Overview

Xamarin Test Cloud allows you to run automated test scripts against thousands of devices, and allows you to pick between which framework to use:

• Calabash – test scripts are written in Ruby. Calabash is based on Cucumber, a popular testing framework for Ruby.
• Xamarin.UITest – test scripts are written in C# using NUnit. Xamarin.UITest has IDE support from both Visual Studio and Xamarin Studio.

You can't go wrong writing tests with either of these frameworks, which might make it hard to choose between the two of them.

Which Test Framework is Right for Me?

The following flowchart is a general guideline to help decide which framework to use when writing tests for Xamarin's Test Cloud:

For an existing mobile application written in C# with Xamarin, Xamarin.UITest is a natural choice. Xamarin.UITests can be created in either Xamarin Studio or Visual Studio using a language that you are already familiar with. As well, it's possible to run tests locally or to upload them to Test Cloud all from within in a familiar IDE. In addition, NUnit is a very popular testing framework in the .NET community so even if you're not familiar with writing tests, there is plenty of community support available.

For other applications, such as native iOS apps written in Objective-C/Swift, Android apps written in Java, or hybrid applications, Calabash is a good framework. Calabash allows you to write cross platform tests without any special tools. Tests are written in any text editor (like Visual Studio Code) or Ruby IDE and can be uploaded as part of a CI script.