Stop 02 · Manual Testing FundamentalsTopics · 6/11

Exploratory Testing

In short

Scripts only find what someone thought to write down. Exploratory testing is where you learn the app and test it at the same time, and it finds the weird bugs.

Simultaneously designing and executing tests based on your own understanding and intuition, without a pre-scripted test case — often uncovers issues scripted testing alone would miss.

The purple blob opens a cupboard in a small hostel room while flipping a light switch.

Think of it like this

Checking a new hostel room

On day one you open every cupboard, flip every switch, run the tap, test the fan's speeds and jump on the bed. Nobody gave you a checklist, but you have a goal: find what's broken before you settle in.

Watch it happen

One exploratory session

Charter

Timebox

Explore

Notes

Debrief

1/5Write a mission: 'Explore the coupon box with odd inputs to find pricing bugs.'

The big ideas

What you need to know

Learning while testing

Each result teaches you about the app and shapes your next move. That's the core of it.

Freedom with a mission

It's not random clicking. A charter keeps you focused on one area or risk.

Heuristics help

Try zero, one, many; very long text; going back mid-flow; two tabs at once; slow network.

See it in code

Walk through the code

text

1Charter:  Explore the coupon box at checkout2          with odd inputs to find pricing bugs3Timebox:  45 minutes4Tried:    lowercase code, spaces, expired code,5          two coupons, coupon then remove item6Found:    BUG-231 total goes negative7Question: Should coupons stack? Ask product.

1/3The charter: an area plus what kind of problems to look for.

Session notes like these make exploratory work visible and repeatable.

Save yourself the pain

Common mistakes

Oops

Exploring with no goal or notes, then not remembering how a bug happened.

Do this instead

Use a charter, a timer and quick notes. Record steps the moment something odd happens.

Oops

Treating exploratory testing as a replacement for test cases.

Do this instead

Use both. Scripts give repeatable coverage, exploring finds what scripts missed.

Your mission

Run a 30-minute session

~35 min

Quick check

What makes exploratory testing different from random clicking?

Go deeper

1Run a 30-minute exploratory testing session on an app, taking notes as you go.
2Learn the concept of 'testing charters' as a lightweight way to focus exploratory sessions.
3Understand exploratory testing complements, but doesn't replace, structured test cases.