Appetize vs BrowserStack Live

Appetize runs uploaded native iOS and Android apps on virtual mobile devices that users access through a browser. It supports previews, sharing, and embedding, and lists mobile testing, demos, training, onboarding, and screenshot automation among its uses. Debugging features include network monitoring, logs, UI automation, proxy settings, device and operating-system selection, locale settings, mock location, and deep links. AppRecorder automation for Playwright supports building, running, and debugging end-to-end tests; the platform also lists a JavaScript SDK and REST API. Named CI/CD integrations include GitHub Actions, GitLab, Bitrise, and Jenkins. Customers upload app files themselves: iOS uploads must be Simulator builds, and IPA files are not supported. The free plan costs nothing and includes one user, two active devices, and 30 minutes refilled monthly, with a three-minute session limit. Starter costs $59 a month and Premium costs $319 a month; both include 500 minutes, then charge $0.06/min. Appetize says its availability promise is backed by a 99.9% uptime Service Level Agreement.

BrowserStack Live is a cloud-based manual testing platform for interactively testing and debugging websites and web apps on real devices and browsers. It supports new and older versions of Edge, Safari, Chrome, Internet Explorer and Firefox, with access to real Windows, macOS, Android and iOS devices. Teams can test internal development or staging sites, including sites behind firewalls, without setup or configuration.

Live lists real-time debugging with pre-installed developer tools and multi-device testing on up to four real devices. A session can use two real mobile devices simultaneously, or users can run two sessions in separate browser tabs. BrowserStack says physical devices and desktop virtual machines are wiped after each session. It lists integrations including Jenkins, Cypress, Selenium and Jira for its testing products, and states it is SOC 2 Type 2 compliant and encrypts communications with HTTPS/TLS. The free trial is limited to 30 minutes and has limited browser access. Annual paid plans include Freelancer at $12.50 a month, Desktop at $29 a month and Desktop & Mobile at $39 a month.