Head-to-Head: Differencify vs Pixelmatch Analysis

differencify

v1.5.5(over 4 years ago)

This package was last published over a year ago. It may not be actively maintained.The package doesn't have any types definitionsNumber of direct dependencies: 8Monthly npm downloads

Differencify is a powerful tool for visual regression testing in web development. It allows developers to compare screenshots of web pages before and after changes to detect any visual differences. Differencify provides precise visual diffing capabilities, enabling you to identify even the smallest pixel variations between images.

Alternatives:
puppeteer+
playwright+
cypress+
jest-puppeteer+
taiko+
webdriverio+
nightwatch+
testcafe+
selenium-webdriver+
puppeteer-core+

Tags: web developmentvisual regression testingscreenshot comparisonvisual diffing

pixelmatch

v6.0.0(about 1 month ago)

This package is actively maintained.Types definitions are provided via a separate npm package: @types/pixelmatchNumber of direct dependencies: 1Monthly npm downloads

Pixelmatch is a lightweight and efficient npm package for image comparison and visual regression testing. It allows developers to compare two images pixel by pixel and generate a diff image highlighting the differences. Pixelmatch is particularly useful for automated testing of UI components and ensuring visual consistency across different versions of an application.

Alternatives:
resemblejs+
looks-same+
odiff+
blink-diff+
image-diff+
jest-image-snapshot+
pdiffy+
img-diff-js+
image-difference+
visual-regression-tracker+

Tags: npmimage-comparisonvisual-regression-testingautomated-testingUI-components

Fight!

Functionality

Differencify and Pixelmatch are both npm packages that serve different purposes. Differencify is a powerful visual regression testing tool used to capture and compare screenshots of web pages, allowing you to detect visual changes between different versions of a web page. On the other hand, Pixelmatch is a pixel-level image comparison library, primarily used for image diffing in automated testing workflows. It focuses on comparing individual pixels between two images, which is useful for validating graphical output and image processing algorithms.

Usage

Differencify is primarily used for visual regression testing in web projects. It provides a simple API for capturing screenshots in various scenarios and offers advanced options for image comparison, including tolerance levels, ignoring specific areas, and highlighting visual differences. Pixelmatch, on the other hand, is a generic image comparison library and can be used in a wide range of projects and scenarios beyond web development, such as computer vision, image analysis, and automated testing systems.

Dependencies

Differencify uses Puppeteer as a dependency to capture screenshots and interact with web pages. It requires a Chromium or Chrome browser to be installed. Pixelmatch, on the other hand, has minimal dependencies and can be easily integrated into any JavaScript project without requiring additional tools or packages.

Performance

In terms of performance, Pixelmatch is generally faster since it operates at the pixel level and does not involve rendering pages. Differencify, on the other hand, requires the use of a headless browser and capture screenshots, which can be relatively slower compared to pixel-level image comparison that Pixelmatch offers.

Popularity and Community Support

Both Differencify and Pixelmatch have gained popularity in their respective domains. Differencify has a growing community and is actively maintained, with regular updates and bug fixes. Pixelmatch has also gained popularity as a reliable image comparison library and has good community support. It is important to consider factors such as GitHub stars, recent activity, and community engagement when evaluating the popularity and community support of these packages.