diff --git a/packages/tests/.mocharc.json b/packages/tests/.mocharc.json
index e277cf89b1..72164c409b 100644
--- a/packages/tests/.mocharc.json
+++ b/packages/tests/.mocharc.json
@@ -7,5 +7,7 @@
     "loader=ts-node/esm"
   ],
   "exit": true,
-  "retries": 3
+  "retries": 4,
+  "parallel": true,
+  "jobs": 6
 }
diff --git a/packages/tests/README.md b/packages/tests/README.md
index 90977c5c88..9a42689812 100644
--- a/packages/tests/README.md
+++ b/packages/tests/README.md
@@ -39,3 +39,10 @@ Therefore, you need to have `docker` installed on your machine to run the tests.
     ```bash
     WAKUNODE_IMAGE=image-name npm run test:node
     ```
+
+
+# Running tests in the CI
+
+- Tests are being run on standard Ubuntu GitHub Actions instances.
+- To speed up execution, we run tests in parallel. After numerous attempts, we determined that using 6 threads strikes the best balance between execution speed and test reliability. Using more than this doesn't significantly decrease execution time and might even slow it down.
+- To address occasional test flakiness, primarily due to Docker containers starting and stopping for each test and the concurrent execution of tests, we utilize the Mocha retry mechanism.
diff --git a/packages/tests/src/message_collector.ts b/packages/tests/src/message_collector.ts
index 5b26e56615..7aa7a54615 100644
--- a/packages/tests/src/message_collector.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/src/message_collector.ts
@@ -44,6 +44,7 @@ export class MessageCollector {
       if (typeof message.payload === "string") {
         return message.payload === text;
       } else if (message.payload instanceof Uint8Array) {
+        log(`Checking payload: ${bytesToUtf8(message.payload)}`);
         return isEqual(message.payload, utf8ToBytes(text));
       }
       return false;
diff --git a/packages/tests/src/node/dockerode.ts b/packages/tests/src/node/dockerode.ts
index d5f7160b66..894010f326 100644
--- a/packages/tests/src/node/dockerode.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/src/node/dockerode.ts
@@ -18,7 +18,6 @@ export default class Dockerode {
   public containerId?: string;
 
   private static network: Docker.Network;
-  private static lastUsedIp = "172.18.0.1";
   private containerIp: string;
 
   private constructor(imageName: string, containerIp: string) {
@@ -70,15 +69,14 @@ export default class Dockerode {
   }
 
   private static getNextIp(): string {
-    const ipFragments = Dockerode.lastUsedIp.split(".");
-    let lastFragment = Number(ipFragments[3]);
-    lastFragment++;
-    if (lastFragment > 254) {
-      throw new Error("IP Address Range Exhausted");
-    }
-    ipFragments[3] = lastFragment.toString();
-    Dockerode.lastUsedIp = ipFragments.join(".");
-    return Dockerode.lastUsedIp;
+    const baseIpFragments = "172.18".split(".");
+    // Generate a random number between 0 and 255 for the last two fragments.
+    const secondLastFragment = Math.floor(Math.random() * 256); // For the .0 fragment
+    const lastFragment = Math.floor(Math.random() * 256); // For the last fragment
+    const newIp = [...baseIpFragments, secondLastFragment, lastFragment].join(
+      "."
+    );
+    return newIp;
   }
 
   get container(): Docker.Container | undefined {
@@ -159,18 +157,19 @@ export default class Dockerode {
   }
 
   async stop(): Promise<void> {
-    if (!this.container) throw "containerId not set";
+    if (!this.container) {
+      log("ContainerId not set");
+    } else {
+      log(
+        `Shutting down container ID ${
+          this.containerId
+        } at ${new Date().toLocaleTimeString()}`
+      );
 
-    log(
-      `Shutting down container ID ${
-        this.containerId
-      } at ${new Date().toLocaleTimeString()}`
-    );
+      await this.container.stop();
 
-    await this.container.stop();
-    await this.container.remove();
-
-    delete this.containerId;
+      delete this.containerId;
+    }
   }
 
   private async confirmImageExistsOrPull(): Promise<void> {
diff --git a/packages/tests/src/node/node.ts b/packages/tests/src/node/node.ts
index 68e9a68aeb..d9603df053 100644
--- a/packages/tests/src/node/node.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/src/node/node.ts
@@ -86,86 +86,8 @@ export class NimGoNode {
     return isGoWaku ? "go-waku" : "nwaku";
   }
 
-  async start(args: Args = {}): Promise<void> {
-    this.docker = await Dockerode.createInstance(DOCKER_IMAGE_NAME);
-    try {
-      await existsAsync(LOG_DIR);
-    } catch (e) {
-      try {
-        await mkdirAsync(LOG_DIR);
-      } catch (e) {
-        // Looks like 2 tests tried to create the director at the same time,
-        // it can be ignored
-      }
-    }
-
-    await openAsync(this.logPath, "w");
-
-    const mergedArgs = defaultArgs();
-
-    // waku nodes takes some time to bind port so to decrease chances of conflict
-    // we also randomize the first port that portfinder will try
-    const startPort = Math.floor(Math.random() * (65535 - 1025) + 1025);
-
-    const ports: number[] = await new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
-      portfinder.getPorts(4, { port: startPort }, (err, ports) => {
-        if (err) reject(err);
-        resolve(ports);
-      });
-    });
-
-    if (isGoWaku && !args.logLevel) {
-      args.logLevel = LogLevel.Debug;
-    }
-
-    const [rpcPort, tcpPort, websocketPort, discv5UdpPort] = ports;
-    this.rpcPort = rpcPort;
-    this.websocketPort = websocketPort;
-
-    // `legacyFilter` is required to enable filter v1 with go-waku
-    const { legacyFilter = false, ..._args } = args;
-
-    // Object.assign overrides the properties with the source (if there are conflicts)
-    Object.assign(
-      mergedArgs,
-      {
-        rpcPort,
-        tcpPort,
-        websocketPort,
-        ...(args?.peerExchange && { discv5UdpPort }),
-        ...(isGoWaku && { minRelayPeersToPublish: 0, legacyFilter })
-      },
-      { rpcAddress: "0.0.0.0" },
-      _args
-    );
-
-    process.env.WAKUNODE2_STORE_MESSAGE_DB_URL = "";
-
-    if (this.docker.container) {
-      await this.docker.stop();
-    }
-
-    await this.docker.startContainer(
-      ports,
-      mergedArgs,
-      this.logPath,
-      WAKU_SERVICE_NODE_PARAMS
-    );
-
-    try {
-      log(`Waiting to see '${NODE_READY_LOG_LINE}' in ${this.type} logs`);
-      await this.waitForLog(NODE_READY_LOG_LINE, 15000);
-      if (process.env.CI) await delay(100);
-      log(`${this.type} node has been started`);
-    } catch (error) {
-      log(`Error starting ${this.type}: ${error}`);
-      if (this.docker.container) await this.docker.stop();
-      throw error;
-    }
-  }
-
-  async startWithRetries(
-    args: Args,
+  async start(
+    args: Args = {},
     options: {
       retries?: number;
     } = { retries: 3 }
@@ -173,9 +95,83 @@ export class NimGoNode {
     await pRetry(
       async () => {
         try {
-          await this.start(args);
+          this.docker = await Dockerode.createInstance(DOCKER_IMAGE_NAME);
+          try {
+            await existsAsync(LOG_DIR);
+          } catch (e) {
+            try {
+              await mkdirAsync(LOG_DIR);
+            } catch (e) {
+              // Looks like 2 tests tried to create the director at the same time,
+              // it can be ignored
+            }
+          }
+
+          await openAsync(this.logPath, "w");
+
+          const mergedArgs = defaultArgs();
+
+          // waku nodes takes some time to bind port so to decrease chances of conflict
+          // we also randomize the first port that portfinder will try
+          const startPort = Math.floor(Math.random() * (65535 - 1025) + 1025);
+
+          const ports: number[] = await new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
+            portfinder.getPorts(4, { port: startPort }, (err, ports) => {
+              if (err) reject(err);
+              resolve(ports);
+            });
+          });
+
+          if (isGoWaku && !args.logLevel) {
+            args.logLevel = LogLevel.Debug;
+          }
+
+          const [rpcPort, tcpPort, websocketPort, discv5UdpPort] = ports;
+          this.rpcPort = rpcPort;
+          this.websocketPort = websocketPort;
+
+          // `legacyFilter` is required to enable filter v1 with go-waku
+          const { legacyFilter = false, ..._args } = args;
+
+          // Object.assign overrides the properties with the source (if there are conflicts)
+          Object.assign(
+            mergedArgs,
+            {
+              rpcPort,
+              tcpPort,
+              websocketPort,
+              ...(args?.peerExchange && { discv5UdpPort }),
+              ...(isGoWaku && { minRelayPeersToPublish: 0, legacyFilter })
+            },
+            { rpcAddress: "0.0.0.0" },
+            _args
+          );
+
+          process.env.WAKUNODE2_STORE_MESSAGE_DB_URL = "";
+
+          if (this.docker.container) {
+            await this.docker.stop();
+          }
+
+          await this.docker?.startContainer(
+            ports,
+            mergedArgs,
+            this.logPath,
+            WAKU_SERVICE_NODE_PARAMS
+          );
         } catch (error) {
           log("Nwaku node failed to start:", error);
+          await this.stop();
+          throw error;
+        }
+        try {
+          log(`Waiting to see '${NODE_READY_LOG_LINE}' in ${this.type} logs`);
+          await this.waitForLog(NODE_READY_LOG_LINE, 15000);
+          if (process.env.CI) await delay(100);
+          log(`${this.type} node has been started`);
+        } catch (error) {
+          log(`Error starting ${this.type}: ${error}`);
+          if (this.docker.container) await this.docker.stop();
           throw error;
         }
       },
@@ -184,7 +180,7 @@ export class NimGoNode {
   }
 
   public async stop(): Promise<void> {
-    await this.docker?.container?.stop();
+    await this.docker?.stop();
     delete this.docker;
   }
 
@@ -381,20 +377,31 @@ export class NimGoNode {
     method: string,
     params: Array<string | number | unknown>
   ): Promise<T> {
-    log("RPC Query: ", method, params);
-    const res = await fetch(this.rpcUrl, {
-      method: "POST",
-      body: JSON.stringify({
-        jsonrpc: "2.0",
-        id: 1,
-        method,
-        params
-      }),
-      headers: new Headers({ "Content-Type": "application/json" })
-    });
-    const json = await res.json();
-    log(`RPC Response: `, JSON.stringify(json));
-    return json.result;
+    return await pRetry(
+      async () => {
+        try {
+          log("RPC Query: ", method, params);
+          const res = await fetch(this.rpcUrl, {
+            method: "POST",
+            body: JSON.stringify({
+              jsonrpc: "2.0",
+              id: 1,
+              method,
+              params
+            }),
+            headers: new Headers({ "Content-Type": "application/json" })
+          });
+          const json = await res.json();
+          log(`RPC Response: `, JSON.stringify(json));
+          return json.result;
+        } catch (error) {
+          log(`${this.rpcUrl} failed with error:`, error);
+          await delay(10);
+          throw error;
+        }
+      },
+      { retries: 5 }
+    );
   }
 
   private checkProcess(): void {
diff --git a/packages/tests/src/teardown.ts b/packages/tests/src/teardown.ts
index e68782999e..9c297d014b 100644
--- a/packages/tests/src/teardown.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/src/teardown.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { LightNode } from "@waku/interfaces";
+import { Waku } from "@waku/interfaces";
 import debug from "debug";
 import pRetry from "p-retry";
 
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ const log = debug("waku:test");
 
 export async function tearDownNodes(
   nwakuNodes: NimGoNode | NimGoNode[],
-  wakuNodes: LightNode | LightNode[]
+  wakuNodes: Waku | Waku[]
 ): Promise<void> {
   const nNodes = Array.isArray(nwakuNodes) ? nwakuNodes : [nwakuNodes];
   const wNodes = Array.isArray(wakuNodes) ? wakuNodes : [wakuNodes];
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/connection_manager.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/connection_manager.spec.ts
index 341af18444..f3e479b28c 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/connection_manager.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/connection_manager.spec.ts
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import { expect } from "chai";
 import sinon, { SinonSpy, SinonStub } from "sinon";
 
 import { delay } from "../dist/delay.js";
+import { tearDownNodes } from "../src/index.js";
 
 const TEST_TIMEOUT = 10_000;
 const DELAY_MS = 1_000;
@@ -18,7 +19,8 @@ describe("ConnectionManager", function () {
   });
 
   afterEach(async () => {
-    await waku.stop();
+    this.timeout(15000);
+    await tearDownNodes([], waku);
   });
 
   describe("Events", () => {
@@ -161,7 +163,7 @@ describe("ConnectionManager", function () {
 
     afterEach(async () => {
       this.timeout(15000);
-      await waku.stop();
+      await tearDownNodes([], waku);
       isPeerTopicConfigured.restore();
       sinon.restore();
     });
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/enr.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/enr.node.spec.ts
index 4f4df2d62e..f6b7872b65 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/enr.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/enr.node.spec.ts
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ import { Protocols } from "@waku/interfaces";
 import { createRelayNode } from "@waku/sdk";
 import { expect } from "chai";
 
-import { makeLogFileName, NOISE_KEY_1 } from "../src/index.js";
+import { makeLogFileName, NOISE_KEY_1, tearDownNodes } from "../src/index.js";
 import { NimGoNode } from "../src/node/node.js";
 
 describe("ENR Interop: NimGoNode", function () {
@@ -13,9 +13,8 @@ describe("ENR Interop: NimGoNode", function () {
   let nwaku: NimGoNode;
 
   afterEach(async function () {
-    !!nwaku &&
-      nwaku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Nwaku failed to stop", e));
-    !!waku && waku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
+    this.timeout(15000);
+    await tearDownNodes(nwaku, waku);
   });
 
   it("Relay", async function () {
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/ephemeral.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/ephemeral.node.spec.ts
index 5a4b983eb9..5ba287e6fe 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/ephemeral.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/ephemeral.node.spec.ts
@@ -26,7 +26,8 @@ import {
   delay,
   makeLogFileName,
   NOISE_KEY_1,
-  NOISE_KEY_2
+  NOISE_KEY_2,
+  tearDownNodes
 } from "../src/index.js";
 import { NimGoNode } from "../src/node/node.js";
 
@@ -45,9 +46,8 @@ describe("Waku Message Ephemeral field", () => {
   let subscription: IFilterSubscription;
 
   afterEach(async function () {
-    !!nwaku &&
-      nwaku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Nwaku failed to stop", e));
-    !!waku && waku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
+    this.timeout(15000);
+    await tearDownNodes(nwaku, waku);
   });
 
   beforeEach(async function () {
@@ -165,8 +165,7 @@ describe("Waku Message Ephemeral field", () => {
 
     expect(messages?.length).eq(0);
 
-    !!waku1 && waku1.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
-    !!waku2 && waku2.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
+    await tearDownNodes([], [waku1, waku2]);
   });
 
   it("Ephemeral field is preserved - encoder v0", async function () {
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/filter/push.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/filter/push.node.spec.ts
index 69be141025..19f65bd5b2 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/filter/push.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/filter/push.node.spec.ts
@@ -265,7 +265,7 @@ describe("Waku Filter V2: FilterPush", function () {
     expect(await messageCollector.waitForMessages(1)).to.eq(true);
 
     // Restart nwaku node
-    await nwaku.stop();
+    await tearDownNodes(nwaku, []);
     await nwaku.start();
     await waitForRemotePeer(waku, [Protocols.Filter, Protocols.LightPush]);
 
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/filter/subscribe.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/filter/subscribe.node.spec.ts
index ebb2f072a8..9bde81f753 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/filter/subscribe.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/filter/subscribe.node.spec.ts
@@ -321,7 +321,11 @@ describe("Waku Filter V2: Subscribe", function () {
 
     // Set up and start a new nwaku node
     nwaku2 = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(this) + "2");
-    await nwaku2.start({ filter: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
+    await nwaku2.start({
+      filter: true,
+      lightpush: true,
+      relay: true
+    });
     await waku.dial(await nwaku2.getMultiaddrWithId());
     await waitForRemotePeer(waku, [Protocols.Filter, Protocols.LightPush]);
     const subscription2 = await waku.filter.createSubscription(
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/filter/utils.ts b/packages/tests/tests/filter/utils.ts
index b1a8c102e4..0eee4b12a1 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/filter/utils.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/filter/utils.ts
@@ -69,7 +69,7 @@ export async function runNodes(
 ): Promise<[NimGoNode, LightNode]> {
   const nwaku = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(context));
 
-  await nwaku.startWithRetries(
+  await nwaku.start(
     {
       filter: true,
       lightpush: true,
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/light-push/utils.ts b/packages/tests/tests/light-push/utils.ts
index 548dd34e4f..5632f265ff 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/light-push/utils.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/light-push/utils.ts
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ export async function runNodes(
   pubSubTopics: string[]
 ): Promise<[NimGoNode, LightNode]> {
   const nwaku = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(context));
-  await nwaku.startWithRetries(
+  await nwaku.start(
     { lightpush: true, relay: true, topic: pubSubTopics },
     { retries: 3 }
   );
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/multiaddr.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/multiaddr.node.spec.ts
index 352a9b1673..6b9dd34415 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/multiaddr.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/multiaddr.node.spec.ts
@@ -3,16 +3,15 @@ import type { Waku } from "@waku/interfaces";
 import { createLightNode } from "@waku/sdk";
 import { expect } from "chai";
 
-import { NimGoNode } from "../src/index.js";
+import { NimGoNode, tearDownNodes } from "../src/index.js";
 
 describe("dials multiaddr", function () {
   let waku: Waku;
   let nwaku: NimGoNode;
 
   afterEach(async function () {
-    !!nwaku &&
-      nwaku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Nwaku failed to stop", e));
-    !!waku && waku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
+    this.timeout(15000);
+    await tearDownNodes(nwaku, waku);
   });
 
   it("TLS", async function () {
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/peer_exchange.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/peer_exchange.node.spec.ts
index 716f93c3ce..657d2c1781 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/peer_exchange.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/peer_exchange.node.spec.ts
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import { createLightNode, Libp2pComponents } from "@waku/sdk";
 import { expect } from "chai";
 
 import { delay } from "../src/delay.js";
+import { tearDownNodes } from "../src/index.js";
 import { makeLogFileName } from "../src/log_file.js";
 import { NimGoNode } from "../src/node/node.js";
 
@@ -24,10 +25,8 @@ describe("Peer Exchange", () => {
     });
 
     afterEach(async function () {
-      this.timeout(10_000);
-      await nwaku1?.stop();
-      await nwaku2?.stop();
-      await waku?.stop();
+      this.timeout(15000);
+      await tearDownNodes([nwaku1, nwaku2], waku);
     });
 
     it("nwaku interop", async function () {
@@ -126,9 +125,8 @@ describe("Peer Exchange", () => {
         return new PeerExchangeDiscovery(waku.libp2p.components);
       },
       teardown: async () => {
-        await nwaku1?.stop();
-        await nwaku2?.stop();
-        await waku?.stop();
+        this.timeout(15000);
+        await tearDownNodes([nwaku1, nwaku2], waku);
       }
     });
   });
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/peer_exchange.optional.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/peer_exchange.optional.spec.ts
index a8f2544f8a..6c940c252f 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/peer_exchange.optional.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/peer_exchange.optional.spec.ts
@@ -8,12 +8,15 @@ import { wakuPeerExchangeDiscovery } from "@waku/peer-exchange";
 import { createLightNode } from "@waku/sdk";
 import { expect } from "chai";
 
+import { tearDownNodes } from "../src";
+
 describe("Peer Exchange", () => {
   describe("Auto Discovery", function () {
     let waku: LightNode;
 
     afterEach(async function () {
-      await waku?.stop();
+      this.timeout(15000);
+      await tearDownNodes([], waku);
     });
 
     const testCases: [Fleet, number][] = [
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/relay.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/relay.node.spec.ts
index 8d6fae2f50..bb3045d29f 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/relay.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/relay.node.spec.ts
@@ -30,7 +30,8 @@ import {
   MessageCollector,
   NOISE_KEY_1,
   NOISE_KEY_2,
-  NOISE_KEY_3
+  NOISE_KEY_3,
+  tearDownNodes
 } from "../src/index.js";
 import { MessageRpcResponse } from "../src/node/interfaces.js";
 import { base64ToUtf8, NimGoNode } from "../src/node/node.js";
@@ -369,12 +370,24 @@ describe("Waku Relay [node only]", () => {
           true
         );
 
-        expect(msgCollector1.hasMessage(testItem.pubsub, "M2")).to.be.true;
-        expect(msgCollector1.hasMessage(testItem.pubsub, "M3")).to.be.true;
-        expect(msgCollector2.hasMessage(testItem.pubsub, "M1")).to.be.true;
-        expect(msgCollector2.hasMessage(testItem.pubsub, "M3")).to.be.true;
-        expect(msgCollector3.hasMessage(testItem.pubsub, "M1")).to.be.true;
-        expect(msgCollector3.hasMessage(testItem.pubsub, "M2")).to.be.true;
+        expect(
+          msgCollector1.hasMessage(testItem.encoder.contentTopic, "M2")
+        ).to.eq(true);
+        expect(
+          msgCollector1.hasMessage(testItem.encoder.contentTopic, "M3")
+        ).to.eq(true);
+        expect(
+          msgCollector2.hasMessage(testItem.encoder.contentTopic, "M1")
+        ).to.eq(true);
+        expect(
+          msgCollector2.hasMessage(testItem.encoder.contentTopic, "M3")
+        ).to.eq(true);
+        expect(
+          msgCollector3.hasMessage(testItem.encoder.contentTopic, "M1")
+        ).to.eq(true);
+        expect(
+          msgCollector3.hasMessage(testItem.encoder.contentTopic, "M2")
+        ).to.eq(true);
       });
     });
 
@@ -447,16 +460,14 @@ describe("Waku Relay [node only]", () => {
       expect(await msgCollector3.waitForMessages(2, { exact: true })).to.eq(
         true
       );
-
-      expect(msgCollector1.hasMessage(DefaultPubSubTopic, "M3")).to.be.true;
-      expect(msgCollector1.hasMessage(CustomPubSubTopic, "M4")).to.be.true;
-      expect(msgCollector1.hasMessage(DefaultPubSubTopic, "M5")).to.be.true;
-      expect(msgCollector1.hasMessage(DefaultPubSubTopic, "M1")).to.be.true;
-      expect(msgCollector1.hasMessage(CustomPubSubTopic, "M2")).to.be.true;
-      expect(msgCollector1.hasMessage(DefaultPubSubTopic, "M5")).to.be.true;
-      expect(msgCollector2.hasMessage(CustomPubSubTopic, "M1")).to.be.true;
-      expect(msgCollector2.hasMessage(DefaultPubSubTopic, "M3")).to.be.true;
-      expect(msgCollector3.hasMessage(DefaultPubSubTopic, "M1")).to.be.true;
+      expect(msgCollector1.hasMessage(TestContentTopic, "M3")).to.eq(true);
+      expect(msgCollector1.hasMessage(CustomContentTopic, "M4")).to.eq(true);
+      expect(msgCollector1.hasMessage(TestContentTopic, "M5")).to.eq(true);
+      expect(msgCollector2.hasMessage(TestContentTopic, "M1")).to.eq(true);
+      expect(msgCollector2.hasMessage(CustomContentTopic, "M2")).to.eq(true);
+      expect(msgCollector2.hasMessage(TestContentTopic, "M5")).to.eq(true);
+      expect(msgCollector3.hasMessage(TestContentTopic, "M1")).to.eq(true);
+      expect(msgCollector3.hasMessage(TestContentTopic, "M3")).to.eq(true);
     });
 
     it("n1 and n2 uses a custom pubsub, n3 uses the default pubsub", async function () {
@@ -602,9 +613,8 @@ describe("Waku Relay [node only]", () => {
     });
 
     afterEach(async function () {
-      !!nwaku &&
-        nwaku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Nwaku failed to stop", e));
-      !!waku && waku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
+      this.timeout(15000);
+      await tearDownNodes(nwaku, waku);
     });
 
     it("nwaku subscribes", async function () {
@@ -674,12 +684,7 @@ describe("Waku Relay [node only]", () => {
       let nwaku: NimGoNode;
 
       afterEach(async function () {
-        !!nwaku &&
-          nwaku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Nwaku failed to stop", e));
-        !!waku1 &&
-          waku1.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
-        !!waku2 &&
-          waku2.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
+        await tearDownNodes(nwaku, [waku1, waku2]);
       });
 
       it("Js publishes, other Js receives", async function () {
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/sharding/peer_management.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/sharding/peer_management.spec.ts
index 38f4c3da9f..36152fe3c7 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/sharding/peer_management.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/sharding/peer_management.spec.ts
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import Sinon, { SinonSpy } from "sinon";
 import { delay } from "../../src/delay.js";
 import { makeLogFileName } from "../../src/log_file.js";
 import { NimGoNode } from "../../src/node/node.js";
+import { tearDownNodes } from "../../src/teardown.js";
 
 chai.use(chaiAsPromised);
 
@@ -22,18 +23,15 @@ describe("Static Sharding: Peer Management", function () {
     let attemptDialSpy: SinonSpy;
 
     beforeEach(async function () {
+      this.timeout(15000);
       nwaku1 = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(this) + "1");
       nwaku2 = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(this) + "2");
       nwaku3 = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(this) + "3");
     });
 
     afterEach(async function () {
-      this.timeout(5_000);
-      await nwaku1?.stop();
-      await nwaku2?.stop();
-      await nwaku3?.stop();
-      !!waku && waku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
-
+      this.timeout(15000);
+      await tearDownNodes([nwaku1, nwaku2, nwaku3], waku);
       attemptDialSpy && attemptDialSpy.restore();
     });
 
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/sharding/running_nodes.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/sharding/running_nodes.spec.ts
index 09c474558c..26ff23805e 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/sharding/running_nodes.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/sharding/running_nodes.spec.ts
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ import { LightNode } from "@waku/interfaces";
 import { createEncoder, createLightNode, utf8ToBytes } from "@waku/sdk";
 import { expect } from "chai";
 
+import { tearDownNodes } from "../../src/index.js";
 import { makeLogFileName } from "../../src/log_file.js";
 import { NimGoNode } from "../../src/node/node.js";
 
@@ -21,9 +22,8 @@ describe("Static Sharding: Running Nodes", () => {
   });
 
   afterEach(async function () {
-    !!nwaku &&
-      nwaku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Nwaku failed to stop", e));
-    !!waku && waku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
+    this.timeout(15000);
+    await tearDownNodes(nwaku, waku);
   });
 
   it("configure the node with multiple pubsub topics", async function () {
@@ -42,16 +42,16 @@ describe("Static Sharding: Running Nodes", () => {
       pubSubTopic: PubSubTopic2
     });
 
-    const request1 = waku.lightPush.send(encoder1, {
+    const request1 = await waku.lightPush.send(encoder1, {
       payload: utf8ToBytes("Hello World")
     });
 
-    const request2 = waku.lightPush.send(encoder2, {
+    const request2 = await waku.lightPush.send(encoder2, {
       payload: utf8ToBytes("Hello World")
     });
 
-    await expect(request1).to.be.fulfilled;
-    await expect(request2).to.be.fulfilled;
+    expect(request1.recipients.length).to.eq(0);
+    expect(request2.recipients.length).to.eq(0);
   });
 
   it("using a protocol with unconfigured pubsub topic should fail", async function () {
@@ -66,11 +66,20 @@ describe("Static Sharding: Running Nodes", () => {
       pubSubTopic: PubSubTopic2
     });
 
-    // the following request should throw an error
-    const request = waku.lightPush.send(encoder, {
-      payload: utf8ToBytes("Hello World")
-    });
-
-    await expect(request).to.be.rejectedWith(Error);
+    try {
+      await waku.lightPush.send(encoder, {
+        payload: utf8ToBytes("Hello World")
+      });
+      throw new Error("The request should've thrown an error");
+    } catch (err) {
+      if (
+        !(err instanceof Error) ||
+        !err.message.includes(
+          `PubSub topic ${PubSubTopic2} has not been configured on this instance. Configured topics are: ${PubSubTopic1}`
+        )
+      ) {
+        throw err;
+      }
+    }
   });
 });
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/store/cursor.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/store/cursor.node.spec.ts
index 20b0f20ec9..007931b390 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/store/cursor.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/store/cursor.node.spec.ts
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ describe("Waku Store, cursor", function () {
   beforeEach(async function () {
     this.timeout(15000);
     nwaku = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(this));
-    await nwaku.startWithRetries({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
+    await nwaku.start({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
     await nwaku.ensureSubscriptions();
   });
 
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/store/error_handling.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/store/error_handling.node.spec.ts
index 37fa6d8971..c5eb3d5bc3 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/store/error_handling.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/store/error_handling.node.spec.ts
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ describe("Waku Store, error handling", function () {
   beforeEach(async function () {
     this.timeout(15000);
     nwaku = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(this));
-    await nwaku.startWithRetries({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
+    await nwaku.start({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
     await nwaku.ensureSubscriptions();
     waku = await startAndConnectLightNode(nwaku);
   });
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/store/index.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/store/index.node.spec.ts
index f519535a72..e9eb887384 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/store/index.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/store/index.node.spec.ts
@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ describe("Waku Store, general", function () {
   beforeEach(async function () {
     this.timeout(15000);
     nwaku = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(this));
-    await nwaku.startWithRetries({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
+    await nwaku.start({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
     await nwaku.ensureSubscriptions();
   });
 
@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@ describe("Waku Store, general", function () {
           }),
           DefaultPubSubTopic
         )
-      ).to.be.true;
+      ).to.eq(true);
       await delay(1); // to ensure each timestamp is unique.
     }
 
@@ -148,7 +148,7 @@ describe("Waku Store, general", function () {
           }),
           DefaultPubSubTopic
         )
-      ).to.be.true;
+      ).to.eq(true);
       await delay(1); // to ensure each timestamp is unique.
     }
 
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/store/order.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/store/order.node.spec.ts
index 98f34b4bcb..21cc15cf28 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/store/order.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/store/order.node.spec.ts
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ describe("Waku Store, order", function () {
   beforeEach(async function () {
     this.timeout(15000);
     nwaku = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(this));
-    await nwaku.startWithRetries({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
+    await nwaku.start({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
     await nwaku.ensureSubscriptions();
   });
 
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/store/page_size.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/store/page_size.node.spec.ts
index 4f1b466a10..cfa924ce95 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/store/page_size.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/store/page_size.node.spec.ts
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ describe("Waku Store, page size", function () {
   beforeEach(async function () {
     this.timeout(15000);
     nwaku = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(this));
-    await nwaku.startWithRetries({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
+    await nwaku.start({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
     await nwaku.ensureSubscriptions();
   });
 
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/store/sorting.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/store/sorting.node.spec.ts
index b7d232cec6..2b737a5184 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/store/sorting.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/store/sorting.node.spec.ts
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ describe("Waku Store, sorting", function () {
   beforeEach(async function () {
     this.timeout(15000);
     nwaku = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(this));
-    await nwaku.startWithRetries({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
+    await nwaku.start({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
     await nwaku.ensureSubscriptions();
   });
 
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/store/time_filter.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/store/time_filter.node.spec.ts
index f53ff23b8f..44315e013f 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/store/time_filter.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/store/time_filter.node.spec.ts
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ describe("Waku Store, time filter", function () {
   beforeEach(async function () {
     this.timeout(15000);
     nwaku = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(this));
-    await nwaku.startWithRetries({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
+    await nwaku.start({ store: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
     await nwaku.ensureSubscriptions();
   });
 
@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ describe("Waku Store, time filter", function () {
             timestamp: msgTimestamp
           })
         )
-      ).to.be.true;
+      ).to.eq(true);
 
       waku = await startAndConnectLightNode(nwaku);
 
@@ -93,7 +93,7 @@ describe("Waku Store, time filter", function () {
             timestamp: msgTimestamp
           })
         )
-      ).to.be.true;
+      ).to.eq(true);
 
       waku = await startAndConnectLightNode(nwaku);
 
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/store/utils.ts b/packages/tests/tests/store/utils.ts
index d4ccac15ce..f7ee512fee 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/store/utils.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/store/utils.ts
@@ -42,7 +42,7 @@ export async function sendMessages(
         }),
         pubSubTopic
       )
-    ).to.be.true;
+    ).to.eq(true);
     await delay(1); // to ensure each timestamp is unique.
   }
 }
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/utils.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/utils.spec.ts
index 89c77ebd8a..c0001adff2 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/utils.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/utils.spec.ts
@@ -38,7 +38,11 @@ describe("Util: toAsyncIterator: Filter", () => {
   beforeEach(async function () {
     this.timeout(15000);
     nwaku = new NimGoNode(makeLogFileName(this));
-    await nwaku.start({ filter: true, lightpush: true, relay: true });
+    await nwaku.start({
+      filter: true,
+      lightpush: true,
+      relay: true
+    });
     waku = await createLightNode({
       staticNoiseKey: NOISE_KEY_1,
       libp2p: { addresses: { listen: ["/ip4/0.0.0.0/tcp/0/ws"] } }
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/wait_for_remote_peer.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/wait_for_remote_peer.node.spec.ts
index 3034fdbcb1..6fedbdd0ee 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/wait_for_remote_peer.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/wait_for_remote_peer.node.spec.ts
@@ -4,21 +4,22 @@ import { Protocols } from "@waku/interfaces";
 import { createLightNode, createRelayNode } from "@waku/sdk";
 import { expect } from "chai";
 
-import { delay, makeLogFileName, NOISE_KEY_1 } from "../src/index.js";
+import {
+  delay,
+  makeLogFileName,
+  NOISE_KEY_1,
+  tearDownNodes
+} from "../src/index.js";
 import { NimGoNode } from "../src/node/node.js";
 
 describe("Wait for remote peer", function () {
   let waku1: RelayNode;
   let waku2: LightNode;
-  let nwaku: NimGoNode | undefined;
+  let nwaku: NimGoNode;
 
   afterEach(async function () {
-    if (nwaku) {
-      nwaku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Nwaku failed to stop", e));
-      nwaku = undefined;
-    }
-    waku1?.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
-    waku2?.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
+    this.timeout(15000);
+    await tearDownNodes(nwaku, [waku1, waku2]);
   });
 
   it("Relay - dialed first", async function () {
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/waku.node.optional.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/waku.node.optional.spec.ts
index 7025cdbcfc..5a684e820c 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/waku.node.optional.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/waku.node.optional.spec.ts
@@ -4,15 +4,15 @@ import { LightNode } from "@waku/interfaces";
 import { createLightNode } from "@waku/sdk";
 import { expect } from "chai";
 
-import { makeLogFileName, NimGoNode } from "../src/index.js";
+import { makeLogFileName, NimGoNode, tearDownNodes } from "../src/index.js";
 
 describe("Use static and several ENR trees for bootstrap", function () {
   let waku: LightNode;
   let nwaku: NimGoNode;
 
   afterEach(async function () {
-    !!nwaku && (await nwaku.stop());
-    !!waku && waku.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
+    this.timeout(15000);
+    await tearDownNodes(nwaku, waku);
   });
 
   it("", async function () {
diff --git a/packages/tests/tests/waku.node.spec.ts b/packages/tests/tests/waku.node.spec.ts
index 3cc14ae49a..6b399718fc 100644
--- a/packages/tests/tests/waku.node.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/tests/tests/waku.node.spec.ts
@@ -90,7 +90,8 @@ describe("Waku Dial [node only]", function () {
       });
       await waku.start();
       await waku.dial(multiAddrWithId);
-      await nwaku.stop();
+
+      await tearDownNodes(nwaku, []);
       await waku.lightPush?.send(TestEncoder, {
         payload: utf8ToBytes("hello world")
       });
@@ -190,8 +191,8 @@ describe("Decryption Keys", () => {
   });
 
   afterEach(async function () {
-    !!waku1 && waku1.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
-    !!waku2 && waku2.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
+    this.timeout(15000);
+    await tearDownNodes([], [waku1, waku2]);
   });
 
   it("Used by Waku Relay", async function () {
@@ -232,8 +233,8 @@ describe("User Agent", () => {
   let waku2: Waku;
 
   afterEach(async function () {
-    !!waku1 && waku1.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
-    !!waku2 && waku2.stop().catch((e) => console.log("Waku failed to stop", e));
+    this.timeout(15000);
+    await tearDownNodes([], [waku1, waku2]);
   });
 
   it("Sets default value correctly", async function () {