Testing Strategies for Laravel Applications

Testing Strategies for Laravel Applications

Implement comprehensive testing to ensure your Laravel blog works correctly and maintains quality over time.

Unit Tests

Test individual methods and classes:

class PostTest extends TestCase
{
    public function test_post_can_be_created()
    {
        $post = Post::factory()->create([
            'title' => 'Test Post',
            'status' => 'published'
        ]);
        
        $this->assertDatabaseHas('posts', [
            'title' => 'Test Post',
            'status' => 'published'
        ]);
    }
}

Feature Tests

Test complete features and user workflows:

class BlogTest extends TestCase
{
    public function test_user_can_view_blog_posts()
    {
        $post = Post::factory()->published()->create();
        
        $response = $this->get('/blog');
        
        $response->assertStatus(200);
        $response->assertSee($post->title);
    }
}

Database Factories

Create test data with factories:

class PostFactory extends Factory
{
    public function definition()
    {
        return [
            'title' => $this->faker->sentence(),
            'slug' => $this->faker->slug(),
            'excerpt' => $this->faker->paragraph(),
            'content' => $this->faker->paragraphs(3, true),
            'status' => 'published',
            'published_at' => now(),
        ];
    }
}

Testing Best Practices

• Test the happy path and edge cases
• Use descriptive test names
• Keep tests independent
• Use database transactions