Introduction

The first word that comes into our mind when you say software development is ‘Java’. It has had such an impact on the modern tech world that practically revolves around it. It is undeniable that cross browser testing is used to strengthen the overall user experience of the application. For a Java developer, it is undoubtedly important to focus on Java Testing Frameworks to enhance their testing skills. Knowledge of Testing Frameworks is significant for a full-stack or an expert Java developer. Java is the choice of most developers because of its platform independence. It is easy to develop advanced web and mobile applications using Java. 

Here is some interesting stats on the Popularity of Java – 

 -According to a report by Statista, the global population of Java Developers is expected to reach 28.7 million by 2024, compared to 23.9 Million in 2019. 

 -Another research by Applitools reports that more than 43% of people prefer Java for writing their automation tests. 

–StackOverflow’s latest Developer Survey also recognizes JAVA among the top 5 most used programming languages for worldwide developers.

 -TIOBE Popularity Index of Feb 2021 reports Java as the second most popular language fetching an overall rating of 11.29%.

What are Java Testing Frameworks?

Java Testing Frameworks provide standardized, extendable ways for programmers and developers to build any software application or web apps. In other words, it is used to support and manage the group of pre-written packages to supply pre-written codes. Libraries compilers, tools, libraries and APIs are incorporated based on what testing framework in Java is used. The software testers and developers can regulate the Java Testing Frameworks and use them to the optimum capacity. Frameworks like these allow the Development team to add their codes to the larger pre-defined code bodies. This way, the developers can focus on the business application’s core logic, preventing them from writing code for the basic functionalities like data source links, exception handling, and much more.

Advantages:

Below is a list of benefits that Java testing frameworks provide:

a. Efficient Time Management: Web Development is a time-consuming process and with the help of pre-written programs provided by Java Frameworks, this problem is resolved easily.

b. Application Security:  Java Frameworks secure the applications and provide quick resolution to any safety issues that occur anytime.

c. Community Support: Java Frameworks has a strong community support. With the help of a larger community – suggestions and recommendations can be used to resolve any issues without delay.

d. Cost Efficient: Java Testing Frameworks are very cost effective. The maintenance and development expenses have been reduced drastically with the introduction of the test automation process.

Top Java Testing Frameworks which steal the show in 2021

There are many Java Testing Frameworks available today, however, we have chosen a few to talk about here in this blog -.

1. JUnit: 

One of the most favored Java Testing Frameworks for Unit Testing is JUnit. It is an open-source framework and helps software programmers expedite programming and improve the quality of Java code. We all know that Unit Testing involves testing small units of code. It is a part of a collective unit test framework called XUnit and creates a test-driven development space for the team. The main idea of JUnit is to focus on testing before coding. So, it demands testing data for the code that has to be tested before execution. This method of testing small packets of code increases the coder’s productivity and code quality. It also reduces the time taken in debugging the code and reduces the team’s work pressure. 

 JUnit 5.0 annotations have added a lot of value by easing the process of writing the unit tests. It has also reduced the burden of writing tests for checking exceptions. In a test-driven approach, developers should always write and run the unit test before writing the remaining code. Every test scenario should be re-run once a new test code is added so that there are no glitches in the code.

Suitability: 

JUnit is used primarily for testing Java-based applications. Firstly, it helps to identify bugs at an early stage in comparison to other automation frameworks. This action allows the team to take corrective actions. Secondly, it is open source and has a strong community built around it. Thirdly, it is based on Test Driven Development (TDD) which allows QA engineers to identify bugs and take necessary corrective measures in time. JUnit works on an assertion mechanism which means that the code throws an assertion the moment it encounters an error. Assert is a method that determines the Pass or Fail Status of the test case.

2. JBehave: 

It is among one of the most liked Java Testing Frameworks of today. It is used along with Selenium Webdriver for Java Testing. JBehave supports Behavior Driven Development (BDD), allowing the beginner developers to understand and learn what it is to work in a BDD environment. 

Suitability: 

 JBehave has helped in improving transparency between the teams and the organization as a whole. The best thing about JBehave is that it uses simple language, which is of great help to the developers, especially the beginners. The concept of BDD Framework is inclusive. Which means that it has helped cover critical inputs and information from all the important stakeholders because of its semi-formal language feature. JBehave gives results based on detailed reasoning and intuitiveness, thus producing products of superior specifications.

3. Serenity:

Serenity, earlier called Thucydides, is an open-source platform designed for Behavior-Driven Development (BDD). It enhances the functionality of Webdriver and JUnit. This Java Testing Framework helps create well-structured tests and detailed testing reports. Just like JBehave, Serenity also integrates with existing BDD frameworks.

Suitability: 

Serenity is known for its easy integration with BDD, test automation, and project management tools. It provides informative reports mainly for reporting acceptance criteria. Serenity helps engineers write super-quality automated test cases. The QA team can write automation-based acceptance tests as it also supports Selenium WebDriver and REST-Assured.

4. Selenium 

We cannot miss talking about Selenium Framework when it comes to Automation Testing. It controls and manages almost every kind of web browser through a program. It works well on all popular operating systems like iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, Solaris, Linux. The scripts of Selenium are written in programming languages like C#, Java, Python, Ruby, JavaScript, etc. Selenium created Key-driven, data-driven, and hybrid tests to automate manual test cases. It also supports parallel testing, thus inducing time efficiency.

Suitability: 

Selenium is a robust framework for testing web applications. Cloud-based Selenium Automation Grids like pCloudy help your team run multiple Selenium tests, reducing your expenditure in creating in-house infrastructure. The easy integration of Selenium with other test automation frameworks like JUnit, TestNG, etc. makes it a preferred tool. It is an open-source project and has a large online community support system.

5. TestNG

TestNG is another major open-source Java Testing Framework inspired by other prominent frameworks such as JUnit/Nunit. It quickly creates tests and has a simple testing process. The framework accepts the requests for testing databases or even testing front-ends. For a better analysis, it also provides HTML reports during testing implementation. Its Test suite configuration happens using XML files. It supports parallel tests, load tests, and so on.

Suitability: 

TestNG is a well-structured framework and comes with new functionalities to simplify testing efforts. Its features like annotations, grouping, and parameterization help immensely in these cases where you might have to run plenty of test cases. In these kinds of scenarios, TestNG is strongly recommended instead of depending on JUnit or any other framework. TestNG is a savior because it makes testers’ tasks easy. It provides additional support by covering functional, integration, unit testing, and End to end testing.

6. Mockito:

In the list of trusted open-source Java testing Frameworks, Mockito is another name. It’s mainly used for Java app Unit Testing, which functions by creating mocks, employing annotations like @Mock. The team is not required to explicitly develop mock objects because they are automatically generated by Mockito using Java Reflection API. Like JBehave, Mockito is also capable of creating BDD-based tests using human-readable language. It is compatible with frameworks like TestNG and JUnit.

Suitability: 

Mocking technique is a differentiating and an essential feature demanded in modern-day unit tests. Mocking is an ideal cost-effective feature while creating proof of concepts. It is considered the best for handling void mocking methods among other similar frameworks like EasyMock. It allows easy mocking of classes and interfaces as well. Service Mocking capability in Mockito helps you to reap the maximum benefits of the Test Driven Development.

7. HTTPUnit :

It is an open-source Java testing framework for functional testing which is based on JUnit. It emulates browser behavior like Form Submission, Managing Cookies, Page Redirection, JavaScript Validation, and so on. An interesting thing about HTTPUnit is that you don’t need a web browser for testing the websites, it imitates the behavior of the configured browser (IE/Firefox). It even strongly supports proxy servers.

Suitability:

It is an easy-to-use framework that imitates the browser behavior to perform browser actions and suits best while executing automated acceptance/ functional tests. 

8. Gauge:

Gauge is another open-source Java Testing Framework created by Thoughts Works, the same company that even created Selenium. Gauge is BDD-based and enables a free test automation framework for Java. Like Selenium, it is also compatible with languages like C#, JavaScript, Java, Ruby, and Python. 

Suitability: 

Gauge Framework is a boon for agile teams at every stage of the DevOps Process. It has revolutionized automated cross-browser testing by creating an environment where even non-technical persons can write automated tests. Testing becomes faster with Gauge because it allows parallel testing.

9. Geb:

Geb is a Groovy-based testing framework for web browsers. It is an open-source framework for cross-browser testing using Selenium Webdriver and licensed under Apache 2.0. General automation, web scraping, functional testing, and acceptance testing can be performed using this framework. It can be used for browsers like Firefox, Chrome, IE, and HTMLUnit. Geb mitigates the chances of code duplication by minimizing test code modifications.

Suitability: 

It integrates well with Cucumber, TestNG, JUnit, and Spock test automation frameworks and supports Page Object Model design patterns by default.

Conclusion

Java language has evolved over the years and to keep up with the dynamic changes, Java frameworks have played a prominent role. Developing high-quality software and performing application performance testing is not an easy task. The blog was written with an aim to provide a comprehensive insight to understand testing framework in Java in simple terms. Java Testing Frameworks have eased the process of performing automated web-browser tests. Cloud-based cross-browser testing platform – pCloudy supports all popular Java Testing Frameworks and some of which are mentioned above. It allows you to perform testing on a large scale by providing access to multiple browsers and operating systems. The Frameworks covered in this article are the most recommended ones. However, if you need further help in deciding the right testing framework for your needs feel free to contact us and we’ll be more than happy to assist you. Also to learn more about automation you can follow the link below and download a helpful whitepaper as well. Happy learning!