Test automation is gaining traction as companies look to optimize resources and improve ROI by automating repetitive and high-frequency test cases, such as application login and alert system checks. While manual testing remains relevant, automation allows testers to focus on complex issues and enhances early bug detection through log monitoring. Before automating, teams should consider factors like test frequency, coverage, predictability, feature importance, time-reward ratio, and human involvement. Automated tests are particularly beneficial for performance, unit, regression, and functional testing, although exploratory and usability tests are best left manual due to their reliance on human intuition and experience. The right automation strategy can significantly boost the efficiency of CI/CD pipelines, reduce time to market, and improve product quality, but it requires careful selection of test cases to automate to ensure maximum effectiveness.