10 Browser Testing Tools: Roundup for Web Designers
Adobe Browserlabs launched today making it faster and easier to browser test your client sites. Here are 10 browser testing tools and services for web designers.
For all you frustrated web designers out there who are constantly testing and retesting to make sure your site looks perfect across browsers (excluding IE6) then you know there are lots of options out there for testing. The Launch of Browserlabs from Adobe has prompted me to put together a list of 10 browser testing tools for web designers.
Static Screenshot Testing
Adobe Browserlab ( Recommended )
Seemingly the successor of Meer Meer from Adobe, Browserlabs is a sleek new service for testing your websites across browsers. It tests Firefox 2 and 3 and IE 6 and 7 for XP and test Firefox 2 and 3 and Safari 3 for OS X. Just sign in with your Adobe account, put in a URL and let Browserlab load screenshots for these browsers. Brilliant 2-up and onion-skin views allow you to compare between browsers easily. Unlike some browser testers, the entire page is visible, header to footer with scrolling. I’ve already noticed some particularly slow loading browsers and it would be great if it could build the page so you could navigate a site like a native browser test but it’s a great new product from Adobe.
IE Netrenderer
This is a service I have used for a while just because it’s fairly quick and does what I need for fast bug fixes. It’s a simple web service and all you do is select which browser to render, type in the URL, and hit enter. This service can be slow and you can’t scroll down your page but it’s good for testing a few things above the fold without getting involved in an application.
Browsershots.com
Browsershots is one of the more notoriously slow screen shot redering services which is in part due to it’s popularity. On the other hand it does, by far, have the most options for screenshots with 56 browsers and versions for Windows alone. This is another good service for testing without using an app or paying for anything but the wait-time is a deal breaker for me.
Litmus
Litmus is a new web app that generates screenshots for all modern browsers and is geared towards web professionals. There is nothing to install but inless you want to pay $50 dollars a month you are limited to 50 tests/month and IE7 and FF2 with a free account.
Browsercamp
After a long line of services testing Widows browsers, Browsercamp will test your site for all OS X browsers. Testing with Safari 3 is free but to get 12 other mac browsers you have to fork over at least $3 for a two day subsciption. This service is certainly useful for PC users.
Native Running Browser Testing
Crossover ( Recommended )
This is an application that traditionally is ‘pay’ but I got a working download during a special offer period and have used it ever since for actually running “IE” on my mac. There is a full 30 day trial period of the software if you are interested. It slows your computer a bit but it’s great for testing the actual functionality of your site as well as the look and feel in Windows browsers.
CrossBrowserTesting.com
Edit: Ken emailed me and set me straight on CrossBrowserTesting.com It really belongs here in this section:
CrossBrowserTesting.com provides a live browser experience rather than a screen shot all from their site. Ken, one of the partners in CrossBrowserTesting.com state:
“With our site, you get a VNC connection to a configuration of your choice, be it a Mac, PC, or a Linux box. From there, you can fully test your site – checking out the look and testing functionality.”
This service has several different pay plans including a monthly access unlimited fee, a pay-per-use fee, and a somewhat limited free plan. To get time to get a live test of your site for free your are put in line behind all the paying customers with a 5 minute timer but for a live web preview of your site in major browsers it might be worth paying a little for full access.
Xenocode.com
This is a solution for PC users to test all browsers by actually downloading them and pulling up a URL in the browser. Again, great for testing functionality of a site which is a big part of browser issues beyond the look. Currently only useful for Windows users but they may come out with ways for Mac users to get in on the action in future. This service is also free for all as it stands.
IETester
Another solution for Windows (XP and Vista) is IETester that runs your site natively in the browser for all versions of IE on a PC. This is somewhat useful for PC users but only tests PC browsers, none for the mac. It also seems a little buggy and obsolete considering other testing solutions, but is is free.
Mutliple_IE
Multiple_IE seems like a handy tool for light Windows browser testing. It’s a piece of software that allows you to install multiple versions of IE on your PC. While it doesn’t exactly cover your bases it does come in handy to actually have the real versions of these PC browsers installed and be able to switch back and forth and navigate your entire site. This software is free but no longer maintained or monitored.
Edit: Someone in the comments brought up SuperPreview so I thought i would add it in…
Expression Web SuperPreview
From what I can tell Expression Web Super Preview seems to be the way to go for PC users. It tests all major browsers in a way similar to Browserlab with some important differences. It’s not quite a screenshot rendering program but it doesn’t render your site in true live browser form either. It does build all the DOM elements of your site and allows you to compare their attributes across browsers. This sounds like a very interesting feature that allows the tester to get very specific and zero in on the issue a little more. I think SuperPriview is a good compromise between a screenshot site and a full browser tester. Click the link for a better explanation from Microsoft.
How Do You Test?
Do use any tools or services not on this list? Which do you recommend for web designers and developers?
Do you bother to test IE6 anymore or has it completely gone the way of the Dinosaurs for you?
Related Posts:
- 50 REPETITIVE & ANNOYING Website Intros Examined (100%)
- User-test Your Website or App for Free (100%)
- Goodbye Dreamweaver: The Next Generation of Web Dev Apps (69.8%)
- Free for a Reason? Type Design Quality and the Web Part 1 (69.8%)
- Hand Picked Freelance Jobs - Week of October 5th (69.8%)
Here's how you can subscribe to the RSS feed
You forgot to mention SuperPreview – http://expression.microsoft.com/en-us/dd565874.aspx
You can download it now, and the service isn’t full…
Hey thanks for the heads up. I’ll add that in. Thanks for reading!
So is Browserlab the go-to option now? Amateur web designer here.
Browserlab is a very compelling option (and it looks great). If you’re more concerned about how the website looks in different browsers then it’s perfect. You might have to consider another option if you need to test functionality with javascript or things like dropdown menus. I think it’s pretty great for most though. Hopefully we’ll see even more browsers supported soon.
If you’re on a Mac, I highly recommend Sun’s VirtualBox and running IETester. There is a fantastic screencast of setting this up at the link below. It’s all FREE.
“Cross-platform browser testing shouldn’t be a pain in the ass. If, like me, you’re one of the growing number of designers and developers using an OS other than Windows, you need an IE testing environment. In this screencast I’ll show you how to set up a virtual machine for Internet Explorer 7 on OSX in about 15 minutes without spending a penny.”
http://www.10voltmedia.com/blog/2008/12/screencast-install-internet-explorer-on-osx-using-virtualbox/
If you’re on a PC, you might want to check out Internet Explorer Collection http://finalbuilds.edskes.net/iecollection.htm
This gives you standalone, multiple IEs running at the same time on the same PC, but unlike IETester you’ll get the full real browsers (instead of one new interface which only uses the original render engines instead of the entire browsers). Also includes the Internet Explorer Developer Toolbar which make troubleshooting websites easier.
[...] 10 Browser Testing Tools: Roundup for Web Designers | Bryan Connor (tags: testing tools) [...]
[...] 10 Browser Testing Tools: Roundup for Web Designers | Bryan Connorbryanconnor.com [...]
[...] Just found 10 Browser Testing Tools: Roundup for Web Designers by Bryan Connor – a nice collection of browser testers with short [...]
Great collection. Thanks for sharing
[...] 10 Browser Testing Tools: Roundup for Web Designers | Bryan Connor Adobe Browserlabs launched today making it faster and easier to browser test your client sites. Here are 10 browser testing tools and services for web designers. (tags: designer webdev browsers web webdesign resources tools browser testing) [...]
What’s up with Browserpool?
[...] kol kas tikrina svetaines tik su Internet Explorer versijomis). Jei to negana – galite išsirinkti iš 10 tokių įrankių pagal savo poreikius. Įrašo tema: naujienos ir žymos: bandymas, dizainas, žiniatinklis. [...]
I use XenoCode right now if I need to do any compatibility testing. It’s great for testing in each browser. I have many browsers installed as it is and luckily IE8 allows you to render in IE7 mode so I really only use it XenoCode for IE6 and FF2. I also have Safari and Chrome installed on my machine. XenoCode is pretty quick too. It doesn’t take long at all to load a browser from a service. As long as you have a small service application installed that you get from their site to allow for single click load. It’s really nice and I highly recommend it.
[...] Here is the entire article from the original source. [...]
[...] 10 Browser Testing Tools: Roundup for Web Designers via Bryan Connor Did you enjoy this post? If so please share and allow others to enjoy it: [...]
[...] In Internet, Technology on ஜூன் 8, 2009 at 5:44 பிற்பகல் Source: Bryan Connor: “For all you frustrated web designers out there who are constantly testing and retesting to [...]
@Cancel Bubble. Thanks for those suggestions. They look great! Virtual box looks like a great suggestions for developers on a mac and if it’s free then i’m sold. The link is also excellent. Thanks for that.
Explorer collection sounds like the way to go on a PC for live browser testing. That’s always preferred to screen shots so thanks for the suggestion!
@ Rahul Jadhav
Appreciate it, thanks for reading!
@ Heiko
Browserpool looks like a great service that does require a good sum to use. There is an option for a test account on the homepage (http://www.browserpool.de/kc/wob/pricing.jsp) so you can see what it’s all like before you buy. Thats another viable option Thanks for sharing.
@ Kevin
xenocode seems like a great solution for PC users. Thanks for the mini-review and recommendation!
[...] 10 Browser Testing Tools: Roundup for Web Designers (tags: webdev webdesign tools browser) [...]
wow….. great article. I also tested it for aitken spence travels website which for travel in sri lanka.
Cloud Testing (http://www.cloudtesting.com) offers a full Functional Testing service based on Selenium, which allows you to run scripts of user journeys.
One of the features we also offer is a cross-browser test – currently on Firefox 2 & 3, Internet Explorer 6, 7 &8.
Nice list, thank you.
BTW: Speaking of browser compatibility — this comments section is totally messed up in IE7.
Thanks for the awesome list!
“Explorer collection sounds like the way to go on a PC for live browser testing. That’s always preferred to screen shots so thanks for the suggestion!”
I’ve used the IE Collection for a while, and for testing purposes it’s great – however, be warned that it breaks your favourites toolbar, and it seems impossible to turn off the pop-up blocker. The install seems quite buggy, and I haven’t yet worked out how to roll it back to before the install – this affects the existing install of any versions of IE you may have been running.
Cloud Testing (http://www.cloudtesting.com) are now offering full browser capture of Selenium scripts in the following browsers – as a service!
Internet Explorer 6, 7 & 8
Firefox 2.0, 3.0 & 3.5
Safari 3.2 & 4.0
Opera 9.6 & 10.0
Chrome 2.0 & 3.0
Have a look – we’re offering a limited time free trial.
BrowserSeal is a new fast multi browser screenshot application that supports Firefox, IE6, IE7, IE8, Chrome, Safari and Opera and allows to test web sites located on a hard drive or corporate intranet. Prices are extremely competitive.
you missing essentiabct in this list