I’m starting to get into manual testing and heard that my company uses Gherkin for writing test scenarios. I’m curious does using Gherkin mean you must also use Cucumber? Is Cucumber only for automation, or would a manual tester use it as well? Understanding what is Gherkin will help me know how it fits into both manual and automated testing workflows.
Hey, I’ve worked with testing teams for a while, so here’s a simple way to understand what is Gherkin- it’s basically a language used to write test scenarios in plain English, using that easy-to-follow “Given-When-Then” format.
This style helps both technical folks and business people understand the tests because it’s like writing user stories. So if your company says they use Gherkin, it means their test cases are written clearly and consistently, making them easy to read and discuss.
Building on that, from my experience, it’s important to realize that what is Gherkin and how it’s used doesn’t automatically mean you have to use Cucumber. Gherkin is just the plain language format for describing scenarios, while Cucumber is a tool that automates those scenarios if you want to. Many teams write Gherkin test cases manually and run them without any automation, especially when they’re in early project phases or focusing on manual testing. So, using Gherkin doesn’t lock you into automation.
To add from my hands-on experience, especially as a manual tester, knowing what is Gherkin is really helpful because you can write or review those scenarios without needing to work directly with Cucumber. Your Gherkin scenarios act like a bridge- manual testers use them to keep tests clear and structured, and later automation engineers can pick them up to automate. So mastering Gherkin not only improves your manual testing but also makes you a valuable part of the automation workflow if your team goes that route.