Behat vs Cypress: What are the differences?

Introduction

Behat and Cypress are both popular automated testing frameworks used for testing web applications. While they share some similarities, there are several key differences that set them apart.

1. Development Language: Behat is written in PHP, while Cypress is written in JavaScript. This means that developers familiar with PHP may find Behat easier to work with, while those with JavaScript knowledge may prefer Cypress.

2. Test Execution: Behat follows a behavior-driven development (BDD) approach, where tests are written in a human-readable language called Gherkin. These tests are then executed sequentially. In contrast, Cypress uses a JavaScript-driven approach, where tests are written in JavaScript and executed in a real browser. This allows Cypress to simulate and interact with a web page more accurately.

3. Cross-browser Testing: Behat supports cross-browser testing by utilizing Selenium WebDriver. This enables tests to run on multiple browsers, but it requires additional setup and configuration. Cypress, on the other hand, comes with its own built-in browser, which means tests can be executed on multiple browsers without any additional setup.

4. Test Debugging: Cypress provides an interactive test runner that allows for easy debugging. Developers can pause and debug their tests in real-time, making it easier to identify and fix issues. Behat, however, does not offer the same level of interactive debugging capabilities, making it slightly more challenging to diagnose and fix problems.

5. Test Stability: Cypress has built-in retries and automatic waiting, which helps in stabilizing tests against flaky or slow-loading elements. Behat does not have these built-in features, so developers need to manually implement waiting strategies and retries to ensure test stability.

6. Community and Ecosystem: Both Behat and Cypress have active and supportive communities. However, Cypress has gained significant popularity in recent years and has a larger ecosystem with a wide range of plugins and integrations. Behat, on the other hand, may have a smaller ecosystem but is still well-established and widely used in the PHP community.

In summary, the key differences between Behat and Cypress lie in their development language, test execution approach, cross-browser testing capabilities, test debugging features, test stability mechanisms, and the size of their respective communities and ecosystems.