What is the Difference Between Blackbox and Whitebox Testing

The main difference between Blackbox and Whitebox testing is that blackbox testing checks the functionality of the system without considering the internal structure of the system while whitebox testing checks the internal structure of the system including the program code.

Software testing is a major phase in software development. It is the process of verifying and validating to ensure that the software is working as expected. Avoiding software testing can result in delivering products with bugs to the end users or the customers. Therefore, most enterprise level companies give weightage to software testing.  Blackbox and whitebox testing are two types of software testing. Blackbox testing checks the functionality while whitebox testing checks the program code.

Key Areas Covered

1. What is Blackbox Testing
     – Definition, Functionality
2. What is Whitebox Testing
     – Definition, Functionality
3. What is the Difference Between Blackbox and Whitebox Testing
     – Comparison of Key Differences

Key Terms

Blackbox Testing, Software Testing, Whitebox Testing

What is Blackbox Testing

Blackbox testing is a type of testing that does not require knowledge on the internal working of the software to carry on testing. It is a high level of testing. The main objective of blackbox testing is to check the behavior of the software. More importantly, it tests the application considering the external or end user.

Furthermore, it is possible to apply blackbox testing to various testing levels such as system and acceptance testing.

What is Whitebox Testing

Whitebox testing is a type of testing that requires knowledge on the internal working of the software to carry on testing. It is low-level testing and considers covering code statements, branches, paths, conditions, etc. 

Glass box, transparent box, clear box, and structural testing are synonyms for whitebox testing. In comparison, whitebox testing is more exhaustive and time-consuming than blackbox testing. Also, as whitebox testing checks the internal structure of the system, the tester should have programming skills to perform this type of testing.

Difference Between Blackbox and Whitebox Testing

Definition

Blackbox testing is a software testing method that tests the functionality of an application without peering into its internal structures or workings. Whereas, whitebox testing is another method of testing a software that examines the internal structures or workings of an application as opposed to its functionality. Thus, this is the main difference between blackbox and whitebox testing.

Internal Structure

Furthermore, it is not necessary to know the internal structure of the software to perform black box testing. However, it is necessary to know the internal structure of the software to perform white box testing.

Programming Knowledge

Also, programming knowledge of the tester is another difference between blackbox and whitebox testing. It is not necessary to have programming knowledge to carry on blackbox testing while it is necessary to have programming knowledge to carry on whitebox testing.

Testing Level

Moreover, one other difference between blackbox and whitebox testing is that black box testing is a high-level testing while white box testing is a low-level testing.

Main Focus

Besides, blackbox testing focuses on the functionality of the system whereas whitebox testing focuses more on the programming code (conditions, loops etc.)

Documents Required to Begin Testing

Software Requirement Specification (SRS) document is the base to start black box testing whereas Detailed Design document is the base to start the white box testing. Hence, this is another difference between blackbox and whitebox testing.

Synonyms

Data-driven testing and box testing are some synonyms for blackbox testing whereas clear box testing, glass box testing, transparent box testing, and structural testing are some synonyms for whitebox testing.  

Time

Additionally, whitebox testing is more time consuming than blackbox testing.

Conclusion

Blackbox and whitebox are two testing types. The main difference between blackbox and whitebox testing is that blackbox testing checks the functionality of the system without considering the internal structure of the system while whitebox testing checks the internal structure of the system such as the program code.

Reference:

1. “Black-Box Testing.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 13 July 2018, Available here.
2. “White-Box Testing.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 22 Mar. 2018, Available here.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Blackbox3D-obs” By Krauss – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “WhiteBoxTesting” By Giladgar – Own work (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia