Integration Tests
Integration tests are a type of software testing that verifies the interactions and data flow between multiple components, modules, or services in a system. They focus on ensuring that integrated units work together correctly as a group, often testing interfaces and dependencies. This level of testing sits between unit tests (which test individual components) and end-to-end tests (which test the entire application flow).
Developers should use integration tests when building complex applications with multiple interacting parts, such as microservices architectures, APIs with external dependencies, or database-driven systems. They are crucial for catching bugs that arise from component interactions, such as data format mismatches, communication failures, or state inconsistencies, which unit tests alone might miss. This helps ensure system reliability and reduces integration issues during deployment.