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Testing · head to head

CircleCI vs Testsigma

CircleCI logo

CircleCI

Testing

The leading CI/CD platform

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Testsigma logo

Testsigma

Testing

Natural language test automation for web, mobile and API with a self hosted open source edition

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: CircleCI the free plan covers 6,000 build minutes and 5 active users a month; Testsigma the natural language layer is a fixed vocabulary rather than real English, so testers spend the first weeks learning which phrasings the parser accepts, which is learning a language after all.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CircleCI and Testsigma actually diverge.

Attributes where CircleCI and Testsigma differ
AttributeCircleCITestsigma
Pricing modelsubscriptionPer user per month
PlatformsWebWeb, iOS, Android, Linux
Founded2011Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Testing).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in CircleCI

Nothing recorded that Testsigma does not also cover.

Only in Testsigma

  • Natural language authoring
  • Unified web, mobile and API tests
  • Self hosted community edition
  • Cloud device and browser grid
  • Data driven runs
  • Custom functions

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

CircleCI

  • Continuous integration pipelines for application codenot Testsigma
  • Parallel test execution across containersnot Testsigma
  • Docker-based builds with layer cachingnot Testsigma
  • Deployment pipelines with approval gatesnot Testsigma
  • Self-hosted runners for private infrastructurenot Testsigma

Testsigma

  • A team maintaining separate Selenium and Appium suites that wants one place for web and native mobile coveragenot CircleCI
  • Organisations that must keep test data and execution on premises for regulatory reasonsnot CircleCI
  • QA groups with manual testers being asked to automate without first learning Javanot CircleCI
  • Evaluating low code test automation properly before committing budget, by running the free edition against the real applicationnot CircleCI

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

CircleCI

  • The free plan covers 6,000 build minutes and 5 active users a month
  • Active users are billed at $15 each beyond the included five, and an active user is anyone who commits to a project
  • Everything runs on credits, so compute, Docker layer caching at 200 credits a job and IP ranges at 450 credits per GB all draw from the same pool
  • Network and storage overage costs 420 credits per GB
  • Free credits expire monthly with no rollover, and paid credits expire after a year
  • Scale is annual billing only

Testsigma

  • The natural language layer is a fixed vocabulary rather than real English, so testers spend the first weeks learning which phrasings the parser accepts, which is learning a language after all.
  • Anything conditional or arithmetic falls through to custom Java or JavaScript, and that code lives in the platform editor rather than your repository, where it gets no code review and no version history you control.
  • The community edition lags the cloud product and is not the version the vendor demonstrates, so a self hosted evaluation can understate or overstate what you would actually buy.
  • Cloud execution is billed separately from authoring seats, so a suite that grows from two hundred to two thousand tests changes the bill without anyone changing the plan.
  • Support and engineering are concentrated in Indian time zones, which slows incident turnaround for teams working in the Americas.

Pricing, plan by plan

CircleCI

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Up to 6,000 build minutes (small Docker resource class)
    • Up to 5 active users per month
    • 30,000 free credits per month
  • Performance$15/month
    • 30,000 credits included monthly
    • 5 active users included (additional users $15/month each)
    • 80x concurrency
  • Scale$null/year
    • Custom number of credits
    • Customizable user limits
    • Unlimited concurrency

Testsigma

Free
  • Community Edition$undefined/month
    • Self hosted, open source, no licence fee
    • You supply the infrastructure and the browser or device grid
  • Cloud$undefined/month
    • Priced per authoring user with additional charges for parallel cloud executions and device minutes
    • Published tiers exist but the figures that matter at team scale come from sales

Which should you pick?

Choose CircleCI if

  • You want to start without paying.
CircleCI review

Choose Testsigma if

  • You need natural language authoring.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, Linux.
  • You also want unified web, mobile and api tests.
Testsigma review

Questions people ask

Is CircleCI or Testsigma better?
Neither clearly leads. CircleCI starts at Free and Testsigma at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CircleCI or Testsigma?
CircleCI starts at Free and Testsigma at Free.
Does CircleCI or Testsigma run on more platforms?
CircleCI runs on Web. Testsigma runs on Web, iOS, Android, Linux.
Can I use CircleCI for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is CircleCI best used for?
CircleCI is most often used for continuous integration pipelines for application code, parallel test execution across containers, docker-based builds with layer caching, deployment pipelines with approval gates. Of those, continuous integration pipelines for application code and parallel test execution across containers are not what Testsigma is typically brought in for.
What can CircleCI do that Testsigma cannot?
Testsigma covers Natural language authoring, Unified web, mobile and API tests, Self hosted community edition, Cloud device and browser grid.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CircleCI: How much does CircleCI Performance plan cost?

CircleCI Performance plan costs $15 USD per month and includes 30,000 credits, 5 active users, 80x concurrency, 5 GB network, and 2 GB storage. Additional users beyond 5 cost $15 each per month.

Source
Testsigma: Is the open source edition genuinely usable in production?

Yes for self hosted execution, though it trails the cloud version on newer features and you maintain the grid yourself.

CircleCI: Can I purchase additional credits on CircleCI Performance plan?

Yes, additional credits are available at $15 for every 25,000 credits purchased. Paid credits roll over month to month and expire after one year; free plan credits expire monthly without rollover.

Source
Testsigma: Do testers need to know Selenium?

Not to write ordinary steps. They will need someone who does as soon as the suite needs custom functions or awkward waits.

CircleCI: What is included in the CircleCI free plan?

The free plan includes up to 6,000 build minutes per month (small Docker resource class), 5 active users, 30,000 free credits monthly, 30x concurrency, 1 GB network, 2 GB storage, and community support. No credit card required.

Source
Testsigma: Can it test native iOS and Android applications?

Yes, through Appium underneath, on the hosted device grid or your own devices.

CircleCI: What are the Scale plan limits and pricing?

CircleCI Scale plan offers custom pricing billed annually with unlimited concurrency, 50 GB network, 200 GB storage, customizable credits and users, enterprise controls, and GPU environment access. Requires contacting sales for a quote.

Source
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