test-watch-maven-plugin

Vitest-inspired watch mode for Maven tests. Save a file, see your test results instantly — no IDE required.

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Why?

You're working on a Java project. You change a class. Now you need to know if the tests still pass.

Your options:

• mvn test — slow, runs everything, 30+ seconds of waiting
• Infinitest — great, but IDE-specific (Eclipse/IntelliJ only), and doesn't work for everyone's setup
• Switch to Gradle just for --continuous? Overkill.

test-watch-maven-plugin gives you the same instant feedback loop you get with Vitest, Jest, or cargo watch — but for Maven. Save a .java file, and only the affected tests run. In parallel. With readable output.

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Features

• 👀 File watching — monitors your source tree for changes
• 🎯 Smart test selection — only re-runs tests affected by changed files (configurable patterns)
• ⚡ Parallel execution — runs tests concurrently for faster feedback
• 📊 Readable summaries — clean pass/fail output, not Maven's wall of text
• 🔌 Maven-native — no extra daemon, no IDE plugin, just mvn
• 🧩 Configurable — include/exclude patterns, test matching, parallel toggle, smart selection toggle

Requirements

• Java JDK 11+
• Maven 3.6+

Quick Start

Add the plugin to your pom.xml:

<build>
    <plugins>
        <plugin>
            <groupId>io.github.albilu</groupId>
            <artifactId>test-watch-maven-plugin</artifactId>
            <version>1.0.0</version>
            <configuration>
                <includes>
                    <include>**/*.java</include>
                </includes>
                <excludes>
                    <exclude>**/target/**</exclude>
                </excludes>
                <testPattern>**/*Test.java</testPattern>
                <parallel>true</parallel>
                <smartSelection>true</smartSelection>
            </configuration>
        </plugin>
    </plugins>
</build>

Then run:

mvn test-watch-maven-plugin:test

The plugin watches your source files. Change anything, save, and tests re-run automatically.

Configuration

Option	Default	Description
includes	**/*.java	Files to watch for changes
excludes	—	Patterns to ignore (e.g., **/target/**)
testPattern	**/*Test.java	Pattern to identify test files
parallel	true	Run tests in parallel
smartSelection	true	Only run tests affected by changed files

How It Works

1. Plugin starts a file watcher on your configured source paths
2. When a .java file changes, the plugin identifies which test files to run using testPattern
3. With smartSelection: true, only tests matching changed source files are executed
4. Tests are dispatched to Maven's invoker framework (parallel when enabled)
5. Results are aggregated into a clean summary

vs Alternatives

	test-watch-maven-plugin	Infinitest	mvn test -pl ...	Gradle --continuous
Watch mode	✅	✅	❌	✅
Maven-native	✅	❌ (IDE plugin)	✅	❌
IDE-agnostic	✅	❌	✅	✅
Smart selection	✅	✅	❌	❌
Parallel tests	✅	❌	✅	✅
CLI-first	✅	❌	✅	✅

Contributing

Contributions welcome. Please open issues or PRs against this repository. Follow existing code style and include tests for new behavior.

License

MIT — see LICENSE.