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asciinema VS Postman

Compare asciinema VS Postman and see what are their differences

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asciinema logo asciinema

Record and share your terminal sessions, the right way. Forget screen recording apps and blurry video. Enjoy a lightweight, purely text-based approach to terminal recording.

Postman logo Postman

The Collaboration Platform for API Development
  • asciinema Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-20
  • Postman Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-07-23

asciinema features and specs

  • Lightweight
    Asciinema records terminal sessions as plain text, resulting in very small file sizes compared to video recordings.
  • Searchable
    Since recordings are stored as text, they can be indexed and searched easily.
  • Low Bandwidth
    Text-based recordings require significantly less bandwidth to upload and watch compared to video files.
  • Editable
    Recordings can be edited with a text editor, enabling easy corrections and modifications.
  • Interactive
    Asciinema players can be embedded in websites, where users can pause, rewind, and copy text directly from the terminal.
  • Platform Agnostic
    Asciinema can be used on any system that has a terminal, making it versatile for various operating systems.
  • Open Source
    Asciinema is free and open-source, allowing for community contributions and transparency.
  • Privacy-Friendly
    Sensitive data can be easily redacted from recordings since they are text-based.

Possible disadvantages of asciinema

  • No Audio or Visual Cues
    Asciinema does not support audio or visual cues, which can be essential for certain types of tutorials or presentations.
  • Limited to Terminal
    It can only record terminal sessions, making it unsuitable for applications requiring a graphical user interface (GUI).
  • Learning Curve
    Users may need to learn specific commands and configurations to effectively use asciinema.
  • Viewer Compatibility
    Requires specific viewers to playback the recordings, which might not be readily available on all platforms.
  • Not Suitable for All Tutorials
    For beginners or general audiences, video tutorials with audio explanations might be more effective.

Postman features and specs

  • User-Friendly Interface
    Postman features an intuitive and user-friendly interface that simplifies the process of constructing API requests and visualizing responses. This makes it accessible for both beginners and advanced users.
  • Collaboration
    Postman offers robust collaboration features, such as shared workspaces, collections, and real-time editing, enabling teams to work together more efficiently on API development.
  • Comprehensive Testing Tools
    Postman provides a suite of testing tools to create, automate, and manage test cases. It supports automated testing through its scripting environments, which ensure APIs perform as expected.
  • Extensive API Documentation
    Postman can automatically generate comprehensive API documentation, making it easier to maintain and share API specifications with stakeholders and other developers.
  • Mock Servers
    Postman allows users to create mock servers to simulate API responses. This is particularly useful for testing and development purposes when the actual API is not yet available.
  • Integration Capabilities
    Postman offers integrations with various CI/CD tools, version control systems, and other services like Jenkins, GitHub, and Slack, facilitating seamless integration into development workflows.

Possible disadvantages of Postman

  • Resource Intensive
    Postman can sometimes be resource-intensive, consuming substantial memory and CPU, which can impact the performance of your system, especially when dealing with large collections.
  • Steep Learning Curve for Advanced Features
    While Postman is generally user-friendly, some of its advanced features, like scripting and automation, can have a steep learning curve and might require additional effort to master.
  • Pricing
    Although Postman offers a free tier, many of its advanced features, such as enhanced collaboration tools and extended integrations, are locked behind paid plans, which may not be cost-effective for smaller teams or individual developers.
  • Dependency on Internet
    Some of Postman's features, particularly those related to collaboration and synchronization, require a stable internet connection, which can be a limitation in environments with poor connectivity.
  • Limited Native Support for Certain Protocols
    Postman primarily focuses on HTTP/HTTPS protocols and may offer limited or no native support for other protocols, which can be restricting for developers working with diverse sets of technologies.

Analysis of asciinema

Overall verdict

  • Yes, asciinema is a good tool for recording terminal sessions.

Why this product is good

  • Asciinema is praised for its simplicity, non-intrusive nature, and effectiveness in capturing command-line activities. It creates lightweight, high-quality recordings that can be easily shared and embedded. The recordings are stored as plain text, making them efficient and easily version-controlled.

Recommended for

  • Developers who need to demonstrate command-line workflows
  • Educators and trainers creating technical tutorials
  • Technical writers documenting software behavior
  • Open-source contributors showcasing project features

Analysis of Postman

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Postman is widely regarded as a good tool for API development and testing. Its combination of powerful features and ease of use makes it a popular choice among developers.

Why this product is good

  • Postman is considered a top choice for API development due to its user-friendly interface, extensive features for testing, automation, and collaboration, and strong community support. It simplifies the process of creating, managing, and testing APIs, making it accessible for both beginners and experienced developers.

Recommended for

  • Developers working on API integration
  • QA engineers involved in testing APIs
  • Teams in need of collaborative API development
  • Developers looking to automate API testing
  • Individuals looking for a comprehensive API testing tool

asciinema videos

ArcoLinux : 324 use asciinema to show what is going on in your terminal

Postman videos

POST/CON 2018 workshop in review: Running Postman Collections

More videos:

  • Review - POST/CON 2018 workshop in review: Postman Collections
  • Tutorial - How to Share Postman Collections

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to asciinema and Postman)
Development Tools
100 100%
0% 0
API Tools
0 0%
100% 100
Terminal Tools
100 100%
0% 0
APIs
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare asciinema and Postman

asciinema Reviews

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Postman Reviews

Top 20 Open Source & Cloud Free Postman Alternatives (2024 Updated)
As the digital landscape evolves, the significance of APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) has surged, facilitating seamless communication between various software applications. Postman has been a leading tool in this space, offering a comprehensive platform for API development, testing, and documentation. However, recent shifts in its pricing model and user experience...
Source: medium.com
Best Postman Alternatives To Consider in 2025
- Focus on specific needs: Does the tool excel at SOAP APIs or cater to microservices? - Resource usage: Does it handle complex projects without impacting system performance? - Script reusability: Does it allow for efficient code sharing across projects?3. Is Postman the best API tool?Not all-encompassing. While Postman is powerful, the "best" tool depends on your specific...
Postman Alternatives for API Testing and Monitoring
Some engineers turn to Postman for API testing and monitoring needs. However, Postman is a costly and limited solution. QA, DevOps and other engineers may find it lacks capabilities that can answer their needs. In this blog post, we provide 12 Postman alternatives built for the enterprise.
Beeceptor vs Postman
You cannot download request log. Although, you can use Postman APIs to query and retrieve.
Source: beeceptor.com
Top 15 MuleSoft Competitors and Alternatives
Postman is an API platform with the world’s largest public API hub that helps developers design, build, test, and iterate APIs. In 2022, Postman served over 20 million developers and 500,000 organizations.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, asciinema should be more popular than Postman. It has been mentiond 79 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

asciinema mentions (79)

  • Ask HN: Can you give tips on writing a README for project?
    I usually write the README and documentation before writing the code. I then shop it around and ask people if it makes sense. The initial version of the code is stubs that, if you follow the code examples given in the documentation, return hard-coded values. I went to the extreme of giving the docs to non-developers who've never written a single line of code in their entire life, giving them an interpreter, and... - Source: Hacker News / 8 days ago
  • OpenAI Codex
    Not as much as https://asciinema.org/ - when you can use that... - Source: Hacker News / about 2 months ago
  • fd: A simple, fast and user-friendly alternative to 'find'
    Cool site, have you considered using asciicinema instead of screenshots? Seems like the perfect tool for what you're trying to do https://asciinema.org/. - Source: Hacker News / 2 months ago
  • File Explorer is merged to Helix editor
    I agree. Capturing the interaction as a movie (like .mov file) makes it really difficult to understand what the user is doing. e.g. What keystrokes did the user press to finish this interaction. I wish folks would post screen grabs with tools like https://asciinema.org/ - this is what the helix-editor homepage uses to show the features. This is ideal for terminal apps. That said, I wish asciinema can also show the... - Source: Hacker News / 4 months ago
  • Show HN: I'm tired of sharing code using PasteBin and Slack, so I made this
    Https://asciinema.org/ It can be self hosted if you want. - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
View more

Postman mentions (30)

  • Best API Mocking Platforms in 2024
    Postman (postman.com) is a comprehensive API platform that goes beyond mocking, offering a full suite for API development, testing, and monitoring. With its mock server feature, Postman enables teams to simulate responses for various endpoints, making it a popular choice for end-to-end API management. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • 10 Best API Mocking Tools (2024 Review)
    Postman is a widely used tool for API testing and interaction. Its "Mock Servers" feature lets you create a mock version of your API, returning specific responses for testing. While useful, Postman may lack advanced mock server management features compared to other tools. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • The 3 Best Tools for API Design for Software Architects
    Postman is a widely adopted tool for API design and development, offering an intuitive interface for creating, testing, and documenting APIs. It simplifies the API design process, allowing architects to quickly prototype and refine their designs. - Source: dev.to / 11 months ago
  • How to use ApyHub to Build a Serverless Function in NodeJs?
    Once deployed, thoroughly test your serverless function to confirm it behaves as expected. Invoke the function manually from the cloud platform’s console or use tools like Postman, Apidog, or Fusion ( Fusion is ApyHub’s own API Client ) to test HTTP-triggered functions. Ensure the function executes correctly and handles errors gracefully. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • Mastering Microservices: A Hands-On Tutorial with Node.js, RabbitMQ, Nginx, and Docker
    To test the API endpoints, you can use Postman. Download and install Postman from Postman's official website. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing asciinema and Postman, you can also consider the following products

Teleconsole - Teleconsole is a free service to share your terminal session with people you trust.

Insomnia REST - Design, debug, test, and mock APIs locally, on Git, or cloud. Build better APIs collaboratively for the most popular protocols with a dev‑friendly UI, built-in automation, and an extensible plugin ecosystem.

Terminalizer - Terminalizer is a dynamic platform that offers you to record your terminal in a better and instant way.

MuleSoft Anypoint Platform - Anypoint Platform is a unified, highly productive, hybrid integration platform that creates an application network of apps, data and devices with API-led connectivity.

tmate - Tmate is a instant terminal sharing based on ssh.

DreamFactory - DreamFactory is an API management platform used to generate, secure, document, and extend APIs.