The Top 10 Challenges with Mobile Testing (and how to solve them)

Todd McNeal

January 29, 2026

From shopping and food delivery to banking and fitness, mobile users everywhere expect smooth, fast, and bug-free experiences. Behind every efficient mobile app is a team of testers working hard to make that happen – and if you’re one of them, you know it’s no easy task.

Mobile testing isn’t just about checking whether a few buttons work. You’re dealing with:

Dozens (or even hundreds) of device types
Multiple operating systems and versions
Frequent app updates and UI changes
Flaky tests that fail for no clear reason
Tight deadlines and last-minute builds

Even the simplest feature needs to be validated across different devices, screen sizes, and OS versions, meaning the workload multiplies quickly, often without enough time or resources to keep up. Testers are expected to deliver high quality under pressure, even when the path forward isn’t always clear.

This article will explore the biggest challenges mobile testers face, unpack what makes mobile testing so complex, and share practical strategies to make it easier. You’ll also see how the right tools can simplify mobile testing without turning it into a massive project to pick up.

What are the top 10 challenges in mobile testing?

1. Device fragmentation makes full coverage testing difficult

According to StatCounter, Android currently has six active OS versions – each with different screen sizes, resolutions, and hardware capabilities. Testing on one Android device doesn’t guarantee it’ll work across all others. While iPhones tend to be more consistent, testers still need to account for differences across versions and screen sizes.

Worldwide mobile and tablet Android version market share (July 2025)

Android 15.0	Android 14.0	Android 13.0	Android 12.0	Android 11.0	Android 10.0
26.75%	19.5%	15.95%	11.54%	9.77%	5.24%

Worldwide mobile and tablet iOS version market share (July 2025)

iOS 18.5	iOS 18.3	iOS 16.7	iOS 17.6	iOS 18.4	iOS 15.8
69.91%	3.49%	2.82%	2.55%	2.27%	2.2%

This fragmentation creates several challenges:

It’s impossible to test on every single device and OS combination.
Bugs may appear on some devices but not others.
Prioritizing which devices matter most to your users often feels like guesswork.
Accelerate development cycles with real-time insights into errors and performance.

2. Emulators aren’t reliable

Testing on emulators is fast and cost-effective, but not always reliable. Emulators can’t fully replicate real hardware behaviors, meaning critical issues can slip through unnoticed.

Here’s why emulators fall short:

Hardware features behave differently: Capabilities like fingerprint scanning, GPS, camera, battery performance, sensors, and gestures rarely function the same way they do on physical devices. This can lead to missed bugs tied to real-world usage.
Performance isn’t realistic: Emulators typically run on powerful desktop machines with stable internet connections, masking how your app behaves on slower devices or under fluctuating network conditions.

While emulators are great for quick checks and early-stage testing, real devices remain essential for accurate results.

3. Maintaining a device lab is expensive

Testing on real devices is essential, but maintaining your own device lab can quickly become a logistical nightmare.

Devices need to be constantly charged, updated, labeled, cleaned, and rotated. Cables get lost, operating systems go out of sync, and older models eventually stop working altogether. Managing physical inventory also limits remote and distributed testing, making collaboration harder.

For many teams, the time and cost of maintaining a lab outweigh the benefits. That’s why cloud-based device access has become the go-to alternative, offering real devices on demand without the upkeep.

4. Manual testing is slow

There’s a time and place for manual testing. It’s incredibly valuable for exploratory work, usability checks, and validating complex edge cases. But when manual testing becomes your primary (or only) approach, it quickly turns into a bottleneck. It slows releases, limits coverage, and increases the risk of human error.

Here’s how manual testing can hold teams back:

It consumes significant time: Each run involves repeating the same steps across multiple devices, OS versions, and screen sizes.
It’s highly repetitive: Logging in, navigating to testable screens, and executing identical workflows can lead to tester fatigue and higher chances of oversight.
It’s prone to inconsistency: Results can vary from tester to tester, making issues harder to reproduce and debug reliably.

When teams rely solely on manual testing, testers end up chasing deadlines instead of improving their test strategy, leaving less time to innovate, automate, and scale quality efforts.

5. Mobile tests require a lot of maintenance

Even if you automate some of your testing, maintaining those tests can feel like a full-time job.

Traditional automation frameworks rely heavily on coded test scripts and fragile locators like element IDs, xPaths, or CSS selectors. The problem? Even minor UI tweaks, label changes, or DOM adjustments can break multiple tests, even when the feature itself still works perfectly.

Over time, teams spend more energy fixing tests than creating new ones, diverting attention away from improving coverage or finding real issues before release. Keeping your test suites alive becomes a second job.

Modern test automation should be different. With AI-driven, no-code approaches, maintenance becomes lighter and smarter by adapting to UI or flow changes automatically, instead of forcing testers to rewrite scripts line by line.

6. Environment setup and configuration overhead is costly

Getting your test environment ready can take more time than running the tests themselves. Between installing builds, clearing old data, setting up test accounts, and managing device permissions, setup can eat up valuable testing hours.

Testers also need to:

Keep devices charged, updated, and properly configured.
Switch cleanly between environments like staging, production, or sandbox.
Manage multiple user roles (admin, guest, premium, etc.).

All of this adds friction to every sprint, leaving less time for actual test execution and analysis.

7. User experience and visual consistency is tough to account for

Modern app users have little patience for anything that feels awkward or inconsistent. Even small issues like misaligned elements, broken gestures, or inconsistent layouts between devices can frustrate users and lead to poor reviews or uninstalls.

Testing teams need to ensure the app not only works but also looks and feels right across devices, screen sizes, and OS versions. Subtle visual differences, touch sensitivity variations, and navigation quirks can easily slip through if testing isn’t broad enough.

Functional testing alone isn’t enough. True quality comes from validating the end-user experience: confirming that every user, on every device, interacts with an app that’s intuitive, consistent, and reliable.

8. Visibility challenges create inefficiencies

Fast-moving teams need to know what’s working – and what isn’t – at all times. But with multiple devices, builds, and test environments in play, maintaining visibility into testing progress and results can be a challenge.

Without clear, connected reporting, it’s easy for teams to:

Miss patterns in recurring test failures.
Duplicate efforts across environments.
Lose track of coverage gaps or untested flows.

These visibility gaps slow down releases and make it harder to spot issues early. Teams spend more time chasing down test results and less time improving the product.

9. Flaky tests waste time

According to an industrial case study report, repairing flaky tests costs an average of $2,250 per month; that’s $27,000 a year spent fixing tests that should have worked in the first place.

Flakiness often stems from:

Timing issues where the app loads too slowly or inconsistently across devices.
Unstable network connections that disrupt tests mid-run.
Background processes or updates interfering with the flow.
Inconsistent test data or unpredictable API responses.
Rigid test scripts that fail if an element appears slightly differently than expected.

The problem with flaky tests is deeper than annoyance; they erode trust. When testers can’t rely on their results, they start to question whether failures are real or just false alarms. That uncertainty means more reruns, more debugging, and more delays.

10. Disconnected web and mobile testing

Many teams test their web and mobile apps separately – often using different tools, workflows, and environments. While this might seem practical at first, it creates gaps in coverage and slows down collaboration.

When mobile and web testing aren’t aligned, it’s harder to:

Reuse test logic or data across platforms.
Maintain consistency between user journeys that span web and mobile.
Share insights or results efficiently between QA and development teams.

Users don’t experience your product in silos; they expect a unified experience, whether they’re on a phone, tablet, or desktop. Testing should reflect that. A unified, cross-platform approach ensures functional and visual consistency across every interface, reducing duplication and catching issues earlier.

How do you simplify mobile testing?

You can’t fix everything overnight, but you can make mobile testing easier step by step. The best place to start is with a strong mobile test strategy: a clear plan for what to test, which devices to focus on, and how to balance manual and automated testing.

If you don’t have one yet, build it now. A solid strategy helps you make smarter decisions, prioritize high-impact improvements, and set your team up for long-term success.

Here are some practical ways to improve your mobile testing process and how each one helps solve the challenges testers face most.

1. Prioritize high-impact devices

You can’t test every device, but you can test the ones that matter most. Start by identifying:

Your top devices and OS versions based on user data (from Google Analytics, Firebase, or app store insights).
The most common screen sizes used by your audience.

Whenever possible, test on real devices. If you’re using a device cloud, try consolidating it with your automation tool so you can run tests and manage devices in one place. This reduces tool juggling and makes testing faster and more reliable.

2. Create a device rotation schedule

If your team shares a limited pool of devices, plan a simple rotation schedule. For example:

Day	Devices / OS Versions	Focus Areas
Monday	Android 13, Android 14 (Pixel, Samsung Galaxy)	Core user flows: login, navigation, checkout
Tuesday	iOS 16, iOS 17 (iPhone 13, iPhone 15)	UI validation, gestures, accessibility
Wednesday	Android 11, Android 12 (budget/mid-range devices)	App launch times, layout scaling, stability
Thursday	iOS 15, iOS 18 (older + latest versions)	Backward compatibility, feature regression
Friday	Mixed devices + tablets (Android + iOS)	Cross-device consistency, visual alignment

This ensures consistent coverage without overwhelming your testers or devices. Document which devices were used each round so you can trace bugs and patterns later.

3. Start with smoke tests

Always begin with a small set of critical flows: sign-up, login, che ckout, or your app’s key feature. These smoke tests help:

Flakiness often stems from:

Catch major blockers early.
Save time on full regression runs when the build is unstable.
Give developers faster feedback loops.

Once stable, expand to regression tests with reliable automation. A well-built regression suite, especially on a robust platform, lets you test confidently without adding more maintenance work.

4. Keep a shared “gotchas” list

Every tester runs into bugs that appear only under certain conditions, like specific OS versions, network speeds, or display modes. Keep a shared “gotchas” tracker where testers can log these tricky cases, even if they’re not always reproducible.

Over time, this becomes your team’s cheat sheet for regression testing and helps identify recurring issues faster.

Combine this with regular exploratory testing sessions to uncover unexpected bugs that automation might miss.

5. Bridge the gap between QA and Dev

Strong collaboration between QA and development is one of the fastest ways to reduce friction and speed up releases. When testers share clear, visual context around what they’re seeing, developers can diagnose and fix issues faster.

Here’s how to do that:

Join standups or sprint planning sessions to stay ahead of upcoming changes. Early visibility helps QA teams prepare the right test coverage and avoid surprises late in the cycle.
Record test runs with video captures or screenshots. Visual proof of what failed – and how – eliminates confusion, especially for UI or timing-related bugs. It’s much easier for developers to reproduce and resolve issues when they can see them in action.
Centralize test results and recordings in one place so anyone on the team can trace an issue back to its exact step or condition. This also makes it easier to analyze recurring failures or patterns over time.

6. Automate repetitive flows

Automation doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Trying to automate every scenario at once often leads to burnout and brittle tests. Instead, start small. Focus on the repetitive flows you run every day, such as:

Launching the app and logging in.
Navigating to common screens or menus.
Filling out simple forms or user actions.

Automating these core flows removes repetitive manual work and gives you confidence in every build. Even one or two reliable automated tests can free up hours each week. As your automation grows, look for tools that minimize maintenance and adapt to change.

7. Standardize to simplify maintenance

A consistent approach to naming, structuring, and reusing test steps can dramatically reduce maintenance headaches. When every tester uses different naming conventions or duplicative flows, small UI changes can become large-scale rework.

Instead, define simple, standardized patterns for how tests are created and referenced. Reuse steps and components wherever possible. For example, the same login or navigation flow can be applied across multiple tests. This makes updates faster and helps new testers get up to speed quickly. Standardization not only reduces the time spent fixing tests, but also makes your entire suite more transparent and scalable.

8. Use real devices where it matters most

You don’t need to run every test on every real device – just the ones that matter most. Real devices give you a more accurate view of how your app behaves in the hands of actual users, without the false confidence emulators can sometimes create.

Prioritize real device testing for:

New or high-risk features where user experience or functionality could vary.
Flaky flows or recent bug fixes that need reliable validation.
Visual checks to confirm that UI elements render and align correctly across screen sizes.

For broader coverage, combine real devices with a device cloud so you can scale without the cost or complexity of managing your own lab. This hybrid approach gives you the best of both worlds.

By being strategic about when and where you use real devices, you stay efficient, keep coverage high, and maintain confidence in your results.

9. Tag and prioritize your tests

When release cycles get tight, knowing what to run first makes all the difference. Tagging tests by risk or priority helps your team focus on the most important flows instead of running everything blindly, especially when time or resources are limited.

Even without a formal test management tool, you can start simple:

By risk: High/Medium/Low: define which tests protect critical functionality or user flows.
By type: Smoke/Regression/Exploratory: identify which tests catch blockers early, validate stability, or uncover new issues.
By platform or feature: Web/Mobile/API: clarify where the coverage sits and avoid duplication.

These lightweight tags make it easier to plan test runs, report on coverage, and keep everyone aligned on what’s business-critical. Combined with a unified automation platform, you can filter and execute only what’s relevant, ensuring the right tests run at the right time, every time.

10. Unify web and mobile testing

Using a unified testing solution – one that supports both web and mobile – helps you:

Reuse test logic and data across platforms.
Validate consistent user journeys end-to-end.
Centralize results and reduce duplicated effort.

A unified approach simplifies testing and strengthens your coverage, ensuring users get a seamless experience no matter where they interact with your app.

The solution to your mobile testing pains

From endless devices and flaky tests to constant pressure for faster releases, mobile testing can feel like an uphill climb. There’s never enough time and maintaining stability across platforms often means sacrificing speed (or sleep).

But with the right approach and the right tool, you can reduce stress, save time, and deliver reliable results without needing a large automation team or complex setup.

SmartBear Reflect is a no-code, AI-powered test automation tool built for testers who want fast and resilient mobile testing – without writing a single line of code. Whether you’re a manual tester getting started with automation or a more technical QA tester, Reflect helps you test mobile apps the smart way.

How does Reflect support stronger mobile testing?

Reflect makes mobile testing easier by using AI to simplify and strengthen your tests so you can find and fix bugs confidently and as early as possible. Here are just a few of the ways Reflect makes testing stronger:

AI that works the way you need it to – Leverage no-code creation, cross-device coverage, and self-healing, resilient tests that adapt automatically as your app evolves. The Reflect GenAI engine understands your app visually, so you can build and maintain tests that actually hold up over time.
No code, no locators – Reflect uses visual intelligence, not brittle element IDs or CSS selectors. You can create tests in plain English or use record-and-play – no scripting, no locator hunting, no debugging nightmare.
One test for every device – Run the same test across iOS, Android, and hybrid apps without duplication, reconfiguration, or environment juggling. Reflect adapts your tests automatically so you can validate functionality consistently everywhere your users are.
Use your devices – or ours! – Instantly run tests on the built-in mobile device grid from Reflect or connect your own existing device cloud. Whether your team manages its own devices or relies on hosted options, Reflect flexes to fit your workflow.
One tool for every test – Unify web, mobile, and API testing in one platform. No silos, no switching tools, no fractured results. Reflect lets you see your entire quality picture in one place, helping teams move faster and collaborate better.

Try Reflect for free and see how it can simplify your mobile testing workflows.