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BDD (Behavior-Driven Development) testing is a software testing methodology that focuses on testing based on business requirements. The goal of BDD testing is to align the testing process with the business requirements so the development team can deliver software that meets the business’s needs.

This methodology can help improve communication and collaboration between the development team and the business stakeholders. It also helps improve the software’s quality by ensuring that the business requirements are met.

There are many tools available on the market to implement BDD testing. In this article, we will discuss the top 5 BDD testing tools.

BDD Testing Tools

testRigor

testRigor is a cloud-based testing software that supports BDD and SDD (Specification-Driven Development). It uses AI and ML to allow users to create and execute test scenarios without writing any code.

Example of a simple English-based test creation through testRigor.

Features of testRigor

  • testRigor uses simple English-like commands to write test scenarios. This makes it easy for non-technical team members to participate in the testing process.
  • testRigor supports testing AI chatbots, LLMs, mainframes, Flutter apps, graphs, images, and many other AI features.
  • Unlike other tools, testRigor tests do not need step definitions or feature files, which means the process is much faster and more efficient. You just write English statements and let testRigor’s AI engine do the rest.
  • Test across different platforms (web, mobile (hybrid/native), mainframes, and desktop) and multiple browsers and OSs.
  • testRigor provides integration with various testing frameworks like Jira, TestRail, Zephyr, XRay, Gitlab, PagerDuty, and many others.
  • The tool provides a user-friendly dashboard that displays the detailed results of the test scenarios.
  • If you need to write reusable steps (subroutines), you can do that in plain English as well.
  • You can run tests in parallel using this tool.
  • The interface is easy to use and slashes the learning curve to a bare minimum.
  • Since testRigor uses generative AI, NLP, Vision AI, and AI context, it reduces the chances of flaky tests through smart self-healing mechanisms.

You can read more about testRigor over here – testRigor Reviews – Pros, Cons, Features and Pricing.

Considerations in testRigor

  • The main limitation of testRigor is that it’s a paid tool, which means it won’t work for companies that only choose open-source software. However, you can use a public, free account if you can keep your tests in the public domain.
  • If your team is only used to programming, then it might take them some time to adjust to writing plain English for test cases.

Cucumber

Cucumber is one of the most popular BDD testing tools available. It keeps business requirements or specifications at the forefront. Quite often, Cucumber scenarios serve as executable specifications. That is, they not only describe the system’s behavior but also act as test cases that can be run to verify it.

Example of a feature file in Cucumber.

Example of Cucumber step definition in Java.

Features of Cucumber

  • Cucumber uses Gherkin syntax with keywords like Given, When, Then, And, and But to describe test scenarios in plain English.
  • It supports multiple programming languages, including Java, Ruby, Python, JavaScript, and more.
  • Cucumber integrates easily with popular test frameworks like JUnit, TestNG, and NUnit.
  • It supports web, mobile, and API testing through tools like Selenium, Appium, and REST-assured.
  • Tests can run in parallel to reduce overall execution time.
  • A wide plugin ecosystem supports advanced reporting, tagging, and IDE integrations.
  • Cucumber fits naturally into CI/CD pipelines like Jenkins, GitHub Actions, and GitLab CI.
  • Tagging and filtering features allow you to run specific subsets of tests.
  • It is open-source and backed by a large, active community.
  • It enables collaboration between developers, testers, and business stakeholders.
  • New AI-powered plugins suggest Gherkin steps and speed up test writing.
  • Modern reporting tools provide detailed dashboards with visual diffs and test history.

You can read more about how to build a Cucumber framework over here – Cucumber JS with Selenium: BDD framework in QA.

Considerations in Cucumber

  • For teams new to BDD or Cucumber, there is a learning curve associated with understanding how to write effective scenarios and step definitions.
  • Although Gherkin syntax is designed to be readable by non-technical users, writing effective and maintainable Gherkin scenarios often requires a deep understanding of both the domain and the technical implementation. Non-technical stakeholders may struggle to write or understand scenarios without significant guidance. This defeats the purpose of using Cucumber to bridge communication gaps.
  • Writing Gherkin scenarios and step definitions requires additional effort compared to traditional testing frameworks. Maintaining and updating Gherkin files can become cumbersome as the number of scenarios grows. Especially if the underlying application changes frequently.
  • The tool might be slower when executing a large number of test scenarios compared to other testing tools.
  • Despite the ease of the Gherkin language, there’s a dependency on step definitions that require coding. Thus, you still need someone to translate what the step does to non-technical stakeholders.

Serenity BDD

Serenity BDD is another popular BDD testing tool. It is a Java-based open-source test automation framework that uses the Gherkin syntax to write test scenarios. It integrates seamlessly with JUnit, Cucumber, and Selenium, and provides rich, living documentation through advanced HTML reports. Serenity also supports the Screenplay pattern to encourage highly maintainable and readable test code, making it ideal for both developers and testers in collaborative BDD environments.

Example of a feature file in Serenity BDD

Example of step definitions in Serenity BDD

Features of Serenity BDD

  • Uses the Gherkin syntax via Cucumber integration to write clear and human-readable BDD scenarios.
  • Seamlessly integrates with the Java ecosystem, including JUnit, Selenium WebDriver, and REST-assured.
  • Step definitions are written in Java, promoting clean and maintainable code structures.
  • Compatible with popular Java IDEs like IntelliJ and Eclipse, offering syntax highlighting and navigation for Gherkin files.
  • Supports data-driven testing through Scenario Outlines and external data sources such as CSV or Excel.
  • Enables parallel test execution for faster testing and CI/CD optimization.
  • Generates rich HTML reports with screenshots, step-level detail, and test coverage summaries.
  • Supports UI, API, and integration testing within a unified framework.
  • Implements the Screenplay pattern to promote highly readable, modular, and reusable test code.

Considerations in Serenity BDD

  • Teams new to Serenity BDD may encounter a steep learning curve, particularly due to the complexity of the Screenplay pattern and the need for solid Java programming skills.
  • While Gherkin syntax aims to be business-friendly, writing meaningful and maintainable scenarios in Serenity often demands a strong grasp of both the domain and underlying automation code, which may overwhelm non-technical stakeholders.
    Serenity depends on developers to implement step definitions and automation logic, as Gherkin alone cannot drive tests without a robust Java-based backend.
  • The framework is deeply tied to the Java ecosystem, which may present integration hurdles for teams working with .NET, JavaScript, or other non-Java technologies.

Behave

Behave is a Python-based open-source BDD testing tool. It uses the Gherkin syntax to write test scenarios. In addition, behave provides integration with various testing frameworks like Pytest, Robot Framework, and others.

Example of a feature file and step definitions in Behave.

Features of Behave

  • It uses the Gherkin syntax to provide easy BDD testing.
  • Behave is fully integrated with Python.
  • It supports data-driven testing through Scenario Outline with Examples tables. This helps execute the same scenario multiple times with different inputs.
  • This tool supports parallel test execution and CI/CD integrations to speed up test runs.
  • You can use this tool alongside mocking frameworks such as unittest.mock or third-party libraries like pytest-mock to create isolated test scenarios.
  • Behave is not limited to UI testing and can be used for testing behavior across different layers of the application, including backend services, APIs, and databases.
  • Behave has a supportive community and extensive documentation, including tutorials, examples, and guides.
  • You can generate detailed test execution reports, including information on passed, failed, and skipped scenarios.
  • Behave is open source.

You can read more about Behave over here – Behave Overview, Advantages, and Disadvantages [2025]

Considerations in Behave

  • Teams new to BDD or Behave may face a steep learning curve. This learning curve can be in terms of programming in Python or Gherkin syntax.
  • Although Gherkin syntax is designed to be readable by non-technical users, writing effective and maintainable Gherkin scenarios often require a deep understanding of both the domain and the technical implementation. Non-technical stakeholders may struggle to write or understand scenarios without significant guidance. This defeats the purpose of using Behave to bridge communication gaps.
  • There’s a dependency on programmers to write step definitions. Gherkin alone is not enough.
  • Behave is inherently tied to Python. If your project is not using Python or if your team lacks Python expertise, this could be a limitation.

Gauge

Gauge is an open-source BDD testing tool. It uses a plain-text specification language called Markdown to write test scenarios. The main focus of Gauge is to ensure easy and collaborative acceptance testing.

Example of BDD style specifications in Gauge using Markdown.

Example of the step implementation of specifications using Java.

Features of Gauge

  • Gauge allows test specifications to be written in Markdown, a simple and widely-used markup language. The use of Markdown eliminates the need for complex Gherkin syntax which is more natural and flexible for writing test cases.
  • Gauge supports multiple programming languages for writing step implementations, including Java, C#, Ruby, Python, JavaScript, and more.
  • The modular architecture of Gauge allows for easy extension with plugins, which can add or modify functionality as needed.
  • Gauge supports data-driven testing by allowing test data to be included directly in the specifications using tables.
  • Teams can also develop custom plugins to extend Gauge’s capabilities to fit specific project requirements.
  • This tool supports parallel test execution.
  • Gauge integrates seamlessly with popular CI/CD tools like Jenkins, Travis CI, CircleCI, and GitLab CI/CD.
  • You can generate customizable HTML reports that provide detailed information about test execution, including pass/fail status, execution time, and more.

Considerations in Gauge

  • Teams new to BDD or Gauge may face a steep learning curve.
  • There’s a dependency on programmers to write step implementations, as a programming language is needed.
  • Specifications written in Markdown must be kept in sync with the evolving application. Ensuring that these documents remain accurate and up-to-date can require significant effort, especially in dynamic projects.
  • Gauge has limited community support compared to more established tools like Cucumber and Behave.

Conclusion

Through BDD, you can ensure that quality is a team responsibility. The tools available in the market make it easier to include both technical and non-technical team members in this process. This is a great way to ensure that the perspectives of all stakeholders are considered when designing test cases for acceptance, functional, and end-to-end testing.