I've been trying for months to get AI test generation tools to work with real applications. Everything looks great in demos—just click here and assert that—until I point it towards my actual product, where the first obstacle is always a login page requiring an email OTP. It's frustrating because it seems like these tools treat the browser as a static page. They can navigate and click, but they can't handle dynamic scenarios like creating a throwaway email, waiting for a verification code, and then inputting that code into the app. I've tested three different tools, and they all hit the same wall. Recently, I discovered a tool called Assrt that includes disposable email creation and OTP polling in its functionality. It actually sets up a temporary email before filling out the signup form, then waits for the verification code. That felt like a real breakthrough! I'm curious if anyone else has faced this issue, and how you've managed authentication in your end-to-end tests. In the past, we've either skipped auth flows entirely or hardcoded test credentials, but that never felt like testing the actual user experience.
6 Answers
What you're encountering is common. To really handle these scenarios, the test tool needs to manage the entire login process, including handling the email inbox for OTPs. It’s a different challenge entirely because these tools tend to focus on straightforward web interactions, not the complexities of authentication flows.
Consider setting up a special test endpoint that can create sessions or accept short-lived tokens, while using services like MailHog for testing the OTP process. This approach cut my flaky tests down significantly when we started doing it consistently for a few months!
Absolutely, the MailHog approach is a great way to manage this. Once we implemented those dedicated endpoints, it simplified our process greatly.
You're hitting a common roadblock. The async nature of auth flows can be tricky. Most teams sidestep it using mock logins or keeping the main test flow clean by not testing full OTP processes every time. Some newer tools do handle this better, but there's always a compromise! 👌
Using test credentials for user accounts works well, but testing something like an OTP should probably be a separate focused test. Keeping basic functionality tests free from auth complexities makes them much faster.
You're totally right about this! Most tools just bail out at authentication, leaving you only testing a tiny portion of your app. It's super frustrating. Many times my test suites only cover a fraction of user flows because they can't handle things like MFA or role-based access.
I audited my tests last time and found they only covered around 8% of realistic user interactions. The test tools focus on demo flows, not the actual behavior of authenticated sessions.
Most test frameworks manage demos well but absolutely fail when they meet real world scenarios involving OTPs or email confirmation. I've seen teams either avoid auth altogether with pre-seeded sessions or mock the whole process at the API level since full OTP testing can be unreliable for CI runs.
I ended up using pre-authenticated sessions too. It’s much more efficient. I still check login manually once in a while, but most of my tests pivot around what happens after login, drastically reducing flaky tests.
Exactly! The tools that say they handle authentication often just automate a happy path through a simple login process. Custom flows or using third-party SSO just messes everything up.