Zerocode (zerocode-tdd) is a community-developed, free and open-source, outcome-driven automated testing framework for data pipelines, ETL, REST and SOAP APIs, Kafka data streams, databases and load scenarios, in which every test is defined in simple JSON or YAML with zero coding, and it is aimed at developers, testers and data engineers who need executable automated tests without writing test code.

What it is

Zerocode is a Java framework, licensed under Apache-2.0, published to Maven Central as org.jsmart/zerocode-tdd with an older release line named zerocode-rest-bdd. It lets a team write executable test scenarios in JSON or YAML, combining declarative configuration with automation. The framework handles response validations, target API invocation, load and stress testing, and security testing through YAML, JSON or fluent steps. It supports REST calls, SOAP method invocation with XML input, Kafka real-time data streams, and databases. It sits in the Data & Analytics / Data Engineering & Integration category, is tagged for API, assertions, data-pipeline, ETL testing, Kafka and DSL use, and offers IDE support for IntelliJ IDEA. A separate CLI-only tool from the same project family, Steply, runs scenarios directly from the terminal.

The problem it solves is test code. Instead of writing and maintaining Java for each REST endpoint, Kafka topic or database check, a user declares the scenario. If a REST API such as https://localhost:8080/api/v1/customers/123 answers a GET with "Content-Type": "application/json", a 200(OK) status and a payload containing "id": 123 and a "type": "Premium High Value" field, the expected response is expressed as JSON rather than as assertion plumbing. That same declaration model extends to data pipelines, ETL jobs, real-time Kafka streams and load scenarios, so outcome checks stay readable and version-controlled next to the code they exercise.

Key capabilities

• Scenario definition in JSON or YAML, described as writing executable tests with zero coding.
• REST and SOAP invocation, including a SOAP method invocation example with XML input.
• Kafka real-time data stream testing, documented under Kafka Testing Introduction.
• Database testing alongside API tests within the same framework.
• Load, stress and performance testing, covered by the IDE-based load testing documentation.
• Response validations and assertions driven by declared expected payloads and HTTP status codes.
• Steply CLI runner for terminal execution: steply --scenario tests/validate_github_user.json --target-env env/sit.properties.

Who uses it and how

• Java developers and testers working in IntelliJ IDEA, where the framework provides IDE support and tests can be written and run inside the editor.
• API teams authoring scenario files in JSON or YAML to validate REST and SOAP endpoints, including status code and response payload checks.
• Data engineering and integration teams validating Kafka data streams, data pipelines and ETL behaviour using the same scenario format.
• Command-line users running Steply against a named target environment properties file such as env/sit.properties, which suits scripted or per-environment execution.
• Performance-focused users exercising load scenarios through the IDE-based load testing path.

Getting started

Add the Maven dependency org.jsmart/zerocode-tdd (older releases were published as zerocode-rest-bdd), or install the Steply CLI and run a scenario with steply --scenario tests/validate_github_user.json --target-env env/sit.properties. Indexed documentation is hosted at zerocode-tdd.tddfy.com.

How it compares

The provided facts do not list any paid products that Zerocode replaces, so no licence, hosting or cost comparison can be drawn. The only related tool named is Steply, a companion CLI-only runner from the same project family that executes tests from the terminal rather than replacing Zerocode. On the evidence given, Zerocode stands alone in this registry.

When to use it — and when not to

A self-hoster runs a JVM and Maven build, supplies the target environments under test, and maintains per-environment property files such as env/sit.properties, plus any Kafka brokers or databases the scenarios touch. Teams that want a hosted, no-operations service should look elsewhere, since the provided facts describe no hosted option, no Docker image and no compose file. Known friction: the repository carries 128 open issues, the README excerpt cuts off in the middle of its worked JSON example, and the primary release artifact is a Maven dependency, so first-time users depend on the external documentation site to get to a first passing scenario.

steply --scenario tests/validate_github_user.json --target-env env/sit.properties

Response:
{
    "id": 123,
    "type": "Premium High Value",
    "addresses": [
        {
            "type":"home",
            "line1":"10 Random St"
        }
    ]
}

{
  "url": "api/v1/customers/123",
  "method": "GET",
  "request": {
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type": "application/json"
    }
  },
  "retry": {
    "max": 3,
    "delay": 1000
  },
  "verify": {
    "status": 200,
    "headers": {
      "Content-Type" : [ "application/json; charset=utf-8" ]
    },
    "body": {
      "id": 123,
      "type": "Premium Visa",
      "addresses": [
        {
          "type": "Billing",
          "line1": "10 Random St"
        }
      ]
    }    
  },
  "verifyMode": "LENIENT"
}

---
url: api/v1/customers/123
method: GET
request:
  headers:
    Content-Type: application/json
retry:
  max: 3
  delay: 1000
verify:
  status: 200
  headers:
    Content-Type:
    - application/json; charset=utf-8
  body:
    id: 123
    type: Premium Visa
    addresses:
    - type: Billing
      line1: 10 Random St
verifyMode: LENIENT