Difference between Enzyme and React Testing Library

Question

What is the difference between Enzyme and React Testing Library and which one should I use for testing in React project?

Enzyme: https://www.npmjs.com/package/enzyme

React Testing Library: https://www.npmjs.com/package/@testing-library/react

Answer 1

In Enzyme, we test the component using the state and props of the component. This generally means that the tests are brittle. Let's say we have already written tests for a component and it is running fine. But what if someone changes the variable name of a state or props in the component, then even if the functionality of the component hasn't changed, our test fails. This kind of behavior demonstrates the brittleness of the test.

Whereas in React Testing Library, we test the component from the user's perspective. Let's say we want to test a drop-down component, we won't test the component according to its state and props. Instead, we use the DOM elements to test it, just how the user interacts with it.

The primary purpose of React Testing Library is to increase confidence in your tests by testing your components in the way a user would use them. Users don't care what happens behind the scenes, they just see and interact with the output. Instead of accessing the components' internal APIs or evaluating their state, you'll get more confidence by writing your tests based on the component output.

At some point, React Testing Library became more widely used than Enzyme.