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Appium vs Katalon Studio comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on May 21, 2025

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

Appium
Ranking in Regression Testing Tools
6th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
30
Ranking in other categories
Mobile Development Platforms (8th)
Katalon Studio
Ranking in Regression Testing Tools
2nd
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
56
Ranking in other categories
API Testing Tools (4th), Test Automation Tools (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Regression Testing Tools category, the mindshare of Appium is 2.4%, down from 4.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Katalon Studio is 9.7%, down from 17.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Regression Testing Tools Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Katalon Studio9.7%
Appium2.4%
Other87.9%
Regression Testing Tools
 

Featured Reviews

AS
Independent consultant, at OpenText
Efficient mobile testing with intuitive emulation capabilities and a user-friendly interface
Initial setup for Appium (especially for iOS) is not beginner-friendly.Consumes too much of your host machine's resources, potentially slowing down the machine.Appium Inspector often lacks deep insight or crashes with certain app builds. Improve test flakiness by intelligently selecting robust self-healing locators,simplified installers, better documentation, GUI-based config management,smart wait mechanisms and better failure logs.
Ramanagowda Hullur - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Automation Engineer at Stryker
Recording limitations and remote access challenges have affected desktop application testing
Katalon Studio has proven effective in our deliverables, particularly in designing the framework where other tools typically require coding in client libraries such as Python or Java. With Katalon Studio, there is no such complexity, allowing us to organize projects modularly based on folder structures without needing to write separate code. The self-healing feature for web application automation and its built-in CI/CD ecosystem integration eliminates the need for external tools for pipeline setup. Katalon Studio excels in CI/CD integration, providing an inbuilt ecosystem without the need for external setup, and it features a postings structure along with keyword and library availability. Newcomers to the team can easily adapt to the setup or project structure, which contributes to its popularity, along with its low-code or no-code capability that allows for a comprehensive platform supporting web, mobile, API, and desktop automation. The self-healing mechanism for test cases autonomously identifies issues with locators and ensures they continue functioning, which is impressive, along with the robust object repository. Katalon Studio has significantly aided our team, especially when clients expect deliveries for CI/CD integration that requires automation test scripts to run on a daily schedule. The self-healing feature automatically identifies available locators for elements in the DOM, ensuring that test cases remain functional. Katalon Studio has positively impacted our organization by facilitating faster delivery when clients have urgent requirements. We can deliver quickly based on urgency due to the features Katalon Studio provides. This has led to significant reductions in time spent on framework configuration, designing, and training individuals who are unfamiliar with the tool, helping us save both time and costs.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Obviously because of automation, it reduces manual testing efforts."
"Appium has easy interaction with mobile."
"Appium helps me to do as much as much as I want to."
"The library is extensive so the driver interacts with most functions or actions on mobile devices."
"The solution is easy to use."
"The interface is user-friendly, which is beneficial for users, even for those who are new to it."
"It runs completely flawlessly and seamlessly every day."
"The solution is stable."
"I would recommend Katalon Studio, especially if you do not require a license."
"This is a product that is well ahead of its immediate competition in features and functionality."
"The initial setup of Katalon Studio was easy."
"It is good for API testing. It is also good for continuous integration testing. You can connect it to Jenkins."
"Katalon Studio has positively impacted my organization by helping the team reduce manual regression effort and improve release confidence by catching UI issues earlier."
"One of the features that I like is Object Recognition. It worked very well, and it allowed me to create a dynamic expert based on my requirements."
"User-friendly and a good solution."
"Katalon Studio has positively impacted our organization by facilitating faster delivery when clients have urgent requirements, allowing us to save both time and costs due to its features for rapid framework configuration, designing, and ease of use for new users."
 

Cons

"It needs to accommodate applications that use React.js and AngularJS."
"The initial setup is straightforward if you have previous experience with the solution, but it can be complicated for a novice user."
"An application developed on the Unity platform, such as a gaming application, objects are moving in that case. Interacting with those elements is still lacking in Appium. Appium doesn't have the internal library to play with the Unity platform. That is a huge lack right now."
"The setup and installation were a problem for us at first."
"Appium has problems with automated validations following iOS updates, causing us to have to validate manually."
"We haven't been able to fully leverage Appium for multiple reasons. I think number one is just that the tests take a long time to run. We have had some issues around just the results themselves and how predictable they are, but those are not issues with Appium directly."
"One area where I think Appium could improve is in addressing security concerns for our data. Currently, we're unable to use cloud solutions like CloudForm due to security restrictions on our servers. We also face challenges in updating packages for the same reason. It would be beneficial if the solution could provide better support for auto-reporting and easier connections to mobile device farms."
"The installation part of Appium is somewhat clumsy, requiring numerous dependencies and configurations."
"Katalon Studio could improve having visual testing, but I think they're launching that feature very soon. We would like to see an increase in the usage of AI."
"I would like to see improvements in how Katalon Studio works with iOS applications, especially with React Native applications."
"They need to work on documentation to make it more centralized and easier to find what you are looking for."
"Katalon doesn't support testing of hybrid applications. It's a limitation."
"Support options need improvement. It is sometimes hard to find a solution to any given problem, thus you are forced to use another solution."
"It is difficult to identify elements on websites that use Angular or ReactJS because they don't have an option to view source code."
"There could be many improvements, however, I have not noted them down at this moment."
"What it lacks is the Selenium Grid capabilities."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It's open source, so it's completely free."
"The pricing of Appium is fine."
"Appian is open-source, which is not licensed."
"It's completely 100% free, and there are no hidden fees."
"We found out that we could explore features of the solution for 30 days trial. We can switch to a permanent license later if we want."
"The solution is free."
"The price is good for people to be able to make a favorable decision for the value."
"Appium is free and open-source."
"The tool is affordable."
"The tool's pricing is cheap compared to other alternatives. I would rate the tool's pricing a three out of ten."
"The product is affordable. It has an average and competitive pricing compared to other vendors."
"The solution is more affordable than other vendors."
"The prices are very high."
"The cost of Katalon Studio is expensive but it is less than some of the other solutions, such as Micro Focus UFT or SmartBear TestComplete. The cost is the main reason we are using Katalon Studio."
"Katalon Studio is an expensive tool."
"The pricing is good. It is the market average."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
17%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Insurance Company
5%
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise19
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business21
Midsize Enterprise14
Large Enterprise25
 

Questions from the Community

Do you recommend Appium?
I do recommend Appium. It is an open-source solution and completely free of charge. We use Appium and Appium Studio as our base for any type of mobile automation for testing. It has a great interfa...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Appium?
My experience with Appium from a pricing perspective is favorable due to it being open source, making it a cost-effective option.
What needs improvement with Appium?
The deployment process and configuration are quite complex and require improvement. Additionally, the wait time functionality could be enhanced as I experienced failures with longer wait times.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Katalon Studio?
Pricing felt reasonable for the features provided, especially considering the time saved during the automation setup and execution. From a user perspective, Katalon Studio offers good value, partic...
What needs improvement with Katalon Studio?
I feel nothing needs improvement for Katalon Studio, as it is already the best in the industry, providing the best enhancement for users. Katalon Studio is already top-notch with no need to improve.
 

Comparisons

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Nuvizz, Coupa Software, Eventbrite, Evernote
Coca-Cola Tesla Black Board TaTa Consultancy Services Sony
Find out what your peers are saying about Appium vs. Katalon Studio and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,707 professionals have used our research since 2012.