7 Fantastic PhantomJS Alternatives
Now that you know why PhantomJS died, it is time to learn about some of its alternatives, so you can keep using headless browsers. Moreover, they have developed a lot in the last five years and offer even more functionality.
Here is our list of the 7 fantastic PhantomJS alternatives you can start using from today:
- Headless Chrome
- Selenium
- CasperJS
- Zombie.js
- BrowserSync
- HtmlUnit
- web scraping API 1. Headless Chrome
Headless Chrome is the number one alternative on our list because Vitaly Slobodin himself highlighted it.
This headless browser is being used by hundreds of thousands of developers regularly. The features and capabilities of PhantomJS are found in Headless Chrome.
We all know how Google Chrome is at the forefront of web browsers. Many browsers, such as Opera, Vivaldi, and Google Chrome, were built using Chromium. For people who don’t know- Chromium is an open-source browser created by Google.
Headless Chrome launched around the same time PhantomJS was discontinued. It was first introduced as a part of Chrome in the 59th version. After that, every version of Chrome has built-in Headless Chrome. Presently, Chrome is running on its 105th version, so we know it has been a while since they’ve been experimenting and improving Headless Chrome.
Pros:
- Supports lots of features.
- Uses less memory.
- Debugging is easy because it is a headless browser.
- Installation is relatively quick and easy.
- Better speed and stability.
- 24x7 support.
- Regular updates.
Cons:
- Headless Chrome is almost perfect, and many developers prefer it over others. 2. Selenium
Selenium was introduced to the world some 20 years back in 2002. It is similar to PhantomJS because it also automates web applications and helps in testing the various parts of a web page.
When you open the Selenium website, you see a green and white themed website with "Selenium automates browsers" written at the top. The website makes it clear from the start that the primary purpose of this browser is to automate.
When you scroll down a bit, you see three ways Selenium can help you. They are:
- Browser-based regression automation.
- Creating bug reproduction and automation scripts.
- Running tests on multiple machines simultaneously.
Selenium takes care of these three purposes through its three different services- Selenium WebDriver, Selenium IDE & Selenium Grid. Honestly, every developer will have different reasons for using headless browsers. The website does an excellent job of highlighting them at the top of the website.
Mind you; Selenium comes with its pros and cons.
Pros:
- Automates browsers.
- Offers multiple services, each with its purpose.
- It's open-source, which means constant changes are made
- Setting up is easy.
Cons:
- No dedicated support in case you need help.
- It doesn't support mobile applications.
3. CasperJS
CasperJS is another headless browser. The primary purpose of this browser is to navigate, script, and test web pages. CasperJS is generally used for UI testing, while other headless browsers are used for unit testing. CasperJS automates the task of filling forms, clicking links, taking screenshots, downloading resources, and many others.
Pros:
- High-level third-party integration
- Written in JavaScript.
- Learning how to use CasperJS is easy.
Cons:
- Not for unit testing.
- At times, screenshots are not accurate.
4. Zombie.js
Zombie.js is another headless browser known for its insane speed (at least, that's what they say on their website). It is a complete tool; you can use it for both front-end and back-end testing. It uses Node.js and runs flawlessly in JavaScript. Many developers prefer it because it is a light framework. It tests client-side code and does so quickly.
Pros:
- Integration is easy, as it runs on Node.js.
- Adding it to your framework is also pretty easy.
- It is blazing fast.
- Lightweight. It puts a negligible load on your machine.
Cons:
- Can't take screenshots
- Documentation isn't complete.
- No support is available.
- It doesn't load many sites.
5. Browsersync
Browsersync is a headless browser, but at the same time, it is not a headless browser. Let me explain. You can use it either way; testing web pages and extracting data on a command line, or if you want a GUI for assistance, that's also possible. Browsersync gets more than 2 million downloads a month. That's a significant number, and we're sure you can guess that if so many developers trust it, they must be doing something good. Big names like Google and Adobe also use Browsersync.
Pros:
- It is swift and Free.
- URLs are saved.
- Option to choose between Graphical User Interface (GUI) or Command Line (CL).
- It runs smoothly on Windows, Mac OS & Linux.
- Open-source, so it is constantly updated.
- It does not need a browser plugin.
- Flawlessly works on Desktop and Mobile devices.
Cons:
- Setting Browsersync in Windows can be a bit challenging.
6. HtmlUnit
Written by Mike Bowler and released under Apache 2 license, HtmlUnit works as a headless or GUI-less browser. It is written in Java and works amazingly well with JavaScript.
You can fill out forms, click links, and do all things possible with a browser using this headless browser. The website says that HtmlUnit JavaScript is constantly improving, which is good news for developers.
It is also said to work well with complex ajax libraries and supports HTTP & HTTPS protocols.
Pros:
- Free and easy set up.
- Handles complex libraries effectively.
- Testing can be done using HtmlUnit.
- Information can also be retrieved from websites.
- It also works on Android.
Cons:
- It offers limited features, so it is not a good option for people who want many features.
