7 Fresh and Simple Ways to Test Cross-Browser Compatibility

As little as one year ago, there were almost no good options for testing cross-browser compatibility of websites. The tools out there usually had significant drawbacks — either in cost, capabilities, or time required. Lately, though, there have been a lot of newcomers to the browser testing world, some of which offer truly excellent services.

In this article we’ve listed 7 fresh and simple tools for cross-browser compatibility testing, tools that actually make this stuff pretty easy. Not only that, but every single one of these tools can be used for free.

#1 — Xenocode Browser Sandbox

The Xenocode Browser Sandbox is a game-changer for browser testing on Windows-based machines. With a single click of your mouse you can have an open and working browser without any installation. You can test in various IE versions, Firefox, Google Chrome, and even Safari. And really test, too, not just screenshots. To top everything off, the entire service is provide free of charge. Zip, nadda, nothing.

Alas, this isn’t yet the perfect solution. There is currently no Macintosh support, which is definitely a significant problem. I’ve heard rumor that this may be coming in the future, though, and at that time this service will be in a class of its own.


Mason Hipp.
[updated 25 February 2009; cited 6 November 2009]. 
Available from
http://freelancefolder.com/