What is a testing metric?

Testing metrics are quantitative measurements used to assess the quality of software or the effectiveness of the testing process. They help understand the current state of the project, identify problematic areas, and make informed decisions.

Main types of metrics:

• Product metrics: Evaluate the quality of the software product itself. Examples include: number of defects per unit of code, defect density, percentage of tests passed.
• Process metrics: Assess the efficiency and productivity of the testing process. Examples include: defect detection rate, percentage of automated tests, time spent on testing.
• Project metrics: Evaluate the status and progress of the entire project. Examples include: number of test cases executed, test coverage of requirements, number of defects found at different stages of the lifecycle.

Examples of commonly used metrics:

• Test code coverage percentage: Measures what portion of the source code was executed during testing.
• Number of defects per build/release: Shows the stability of each new version.
• Defect resolution rate: Assesses how quickly identified defects are fixed.
• Percentage of automated test cases: Indicates the level of test automation.
• Defect density: Number of defects per unit size (e.g., per 1000 lines of code or per functional point).