Conclusion: The Right Tool Depends Entirely on Your Workflow

The "best API testing tool" question has no universal answer in 2026. Postman's dominance is ending not because it's bad—it's excellent at what it does—but because most developers don't need an "API platform." They need to test endpoints quickly without ceremony.

Bruno wins for teams already using git by treating API collections like code. No sync button, no divergence, no subscription fees. Store collections in your repository, review changes in pull requests, version alongside your application code. If you're comfortable with git, Bruno eliminates problems you didn't realize were solvable.

Thunder Client wins for VS Code users by embedding testing directly in your editor. Press a keyboard shortcut, test an endpoint, copy code snippet to your application—all without leaving VS Code. The performance advantage (50MB RAM vs Postman's 500MB) might seem minor until you're running Docker, multiple IDEs, and 40 Chrome tabs simultaneously.

Postman still wins for enterprises needing mock servers, scheduled monitoring, and comprehensive automation. The per-seat cost ($12-49/month) is justified when you're actually using these features. Most teams aren't—they're paying for features they never touch.

Insomnia wins for GraphQL developers where its schema introspection and query building genuinely shine. For REST APIs, it's "fine but not exceptional" compared to alternatives.

🎯 Our Recommendations by Scenario

Solo developer in VS Code: Thunder Client free tier—install and forget
2-10 person dev team: Bruno—commit collections to git, never pay
Enterprise with compliance needs: Postman Enterprise—bite the cost, get support
GraphQL-focused startup: Insomnia—best GraphQL experience available
Budget-constrained team: Bruno—literally free forever for unlimited users

4.6/5

The real winner: Competition. Postman's alternatives forced innovation and kept prices honest. Try Bruno or Thunder Client before defaulting to Postman—you might never look back.