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Apache JMeter vs OpenText Silk Test comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Apache JMeter
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
96
Ranking in other categories
Performance Testing Tools (1st), Load Testing Tools (1st), API Testing Tools (3rd)
OpenText Silk Test
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
Functional Testing Tools (20th), Regression Testing Tools (8th), Test Automation Tools (16th)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Quality Assurance solutions, they serve different purposes. Apache JMeter is designed for Performance Testing Tools and holds a mindshare of 12.1%, down 24.2% compared to last year.
OpenText Silk Test, on the other hand, focuses on Functional Testing Tools, holds 1.6% mindshare, up 0.9% since last year.
Performance Testing Tools Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Apache JMeter12.1%
OpenText Professional Performance Engineering (LoadRunner Professional)12.1%
Tricentis NeoLoad10.1%
Other65.7%
Performance Testing Tools
Functional Testing Tools Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
OpenText Silk Test1.6%
Tricentis Tosca12.9%
BrowserStack7.5%
Other78.0%
Functional Testing Tools
 

Featured Reviews

RR
Principal Performance Architect at Tecnotree Corporation
Have built custom performance test scripts and integrated them into automated pipelines seamlessly
Apache JMeter has its own pros and cons when compared to other tools. It is easy to use the tool and it has open-source capability so we can build our custom scripts and execute them. It provides other capabilities, such as integrating a database and connecting to other application servers for monitoring and related functions. We use dynamic HTML reporting, which helps us in testing analysis by pinpointing the bottlenecks based on the reports. We can identify the specific areas that need attention, troubleshoot them, and report to the development team. The user-friendly GUI for creating and managing tests makes it very easy to drag and drop samplers. For example, if you want the HTTP sampler, you can drag and drop it and use it. For configurations, we have other samplers. For results, we have the view results samplers that we can also drag and drop. The UI is good in comparison with other tools. Regarding integration with CI/CD pipelines, we can create Apache JMeter scripts and use the Docker image. From the image, whatever scripting we have done can be connected. We can use the CI/CD pipelines and connect them with Jenkins tools and GitHub. Then we can create the pipelines and automate the end-to-end flow. For connecting Jenkins to Apache JMeter, JMeter plugins are available, and we have used them. Apache JMeter also has some third-party plugins, which are not native samplers. If we want to use custom test executions, we definitely use all the different plugins available in Apache JMeter. The capability to simulate users has impacted testing resources and outcomes as Apache JMeter is based on Java, which has a limit to the users in a particular load generator. Apache JMeter provides distributed load testing where you can connect multiple PCs in a master and slave concept, allowing you to pump the load with any number of users. In the past, I have done load testing with 10,000 users by connecting the Apache JMeter distributed network in BlazeMeter. There is a cloud version available, the updated BlazeMeter, and I used that. It is very easy to launch load generators in BlazeMeter, and then we can run the test, scaling up beyond 10,000 users.
JG
Manager of Central Excellence at Alpura
Easy to set up with good documentation and easy management of testing cycles
The solution allows for a complete test cycle. The management of testing cycles are easy. We have good control over test cases. We can capture functional testing very easily. We're actually able to accelerate testing now and have end-to-end cycles for testing. We didn't used to have these capabilities. It's easy to automate and accelerate testing. The product offers very good cross-browser testing capabilities. We can do continuous testing and regression testing.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The solution helps by detecting bottlenecks."
"The features that I appreciate are quite basic. It is easy to ramp up the threads and start calling the application. A lot of connectors can already be found within Apache JMeter, but we are not using the entire set because the integration between the customers and platform is based on HTTP. We are just going to produce lots of HTTP sequences."
"It is very quick and user-friendly."
"We are using this for performance testing and some automation."
"It's very easy to install, and it's very easy to code and develop the script."
"We find the load testing feature valuable."
"JMeter is a free tool with a large user population, which comes in handy because we have a vast knowledge base to tap into when needed. It's also easier to hire consultants who know JMeter."
"JMeter's most valuable feature is the RegEx Extractor."
"The ability to develop scripts in Visual Studio, Visual Studio integration, is the most valuable feature."
"The statistics that are available are very good."
"Scripting is the most valuable. We are able to record and then go in and modify the script that it creates. It has a lot of generative scripts."
"A good automation tool that supports SAP functional testing."
"It's easy to automate and accelerate testing."
"The feature I like most is the ease of reporting."
"The major thing it has helped with is to reduce the workload on testing activities."
"The scalability of the solution is quite good. You can easily expand the product if you need to."
 

Cons

"At times when we overload the application, it gets stuck...After the solution gets stuck due to overloading, we have to restart our computers. In short, the solution keeps crashing."
"In Micro Focus LoadRunner we can go from the UI and we can configure it. There is no such feature in Apache JMeter. There should be UI-based recording history or logs."
"Apache JMeter's UI can be made more colorful."
"They can improve it a little bit in terms of distribution load testing. We struggled with it during the distribution. In terms of reporting, runtime monitoring is not currently included, and it should be included. They can also improve it on the reporting side in terms of the comparison of the reports. They can also focus more on integration with CI/CD. Currently, people are using their own customized tools. It would be nice if Apache can provide some standard tools and procedures for integration with CI/CD tools like DPR. There are some tools, but it would be nice if official standard tools and procedures are available."
"It will be much easier, and beneficial for the individual to run it on their own machines rather than having a high-end infrastructure, more CPUs, or more memory that has been consumed by Apache JMeter."
"There is some work to be done with the integration."
"The user interface is a little bit tricky."
"The reporting section of the solution can be better."
"The support for automation with iOS applications can be better."
"They should extend some of the functions that are a bit clunky and improve the integration."
"Everything is very manual. It's up to us to find out exactly what the issues are."
"The solution has a lack of compatibility with newer technologies."
"We moved to Ranorex because the solution did not easily scale, and we could not find good and short term third-party help. We needed to have a bigger pool of third-party contractors that we could draw on for specific implementations. Silk didn't have that, and we found what we needed for Ranorex here in the Houston area. It would be good if there is more community support. I don't know if Silk runs a user conference once a year and how they set up partners. We need to be able to talk to somebody more than just on the phone. It really comes right down to that. The generated automated script was highly dependent upon screen position and other keys that were not as robust as we wanted. We found the automated script generated by Ranorex and the other key information about a specific data point to be more robust. It handled the transition better when we moved from computer to computer and from one size of the application to the other size. When we restarted Silk, we typically had to recalibrate screen elements within the script. Ranorex also has some of these same issues, but when we restart, it typically is faster, which is important."
"The pricing could be improved."
"The pricing is an issue, the program is very expensive. That is something that can improve."
"Could be more user-friendly on the installation and configuration side."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"When comparing the price with Load Runner, and if the cost is an issue then JMeter is a better choice"
"We are using the free version."
"The solution is free of cost as it is open source."
"The product has reasonable pricing."
"We use the open source version."
"Apache JMeter is a free, open-source solution."
"Apache JMeter is a free tool."
"The tool is open-source."
"Our licensing fees are on a yearly basis, and while I think that the price is quite reasonable I am not allowed to share those details."
"We paid annually. There is a purchase cost, and then there is an ongoing maintenance fee."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
16%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Insurance Company
6%
Manufacturing Company
16%
Insurance Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Marketing Services Firm
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business27
Midsize Enterprise24
Large Enterprise56
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise10
 

Questions from the Community

How does Postman compare with Apache JMeter?
Postman lets you easily define variables, which then get updated automatically. This is a huge time-saver and makes processes very efficient. We can also export the test cases we create and share t...
How does BlazeMeter compare with Apache JMeter?
Blazemeter is a continuous testing platform that provides scriptless test automation. It unifies functional and performance testing, enabling users to monitor and test public and private APIs. We ...
What do you like most about Apache JMeter?
I appreciate JMeter's simplicity and power for performance testing.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Silk Test?
The pricing depends on the license used. The pricing is similar to others in the market.
What is your primary use case for Silk Test?
The product is used for manual, functional, and performance testing. I'm using the tool for loading data into ERP systems.
 

Also Known As

JMeter
Segue, SilkTest, Micro Focus Silk Test
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

AOL, Orbitz, Innopath Software, PrepMe, Sapient, Corporate Express Australia, CSIRO, Ephibian, Talis, DATACOM, ALALOOP, eFusion, Panter, Sourcepole, University of Western Cape
Krung Thai Computer Services, Quality Kiosk, Mªller, AVG Technologies
Find out what your peers are saying about Apache, Perforce, Tricentis and others in Performance Testing Tools. Updated: February 2026.
882,606 professionals have used our research since 2012.