Test REST, GraphQL, and SOAP APIs in one open-source framework with a clean, readable syntax. Built-in JSON/XML assertions, schema validation, mocks, and data-driven testing — no Java knowledge required.
Feature: User Management API
Background:
* url 'https://api.example.com'
* header Authorization = 'Bearer ' + token
Scenario: CRUD operations
# Create
Given path '/users'
And request { name: 'Jane', role: 'admin' }
When method post
Then status 201
And match response == { id: '#notnull', **: '#ignore' }
* def userId = response.id
# Read
Given path '/users/' + userId
When method get
Then status 200
And match response.name == 'Jane'Grows with you
The open-source framework is the whole engine — free forever. Paid tiers add developer productivity and enterprise scale on top, never gates on the basics.
Open Source
REST, GraphQL, SOAP, mocks, data-driven testing, parallel execution, and performance testing — MIT licensed, free forever.
Free
Get it on GitHub →IDE Pro
IntelliJ & VS Code plugins with syntax highlighting, run-from-IDE, debugging, and autocomplete — plus the Xplorer desktop client for authoring.
$640/seat/yr
See plans →Enterprise
Karate Agent for faster, deterministic API testing, async protocol testing (Kafka, gRPC, WebSocket) in CI, and self-hosted deployment with support.
Custom
Explore Karate Enterprise →Features
From simple GET requests to complex multi-step workflows, Karate makes API testing intuitive and powerful — no extra libraries to assemble.
Validate JSON and XML responses against schemas with built-in fuzzy matching. Use #string, #number, #regex and more.
Run the same scenario with different datasets from CSV, JSON, or inline tables. No loops or test factories required.
Spin up mock servers alongside your tests. Define responses inline and test against service dependencies without infrastructure.
Run tests in parallel by default. Feature files are independent units, so scaling is automatic with zero configuration.
First-class support for GraphQL queries and SOAP/XML payloads. The same syntax works across all API protocols.
Auto-generated HTML reports with request/response logs, timings, and failure details. Integrate with CI/CD dashboards.
Why Karate
Most teams stitch together a client library, an assertion library, a mock server, a data-driver, and a perf tool — then maintain the glue forever. Karate puts all of it behind one plain-English syntax, so a test reads like the requirement it proves.
match with fuzzy matchers replaces pages of Hamcrest boilerplate.
.feature file drives a Gatling load test — no rewrite.
Scenario Outline: create and validate users
Given path '/users'
And request { name: '#(name)', role: '#(role)' }
When method post
Then status 201
# one assertion validates the whole shape
And match response ==
"""
{
id: '#number',
name: '#(name)',
role: '#(role)',
email: '#regex .+@.+',
createdAt: '#string'
}
"""
Examples:
| name | role |
| Jane | admin |
| Ravi | analyst |Built for what matters
The two things that decide whether an API suite survives a real release schedule — and where teams move to Karate from heavier tools.
Velocity
Execution eats roughly 80% of the QA cycle. Karate cuts it — tests run parallel by default, author in plain English in minutes, and replay deterministically at ~$0 in CI — so regression stops gating the release.
Trust
Karate runs locally — no data leaves your network, zero telemetry, ever. The framework is MIT-licensed and fully auditable, and tests are deterministic, so a green build means the same thing every time.
Proof
From Tier-1 banks to life sciences, engineering leaders tell their Karate stories in their own words.
Shift-left testing for a Tier-1 bank's core-banking migration — Karate across 50+ microservices, databases, JMS, and Kafka.
50+ microservices covered Dell TechnologiesFrom a 2019 POC to a dozen projects across two business units — four years of Karate in production at scale.
12 teams across 2 business units OracleA developer's journey with Karate — readable tests and code coverage wired in with one or two lines.
1–2 lines to add coverage FIS GlobalA non-programmer's journey to test automation — one team to org-wide on Karate's plain-English syntax.
1 → org-wide adoption“Ease of setup, ease of writing tests even for juniors, and the fact that it uses Gherkin allows everyone to understand the tests.”
Read on G2“An excellent tool in all sense. Used it for both API and UI automation. Found it amazing with parallel execution, negligible flakiness, and code-less automation.”
Read on G2“It is easy to understand and the executions are quick and clean.”
Read on G2Karate Agent
Karate Agent puts an AI-assisted harness on top of the framework you already know. It speeds up how tests get written — then hands the work back to deterministic Karate, so your suite stays fast, repeatable, and free to run.
Point it at an OpenAPI spec and get a runnable project — a stateful mock plus starter .feature tests — in seconds, not a sprint.
Probe a live or mocked endpoint, see the real response shape, and turn what works into a contract-locking assertion you keep.
Once authored, tests replay as plain Karate — no model in the loop, reproducible run after run, and ~$0 to execute in CI.
Self-hosted and BYO-LLM — it runs inside your network, with your model. Coding agents can drive it too, so Claude, Cursor, or Copilot can scaffold tests and check coverage against your contract.
Comparison
See how Karate stacks up against other popular API testing tools.
| Feature | Karate | RestAssured | Postman |
|---|---|---|---|
| No-code / Low-code | Yes | No | Partial |
| Built-in assertions | Yes — fuzzy matching | Requires Hamcrest | Limited |
| Parallel execution | Built-in | Requires TestNG/JUnit | Collection runner |
| Mock server | Built-in | Requires WireMock | Postman Mock |
| Performance testing | Re-use as perf tests | Separate tool needed | Not supported |
| UI testing | Same framework | Not supported | Not supported |
| CI/CD integration | Native | Via Maven/Gradle | Newman CLI |
| Open source | Yes — MIT | Yes | Freemium |
Integrates with your stack
Karate Labs
By Peter Thomas
Creator of Karate
28 pages · PDF
A practical deep-dive from Peter Thomas, creator of Karate, on how modern API testing solves the problems that plague traditional UI-heavy test suites — flakiness, maintenance debt, in-sprint coverage gaps, and performance blind spots.
No gate, no form. Just a direct download.
Get started in minutes with the open-source framework. No credit card required. Join thousands of teams already testing with Karate.