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Appium vs BrowserStack comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary
 

Categories and Ranking

Appium
Average Rating
7.8
Number of Reviews
29
Ranking in other categories
Mobile Development Platforms (7th), Regression Testing Tools (6th)
BrowserStack
Average Rating
8.0
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
Functional Testing Tools (3rd), AI-Augmented Software-Testing Tools (1st)
 

Featured Reviews

Siddartha Rao - PeerSpot reviewer
Sep 30, 2022
It's easy to launch applications.
I rate Appium eight out of 10 for ease of setup. When I first began using the product, I would rate it as six out of 10. Appium is challenging to set up for iOS and Android, but we can manage iOS automation on the Mac from Macintosh Missions. In Missions, we need to open our Appium project on the next board and create something like a bundle diary. The bundle diary from Appium doesn't work for outputs, so it should not work for our daily routine. We need to change the bundle ID and build the iPhone application. There are two ways to set it up. You can update the Appium server for HD and need to do programming and training. It will come in after 30 seconds or more.
ANand Kale - PeerSpot reviewer
Mar 28, 2024
Good in the area of automation and offers a high test coverage to users
I integrated BrowserStack into our company's web and application test workflows because it has plugins that work with browsers and applications, allowing for cross-browser testing. BrowserStack was really helpful for cross-browser testing in areas involving mobiles, web applications, or tablets. The tool can help with the testing across all applications. I have not experienced any time-saving feature from the use of the tool. My company uses the product for real-device testing since it has a bunch of devices in our library. My company has a repository where we do manual testing. BrowserStack improved the quality of our company's applications. Improvements I have seen with the testing part revolve around the fact that it is able to do testing at a fast pace. The quality of the product is better since it can go through all the parts of the applications, meaning it can provide high test coverage. The tool is also good in the area of automation. The test coverage is higher, and the time taken during the testing phase is less due to automation. I have not used the product's integration capabilities since my company doesn't have the option to look at other QA testing tools like Selenium, which can be used for the automation capabilities provided. The product should offer more support for cross-browser testing, device testing, and testing across multiple devices. I rate the tool an eight out of ten.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"We get a list that shows all devices that are connected to the system."
"The library is extensive so the driver interacts with most functions or actions on mobile devices."
"The way Appium server interacts with mobile apps is fantastic. It provides all the information about the elements inside the app, Android as well as iOS. I can interact with the element quickly, just type some text or get some text values from the element - whether it's a drop-down, or web text, or a native element."
"The latest versions of the solution are stable."
"It runs completely flawlessly and seamlessly every day."
"Appium provides a record-and-play option, and the commands are the same as those that Selenium uses. So a person who has some exposure to Selenium will be able to write a piece of code in Appium."
"The solution helps with test automation. We focus mostly on Java."
"I haven't explored other solutions in this particular area, but what I like best about Appium is the fact that it shares functions with Selenium. The extension of Selenium functions allows me to use all of the methods that exist in that domain, and it just makes it simpler for me. I've been using Selenium for some time as well, so using Appium just seems like a natural fit for me."
"We like the model device factory for iOS and Android devices."
"The product guides and resources are extensive and very helpful."
"The most valuable features are the variety of tools available."
"The most valuable feature of BrowserStack is the ability to do manual testing."
"It's helpful for me to test on different devices."
"The setup was quite simple. The website easily explains how to set it up and if you want to integrate it with BMP tools there are online simple step tutorials."
"The most valuable feature is the variety the solution offers around the different types of devices, especially mobile devices."
"It just added some flexibility. There was nothing that improved our coding standards, etc. because all of our UIs were functional before we tried it."
 

Cons

"The challenging part with Appium is that installation can be a bit tricky. It can be challenging to set up in Android versus iOS environments."
"We need some bug fixes for nested elements."
"One area where I think Appium could improve is in addressing security concerns for our data. Currently, we're unable to use cloud solutions like CloudForm due to security restrictions on our servers. We also face challenges in updating packages for the same reason. It would be beneficial if the solution could provide better support for auto-reporting and easier connections to mobile device farms."
"Appium has problems with automated validations following iOS updates, causing us to have to validate manually."
"The setup and installation were a problem for us at first."
"What needs improvement in Appium is its documentation. It needs to give more context on the libraries that Appium is using under the hood. For example, my team is using Appium for Android automation, and a lot of times, I feel that there's functionality that's available through the Appium interface, that exists within the UIAutomator, but there aren't a lot of useful or helpful resources on the internet to find that information, so it would be good to have some linkage with the underlying platform itself. Another room for improvement in Appium is that it's buggy sometimes. For example, at times, there's a bug in the inspector application that doesn't allow me to save my desired capability set, so it would be nice to get that bug fixed, but overall, Appium is a good tool. The Touch Actions functionality in Appium also needs improvement. For example, if I want to initiate a scroll on the device that I'm running Appium on, sometimes Swipe works, but in other situations, I have to explicitly use action chains, so I'm not too sure what's the better approach. What I'd like to see in the next version of Appium is a more intelligent and more intuitive AppiumLibrary, in terms of identifying menus and scroll bars, etc., because right now, I'm unsure if I have to do a lot of export reversals to get to the elements I'm looking for. It would be nice to have some functionality built in, which would allow me to easily get those exports."
"Appium could improve by enabling record and run techniques similar to what they have in other licensing tools, such as Micro Focus. We have to all write the code, and then we can proceed."
"An application developed on the Unity platform, such as a gaming application, objects are moving in that case. Interacting with those elements is still lacking in Appium. Appium doesn't have the internal library to play with the Unity platform. That is a huge lack right now."
"There is room for improvement in pricing."
"I would like for there to be more integration with BrowserStack and other platforms."
"We are having difficulty with the payment system for the BrowserStack team, as they only accept credit cards and we are encountering some issues."
"We are struggling to do local testing."
"BrowserStack is scalable, but cost is significant for those living in Mexico."
"Connectivity can sometimes mar the testing experience."
"The solution is slow."
"I haven't seen AI in BrowserStack, making it in an area where improvements are required in the product."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There is no license for this solution because it is open-source."
"The solution is open source."
"The solution is open source so it is free."
"It's completely 100% free, and there are no hidden fees."
"Appium is open source; we can use it for free."
"It's open source, so it's completely free."
"Appian is open-source, which is not licensed."
"The pricing of Appium is fine."
"Compared to other solutions, BrowserStack is one of the cheapest."
"As for pricing, I can't provide a clear evaluation as I'm not directly involved in those discussions."
"The price is fine."
"This solution costs less than competing products."
"My company found the product's license to be very compatible with our budget, and we pay 5,000 to 10,000 per year for licenses."
"There are different licenses available that can be customized. You can select the features that you want only to use which can be a cost-benefit."
"BrowserStack could have a better price, but good things have a price."
"The price of BrowserStack is high."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
20%
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Retailer
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Do you recommend Appium?
I do recommend Appium. It is an open-source solution and completely free of charge. We use Appium and Appium Studio as our base for any type of mobile automation for testing. It has a great interfa...
What do you like most about Appium?
Appium helps me to do as much as much as I want to.
What do you like most about BrowserStack?
The product's initial setup phase was not very difficult.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for BrowserStack?
My company found the product's license to be very compatible with our budget, and we pay 5,000 to 10,000 per year for licenses.
What needs improvement with BrowserStack?
I haven't seen AI in BrowserStack, making it in an area where improvements are required in the product. Accessibility testing is an area of concern where improvements are required.
 

Comparisons

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Nuvizz, Coupa Software, Eventbrite, Evernote
Microsoft, RBS, jQuery, Expedia, Citrix, AIG
Find out what your peers are saying about Appium vs. BrowserStack and other solutions. Updated: October 2024.
814,649 professionals have used our research since 2012.