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Product
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Solutions
Bankingaqua ALM helps banks increase testing productivity by over 50%
InsuranceConsistent testing with aqua ensures robust insurance software that increases retention
ManufacturingUsing aqua helps an IoT manufacturer save 3% of revenue by reducing production defects
Governmentaqua paves the way for digital transformation with a portfolio of 7 government organisations
Tech companiesaqua helps reach a defect detection ratio of 98% with thorough and efficient testing
Medicalaqua proudly serves 10+ enterprise medical companies to level up their QA -
Resources
BlogTips & tricks on how to manage testing process effectively and speed up releases
aqua wikiDetailed information on aqua capabilities, functionality and features
Product updatesDescription of our newest features and their value to QA teams
Success storiesCompanies that want to keep up with digital change trust in aqua
Product FAQFast answers to the most important product questions
Data centersExplore our infrastructure & global locations
aqua vs qTest: Comparison of Tools for Software Testing
aqua and qTest are both established test management solutions that also position themselves as modern, market-conscious tools. Find out how exactly these tools stand up to the industry standard.
Key differences between aqua and qTest
aqua offers built-in AI-enhanced testing (Copilot) at no extra cost in all paid licenses
aqua has a broader test automation integration suite with 12 out-of-the-box connectors
aqua has significantly cheaper pricing with free Guest and low-cost Test Runner licenses
How we compare
AI
AI is changing QA faster than any other development in the past decade. A modern test management platform should have AI deeply embedded. Here is what you should expect:
- Analyse your workspace and project context to generate relevant, targeted suggestions
- Create test cases, requirements, and bug reports from plain-text or voice descriptions
- Complete and refine existing test case drafts without starting from scratch
- Identify and remove duplicate tests and defects automatically
- Prioritise tests based on risk and project history
aqua’s AI, Copilot, is included in all paid licenses and covers requirements, test cases, test data, bug reports, AI chat, and text enhancements. qTest launched qTest Copilot in November 2024 for AI-assisted test case generation, then expanded to Agentic Test Creation in February 2026. qTest AI is narrower in scope and requires the latest paid Enterprise AI version. Copilot covers the full QA lifecycle at no extra cost from day one.
Verdict: aqua wins. Copilot covers the full QA lifecycle at no extra cost; qTest AI focuses on test case generation and requires an upgrade
Test management
Test management is the core reason to adopt a dedicated TMS. Beyond simple test case storage, a mature platform should support your entire testing workflow with precision and flexibility:
- Create, execute, share, and manage test cases across projects
- Group tests into scenarios, organise into folders, and assign labels for easy navigation
- Apply individual and shared views with meaningful filters
- See full execution history per test case for traceability
- Store a tamper-proof, timestamped log of all changes for audit and compliance
- Visualise requirements coverage and trace dependencies between requirements, tests, and defects
- Bulk-edit items and revert changes without manual workarounds
Both tools handle core test management well. aqua stands out with visual bulk edits and item change reversal, significant time savers in large projects. qTest views function more like Excel slicers than a modern TMS interface, and G2 reviewers flag performance degradation under heavy test loads. For compliance-heavy industries, aqua’s tamper-proof audit trail is a key differentiator.
Integrations
Every TMS relies on integrations heavily. Manual testers, automation engineers, and project managers all rely on different tools, and your TMS must connect them seamlessly. Expect native support for:
- Jira integration with real-time bidirectional sync
- Major automation frameworks: Selenium, Jenkins, JMeter, SoapUI, Ranorex
- CI/CD pipeline tools: Azure Pipelines, Bamboo
- REST API for connecting any tool not natively supported
- Bug capture tools that streamline defect reporting without context switching
Both tools integrate with major automation frameworks and Jira. aqua offers 12 out-of-the-box integrations plus REST API, covering database connectors, Confluence, Azure DevOps, PowerShell, UnixShell, and UFT on top of standard automation tools. qTest’s integration strength lies within the Tricentis ecosystem, connecting with Tosca, Vera, Rally, and Azure Boards, making it compelling for teams already invested in Tricentis products.
Pricing flexibility
Pricing structure reveals a lot about how a vendor values its customers. Transparent, role-appropriate pricing, without hiding essential features behind opaque enterprise tiers, should be the standard. Look for:
- Fully published pricing with no mandatory sales call to get a number
- Role-based licenses that match what each user actually needs
- Free or low-cost licenses for manual testers and read-only stakeholders
- Bug Management included without paying for a higher tier
- Clear upgrade path as your team grows
- Both Cloud and On-Premise options with predictable costs
aqua publishes all pricing transparently with a logical role-based structure. Every paid license includes Bug Management, unique among major competitors. Unlimited Guest licenses are free, and Test Runner licenses are available at 19 euros per month (annual billing). At least one full license must be active to manage tests. qTest pricing is fully quote-based with no published tiers. Third-party sources indicate a starting point of approximately 1,000 USD per user per year, with no free tier available.
Verdict: aqua wins clearly. Transparent pricing, free Guest licenses, low-cost Test Runner tier, Bug Management included by default
Deployment Models
Deployment flexibility is especially critical in regulated industries. Your TMS in use must adapt to your infrastructure, not the other way around. Essential options include:
- Vendor-hosted SaaS Cloud for quick setup and low maintenance
- Isolated or custom Cloud deployment on infrastructure you control
- On-Premise deployment for full data sovereignty
- Guaranteed geographic data residency for GDPR and regional compliance
- Predictable long-term costs for On-Premise without perpetual SaaS dependency
Both tools support On-Premise and Cloud. aqua guarantees geolocalised hosting per client preference, offers a GDPR-compliant German-hosted Cloud, and supports isolated Enterprise Custom Cloud on any Azure data center. qTest does not publish hosting location guarantees. aqua’s On-Premise buy model, one-time fee plus 20% annual maintenance, offers predictable long-term cost efficiency for compliance-driven enterprises.
Dashboards
Dashboards intended for broad teams, not just for QA. They help to gain visibility for managers and enforce transparency across the entire organisation. A modern dashboard should be able to perform the following:
- Cover any data from the workspace
- Support private and shared dashboards for different audiences
- Enable external sharing with stakeholders outside the tool
- Offer multiple chart types for flexible visualisation
- Alert teams proactively with KPI thresholds
Both tools offer capable dashboards. qTest provides 60+ out-of-the-box metrics with drag-and-drop building and external sharing. aqua offers full customisation on any workspace data and adds KPI alerts, proactively notifying teams when thresholds are breached so no manual dashboard monitoring is needed.
Reporting
Reporting serves both internal QA teams and external stakeholders. Strong reporting should be powerful enough for engineers yet accessible enough for executives. Look for:
- Vendor template library to get started without building from scratch
- Full customisation with drag-and-drop, pivot tables, and parametrisation
- Ability to pull in any workspace data plus external data and imagery
- Script support for automated report updates
- Formatted output suitable for compliance documentation and executive review
Both tools offer strong, comparable reporting with templates, drag-and-drop, pivot tables, parametrisation, custom layouts, and script support. G2 reviewers note qTest’s reporting requires significant manual effort to customise above preset formats. aqua’s reporting is consistently praised for depth and flexibility in enterprise reviews.
User management
Precise user management keeps your TMS secure and scalable as teams grow. At minimum, expect:
- SSO for enterprise authentication
- Default and custom role definitions
- Per-user individual permission settings
- Support for external collaborators and guests without full license costs
Both tools deliver solid user management. Custom roles, individual permissions, and SSO are available in both. aqua’s free unlimited Guest licenses extend this further, allowing external stakeholders to access the system without consuming paid seats.
ALM
A TMS that doubles as a full ALM eliminates the need for multiple vendor licenses and reduces context switching. True ALM coverage should include:
- Test case management across manual and automated workflows
- Requirements management with full traceability
- Defect and bug management natively within the platform
- Project and release management without relying on a separate tool
Both aqua and qTest cover the full product lifecycle and can replace standalone ALM tools. For teams looking to consolidate away from Jira or legacy ALMs, both are strong candidates. aqua’s Bug Management is included in all paid licenses by default, while qTest does not confirm defect management as standard across all tiers.
What people say
Here are a few things people like and dislike about both tools.
“I was surprised to find such a comprehensive and mature tool for test management in the German market without having taken it seriously beforehand.”
Jörg Großmann
Head of Development at Bank 11
"qTest helps to manage projects, test planning, test case management, execution tracking, defect management and reporting. It supports real-time collaboration, which allows team members of a project to view, create and update test cases simultaneously. The customization features of qTest are a little bit below other tools. Sometimes while handling many test cases, test runs and users, we face performance issues."
Pahuni A.
Software Engineer at an SMB company
“The reporting is meaningful and provides a good basis for decisions. After the employees have used aqua, they recognize the added value very quickly.”
Thomas Haeske
Head of Organisation/IT at Berlin Hyp
“qTest does provide basic test case management functionality and some Jira integration. Frequent production issues leave all our users blocked. Poor follow-up on explaining the root cause of outages. No clear way to report functionality gaps and enhancement requests.”
A G2 Reviewer
Hospital & Healthcare SMB
“Manual test cases are easily automated with aqua. Seamless integration with test automation tools helps here.”
Jörn-Hendrick Sörensen
Test Manager at KBA
“It is a database for maintaining the test data for testers in a large organisation and large teams. Small testing teams and organisations can use some other methods for tracking the test status.”
A G2 Reviewer
IT Enterprise
“I was surprised to find such a comprehensive and mature tool for test management in the German market without having taken it seriously beforehand.”
Jörg Großmann
Head of Development at Bank 11
“The reporting is meaningful and provides a good basis for decisions. After the employees have used aqua, they recognize the added value very quickly.”
Thomas Haeske
Head of Organisation/IT at Berlin Hyp
“Manual test cases are easily automated with aqua. Seamless integration with test automation tools helps here.”
Jörn-Hendrick Sörensen
Test Manager at KBA
"qTest helps to manage projects, test planning, test case management, execution tracking, defect management and reporting. It supports real-time collaboration, which allows team members of a project to view, create and update test cases simultaneously. The customization features of qTest are a little bit below other tools. Sometimes while handling many test cases, test runs and users, we face performance issues."
Pahuni A.
Software Engineer at an SMB company
“qTest does provide basic test case management functionality and some Jira integration. Frequent production issues leave all our users blocked. Poor follow-up on explaining the root cause of outages. No clear way to report functionality gaps and enhancement requests.”
A G2 Reviewer
Hospital & Healthcare SMB
“It is a database for maintaining the test data for testers in a large organisation and large teams. Small testing teams and organisations can use some other methods for tracking the test status.”
A G2 Reviewer
IT Enterprise
Final verdict
aqua and qTest are both mature, powerful test management solutions capable of serving as full ALMs. qTest has closed some ground with qTest Copilot and Agentic Test Creation, but Copilot in aqua is broader, deeper, and already included in every paid license at no extra cost. Beyond AI, aqua maintains decisive advantages: fully transparent published pricing, free and low-cost license tiers unavailable in qTest, Bug Management included by default across all plans, 12 out-of-the-box integrations, and stronger deployment options with guaranteed hosting locations for compliance-sensitive industries. For teams not already embedded in the Tricentis ecosystem, aqua delivers more at a lower total cost.
Winner
FAQ
How does qTest pricing compare to aqua ALM?
aqua publishes all pricing: All-in-One is 99 euros/user/month (annual), with free Guest licenses and Test Runner at 19 euros/mo. qTest is quote-based; third-party sources cite approximately $1,000/user/year as a starting point, with no free tier.
Does qTest have AI features?
Yes. qTest Copilot (November 2024) generates test cases from requirements. Agentic Test Creation (February 2026) extends this with context-aware agents. However, qTest AI covers test case creation only and requires the latest paid version. aqua’s Copilot Standard covers requirements, test cases, test data, bug reports, and AI chat, all included in every paid license.
What is the difference between aqua Cloud and aqua On-Premise?
aqua Cloud is a monthly or annual SaaS subscription. On-Premise is for organisations hosting data on their own servers for compliance reasons. Customers pay a one-time license fee plus 20% annual maintenance. After year one, only the 20% continues with no recurring SaaS fees.
Do I need a full license to use aqua?
Yes. At least one full license (Requirements Manager, Test Manager, or All-in-One) is required to manage tests. Guest (free) and Test Runner (19 euros/mo) licenses are add-ons to a full license environment, not standalone products.
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