𝗪𝗗𝗜𝗢 𝘃𝘀 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘆𝘄𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁: 𝗔𝗻 𝗛𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻

𝗪𝗗𝗜𝗢 𝘃𝘀 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘆𝘄𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁: 𝗔𝗻 𝗛𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻

I loved WDIO for years. I built frameworks. I taught teams. Then I used Playwright. My opinion changed.

Both tools are great. They serve different needs.

Playwright is fast.

• Setup takes 5 minutes.
• Tests run fast. 300 tests took 7 minutes. WDIO took 18 minutes.
• Debugging is easy with the trace viewer.
• Auto-waiting is built in.

WDIO is flexible.

• It is best for mobile. Use it for iOS and Android.
• Large plugin list. It connects to Sauce Labs and BrowserStack.
• One framework for web, mobile, and API.

Pick Playwright if:

• You only test web.
• You want fast onboarding.
• Execution speed is a priority.

Pick WDIO if:

• You need web and mobile testing together.
• You need Appium.
• You work in a large enterprise.

I use Playwright for new web projects. I use WDIO for mobile and web. Pick the tool your team needs.

Source: https://dev.to/sshhfaiz/wdio-vs-playwright-an-honest-comparison-from-someone-who-has-used-both-3op0