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Apache JMeter vs k6: What are the differences?
What is Apache JMeter? An open source load testing tool. It is open source software, a 100% pure Java application designed to load test functional behavior and measure performance. It was originally designed for testing Web Applications but has since expanded to other test functions.
What is k6? Developer centric open-source load and performance testing tool. It is a developer centric open source load testing tool for testing the performance of your backend infrastructure. It’s built with Go and JavaScript to integrate well into your development workflow.
Apache JMeter and k6 belong to "Load and Performance Testing" category of the tech stack.
k6 is an open source tool with 5.57K GitHub stars and 287 GitHub forks. Here's a link to k6's open source repository on GitHub.
I have a team that is not heavy on programming skills. I am looking for a load testing tool that is easy to use. Preferably, the tool should be a record and playback tool without much programming. Also, the tool should be able to test APIs apart from web-based applications. What tool should I opt for?
My choice would be Apache JMeter, It's free and opensource plus it comes with lots of plugins and extendability. Apache JMeter needs a small amount of a learning curve and a basic understanding of Network, Protocols (TCP/IP ports, HTTP(S) and REST/SOAP, etc.) for initial setup. But it doesn't require programming skills. it has a nice record and playback option. You can still carry on without the developer skillset if you follow these steps. 1. Take backup. 2. Start recording and interact with the application. 3. stop recording and save the test case. This will give you your test-bed, after this, after these steps, every time just do Restore from backup and then Playback and observer results.
If you have longer recordings then an understanding of how to modify the recorded scripts will come handy.
For some of the advanced features such as Configuring variables, implementing loops, throttling adding think time, and automating test scaling to the number of users will require good planning of test scenarios and a Developer experience but this is true for any tool (even loader.io)

Disclaimer: I work at k6, and I recommend you try our tool.
It might require some coding skills, but we support a few options to record a user session to autogenerate the load test. Read How to record a browser session with k6 OSS.
The k6 Cloud also supports recording a user session with a Browser Extension. Additionally, it provides a Test Builder UI to generate a load test for testing APIs.
If you have questions or need help, you can ask on Slack and the Community forum.
Pros of Apache JMeter
- Requires no programming knowledge5
- Supports distributed3
- Open-source2
Pros of k6
- Fits nicely in a CI workflow12
- Test scripts are written in javascript10
- Open-source10
- It's code-first10
- Easy to use8
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Cons of Apache JMeter
- It's GUI-first1
- Too complicated1
Cons of k6
- Requires bundling and transpiling to use npm packages2