Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Protractor VS Cucumber

Compare Protractor VS Cucumber and see what are their differences

Protractor logo Protractor

Protractor is an end-to-end test framework for AngularJS applications.

Cucumber logo Cucumber

Cucumber is a BDD tool for specification of application features and user scenarios in plain text.
  • Protractor Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-10-22
  • Cucumber Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-01-19

Protractor features and specs

  • Integration
    Protractor is designed specifically for Angular applications and offers tight integration, making it easy to work with Angular-specific elements like models, bindings, and states.
  • End-to-End Testing
    It provides a comprehensive solution for end-to-end testing by automating interactions with a user interface, simulating real user scenarios.
  • Automatic Waiting
    One of Protractor's key features is its ability to automatically wait for the web pages to complete their pending tasks, like HTTP responses and transitions, before starting a test.
  • Support for Multiple Browsers
    Protractor supports testing in multiple web browsers including Chrome, Firefox, and Internet Explorer, thereby ensuring broader test coverage.
  • Selenium WebDriver
    Built on top of WebDriverJS, it benefits from the powerful capabilities of Selenium, a widely used framework for testing web applications.

Possible disadvantages of Protractor

  • Angular Focus
    While Protractor's Angular integration is a strength, it is not as tailored for non-Angular applications, potentially limiting its versatility.
  • Complex Configuration
    Setting up Protractor can be complex and time-consuming due to the need for configuration of WebDriver and additional dependencies.
  • Community and Updates
    Protractorโ€™s usage is diminishing due to newer frameworks and a decrease in active community engagement compared to its peak, leading to fewer updates and support.
  • Performance
    Running tests with Protractor can be slower due to its reliance on Selenium WebDriver, which may not be the fastest option available for modern web applications.
  • Learning Curve
    For new users, the learning curve can be steep, especially for those who are not familiar with WebDriverJS or asynchronous programming in JavaScript.

Cucumber features and specs

  • Behavior-Driven Development (BDD) Framework
    Cucumber supports BDD, allowing collaboration between developers, testers, and non-technical stakeholders to improve the quality of development through clear specifications.
  • Gherkin Syntax
    Utilizes the Gherkin language to write test cases in plain English, making them more readable and understandable for non-technical team members.
  • Integrates with Other Tools
    Easily integrates with other testing and development frameworks like JUnit, TestNG, and Selenium, enhancing its flexibility and utility.
  • Open Source
    As an open-source tool, Cucumber allows for extensive customization and community support, reducing the cost of setting up a testing framework.
  • Supports Multiple Languages
    Offers support for various programming languages including Java, Ruby, and JavaScript, making it versatile for different project needs.

Possible disadvantages of Cucumber

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Requires a good understanding of both BDD practices and Cucumberโ€™s structure, which might be challenging for beginners.
  • Performance Overheads
    Execution of Cucumber tests can be slower compared to other testing frameworks, making it less ideal for very large projects requiring fast feedback loops.
  • Verbose Code
    Writing tests in Gherkin can lead to more verbose code, which might require additional maintenance and can become cumbersome over time.
  • Dependency Management
    Managing dependencies for integrating Cucumber with other testing frameworks can be complex, requiring careful coordination.
  • Not Ideal for Unit Testing
    Cucumber is more suited for acceptance and integration testing rather than unit testing, potentially necessitating additional tools for a comprehensive testing strategy.

Analysis of Cucumber

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Cucumber (cukes.info) is generally considered a good tool for behavior-driven development (BDD).

Why this product is good

  • Cucumber is highly regarded because it allows teams to write tests in plain language that can be understood by all stakeholders, regardless of technical expertise. This enhances communication and collaboration between developers, testers, and business professionals. Furthermore, it supports various programming languages and integrates well with other tools, making it versatile and adaptable to different engineering environments.

Recommended for

  • Teams practicing behavior-driven development (BDD)
  • Projects that require clear communication between non-technical and technical team members
  • Development environments where automated testing is an integral part of the process
  • Organizations aiming to improve collaboration and understanding across departments

Protractor videos

Empire Angle Finder Review-A Protractor For Outside And Inside Angles

More videos:

  • Review - Incra Super Precision Straight and Protractor Marking Rules Review
  • Review - You Need This Tool - Episode 91 | Digital Angle Finder Protractor

Cucumber videos

Madam Kilay Skin Magical Review / Orange cucumber review

More videos:

  • Review - Puff Bar - Cucumber Review (Best Disposable Vape Brand)
  • Review - THE CUCUMBER CHALLENGE! (1 MILLION SUBSCRIBER SPECIAL)
  • Tutorial - Cucumber automation suit

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Protractor and Cucumber)
Automated Testing
19 19%
81% 81
Testing
19 19%
81% 81
Auto Repair
100 100%
0% 0
Browser Testing
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 Protractor and Cucumber

Protractor Reviews

Top 10 Best Selenium Alternatives You Should Try
With the โ€˜Automatic Waitingโ€™ feature of Protractor, the test automatically executes the next step without waiting for the webpage and test to sync.
Best Selenium Alternatives (Free and Paid) in 2021
Protractor is an end-to-end test framework for Angular and Angular JS applications. Protractor runs tests against your application running in a real browser, interacting with it as a user would. Protractor is a node.js port of the webdriver.io, which is the JavaScript implementation of the Selenium framework.
5 Selenium Alternatives to Fill in Your Top Testing Gaps
Aside from being simpler to use from a programming language perspective, Protractor is also considered easier to use than Selenium for Angular applications. It is also based on JavaScript Selenium WebDriver, so your team will get all the same capabilities of Selenium WebDriver in addition to Protractorโ€™s other benefits.
Source: www.perfecto.io

Cucumber Reviews

Top Selenium Alternatives
Cucumber itself is not a test automation tool but a framework that supports BDD. It is often used in conjunction with Selenium to provide a layer where test scenarios are written in a way that is understandable by all team members. Unlike Selenium, which focuses on automating browser actions, Cucumber focuses on defining behavior and can be used to drive Selenium tests.
Source: bugbug.io
5 Selenium Alternatives to Fill in Your Top Testing Gaps
Business testers are likely to prefer to use Cucumber over Selenium since script Cucumber lets you write test scenarios using a plain-English scripting language called Gherkin. Using Gherkin instead of code makes test script creation a much simpler process, since anyone can read, write, and understand the scripts regardless of testing experience.
Source: www.perfecto.io
Top 20 Best Automation Testing Tools in 2018 (Comprehensive List)
Cucumber is an open-source tool that is designed over the concept of BDD (Behavior-driven development). It is used to perform the automated acceptance testing by running the examples that best describe the behavior of the application. It gets you a single up-to-date living document that is having both specification and test documentation.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Cucumber seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 1 time 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.

Protractor mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Protractor yet. Tracking of Protractor recommendations started around Mar 2021.

Cucumber mentions (1)

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Protractor and Cucumber, you can also consider the following products

Cypress.io - Slow, difficult and unreliable testing for anything that runs in a browser. Install Cypress in seconds and take the pain out of front-end testing.

Selenium - Selenium automates browsers. That's it! What you do with that power is entirely up to you. Primarily, it is for automating web applications for testing purposes, but is certainly not limited to just that.

Mocha - Sponsors. Use Mocha at Work? Ask your manager or marketing team if they'd help support our project. Your company's logo will also be displayed on npmjs. com and our GitHub repository.

JUnit - JUnit is a simple framework to write repeatable tests.

Jasmine - Behavior-Driven JavaScript

RSpec - RSpec is a testing tool for the Ruby programming language born under the banner of Behavior-Driven Development featuring a rich command line program, textual descriptions of examples, and more.