Karate Labs review

Karate Labs ranks seventh as the strongest code-based option on this list. The open source Karate framework, MIT licensed, covers API testing for REST, GraphQL and SOAP, built-in mocks and stubs, performance testing through Gatling and UI automation for browsers and desktop, so teams can replace several separate libraries with one. Tests are written in a plain-English syntax that Karate Labs says needs 60% less test code than common Java stacks, and they run in any CI with HTML and JUnit XML reports. The free tier includes the Xplorer desktop client. Paid add-ons are priced per user per year: IDE Plus at $100 for syntax highlighting and running tests from the IDE, Xplorer Premium at $200, and Pro at $640 with full IDE plugins, debugging and dev-time async protocol testing. Karate Enterprise, sold through sales, adds runtime Kafka, gRPC and WebSocket testing, the Karate Agent, API coverage and governance. It needs more technical skill than a GUI client.

Who it is for

QA and engineering teams that want code-based API test suites in CI without writing Java test harnesses.

Price

Open source framework free; IDE Plus $100 per user per year, Xplorer Premium $200, Pro $640.

IDE Plus at $100/user/year
Quoted from the vendor pricing page on November 9, 2026.

Key features

• MIT licensed Karate framework for REST, GraphQL and SOAP API testing
• Built-in mocks and stubs, performance testing through Gatling and UI automation
• CI/CD integration with HTML and JUnit XML reports
• Xplorer desktop client with a free tier, and IntelliJ and VS Code plugins
• Enterprise add-ons for Kafka, gRPC and WebSocket testing, API coverage and API governance

Strengths and weaknesses

• Strength: The core framework is free and open source
• Strength: One tool covers API tests, mocks, load tests and UI tests
• Strength: Tests are written in a readable plain-English syntax
• Weakness: Tests are written as code, which suits engineers more than manual testers
• Weakness: Kafka, gRPC and WebSocket testing at runtime need Enterprise
• Weakness: Enterprise pricing is through sales only

Key facts

• Free plan: Open source framework and Xplorer free tier
• License: MIT
• Customers: 76 of the Fortune 500, per Karate Labs
• GitHub: 9.0k stars on the open core, per Karate Labs

Where it ranks

Karate Labs is No. 7 in our Best API Testing Tools verdict.