Boost.Test vs Rust libtest
Boost.Test
boost.orgRust libtest
doc.rust-lang.orgSide by side
| Figure | Boost.Test | Rust libtest |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Unit Testing Frameworks | 8.3 (#3) | 8.0 (#13) |
| Purpose | Boost.Test supports simple program testing, full unit testing, and program execution monitoring. | Rustc includes a built-in facility for building and running tests for a crate. |
Plans
In their own words
Boost.Test
Boost.Test is a free C++11, C++14, and C++17 library for simple program testing, unit testing, and program execution monitoring. Its BOOST_TEST macro handles comparisons involving floating-point values, collections, and strings. Test cases can self-register and be arranged into suites with fixtures, decorators, labels, dependencies, descriptions, and groups. Documentation also covers data-driven and template cases. Assertion context and configurable logging provide failure diagnostics, while XML and JUNIT logs support third-party and continuous-integration tools. Boost.Test can be used as a header-only, static, or shared library and is distributed under the Boost Software License, Version 1.0. The Boost 1.92.0 release page lists Unix source archives plus Windows source and binary downloads. The library page links documentation, Boost Slack discussion, and GitHub issues, and lists dependencies including Algorithm, Assert, Bind, Config, Core, Exception, and Type Traits. Listed platforms are Linux and Windows. There is no free trial because the software is free.
Rust libtest
Rust libtest is Rust’s built-in test harness for compiling and running crate tests. Building with `rustc --test` links the executable to libtest; tests are free functions marked `#[test]`. Cargo’s `cargo test` handles building and running unit, integration, and documentation tests, including code samples extracted from library documentation comments. A test succeeds when it returns without an error; a panic or non-zero termination result marks failure. You can mark tests to expect a panic or to be ignored, filter by name, choose exact matches, skip matches, select ignored tests, or list tests and benchmarks without running them. Tests run in parallel by default, with the thread count configurable. The harness can capture output, display successful-test output, and format results as pretty, terse, or JSON; JSON formatting is unstable. Rust libtest is free and supports Linux, macOS, and Windows. Catching panics requires the unwind strategy; abort-strategy support is experimental. Benchmarking and custom harnesses are experimental and nightly-only.