Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Grails VS Jest

Compare Grails VS Jest and see what are their differences

This page does not exist

Grails logo Grails

An Open Source, full stack, web application framework for the JVM

Jest logo Jest

Jest is a delightful JavaScript Testing Framework with a focus on simplicity.
  • Grails Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-10-17
  • Jest Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-10

Grails features and specs

  • Rapid Development
    Grails promotes rapid development through its convention-over-configuration approach and powerful features, like scaffolding and GORM (Grails Object Relational Mapping), which speed up the coding process significantly.
  • Groovy Language Integration
    Being built on Groovy, a dynamic language for the Java platform, Grails provides the flexibility and expressiveness of Groovy while maintaining compatibility with Java libraries and tools.
  • Spring Boot Foundation
    Grails is built on top of Spring Boot, leveraging its robust dependency injection, security, and configuration management capabilities, which ensures the stability and scalability of applications.
  • Plugin Ecosystem
    Grails offers a rich ecosystem of plugins for extending the framework. This allows developers to easily integrate various functionalities without reinventing the wheel.
  • Convention-over-Configuration
    The framework emphasizes conventions for many aspects of the development process, reducing the need for extensive configuration and allowing developers to focus more on business logic.
  • Strong Community and Documentation
    Grails has a strong community and extensive documentation, which make it easier for developers to find solutions to problems, share knowledge, and get support.

Possible disadvantages of Grails

  • Learning Curve
    Despite its many conveniences, Grails has a steep learning curve, particularly for developers not familiar with Groovy or the underlying Spring framework.
  • Performance Overheads
    The abstraction layers and dynamic aspects of Groovy may introduce performance overheads, making Grails applications potentially slower than those built with more streamlined frameworks.
  • Limited Flexibility
    While Grails' conventions can be beneficial, they can also limit flexibility, forcing developers into certain patterns and practices even when they may not be ideal for all scenarios.
  • Less Popularity
    Compared to other frameworks like Spring Boot alone or Hibernate, Grails has a smaller market share, leading to fewer job opportunities and a smaller pool of resources.
  • Complex Debugging
    The dynamic nature of Groovy can sometimes make debugging more complex and challenging, especially for those accustomed to statically-typed languages like Java.
  • Dependency Management Issues
    Managing dependencies in Grails can occasionally be problematic, particularly when dealing with transitive dependencies or conflicts between plugins.

Jest features and specs

  • Easy Setup
    Jest provides an out-of-the-box configuration which makes it easy to set up and start testing quickly without needing extensive configuration.
  • Snapshot Testing
    Jest supports snapshot testing, allowing developers to capture the state of UI components, making regression testing easier.
  • Mocking Capabilities
    Jest offers powerful mocking capabilities for functions, modules, and timers, enabling isolated and independent unit tests.
  • Parallel Test Execution
    Jest runs tests in parallel, utilizing multiple workers to speed up test execution and improve performance.
  • Comprehensive Documentation
    Jest has thorough and well-maintained documentation which helps developers easily understand and utilize its features.
  • Watch Mode
    Jest has a watch mode feature that automatically re-runs tests when files are updated, improving development workflow.
  • Built-in Code Coverage
    Jest provides built-in code coverage reports, giving developers insights into which parts of their code are covered by tests.

Possible disadvantages of Jest

  • Performance Overhead
    Jest's parallel test execution can sometimes introduce performance overhead, especially in large projects with many workers firing at once.
  • Test Initialization
    Tests can take longer to initialize due to the need for Jest to transform code from modern JavaScript syntax down to older syntax versions.
  • Limited Browser Testing
    Jest is primarily designed for testing Node.js applications and may require additional configuration or tools for full-featured browser testing.
  • Learning Curve
    For developers unfamiliar with JavaScript testing frameworks, understanding Jest's extensive feature set and configuration options can be challenging.
  • Specific to JavaScript
    Jest is specifically designed for JavaScript and may not be suitable for projects that involve multiple programming languages.

Analysis of Grails

Overall verdict

  • Grails is a good choice for developers who appreciate convention over configuration and are looking for a quick, efficient way to build web applications. Its integration with the JVM ecosystem makes it particularly appealing for those with existing Java knowledge or infrastructure. However, as with any technology, its suitability depends on specific project requirements and team expertise.

Why this product is good

  • Grails is considered a powerful web application framework built on Groovy and the Spring Framework. It promotes rapid development, convention over configuration, and is designed to be easy to learn for Java developers. Grails provides a variety of built-in features such as ORM (Object-Relational Mapping) with GORM, a robust plugin system, and seamless integration with third-party libraries and frameworks. It aims to boost productivity by simplifying tasks and reducing configuration overhead.

Recommended for

  • Java developers looking to increase productivity
  • Teams that prefer convention over configuration
  • Projects that require rapid development and prototyping
  • Developers interested in using the Groovy language
  • Applications that need seamless integration with the Spring Framework

Analysis of Jest

Overall verdict

  • Jest is considered a good choice for modern JavaScript development, particularly for projects involving React, due to its robustness, ease of use, and active community support. Its ability to run tests in parallel and produce detailed diagnostics contributes significantly to improving testing efficiency.

Why this product is good

  • Jest is a popular testing framework for JavaScript that provides a simple and highly effective environment for unit testing, especially for applications built with React. It comes with an extensive set of features including a zero configuration setup, a powerful mocking library, and coverage reports, all without needing additional tools. Jest's ease of use and speed make it a preferred choice for developers looking for seamless integration in their development process.

Recommended for

  • Developers working with React and looking for easy integration with minimal configuration.
  • Teams that require a fast and reliable testing tool with excellent community support and active development.
  • Projects that demand comprehensive testing capabilities including unit tests, integration tests, and snapshot testing.

Grails videos

BUYING MY SNEAKER GRAILS ON STOCKX!

More videos:

  • Review - TOP 5 SNEAKER GRAILS
  • Review - Top 5 Grails with Superpower Review | Berkfamily54comics

Jest videos

60 Second Book Review: “Infinite Jest” by David Foster Wallace

More videos:

  • Review - How I Get Through Tough Books - Infinite Jest and Proust
  • Review - David Foster Wallace interview on "Infinite Jest" with Leonard Lopate (03/1996)

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Grails and Jest)
Developer Tools
63 63%
37% 37
Web Frameworks
100 100%
0% 0
JavaScript Framework
0 0%
100% 100
Python Web Framework
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

Share your experience with using Grails and Jest. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

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

Grails Reviews

17 Popular Java Frameworks for 2023: Pros, cons, and more
Although you have to write your code in Groovy, Grails works well with other Java-related technologies such as the Java Development Kit, Jakarta EE containers, Hibernate, and Spring. Under the hood, Grails is built on top of Spring Boot to make use of its productivity-friendly features like dependency injection. With Grails, you can achieve the same results with much less...
Source: raygun.com
10 Best Java Frameworks You Should Know
Grails is a web application framework developed using Apache Groovy Language. It is a Framework that follows the coding by convention method which provides a Standalone environment. Also, it supports instance development with no configuration required.

Jest Reviews

We have no reviews of Jest yet.
Be the first one to post

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Jest seems to be a lot more popular than Grails. While we know about 75 links to Jest, we've tracked only 6 mentions of Grails. 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.

Grails mentions (6)

  • Mastering Node.js
    Trails is a modern web application framework. It builds on the pedigree of Rails and Grails to accelerate development by adhering to a straightforward, convention-based, API-driven design philosophy. - Source: dev.to / 11 months ago
  • RIFE2 web framework under development
    And frameworks like Grails build conventions and helpers on top of Spring. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Web app in Java with Template Engine
    I don't have any direct experience and am only suggesting it because you mentioned RoR...But Grails (https://grails.org/) is basically the JVM version of RoR (Groovy on Rails -> Grails). Source: over 2 years ago
  • Libraries other than Spring Boot for creating web APIs
    Grails - Spring under the hood. Much less boilerplate. Opinionated, which helps keep things consistent. Uses Spring-Security plugin for authentication. Source: almost 3 years ago
  • "get-it-done" MVC web framework like Django in Java?
    Also, Grails, which a Rails like framework build on Groovy, a JVM scripting language. Source: over 3 years ago
View more

Jest mentions (75)

  • Mastering Webhook & Event Testing: A Guide
    Popular frameworks like Jest, Mocha, or JUnit provide everything you need for effective webhook unit testing, with mocking capabilities that let you simulate external dependencies. - Source: dev.to / 29 days ago
  • Most Effective Approaches for Debugging Applications
    Proactive testing is critical for catching bugs before they reach production. Comprehensive test suites—covering unit, integration, and UI scenarios—detect issues early in the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC). Roman Surikov, Founder of Ronas IT, advises, “Ensure that [automated testing] covers various scenarios including unit, integration, and user interface testing to catch bugs early.” A 2024 Sauce Labs... - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
  • Between Diapers and Development – How My Blog Came to Life with Eleventy
    To maximize learning, I could choose something new. Normally, I consider that a valid reason. But given my limited time, that wasn't a priority for me. Another criterion could be long-term viability: Is there a large core team and an active community? Well, who still remembers AngularJS? From Google? And didn’t Facebook/Meta start Jest? I wouldn’t rely too much on that. - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • Migrating from AngularJS to React
    Additionally, I wrote Jest and Enzyme unit tests to demonstrate how to go about unit testing the components, as test driven development (TDD) is another methodology my organization subscribes to. Jest is a unit testing framework that actually shipped with React if you use the Create React App CLI to make a new React project. And at the time, Enzyme was created by Airbnb and added additional functionality to Jest... - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • Top React Testing Libraries in 2025
    Jest is a comprehensive testing framework developed by Facebook and is the default choice for testing React applications. It includes built-in capabilities for mocking, spying, and snapshot testing, ensuring minimal setup for testing even the most complex applications. Jest’s extensive support for parallel test execution and interactive features like coverage reporting and watch mode makes it highly efficient. - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Grails and Jest, you can also consider the following products

Ruby on Rails - Ruby on Rails is an open source full-stack web application framework for the Ruby programming...

react-testing-library - [`React Testing Library`][gh] builds on top of `DOM Testing Library` by adding

Django - The Web framework for perfectionists with deadlines

Mochajs - Mocha is a JavaScript test framework running on Node.js and the browser, making asynchronous testing simple.

Meteor - Meteor is a set of new technologies for building top-quality web apps in a fraction of the time.

Vitest - A blazing fast unit test framework powered by Vite