How to replay an Android automation step by step with screenshots

In short: In BenchFleet, open a failed run and replay it step by step. Each step shows the screens before and after it, the element its selector found, the UI tree at that moment and its timeline, and you can export a diagnostic bundle. Workflows and replay come with Pro, at £12 a month + VAT. Maestro, Appium and device clouds keep screenshots or video differently.

When an automated run fails on step 14, a pass or fail result is not enough: you need to see what the phone showed at step 13, what the step looked for and what it found instead. Some tools keep that for every step by default, some only for the failing step, and some only when your test asks. Checked on 23 October 2026 on each tool's own documentation. We make BenchFleet.

Free for up to 3 phones, with no account. Pro adds workflows, schedules and AI for up to 25 phones from £12 a month + VAT.

Download free See pricing

What each tool keeps from a run

Tool	Per-step pictures	Video	Logs	Where it runs	Website
BenchFleet	The screens before and after every step, with the element found and the UI tree	Screen recordings of a phone on demand	The run's timeline; the phone's logcat on its page	Your own phones	benchfleet.com
Maestro	The failing step by default; before every step with `--analyze`	A recording of the whole test with `--analyze`; chosen steps with `startRecording`	Logcat, crash and ANR reports in the test output folder	Your computer, or Maestro Cloud	docs.maestro.dev
Appium	Only the screenshots your test takes	Only when your test starts a recording	Appium server logs	Your computer, or a cloud	appium.io
BrowserStack App Automate	Visual logs, a screenshot per command, off by default	On by default	Text, device and Appium logs	Its cloud	browserstack.com
AWS Device Farm	Screenshots per run, device, suite and test	Yes, per run	Harness, device and test logs	AWS data centres	docs.aws.amazon.com
Firebase Test Lab	Screenshots in the results	Yes; Robo tests mark each action	Test logs; performance on physical devices	Google's data centres; shuts down on 30 September 2027	firebase.google.com

How replay works in BenchFleet Pro

Every workflow run on every phone keeps a timeline with screenshots. Open a run and choose Replay:

Pick a step. The list shows each step with its status and its place in the workflow, so you can jump straight to the one that failed.
See the screens. For each step you get the screen before it and after it, or, for the step that failed, the evidence it left.
See what the step found. The element its selector resolved to is marked, and the UI tree at that moment is there: click the screen to inspect any element and its text, ID and role.
Read the timeline. The step's entries show what happened, in order, and a failed step shows its error.
Share it. Download the diagnostic bundle, a zip file with the run's steps, screens and logs and never any secrets, to attach to a bug report.

When an app update moved something, Propose a repair on the replay suggests a fix from the failed run, with AI if you chose a model. You test the fix on a phone first; publishing it needs a person's approval.

AI tasks keep a transcript of every step in the same spirit, and every action on a phone, by a person, a workflow or an AI agent, is in the audit log.

Tips for debugging a failed run

Compare the screen before the failed step with the one you expected. A dialog, a permission prompt or a slow network often explains it.
Check the element the step found. A selector that matches the wrong element is a common cause after an app update; finding elements by text and role is sturdier than by position.
Read the log around the failure. On the phone's page in BenchFleet, the Logs tab shows the main log or crashes only, filtered by level and text: see logcat, APKs and a shell on many phones.
Re-run on another phone. If the same step passes elsewhere, look at what differs: Android version, screen size or language.

More on running the checks themselves: Android app testing on real phones and record once, replay on every phone.

Maestro, Appium, BrowserStack, AWS Device Farm and Firebase Test Lab are the names of their owners' products and projects. BenchFleet is not affiliated with any of them.

Questions

How do I see what happened at each step of a failed Android test?

Use a tool that keeps a picture of every step. BenchFleet's replay shows the screens before and after each step of a workflow run. Maestro takes a screenshot before every step when you add --analyze, and BrowserStack's visual logs take screenshots per command when you turn them on.

Does Appium record screenshots for every step?

Not by itself. Appium's UiAutomator2 driver documents commands your test calls to take a screenshot or record the screen, such as mobile startMediaProjectionRecording on Android 10 and newer. Appium Inspector shows a live screenshot with the page source while you build a test.

What is in a BenchFleet diagnostic bundle?

A zip file with everything about the run, its steps, screens and logs, to keep or to send to someone who helps you. Secrets are never in it.

Can BenchFleet fix the workflow after a failure?

It can propose a fix. On the replay of a failed run, Propose a repair suggests a change, with AI when you choose a model; you test it on a phone, and publishing it needs a person's approval.

What does Firebase Test Lab keep for each run?

Its results include logs, screenshots and videos, and Robo tests mark the actions taken on the video and show an activity map. Google shuts Test Lab down on 30 September 2027.

Start with the Free plan