When it comes to stress testing tools, load testing or performance testing, you can run into some problems. With performance testing tools free there are thousands of methods that you could potentially use. It can be difficult to choose.
This is why I’ve put together this list of the 10+ best performance testing tools for Java developers.
Apache JMeter
Open source load testing tool: It is a Java platform application. It is mainly considered as a performance testing tool and it can also be integrated with the test plan. In addition to the load test plan, you can also create a functional test plan.
This tool has the capacity to be loaded into a server or network so as to check on its performance and analyze its working under different conditions. Initially, it was introduced to test web applications, but later its scope had widened.
It is of great use in testing the functional performance of resources such as Servlets, Perl Scripts and JAVA objects. Need JVM 1.4 or higher to run.
System Requirements: It works under Unix and Windows OS
Official Website: Apache JMeter
Micro Focus LoadRunner
This is a Micro Focus product which can be used as a Performance Testing tool. This can be bought as a Micro Focus product from its Micro Focus software division. Also, it is very much useful in understanding and determining the performance and outcome of the system when there is an actual load.
One of the key attractive features of this testing tool is that it can create and handle thousands of users at the same time.
This tool enables you to gather all the required information with respect to the performance and is also based on the infrastructure. LoadRunner comprises of different tools – namely, Virtual User Generator, Controller, Load Generator and Analysis.
System Requirements: Microsoft Windows and Linux are the favorable OS for this measuring tool.
Official Website: LoadRunner
Rational Performance Tester
Rational performance tester is an automated performance testing tool that can be used for a web application or a server-based application where the process of input and output is involved. This tool creates a demo of the original transaction process between the user and the web service.
By the end of it, all the statistical information is gathered and they are analyzed to increase efficiency. Any leakage on the website or the server can be identified and rectified immediately with the help of this tool.
This tool can be the best option for building an effective and error-free cloud computing service. This Rational Performance tester was developed by IBM (Rational software division). They have come up with many versions of this automated testing tool.
System Requirement: Microsoft Windows and Linux AIX are good enough for this performance testing tool.
Official Website: Rational Performance Tester
NeoLoad
NeoLoad is the most automated performance testing platform for enterprise organizations that continuously test applications and APIs. NeoLoad provides testers and developers automatic test design and maintenance, the most realistic simulation of user behavior, fast root cause analysis and built-in integrations with the entire SDLC toolchain.
NeoLoad lets you reuse and share test assets and results from functional testing tools to analytics and metrics from APM tools. NeoLoad supports a full range of mobile, web and packaged applications, like SAP, to cover all testing needs.
Continuously schedule, manage and share test resources and results across the organization to ensure application performance.
System Requirements: This tool is compatible with operating systems like Microsoft Windows, Linux, and Solaris.
Official Website: NeoLoad
LoadComplete
Easy and affordable performance testing tool. LoadComplete enables you to create and execute realistic load tests for websites and web apps. It automates creating realistic load tests by recording user interactions and simulating these actions with hundreds of virtual users either from your local computers or from the cloud.
LoadComplete helps you check your web server’s performance under a massive load, determine its robustness and estimate its scalability. It also provides detailed metrics and reports that help you gain in-depth insights into infrastructure performance, application behavior, and end-user experience.
System requirements: This tool works on 64-bit operating systems such as Windows XP Professional and Windows 7 or later.
Official Website: LoadComplete
Akamai CloudTest
CloudTest by Akamai allows you to perform stress testing on your environment and ensures your app or site is ready for sudden traffic spikes. It is a highly scalable and robust tool that lets you simulate large events with accurate controls and provides live site analysis to help you detect bottlenecks.
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It’s super easy to use. You can develop, provision, perform tests and get detailed insights without hassles. This performance testing tool requires lower resource allocation but produces high-performance results.
Feature and Benefits
- Rapid test creation: Create tests faster without coding.
- Pricing: Free for 100 concurrent users, and on-demand plans start from $2,500.
Parasoft Load Test
Parasoft Load Test is a simple and easy-to-use load and performance testing tool with an intelligent user interface and makes configuration effortless. It is extensible with a scripting extension to add custom functionalities.
The tool offers multiple performance testing types, including stress testing, endurance testing, component testing, spike testing, infrastructure testing, and scalability testing.
By importing JUnit tests on your load test, you can achieve early-stage load tests, isolating specific parts of your codebase. Besides, you can automate test result analysis with QoS metrics and integrate it with major APM systems for correlation.
Features and Benefits
- Cost-efficient: Run tests on-demand using cloud services like AWS and reduce hardware requirements for performance testing.
- Pricing: Contact them for a quote.
Locust
Locust is an open source load testing tool that lets you define user behavior using Python code and flood your system with millions of users simultaneously. It’s a highly distributed and scalable performance testing tool that supports running tests that are spread across multiple machines and let you simulate a massive number of users with ease.
Furthermore, the tool is resilient as it is battle-tested and can easily withstand heavy loads even during peak traffic. It features basic and straightforward coding without involving clunky UIs or rich XML. Instead, you can write simple Python codes.
Features and Benefits
- Installation: Easy to install using pip from PyPI.
- Pricing: Free.
nGrinder
nGrinder is an enterprise-level performance testing tool that makes it effortless to execute test script creation, perform tests smoothly, monitor your website and applications, and generate test results. It uses a Jython script to create test scenarios utilizing multiple agents.
It is an open source stress testing tool that provides integrated test environments while eliminating inconveniences during the overall process. It originated from The Grinder and includes specific changes in architecture and more accessible test executions.
You can assign pre-install agents, deploy them on different network regions, and perform tests on several network locations. In addition, manage scripts by embedding subversion and monitoring agent state to measure stress over machines.
Features and Benefits
- Extensible: It can extend tests unlimitedly using custom libraries and accommodate concurrent tests without showing any inefficiencies.
- Compatibility: It maintains backward compatibility and can run on Docker.
- Pricing: Free.
Eggplant
Increase end-user engagement by offering them scalable and responsive apps load testing with Eggplant. This load and performance testing tool is simple and provides actual and user-centric testing.
Eggplant exhibits excellent simulation capabilities. It simulates users virtually at both network protocol and application UI levels to completely understand UI impact. In addition to that, it is a highly extensible, open, and multi-protocol supported tool that helps you solve test challenges.
Features and Benefits
- Test controls: You can control tests easily while they are running.
- Effective analysis: Effective and real-time test analysis with reporting lets detect issues quickly and resolve them efficiently.
- Pricing: Try their demo and contact them for a quote.
Loadster
Load test web applications with Loadster can handle heavy loads and helps you optimize your app performance, prevent downtime, and control costs. You can test any sort of HTTP APIs like REST, JSON-RPC, GraphQL, and XML-RPC.
It offers advanced validation rules to find errors and record values to reuse them later. You can also record scripts using Loadster Recorder (a free browser extension) and edit them in the browser.
You can launch cloud tests quickly with Loadster. It can run distributed cloud tests globally with little setup and establish 1000s of bots across cloud instances.
Features and Benefits
- Real-time metrics: Get real-time results during the tests for errors, throughput, and response times, along with automatic reports.
- Pricing: Their pay-as-you-go model starts from $119/month for 1000 bot hours, while monthly plans start from $299.
Loader.io
Perform simple cloud-based performance and load testing with Loader.io, which is a FREE tool for your web apps and APIs, capable of handling thousands of simultaneous connections.
Just register your application and start the test using the API or web interface, and let them simulate connections for a specific duration.
You can monitor your stress or load tests with Loader.io in real-time and share the report with your colleagues. It features interactive data representation with graphs and statistics that you can access from any time and anywhere.
Features and Benefits
- Integration: Integrate Loader.io with your deployment pipelines to extend functionalities.
- Pricing: The free plan supports 10,000 clients/test, while paid plans start from $99.95/month for 100k clients/test.
LoadStorm
LoadStorm is a powerful load testing tool for your mobile and web applications. This cloud testing tool lets you find app scalability, create browser recordings, upload them, and parameterize them to start testing in a few minutes.
It’s also is one of the most cost-effective and most manageable performance tools to perform load tests. They offer intuitive reports with graphs to test app performance, such as response time, error rates, users, etc.
Features and Benefits
- No coding: You don’t need any scripting skills to use this testing tool.
- Compatibility: Windows OS.
- Pricing: Contact them for a quote.
SolarWinds
Gain better visibility on your app and network service performance with SolarWinds. It lets you discover the root cause of an issue so you can resolve them quickly.
You can decrease your network downtime using actionable insights gained out of this performance testing tool. In addition, this software offers extensive network performance testing with continuous monitoring of device performance and network availability.
The tool alerts you with an intelligent network alerting feature when the critical performance metrics exceed predefined thresholds.
Features and Benefits
- Data analytics: Leverages data analytics to monitor your network so you can resolve issues faster.
- Pricing: Starts from $1,638.
Test Studio
Offered by Telerik, Test Studio is a complete automation tool for testing your web, mobile, and desktop-based applications’ GUI, load, and performance. It offers code-based and codeless automation with an intuitive UI for testing.
Test Studio makes testing more reliable and stable with a faster test recorder while requiring minimum test maintenance. Additionally, it maximizes performance test coverage to ensure optimal performance.
Using its built-in scheduler or integrating test suites in your CI/CD setup, you can perform stable and quick test runs. You can also record your performance tests and utilize automated playback for faster and easier test creation, and then run it to test different browsers.
Features and Benefits
- Dashboard: Monitor app quality with web-based reports, results, and dashboard.
- Pricing: Starts from $39/month per developer.
Taurus
Taurus is an automation tool for continuous testing and lets you eliminate those annoying, repetitive tests. It also improves experience working with Selenium, JMeter, and more.
Taurus is a simple performance testing tool that makes building, running, and viewing tests effortless without writing extensive codes. In addition, you can create new tests from scratch by utilizing unified and control-friendly DSL.
Features and Benefits
- Integration: It integrates seamlessly with JMeter, Selenium, etc.
- Pricing: The tool is FREE and comes with helpful documentation.
Other performance testing tools: OpenSTA, The Grinder, nGrinder, ApacheBench, Tsung, Experitest, ZebraTester, Artillery, Applause, J-hawk, Paessler Security, Dynatrace, and Zabbix.
Don’t just pick anything randomly. Instead, choose the performance testing tool based on your unique testing requirements for your website and web applications. And compare their features and pricing essentially.
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Conclusion
Jmeter is the best Java load testing tool for performance testers (or anyone who wants to do load testing). If you want to build an architecture that could pass the performance, stress, or load testing in ‘API’ way, JMeter is one of the best tools in Java open source environment.