12 Best Automated Unit Testing Tools [LATEST 2024 RANKING]

Review and compare the top Automated Unit Testing Tools including its features, pricing, etc to find the best Automated Unit Testing Software per your requirement:

Unit testing is one of the most important areas to ensure code coverage and basic testing for the applications or software in today’s world.

Unit testing is basically writing tests for business logic/code and is written by developers. Most of the good organizations ensure that unit testing coverage is in the higher 90s as the basic requirement.

Automated unit testing tools are the need of the hour because a lot of crucial developer bandwidth goes into writing huge amounts of boilerplate code required for writing unit tests for all the pieces of application code.

Automated Unit Testing Tools

While selecting a unit testing tool, ensure the following:

• It’s capable of reducing the boilerplate code required for unit testing.
• It should be able to suggest and create useful combinations of test data for maximized coverage and edge cases being covered too.
• It should involve minimum intervention from the developer but at the same time should be flexible to code changes and custom tests if a developer wants to do so.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q #1) What are the tools used for unit testing?

Answer: Nowadays, a lot of tools are available for automated unit testing. Some of the most commonly used ones are –

• Devmate
• Diffblue
• Ponicode
• Symflower

Traditionally Unit testing has been largely manual driven. Application developers are expected to spend a good amount of time to ensure that their code is well covered with unit testing.

Unit tests are also largely dependent on the language in which source code is written and depending on that there are different frameworks available, for example,  Java-based tests are generally written and executed using JUnit framework, for .NET frameworks used are NUnit and MSTest and similar for other programming languages as well.

Q #2) What are automated unit tests?

Answer: A lot of Unit testing is totally manual, i.e. developers write unit tests in supported frameworks to ensure enhanced code coverage. As an industry-standard Unit test code coverage is usually desired in the higher 90s.

With the advancement in AI and ML landscape, there are now some great tools available that can automate writing unit tests for the developers with no or very little manual intervention. But would definitely result in a reduction of a lot of manual efforts.

Some of these tools that are gaining popularity are:

• Devmate: AI-based engine that identifies user scenarios for a function under test and allows automated unit testing & works like a breeze. Comes as a Visual Studio extension (IntelliJ coming in 7/2021).
• Some other tools are – Symflower, Ponicode, Diffblue which help in automated unit test writing and execution.

Q #3) How do you write an automated unit test case?

Answer: Almost all the automated unit testing tools provide a UI kind of editor that displays the generated scenarios and the test data that would be used with the test data. So in general, for an automated unit test,

• Select the class/function for which you want to add a test.
• Add/Update the test data which the test scenarios refer to.
• Click to Generate test cases.
• Execute the generated test cases.

Q #4) Is Selenium a unit testing tool?

Answer: Selenium is a UI Functional testing tool and is used for web-based applications. It automates User interface testing through different language bindings and can run tests on multiple browsers and OS combinations.

Also Read =>> Complete List of best Selenium Tutorials

Q #5) Can code coverage be automated?

Answer: Yes code coverage is automated against the actual test execution. The code coverage tools monitor the execution of the test and detect the percentage of lines being covered (or hit) by those tests.

Suggested Reading =>>Popular Code coverage tools

Let’s look at different tools available for creating automated units and end-to-end functional automated tests.

List of the Best Automated Unit Testing Tools

Here is the list of popular tools for automated unit testing:

1. Devmate (Recommended)
2. Ponicode
3. Diffblue
4. Symflower
5. Parasoft
6. Tricentis
7. Smartbear
8. Leapwork
9. Eggplant Software
10. Microfocus
11. Ranorex
12. Katalon

Comparison of Top Automated Unit Testing Solutions

Let us review the above-listed tools below:

#1) Devmate (Recommended)

Best for Automated Unit testing for C# and JAVA-based applications.

Devmate is capable of creating unit tests for a given set of classes/functions. It can be downloaded as a Visual Studio Extension plugin (IntelliJ coming in 7/2021) and can be used fully integrated within the IDE.

It uses Black Box Testing techniques to analyze the method under test and suggest inputs and output values using an AI test-data prediction engine.

Features:

• Supports creating test models from the application code. The models can be updated as and when there are changes to the code.
• The test methods and generated code are 100% supported with ISTQB and ISO standards.
• Support for AI-based models for identifying suitable test scenarios and test data.
• Support for Mocking Frameworks like Moq.
• There is a forever-free version that allows up to 10 test models per week.

Pros:

• Generated Test Cases can be used and changed in the IDE also without the devmate tool.
• Great effort saving for dev writing unit tests, up to ~50% time could be saved as a result of the reduction in writing down boilerplate code and unit tests.
• Support for multiple test frameworks – like NUnit, xUnit, MsTest, JUnit.
• Fully integrates with IDE – no additional Software/tools required.

Cons:

• Currently supports just C# and JAVA language.
• Supports Visual Studio 2019 or later (teams on older versions would need to upgrade).

Pricing:

• Single user license: It costs around €9/month/ per user – This is ideal for freelancers/individual developers.
• Corporate users: It costs around €49/month (for 2 to unlimited users) and has Dev support included.

#2) Ponicode

Best for Automated Unit testing for developers on Visual Studio Code editor and work on JS, TypeScript, and Python based applications.

Ponicode Unit test is available as a Visual Studio Code IDE extension and is capable of generating unit tests for your application functions. It currently supports – Javascript, Typescript, and Python languages.

Features:

• Generate unit tests through a visual editor.
• Uses artificial intelligence engine to identify and suggest useful test combinations.

Pros:

• Automate unit tests for JS, Typescript, and Python.
• Uses AI engine to suggest scenarios for additional coverage.
• Supports mocking for functions defined in the same projects.

Cons:

• Available as an extension for VS Code only. Developers working on other editors might need to switch to VS Code.

Pricing:

• An individual license is free and comes with community support.
• Enterprise subscription starts at 10,000 Euros/month and comes with additional features like – CI/CD integration, dashboards, SSO integration.
• Enterprise premium – Custom pricing with dedicated support and customized features.

=> Visit Ponicode Website

#3) Diffblue

Best for automatic unit tests for Java and developers working on IntelliJ IDE, as the tool is available as an IntelliJ IDE Plugin.

It supports the automatic generation of unit tests for the Java programming language. It comes as a plugin that could be installed with IntelliJ IDE or as a CLI tool (which is only available for the paid version).

Features:

• Supports Java 8 & 11 – On Spring and Spring Boot
• Supports Maven and Gradle based projects and Mockito for Mock framework
• Provides Integration with JaCoCo and SonarQube for measuring coverage

Pros:

• Saves time by automating writing Java unit tests.
• Integrated with CI/CD pipelines for quick feedback.
• Supports build tools, mocking frameworks, and coverage tools.
• Helps catch more regression bugs due to enhanced coverage.

Cons:

• Support for just Java language.
• Available only for IDE – other editors like Eclipse can’t use the plugin.
• It’s not a replacement for unit tests but an addition that could complement the existing unit tests. So an additional tool that needs to be learned/integrated and might add some level of maintenance.

Pricing:

• Community edition: Free for personal use with community support
• Professional: Starts $120 / month – generally recommended for individual developers/freelancers
• DevOps edition: $3475/month – Integration with Diffblue CLI, AI-generated unit tests
• Enterprise: Custom billing depending on feature set required – useful for large enterprises and bulk users.

=> Visit Diffblue Website

#4) Symflower

Best for unit testing with emphasis on security and performance issues. Developers on Java and Go Languages can consider using this.

Symflower is capable of automatically writing unit tests that could reveal functional, security, and performance issues. It claims to save up to 60% development costs by automatically detecting bugs and defects early in the development cycle.

Features:

• Automated analysis and writing of unit tests – can save up to 30% development cost with higher test coverage.
• Does not require any sort of human intervention for creating unit tests.
• Supports common programming language constructs.

Pros:

• Generates automated unit tests using symbolic execution
• Ensures higher test coverage.
• Analyses source code for generating test data. Also ensures that any changes done to the application are accounted for.
• Saves time by automating writing Java unit tests.
• Saves time by automatically re-running all writing Java unit tests as new code is added.

Cons:

• Support for just Java and Go at the moment – Upcoming support for other languages like – C++, C#, and Javascript.
• Minimum memory requirements of 8 cores and 4 GB RAM are quite high.

Pricing: Contact them for a Quote

=> Visit Symflower Website

#5) Parasoft

Best for teams looking for an Automated unit testing tool for C & C++ and support for multiple compiler testing.

Parasoft C/C++ Unit testing tool provides a complete framework for unit testing. It supports on-target testing for multiple compilers like ARM, IIR, Green Health, etc, and is well suited for safety-critical applications.

Features:

• Supports for stubs and assertions.
• Provides support for coverage metrics.
• Available as a UI tool that includes few components like Test Case Explorer, Test case Editor, Coverage View, etc.

Pros:

• Enhanced coverage via unit and integration tests.
• Available as a UI editor for developers to create/edit unit tests and view coverage metrics.
• Support for on-target testing for multiple compilers.

Cons:

• Limited language support – C/C++

Pricing:

• Available on Demand

=> Visit Parasoft Website

#6) Tricentis

Best for teams looking for Enterprise level tool for all the testing needs like functional, load testing, SAP, Mobile apps, etc.

Provides functional test automation through risk-based and model-based automation approaches and is more suitable for creating integration tests. It’s one of the most comprehensive Continuous testing platforms and claims to support more than 150 integrations.

Features:

• Supports multiple testing types – exploratory, manual, automated, load testing, etc.
• Tests are business readable or specs that could be understood even with non-technical people.
• Covers testing around multiple technologies like – Cross-browser, SAP, Mobile, Java testing
• Support for test planning as well as test reporting/analytics.

Pros:

• Enterprise-level software supporting end-to-end testing needs.
• 1 stop solution for all the types of test requirements..
• Supports service virtualization and tests with record/playback.

Cons:

• Doesn’t support automated unit tests. It’s more suited for creating end-to-end integration tests or user journeys.

Pricing:

• Available on demand
• Trials/Demos available for most of the products.

=> Visit Tricentis Website

#7) Smartbear

Best for complete AI-powered test solution for desktop, mobile, and web-based applications.

Smartbear provides a lot of different products for different automation needs.

Some of the tools it provides are – BitBar for which is a cloud-based solution for Mobile App testing, CrossBrowserTesting – for running Selenium and Appium tests in the cloud, and TestComplete for Automated UI functional testing.

We would do a review for TestComplete here.

Features:

• Offers AI-powered object recognition engine for testing desktop, web, and mobile applications.
• More suited for e2e Integration tests.
• Support multiple application types – .NET, Java, React, and Javascript-based frameworks and Functional UI tests for Mobile web and apps.
• Support for integration with tools like – Git, Jira, Jenkins

Pros:

• Increased speed to delivery by delivering faster automation and robust tests.
• Easy to learn.
• Reuse existing test scripts and integrate out of the box with CI tools.
• Support for Data-driven & Keyword driven testing.
• Support for parallel testing.

Cons:

• Third-party web controls like Flash, Javascript are difficult to test.
• Scripting languages mostly used are – Javascript and Python. Developers/Testers coming from other backgrounds like – Java, Kotlin might be a challenge.

Pricing:

• TestComplete base (we can choose between Desktop, mobile, and web options) – Starts at $8801
• TestComplete Pro – Starts at $9479
• Free 30 day trial for Windows OS

=> Visit Smartbear Website

#8) Leapwork

Best for teams looking for a complete codeless solution with multiple platform support like SAP, Salesforce, Mainframes, Mobile Apps, web apps, etc.

Leapwork offers a visual, no-code automation platform and integrates RPA for automating repetitive processes.

It claims to achieve about 97% productivity gains by reducing automating tasks that would consume a lot of time.

Features:

• The enterprise-grade solution that works across all technologies.
• Leader in codeless automation.
• Supports Robotic Process Automation.
• Support for multiple application types – ranging from Windows applications, Web applications, Mobile apps, Mainframes, Salesforce-based apps, SAP, etc

Pros:

• Visual, codeless approach to create tests.
• Easy to learn.
• Specialist support teams.
• Support for multiple application types.

Cons:

• Lack of support for platforms like OSx and Linux. The tool is currently supported for Microsoft Windows-based OS

Pricing:

• Available on demand
• Free trial version available

=> Visit Leapwork Website

#9) Eggplant Software

Best for proven Enterprise level solution for end-to-end integration for Mobile and Web-based applications.

Eggplant provides a scriptless or codeless solution for creating automated tests with AI-assisted models. Generally used for integration testing of web and mobile-based applications.

Features:

• Supports AI-assisted automation through a codeless UI test editor.
• Inbuilt support for load testing
• Supports RPA

Pros:

• Support for web-based, desktop-based and mobile applications
• Ease of use for even non-technical users
• Support for database and load testing

Cons:

• Not very great reporting capabilities.
• The license is too expensive.
• Optical character recognition is not accurate.

Pricing:

• Pricing on demand
• A trial can be requested by providing details.

=> Visit Eggplant Website

#10) Microfocus

Best for UFT One product supports automation of more than 200+ application types with a lot of integration with industry-standard tools.

Microfocus provides a product named UFT One for creating automated end-to-end tests for an application.

Features:

• Supports GUI, API, and Web testing
• AI-Powered intelligent test automation.
• Direct Integration with CI/CD tools
• Support for 200+ application types ranging from – Web apps, SAP-based apps, Mainframes, etc.

Pros:

• Strong support teams.
• Support for parallel and cross-browser testing.
• For mobile testing – real devices and emulator support available.

Cons:

• High memory/storage consumption by the tool.
• The scripting language is VB scripting which limits the use of a lot of other tools like Javascript, Python, etc.

Pricing:

• On-demand
• Free trial available

=> Visit Microfocus Website

#11) Ranorex

Best for teams wanting to do faster onboarding of more non-technical folks on an end-to-end integration testing platform for functional automation.

Ranorex Studio provides a suite of tools to create automated scenarios for Functional UI Test automation.

Features:

• Support for Desktop, Web, and Mobile Apps.
• Support for Data and Keyword-driven testing.
• Inbuilt integration with Jira and other CI/CD tools.

Pros:

• Ease of learning for even non-technical people.
• Easily create automated scenarios with GUI based tests editor
• Support for remote test execution.

Cons:

• The tool is available for just Windows platforms, the tests can run on other platforms though.

Pricing:

• Studio License: $3,590 annually (Single station license)
• Enterprise License: $5,990 annually (Floating license)
• Free trial available on demand

=> Visit Ranorex Website

Recommended Reading =>> Ranorex Studio Hands-on Tutorial

#12) Katalon

Best for teams looking to start with an integrated testing approach also leveraging their free version for a lot of POC work during the initial test setup and execution.

It’s an all-in-one automation solution to support Desktop, Mobile, Web, and APIs

Features:

• Can be used to automate – web & mobile apps as well as APIs.
• Support for image-based testing.
• Easy to set up and run.

Pros:

• User-friendly UI – easy to learn.
• Supports cross-browser testing.
• The free version of Katalon Studio also has support for most of the features.
• The tool is available for both Mac and Windows.

Cons:

• CI/CD integration is available only in the enterprise licensed version which needs an addon – enterprise runtime engine.
• No support for parallel test execution and BDD scripts.

Pricing:

• Katalon Studio – Free for download and use
• Katalon Studio Enterprise – $839/license/year – Dedicated support and plugin integration

=> Visit Katalon Website

Suggested Reading =>> Katalon Studio Tutorial

Conclusion

In this tutorial, we learned about various frameworks and tools that provide support for creating automated Unit tests as well as end-to-end functional integration tests.

Most of these tools support codeless automation and help in enhancing the test coverage of the application thereby reducing regression issues as well as bugs reaching the end product.

Unit testing & coverage is one of the most important metrics that are desired for most of the Software applications built today. Since the applications and software are fast changing due to the widespread adoption of Agile methodology, we need to have a strong and wide coverage with robust automation to ensure the delivery of quality products at a faster pace.