Types of Test Metrics

Common Categories of Test Metrics

Process Metrics

Measure the efficiency of the testing process itself, such as test case execution rate, defect detection percentage, and effort variance.

Product Metrics

Measure the quality of the software product, such as defect density, defect severity distribution, and mean time between failures.

Project Metrics

Measure overall project health, such as schedule variance, cost variance, and resource utilisation.

Examples of Specific Test Metrics

• Test Case Execution Rate: Percentage of planned test cases executed.
• Defect Density: Number of defects per unit size (e.g., per KLOC or per module).
• Defect Removal Efficiency: Percentage of defects found before release versus after.
• Test Coverage: Percentage of requirements or code covered by tests.