API testing

Part of a series on
Software development
Core activities
Paradigms and models
Methodologies and frameworks
Supporting disciplines
Practices
Tools
Standards and bodies of knowledge
Glossaries
Outlines

API testing is a type of software testing that involves testing application programming interfaces (APIs) directly and as part of integration testing to determine if they meet expectations for functionality, reliability, performance, and security.[1] Since APIs lack a GUI, API testing is performed at the message layer.[2] API testing is now considered critical for automating testing because APIs serve as the primary interface to application logic and because GUI tests are difficult to maintain with the short release cycles and frequent changes commonly used with Agile software development and DevOps.[3][4]

  1. ^ Testing APIs protects applications and reputations, by Amy Reichert, SearchSoftwareQuality March 2015
  2. ^ All About API Testing: An Interview with Jonathan Cooper, by Cameron Philipp-Edmonds, Stickyminds August 19, 2014
  3. ^ The Forrester Wave Evaluation Of Functional Test Automation (FTA) Is Out And It's All About Going Beyond GUI Testing Archived 2015-05-28 at the Wayback Machine, by Diego Lo Giudice, Forrester April 23, 2015
  4. ^ Produce Better Software by Using a Layered Testing Strategy[dead link], by SEAN Kenefick, Gartner January 7, 2014