This is the Safari online edition of the printed book.

“As Agile methods have entered the mainstream, we’ve learned a lot about how the testing discipline fits into Agile projects. Lisa and Janet give us a solid look at what to do, and what to avoid, in Agile testing.”
—Ron Jeffries, www.XProgramming.com

“An excellent introduction to agile and how it affects the software test community!”
—Gerard Meszaros, Agile Practice Lead and Chief Test Strategist at Solution Frameworks, Inc., an agile coaching and lean software development consultancy

“In sports and music, people know the importance of practicing technique until it becomes a part of the way they do things. This book is about some of the most fundamental techniques in software development—how to build quality into code—techniques that should become second nature to every development team. The book provides both broad and in-depth coverage of how to move testing to the front of the development process, along with a liberal sprinkling of real-life examples that bring the book to life.”
—Mary Poppendieck, Author of Lean Software Development and Implementing Lean Software Development

“Refreshingly pragmatic. Chock-full of wisdom. Absent of dogma. This book is a gamechanger. Every software professional should read it.”
—Uncle Bob Martin, Object Mentor, Inc.

“With Agile Testing, Lisa and Janet have used their holistic sensibility of testing to describe a culture shift for testers and teams willing to elevate their test effectiveness. The combination of real-life project experiences and specific techniques provide an excellent way to learn and adapt to continually changing project needs.”
—Adam Geras, M.Sc. Developer-Tester, Ideaca Knowledge Services

“On Agile projects, everyone seems to ask, ‘But, what about testing?’ Is it the development team’s responsibility entirely, the testing team, or a collaborative effort between developers and testers? Or, ‘How much testing should we automate?’ Lisa and Janet have written a book that finally answers these types of questions and more! Whether you’re a tester, developer, or manager, you’ll learn many great examples and stories from the real-world work experiences they’ve shared in this excellent book.”
—Paul Duvall, CTO of Stelligent and co-author of Continuous Integration: Improving Software Quality and Reducing Risk

“Finally a book for testers on Agile teams that acknowledges there is not just one right way! Agile Testing provides comprehensive coverage of the issues testers face when they move to Agile: from tools and metrics to roles and process. Illustrated with numerous stories and examples from many contributors, it gives a clear picture of what successful Agile testers are doing today.”
—Bret Pettichord, Chief Technical Officer of WatirCraft and Lead Developer of Watir


Testing is a key component of agile development. The widespread adoption of agile methods has brought the need for effective testing into the limelight, and agile projects have transformed the role of testers. Much of a tester’s function, however, remains largely misunderstood. What is the true role of a tester? Do agile teams actually need members with QA backgrounds? What does it really mean to be an “agile tester?”

Two of the industry’s most experienced agile testing practitioners and consultants, Lisa Crispin and Janet Gregory, have teamed up to bring you the definitive answers to these questions and many others. In Agile Testing, Crispin and Gregory define agile testing and illustrate the tester’s role with examples from real agile teams. They teach you how to use the agile testing quadrants to identify what testing is needed, who should do it, and what tools might help. The book chronicles an agile software development iteration from the viewpoint of a tester and explains the seven key success factors
of agile testing.

Readers will come away from this book understanding

• How to get testers engaged in agile development

• Where testers and QA managers fit on an agile team

• What to look for when hiring an agile tester

• How to transition from a traditional cycle to agile development

• How to complete testing activities in short iterations

• How to use tests to successfully guide development

• How to overcome barriers to test automation

This book is a must for agile testers, agile teams, their managers, and their customers.

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 12 Ratings

This book rocks!! - 2009-09-17
Reviewer Rating:
I have never been a tester, but I have written some system test patterns so I have spent time learning from
the best testers in a medium-sized organization. Here's the summary of the principles Lisa and Janet think
are important for an agile tester: Provide continuous feedback; Deliver value to the customer; Enable face-to-face
communication; Have courage; Keep it simple; Practice continuous improvement; Respond to change; Self-organize;
Focus on people; and (I love this) Enjoy!

Now what's startling to me is that as I look back on all those testers I interviewed in our pattern mining
exercises (over a decade ago) -- I realize that those testers had all these qualities. Good testers are good testers are good testers. Agile just makes us more aware of what they do. That's certainly worth celebrating and enjoying!

Lisa and Janet clearly know the agile patterns for testing, so I'm giving them two thumbs up!

Learn how testing drives development to deliver value - 2009-08-21
Reviewer Rating:
How delightful that two of the agile community's "rock stars" of testing have teamed up to write the guide that every agile team member needs on agile testing!

Chock-full of side stories, examples, wisdom points, and handy chapter mind maps, the authors cover the entire range of possible topics you need to know about agile testing. This book will serve your team well and is an excellent book to include as part of your team's community of practice book club.

In addition, I urge all business analysts moving to agile to get this book. Business analysts need to extend their skills and knowledge into the testing arena. With guidance from Lisa and Janet, you'll see how the testing mind set truly drives development to deliver value.

Quality Assurance Analyst - 2009-07-21
Reviewer Rating:
"Agile Testing" is a great reference and a wonderful read. Unlike so many technical books it is easy to follow and the examples by Crispin, Gregory and contributors brought back memories of similar experiences and challenges in my own career.

Early in the book is the statement: "Agile Testing doesn't mean testing on an agile project". This statement is critical; the practices, techniques and ideas in this book can help anyone working in an Agile environment, or any environment, grow in his or her career.

Personally I loved the emphasis on automation and customer interaction, the chapters summarizing the testing quadrant and the key success factors are my favorites! Additionally the authors were kind enough to include a glossary, which are so necessary in a good reference book!

Excellent - 2009-10-27
Reviewer Rating:
A very good book for testers who don't have experience in agile projects.
It's really a practical guide!

Outstanding book! - 2009-09-09
Reviewer Rating:
There are very few materials available that discuss Testing in the Agile environment, and with this book there needs not be that many others. This book helps avoid reinventing the wheel for teams and individuals crossing over from waterfall methodology, and affirms intuition about what's necessary and not in a new QA environment. I keep in on my desk as a reference.

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