes. Then you can try to generate test requests for test api using well-known utilities (e.g. POSTMAN).

In fact, testing api is not too different from testing other systems, the test analysis techniques that are used the same :slightly_smiling_face:

2 Likes
4

From the folks on Twitter

5

My advice is:

  1. First reading book & docs : An introduce to API.pdf, Automating and Testing a REST API.pdf, https://www.katalon.com/resources-center/blog/ , https://docs.katalon.com/katalon-studio/docs and to understand API
  2. Second see video about API on katalon tool https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=katalon+api+testing
    to practice some API demo
  3. Third if without exercises, you can get exercises from 30 Days of API Testing on https://club.ministryoftesting.com: day 7, day 16, day 21, day 30
3 Likes
6

I think reading basic definitions, concepts then watching videos and writing down your own test to practice is the fast way to learn API testing. Besides, refer other comments in challenges is also good, I found the solutions appropriated with the issues I had met from sharing. If I looked for them myself I thought it would take a long time without direction and assuredness to find out.

3 Likes
7

My advice are:

  • Learn the basic knowledge about API: headers, status codes, API types.
  • Play some request to the API and see the response.
  • Find and play an automation tools for API testing.
  • Last but not least: join “30 Days Of API Testing” challenge
3 Likes
8

My advices:

  1. Start learning with Google.
  2. Join "30 Days Of API Testing” challenge and answer 30 topic in this activity, this will help you explain more for the API testing :wink:
2 Likes
9

I will suggest who looking to get started with API testing is join the ‘30 days of API testing’ like me.

3 Likes
10

On the same note as many have already said, I would say:

  1. Get familiar with basic concepts first by reading articles and blogs about the subject.
  2. Use your browser’s dev tools to explore and play with requests
  3. Try your hand at an API testing tool, build your own collection of requests, and use public APIs to write small automated scripts
  4. Start reading Katrina Clokie’s API, Web Services & Microservices Testing Pathway to expand your knowledge on the subject and related areas
  5. Join the Club and complete the “30 Days of API Testing” challenge!
11

I would suggest to not focus on a tool but on the generic and have the following in mind

  1. What is an API?

  2. HTTP Status codes

  3. Understand the Methods GET/POST/PUT/DELETE

  4. Understand authentification

  5. And of course practice, practice, practive

  6. In the end do all the above in a tools if possible. See https://www.postman.com/use-cases/api-testing-automation/

12
  1. MoT’s “30 Days of API testing” is a really good way to get started. You can’t learn API testing in 30 days, but you do get a good overview:
    • it gives you the list of topics/areas / tools /books you need to grow your knowledge and skills
    • you get some practice too.
  2. Incorporate API testing in your daily work. You know it, “Practice makes perfect”. Start using Postman or any other tool. Even a small amount of time invested regularly in API testing will help you grow as a tester.
  3. Follow the people who share their knowledge.
  4. Create your own knowledge base, tools and visual resources. Share with others and with your team.