Apache JMeter vs SmartBear TestComplete comparison

Cancel
You must select at least 2 products to compare!
Apache Logo
7,853 views|6,435 comparisons
87% willing to recommend
SmartBear Logo
7,138 views|5,012 comparisons
85% willing to recommend
Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Apache JMeter and SmartBear TestComplete based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Apache, OpenText, Tricentis and others in Performance Testing Tools.
To learn more, read our detailed Performance Testing Tools Report (Updated: April 2024).
767,319 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"The recording and playback functionality is helpful.""I use all the tools, but one feature that stands out is JMeter's ability to test when services are sending a particular kind of request. We are using specific ports to send queries, and assess the performance based on the time it takes these queries to respond. You can use it with stuff other than the web performance.""It is cost-effective and simple to use.""We really appreciate that the solution comes with a live community, which continuously provided plugins and support protocols.""JMeter is easy to use for a user who doesn't have too much knowledge of programming or certain languages.""JMeter's most valuable feature is the RegEx Extractor.""It's stable and reliable.""A lot of things are valuable. It is free. It has a lot of features, such as report generation and integration with CI/CD, which makes it very competitive with the other paid solutions available in the market. It is a good solution."

More Apache JMeter Pros →

"The ease-of-use and quality of the overall product are above average.""You can record your actions and play them back later.""The database checkpoints detect problems which are difficult for a human resource to find.""Selenium integration.""The reporting is ready to use and doesn't require any setup.""Test items, project variables helps in managing automation suite and scheduling execution.""It works very fine. It is fast on almost any machine, and it is also very well organized. I like its object mapping and its capability to find and interact with almost everything that exists on Windows.""The ability to run a whole suite of tests automatically (which we did overnight)."

More SmartBear TestComplete Pros →

Cons
"The solution could use some sort of educational features to offer tips and hints to help users navigate it better. They should improve the manuals and help files.""In terms of platform support, they need to extend the support for backend platforms and more of the legacy types of platforms.""Apache JMeter could be a more user-friendly product from the end user's perspective.""Apache should have a graphic interface.""What needs improvement in Apache JMeter is the very high load requirements when you want to scale it beyond certain thresholds. For example, small to mid-range testing is very easily done with Apache JMeter, but if you scale and increase the load, then it would be a problem because the tool consumes a lot of resources, probably because Apache JMeter provides an enriched UI experience, so it consumes a lot of memory and requires high CPU usage. This means you have to manage your infrastructure, or else you'll have high overhead expenses. As Apache JMeter is a heavyweight tool, that is an area for improvement, though I'm unsure if Apache can do something about it because it could be a result of the way it's architected. What I'd like to see from Apache JMeter in the future is for it to transition to the cloud, as a lot of cloud technologies emerge around the globe, and a lot of people prefer cloud-based solutions or cloud-native tools. Even if a company has a legacy system, it's still possible to transition to the cloud. I've worked with a company that was an on-premise company that moved to the cloud and became cloud-native. If Apache JMeter could transition to the cloud, similar to k6, then it could help lessen the intense resource consumption that's currently happening in Apache JMeter.""If the solution was GUI based, I believe that it would be more versatile.""The user interface is a little bit tricky.""Apache JMeter's UI can be made more colorful."

More Apache JMeter Cons →

"In the cross-browser domain, it has a few snags with Microsoft Edge and Chrome; although, these problems are not critical.""I didn't use it very heavily. One issue that I found was that there wasn't a quick way or a button to move Visual Basic scripts to TestComplete. We have a lot of such scripts in our organization, and it would be very useful to have some option to easily move these scripts. It is currently possible to convert these scripts to TestComplete, but it is not easy. I have to write some code, but everything is not available immediately.""What is currently missing from this solution is better support for mobile testing.""TestComplete gives support to do requests to a SOAP web service but has no support to do HTTP requests on Restful services.""In SmartBear TestComplete the integration with Jenkins could be easier. Additionally, some of the controls could have better customization options. For example, if a grid is used and it contains multiple controls within it, it can be a checkbox, radio button, or any kind of control, the way the Object Spy is operating currently there is a lot of room for improvement.""The initial setup of SmartBear TestComplete was complex.""The integration tools could be better.""Right now, the product only supports Windows."

More SmartBear TestComplete Cons →

Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "Free"
  • "I switched to Apache because it is free. Other tools are much too expensive and can cost up to $50,000 a year if you are looking at commercial options."
  • "This is an open-source solution, and there are no fees."
  • "This is an open-source product."
  • "I was using the free version of the software."
  • "In terms of open-source adoption, it is completely free."
  • "We are using the free version, and if required, we can easily switch to the other version."
  • "When comparing the price with Load Runner, and if the cost is an issue then JMeter is a better choice"
  • More Apache JMeter Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "The product is becoming more and more expensive."
  • "My advice so far, is that while it’s not quite as powerful and easy to use as UFT, its price tag more than makes up for it."
  • "The price is less, compared to other products, such as QTP."
  • "Buy modules on demand. If you have a four-person team and they will each automate tests only 25% of the time, it's better to buy a floating licence and share the tool during the work day."
  • "TestComplete now have come up with three modules (Web, Desktop & Mobile), so based on the type of product for automation, it is adequate to purchase the required module."
  • "This is a pay-per-use service that is not expensive, and cost-efficient if you have a small team."
  • "The option we chose was around $2,000 USD."
  • "The licensing costs are in the range of $1,000 to $3,000."
  • More SmartBear TestComplete Pricing and Cost Advice →

    report
    Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Performance Testing Tools solutions are best for your needs.
    767,319 professionals have used our research since 2012.
    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:Postman lets you easily define variables, which then get updated automatically. This is a huge time-saver and makes processes very efficient. We can also export the test cases we create and share them… more »
    Top Answer:Blazemeter is a continuous testing platform that provides scriptless test automation. It unifies functional and performance testing, enabling users to monitor and test public and private APIs We… more »
    Top Answer:JMeter is basically the art of the entire performance testing process.
    Top Answer:This company offers end-to-end capabilities for test suite creation and execution. One feature that I particularly appreciate is the tagging system. Tags are highly valuable, as they allow you to… more »
    Top Answer:There are certain challenges related to the license management system in place. It comes with a high cost. An annual price is around four thousand five hundred plus per user, whereas UiPath is only… more »
    Top Answer:At times, identifying or locating an element can be somewhat challenging. However, in a recent test update, they introduced the Optical Character Recognition (OCR) capability. This introduction has… more »
    Ranking
    Views
    7,853
    Comparisons
    6,435
    Reviews
    45
    Average Words per Review
    487
    Rating
    7.6
    8th
    Views
    7,138
    Comparisons
    5,012
    Reviews
    7
    Average Words per Review
    503
    Rating
    7.1
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    JMeter
    Learn More
    Overview

    Apache JMeter is an open-source Java application that tests load and functional behavior and performance in applications. Created initially to test web applications, it has expanded its functionality to test other functions. For instance, you can test a server to see how efficiently it works and how many user requests can be handled simultaneously.

    You can use JMeter to test functional performance and regression tests on different technologies. This Java desktop application has an easy-to-use graphical interface which uses the Swing graphical API. You can run JMeter on any environment that accepts a Java virtual machine, such as Windows, Linux, and Mac.

    What protocols does JMeter support?

    • Web - HTTP, HTTPS
    • Web services - SOAP/XML-RPC
    • Email service - POP3, IMAP, SMTP
    • FTP service
    • Database via JDBC drivers
    • LDAP
    • Native commands or shell scripts
    • TCP
    • Java objects

    How does JMeter work?

    JMeter sends requests to a target server by simulating a group of user requests. Then it collects and calculates statistics on the performance of the target. This target can be a server or an application.

    You can test the performance of static resources, such as JavaScript or HTML, and dynamic resources, such as JSP, Servlets, and AJAX. It is also helpful to determine how many concurrent users your website can handle.

    There are two main tests you can carry out with JMeter: load test and stress test. The load test models expected usage of a server by simulating multiple users accessing the web server simultaneously. The stress testing aims to find the maximum load capacity of the server or application.

    Apache JMeter Key Features

    • JMeter enables fast test plan recording, building, and debugging via a featured test IDE (integrated development environment).
    • Command-line mode allows carrying out load tests from any OS compatible with Java.
    • JMeter can extract data from most popular response formats, such as HTML, JSON, XML.
    • JMeter is entirely portable.
    • A multithreading framework allows you to simultaneously test multiple samplings and separate thread groups.
    • Thanks to the caching feature, you can conduct offline analysis or replay test results.

    Apache JMeter Benefits

    • As open-source software, it is freely available and continuously improved.
    • The setup is user-friendly, and no installation is needed.
    • The GUI (graphic user interface) is intuitive and easy to use.
    • You can write your own tests and use the visualization plugins to extend the testing.
    • It is a platform-agnostic tool. For example, JMeter can work with Linux by clicking on the JMeter shell script. On Windows, you can call up JMeter by starting the jmeter.bat file.
    • Since the test plans are stored in XML format, you can generate a test plan using any text editor.
    • You can simulate a heavy load on a server, a group of servers, a network, or an object. Use JMeter to test an application or server's strength and performance under different load types.

    The JMeter extensible core has numerous benefits:

    • Unlimited testing capabilities via pluggable samplers.
    • You can choose multiple load statistics with pluggable timers.
    • Visualization plugins and data analysis enable customization.
    • Continuous integration via third-party open-source libraries (Maven, Gradle, and Jenkins).

    Reviews from Real Users

    Stephen B., I.T. Architect, Analyst, and Developer at an educational organization, says, "The scripting ability is most valuable. It is easy to use. There is a UI, and you can go in there and figure those things out. After you've got a good set of tests, you basically have a scripted document that you can grab and execute in a pipeline. It is pretty quick to set up, and you can scale it and version control it."

    "I like the fact that JMeter integrates well with other tools," adds the Founder and Principal Consultant at a tech services company.

    A Quality Engineering Delivery Leader at a financial services firm says, “The performance of the solution is excellent. They have designed the product so that it is very easy to configure. You can basically do anything you like with the product. It's not very restrictive. We like the fact that the technology is open-source.”

    What is SmartBear TestComplete?

    TestComplete is a reliable, sturdy automated testing platform created by SmartBear Software. SmartBear Software is a worldwide technological leader known for developing quality enterprise-class development and testing solutions.

    TestComplete simplifies the process of creating tests for numerous applications, including, but not limited to; Desktop, Android, IOS, Web browsers, and Windows. Application tests can be manual, scripted, and even recorded by using keyword-driven or data-driven functionality. There are even additional options for error reporting and automated playback. The object repository is extremely accurate and is fully customizable. TestComplete can easily be used by experienced developers and even by manual novice testers to develop quality automated UI tests quickly.

    TestComplete offers three different testing scenarios:

    • Desktop: Users can easily and quickly automate UI tests using today’s most popular desktop applications, such as; Windows, Java, Python,.Net, VBScript, and more.

    • Web: Users can effortlessly create renewable tests for all of today’s popular web applications, including JavaScript frameworks on 2000+ trusted browser and platform integrations.

    • Mobile: Users can safely build and automate serviceable UI tests on actual or virtual android or IOS devices, locally or in the cloud. Users can create code or codeless tests. TestComplete seamlessly integrates with many of today’s popular frameworks.

    Key Features

    • Easily create automated UI tests: TestComplete offers scriptless Record and Replay or simple keyword-driven tests to quickly develop any type of UI test users may require. Tests can be recorded once, then replayed when needed across various applications on mobile, web, or desktop environments. TestComplete integrates with many different languages, such as Java, Python, C+, and more.

    • Keyword driven tests: Users can easily divide testing steps, actions, objects, and data with an integrated keyword-driven test structure. This makes it easy for every user to participate in the test automation process; there is no programming experience needed. Everything is made simple with easy-to-use point-and-click options.

    • Data driven tests: Easily distinguish data from test commands to keep administrative efforts simple. Users can improve overall coverage by running various automated mobile, desktop, or web UI tests.

    • Record and Replay: Users can reuse created automated tests across every environment as often as desired. This helps to expand overall test coverage and represents a huge cost and time savings.

    Reviews from Real Users

    Sandhiya T S., Sr Solutions Engineer at Lexington Soft, relates, “The record and replay aspects of the solution are quite useful for people. With them, you don't have to write any scripts. Basically, you can record your actions and play them back later. The initial setup is also very easy.”

    Sai S R., Staff Test Architect at a tech services company, says, "The most valuable features of the SmartBear TestComplete are self-healing, they reduce the maintenance required. The different languages SmartBear TestComplete supports are good because some of our libraries are written in Python, JavaScript, and C#. It's very easy to put them all under one project and use them."

    Sample Customers
    AOL, Orbitz, Innopath Software, PrepMe, Sapient, Corporate Express Australia, CSIRO, Ephibian, Talis, DATACOM, ALALOOP, eFusion, Panter, Sourcepole, University of Western Cape
    Cisco, J.P. Morgan, Boeing, McAfee, EMC, Intuit, and Thomson Reuters.
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company38%
    Financial Services Firm30%
    Energy/Utilities Company4%
    Renewables & Environment Company4%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Financial Services Firm18%
    Computer Software Company17%
    Manufacturing Company8%
    Government6%
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company32%
    Manufacturing Company13%
    Financial Services Firm10%
    Comms Service Provider6%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company19%
    Manufacturing Company11%
    Financial Services Firm11%
    Government7%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business25%
    Midsize Enterprise24%
    Large Enterprise52%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business16%
    Midsize Enterprise13%
    Large Enterprise70%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business28%
    Midsize Enterprise28%
    Large Enterprise44%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business23%
    Midsize Enterprise15%
    Large Enterprise62%
    Buyer's Guide
    Performance Testing Tools
    April 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about Apache, OpenText, Tricentis and others in Performance Testing Tools. Updated: April 2024.
    767,319 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Apache JMeter is ranked 1st in Performance Testing Tools with 82 reviews while SmartBear TestComplete is ranked 8th in Test Automation Tools with 70 reviews. Apache JMeter is rated 7.8, while SmartBear TestComplete is rated 7.6. The top reviewer of Apache JMeter writes "It's a free tool with a vast knowledge base, but the reporting is lackluster, and it has a steep learning curve". On the other hand, the top reviewer of SmartBear TestComplete writes "A stable product that needs to improve its integration capabilities with other test management tools". Apache JMeter is most compared with BlazeMeter, Postman, Tricentis NeoLoad, Katalon Studio and OpenText LoadRunner Professional, whereas SmartBear TestComplete is most compared with Tricentis Tosca, Katalon Studio, Ranorex Studio, OpenText UFT One and froglogic Squish.

    We monitor all Performance Testing Tools reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.