Almost everything we do in life has some sort of testing process to ensure that what we are doing is good, and that it will work as planned. Smoke testing is no different. Smoke testing, or sanity testing, is a term used for software development and IT professionals who test the application before release or during beta testing to make sure the system is working as expected. But what is good smoke testing? And how can you be sure your smoke tests are effective? Let’s explore.

Smoke testing is a type of software testing that focuses on finding major issues with the software before it’s used by customers. This type of testing can help ensure that your application or website works as expected, and identifies major bugs early in the development process. Good smoke testing should be thorough, but relatively lightweight, meaning that it doesn’t take a lot of time and resources to complete. Additionally, good smoke testing should catch major issues quickly, ideally within the first few hours or days of testing. If you’re planning on doing smoke testing for your next software application or website, there are a few things that you’ll need to keep in mind in order to ensure that it’s effective.

First, make sure that you’re testing the right components of your application or website. This means that you should cover all of the major areas of functionality in advance, to ensure that your testing isn’t missing any major features or issues. You can do this by creating a checklist of key features and functions, and then going through them one by one.

Second, make sure that your testing is thorough and that you’re covering all potential edge cases. This means that you should think about the different ways a user might interact with the software, whether it’s a website or application, and how they might use it in different scenarios or environments. For example, if you’re testing an ecommerce website, think about the different types of customers who might use it and how they would be using it.

Finally, make sure that you’re tracking your testing results and that you have a clear plan for addressing issues that are found. This can help ensure that you don’t miss any major problems, as well as allowing you to stay on track with your release schedule.


By keeping these principles in mind, you’ll be able to create robust and effective smoke tests for your next software project. Good luck!