Writing Go Tests

Table-driven testing uses map-based tables with descriptive test case names to organize and execute multiple test scenarios efficiently. This pattern reduces code duplication and makes it easy to add new test cases by simply adding entries to the table.

Use testing/synctest and t.Parallel to write deterministic concurrent tests that eliminate time-based flakiness. This ensures your concurrent code behaves reliably without depending on timing assumptions.

Integration testing with real dependencies like Testcontainers provides more realistic validation than mocking. Use simple interface-based test doubles only when integration testing is impractical; prefer testing against actual services.

Organize tests in adjacent *_test.go files, use build tags or environment variables to separate integration from unit tests, and use t.Helper and t.Cleanup for setup and teardown logic that keeps tests isolated and maintainable.

Use cmp.Diff or Testify for clear, readable assertions that show actual versus expected values. These tools provide better error messages than basic equality checks and integrate seamlessly with Go 1.24+ testing patterns.

Target 70-80% code coverage to balance catching real bugs with test maintainability. Use testdata and golden files for fixtures, and B.Loop for benchmarks to validate both correctness and performance.