ESM Unit vs Pure Test
ESM Unit
github.comPure Test
github.comSide by side
| Figure | ESM Unit | Pure Test |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 0 | 1 |
| Spec score · JavaScript Testing Frameworks | 7.3 (#15) | 8.0 (#6) |
| License | The repository license identifies the software as Apache License 2.0 and states that it is provided without warranties or conditions. | The repository identifies the project as Apache-2.0 licensed. |
| Purpose | ESM Unit is a unit testing tool for native ECMAScript modules in web browsers. | Pure Test is a minimal, zero-dependency, cross-runtime test runner. |
Plans
In their own words
Pure Test
Pure Test is a free, minimal test runner for projects using JavaScript runtimes and browsers. It supports Node.js, Deno, Bun, Cloudflare Workers, and browsers, and its API includes test suites, assertions, lifecycle hooks, spies, fake timers, and retry and timeout options. The CLI provides multiple reporters, test filters, file watching, sharding, and fail-fast execution. For CI, `--shard` splits test files across jobs and exits cleanly when a shard has no files. TypeScript test discovery requires `--ts` on Node.js; it is automatic on Deno and Bun. A Deno adapter registers tests as `Deno.test()` calls for use with `deno test` and its filtering and IDE workflows. The README includes migration guides for Jest and Vitest and notes compatibility with common mock methods. Pure Test does not isolate tests, so lifecycle hooks are recommended for managing state. The project is beta, and its APIs may change. It is Apache-2.0 licensed, with no paid plans stated.