Software testing is an extremely important stage of the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC). It ensures high-grade and better software performance.
With numerous test cases to run in each cycle, manual testing of software is a big challenge for developers. There are several testing frameworks out there that help software developers do the job in a much better way.
As Java is the second most popular programming language globally, there are many Java testing frameworks for Java developers.
This article will explore the top Java application testing frameworks in 2022 that ensure fast and automated software testing.
So, if you’re into delivering Java development services, these useful Java software testing frameworks will help you accelerate your testing process and build high-quality applications.
8 Useful Java Application Testing Frameworks:
If you’re looking to hire Java developers or testers for your company or project, make sure they have hands-on experience working on the latest Java app testing frameworks.
Here is a list of the 8 best Java software testing frameworks that a Java developer should know.
1. Selenium:
Selenium is a free, open-source Java testing framework and is widely used to test multi-platform web applications through automation. It is a complete suite that helps companies to address their software testing requirements.
Due to its free and open-source nature, Selenium has received wide acceptance from Java developers. Moreover, it is a platform-independent tool and can be seamlessly used on multiple operating systems.
Selenium can also be easily integrated with other Java software like Jenkins, Docker, and Maven for implementing continuous software testing.
Advantages:
1. Supports multiple browsers
2. Supports multiple languages and frameworks
3. Easy implementation
4. Improved integration and reusability
5. Regular updates
Disadvantages:
1. It’s time-consuming when it comes to creating test cases
2. No built-in reporting facility
3. Works exclusively with web applications
2. Serenity:
Formerly known as Thucydides, Serenity is another most famous Java testing framework.
It is an open-source platform mostly used for behavior-driven testing. Providers of Java development services can use this tool to write clean and well-structured acceptance criteria for software test automation projects.
Serenity can also improve the functionality of Webdriver and JUnit, and allow you to prepare comprehensive testing reports easily.
Advantages:
1. Provides support for various automated acceptance testing solutions.
2. Helps in creating documents quickly after the tests.
3. Supports easy integration with other frameworks.
Disadvantages:
1. Feature files take time to create.
2. Demands continuous communication between people who are working on the project.
3. JUnit:
JUnit performs unit testing where a code snippet can be passed in the path using functions or methods. In a test-driven approach, it is advised that the unit test code should be re-written before you write any real code.
After any code is written, the test cases need to be run before the code snippet can be executed. Whenever a new code is added, the test cases are executed again to ensure that they all pass and there is no issue in the code.
JUnit is relatively faster and more efficient than other Java application testing frameworks.
Advantages:
1, Supports test assertions
2. Faster test reporting
3. A simple and easy-to-use framework to deploy automated test scenarios
4. Can write self-verifying test cases
Disadvantages:
1. It does not perform well with larger testing suites
2. Cannot generate HTML reports after testing
3. Does not provide support for dependency testing
4.TestNG:
TestNG is one of the significant open-source Java application testing frameworks, inspired by JUnit and NUnit testing frameworks with some additional features.
True to its name where NG stands for Next Generation, this framework proves itself to be an efficient and powerful tool for software testing.
The testing process is quite simple as you can test the scenarios by requesting through this tool to test the databases or front-ends. You can also extract an HTML report which is useful for the tests being executed.
Advantages:
1. Supports parallel testing
2. Support for log generation
3. Create HTML reports post-testing
4. Can create groups of essential test cases
5. Set priority of test case execution
Disadvantages:
1. It takes longer to set up TestNG
2. Not ideal if you don’t need to prioritize the test cases.
5. Cucumber:
Cucumber is a Ruby-based Java testing framework that is gaining immense popularity among testers.
It’s because it merges the documentation with specifications and generates a single report document. The specifications are updated automatically.
Advantages:
1. Enhanced readability
2. Ensures step reusability which eliminates the need to write codes again and again.
3. Supports test automation through some example tables
Disadvantages:
1. When integrated with Gherkin, complexity is increased
2. Developers/testers focus on writing the codes that can be reused in the scenarios where a simple general code would complete the task.
6. JBehave:
Another one on this list of top Java application testing frameworks is JBehave. It commonly works in conjugation with Selenium drivers and facilitates Behavior-driven development (BDD).
It also has reporting features and hence, the reports can be produced in HTML, XML, or Text format.
Advantages:
1. Generates comprehensive documentation
2. Supports HTML reporting post-testing
3. Easy to use
4. Excellent JUnit support
Disadvantages:
1. Does not support features, it supports only stores.
7. Mockito:
Mockito is an open-source Java application testing framework used for behavior-driven testing. The key functionality of this tool is that it creates mock objects automatically without the need to create them explicitly.
Advantages:
1. Supports exceptions
2. Can create objects through annotations
3. Essentially supports the return values
4. Eliminates the need for writing mock objects manually
Disadvantages:
1. Does not support local variable’s mocking
2. Does not support private and static methods
3. There’s no control over the private fields for any written subclass
8. Selenide:
Selenide is a popular open-source Java software testing framework. It is powered by Selenium WebDriver which aims at writing precise, stable, communicative UI test cases.
Moreover, the tool helps you to extend the WebDriver and JUnit functionalities with ease.
Advantages:
1. Easy to install, configure, and use
2. Recommended for newbies and professional testers
3. Concise and easy API for tests
4. Provides Ajax support to ensure stable tests
5. Shorter test case writing process
6. Supports application tests created with AngularJS
7. Helps you to create stable UI test cases
Disadvantages:
1. Customization can be complex and cumbersome
Conclusion
There is no specific answer to the question ‘Which is the best Java testing framework for your project?’ Each framework is different and has its own list of advantages and disadvantages.
Ultimately, it is your project requirements and the type of software testing you need that help you choose the best Java testing framework.
Since these frameworks are being used by the Java community, make sure you hire Java developers who are well-versed with any one or more test frameworks to ensure the quality of code and the overall software.
