What is Test Coverage?
What is Test Coverage?
Test coverage is a measure used to determine the extent to which your testing processes validate the specified requirements of a software application.
Formula
The formula for calculating test coverage can be expressed as:
Test Coverage =
Number of Requirements Tested
—————————————- × 100
Total Number of Requirements
Number of Requirements Tested
This is the count of requirements that have corresponding test cases designed and executed against them.
Total Number of Requirements
This is the total count of all defined requirements for the software project, including those that may not yet have associated tests.
Example
Suppose you have the following scenario:
Total Requirements: 50
Requirements Tested: 30
Using the formula, the test coverage would be calculated as follows:
Test Coverage = 30/50 × 100
= 60 %
This means that 60% of the defined requirements have been covered by tests.
Benefits
Quality Assurance: Higher test coverage often indicates better assurance that the software meets its specified requirements.
Risk Mitigation: By identifying untested requirements, teams can address gaps in testing, reducing the risk of defects in production.
Informed Decision-Making: Test coverage metrics can guide development and testing priorities, helping teams focus on critical areas.
Related Metric
Test Execution Coverage or simply Test Execution Rate. It is a measure of how many test cases have been executed out of the total number of test cases planned. This metric helps teams understand the extent of their testing efforts.
Test Execution Coverage Formula
The formula for calculating Test Execution Coverage is:
Test Execution Coverage =
Number of Test Cases Executed/ Total Number of Test Cases × 100
Test coverage is a valuable metric for assessing how thoroughly requirements have been tested in a software project. By using the test coverage formula, teams can gain insights into their testing efforts and identify areas for improvement, ultimately leading to better software quality.