Authors: Timmie M. R. Lagermann, Kristina Sophia Carter, Su Mei Gwen Ho, Luís Cruz, Kerstin Eder, Maja H. Kirkeby
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Abstract: We examine per action energy consumption across four web user interface (UI) automation testing frameworks to determine whether consistent tendencies can guide energy-aware test design. Using a controlled client–server setup with external power metering, we repeat each UI action (refresh, click variants, checkbox, drag&drop, input-text, scroll) 35 times. Across each of the actions, energy costs vary by both framework and action. Puppeteer is the most efficient for left-click, right-click, double-click, checkbox, and input-text; Selenium is the most efficient for refresh and scroll; Nightwatch is generally the least energy efficient. The energy cost of performing the same action varied by up to a factor of six depending on the framework. This indicates that providing transparency of energy consumption for UI automation testing frameworks allows developers to make informed, energy-aware decisions when testing a specific UI action.
Bibtex (copy):@inproceedings{lagermann2026framework,
author={Timmie M. R. Lagermann and Kristina Sophia Carter and Su Mei Gwen Ho and Lu\'{i}s Cruz and Kerstin Eder and Maja H. Kirkeby},
booktitle={Proceedings of the 41st ACM/SIGAPP Symposium on Applied Computing (SAC)},
title={Framework Matters: Energy Efficiency of UI Automation Testing Frameworks},
year={2026}}Read me: Arxiv.