JMeter often becomes the default because it looks free. There is no license fee, and it appears flexible enough to do almost anything.
But JMeter’s ease is often a myth. In reality, it is rarely the most sensible or low-cost choice.
After all, JMeter is just a scripting tool, not a complete performance engineering platform. To use it seriously, teams usually end up building an ecosystem around it: frameworks, conventions, plugins, integrations, and reporting layers.
Consultancies and testers recommend it because they have the knowledge needed to keep everything working, lock in their clients, and generate more consultancy days.
That effort does not disappear because the software is free. In practice, JMeter shifts and increases costs rather than removing it.
DevWeb: A Free, Professional Alternative to JMeter
DevWeb is a bit of a hidden gem. Not enough performance testers know about it, but they probably should.
It is a modern, JavaScript-based performance scripting protocol used by LoadRunner Developer; the free performance tool can run up to 50 concurrent users. Teams can use it to create, debug, and run web and API performance scripts without a license fee.
It also fits naturally into developer environments. Scripts can be written and managed in familiar IDEs, then reused across the wider LoadRunner family when teams need to scale.
For existing LoadRunner users, DevWeb is also available through VuGen. So teams can adopt a more modern scripting model without abandoning familiar tooling.
| Solution | New Name | What It Does | Why It Matters |
| DevWeb protocol | N/A | A modern JavaScript-based protocol for web and API performance scripts. | Cleaner, more maintainable scripting than traditional JMeter-style tests. |
| LoadRunner Developer | OpenText Performance Engineering for Developers | A free solution for creating, debugging, and running DevWeb scripts. | Start performance testing earlier, closer to development, with no licence barrier. |
| LoadRunner Cloud | OpenText Core Performance Engineering | A cloud-based performance platform for running tests at scale. | Easy path from local scripting to scalable execution without building performance infrastructure. |
Five Reasons Teams Choose DevWeb Over JMeter
1. It Reduces Scripting Overhead
DevWeb uses JavaScript, which is more familiar, readable, and maintainable for modern technical teams than Java and the elaborate scripting approaches many JMeter projects evolve into over time.
With performance testing, the real cost is in the people, not the tool. If you want to reduce this cost, and associated project overheads, you need to reduce the overall effort. DevWeb makes building, updating, and analysing tests easier, and therefore cheaper, month after month.
2. It Is Better Suited to Modern Application Traffic
Modern applications are API-heavy, dynamic, and distributed. DevWeb was built with that reality in mind. It feels closer to the way modern web applications actually behave, rather than forcing teams into patterns shaped by older tooling assumptions.
3. It Creates Less Maintenance Drag
Performance scripts do not stay finished for long. Applications change, flows break, parameters move, correlations fail. The lighter and clearer the scripting model, the less effort it takes to keep tests useful. DevWeb reduces that maintenance burden.
4. It Is Easier to Align with Developer-Led Delivery
If performance testing is meant to fit into CI/CD, shared pipelines, and collaborative engineering workflows, the tool has to feel natural to the people working in those environments. DevWeb is a better fit for that model. It quickly becomes part of a modern engineering workflow.
5. It Has a Cleaner Path to Scalable Execution
DevWeb integrates with LoadRunner Cloud, giving you a quicker path to large-scale performance testing without the overhead of assembling and maintaining your own performance infrastructure. That is an important distinction.
Many teams do not actually want a scripting tool. They want reliable testing at scale, without turning infrastructure into a side project. LoadRunner Cloud has a flexible licence model; you can buy what you need in an economical way.
In Conclusion: Make Testing Cheaper and Easier With DevWeb
JMeter is popular because its upfront price makes it look attractive. But once you account for scripting effort, maintenance, governance, infrastructure and operational overhead, free can become an expensive way to run performance testing.
For teams that want modern performance engineering rather than a toolchain to babysit, DevWeb is the stronger choice. It is easier and faster to use, so it saves money. It also scales easily with the LoadRunner family. This is why consultancies and contractors avoid it. Not because it makes their life harder, but because it makes it easier. With DevWeb, you’ll be less reliant on expensive “experts”.
Did You Know
If you already have JMeter scripts, you don’t need to bin them. You can execute them in LoadRunner Cloud and build your new assets with DevWeb.
