frontend-testing

This skill enables Claude to generate high-quality, comprehensive frontend tests following established conventions and best practices.

When to Apply This Skill

Apply this skill when the user:

• Asks to write tests for a component, hook, or utility
• Asks to review existing tests for completeness
• Mentions Vitest, React Testing Library, RTL, or spec files
• Requests test coverage improvement
• Mentions testing, unit tests, or integration tests for frontend code
• Wants to understand testing patterns in the frontend codebase

Do NOT apply when:

• User is asking about E2E tests (Playwright)
• User is only asking conceptual questions without code context

Quick Reference

Tech Stack

Note: keep this list up to date with the project’s dependencies.

Key Commands

Always prefer running specific tests over the entire suite for faster feedback:

# Run ALL tests (avoid during development)
npx vitest run

# ✅ PREFERRED: Run specific file
npx vitest run src/components/Button.spec.tsx

# ✅ PREFERRED: Run tests matching a pattern
npx vitest run --grep "Button"
npx vitest run -t "should render"

# ✅ PREFERRED: Run specific describe block
npx vitest run --grep "Button > Rendering"

# ✅ Run tests in a directory
npx vitest run src/components/

# ✅ Run single test by name
npx vitest run -t "should disable button when loading"

Watch Mode (Background Testing)

Use watch mode for efficient iterative development:

# ✅ Watch mode - reruns on file changes
npx vitest

# ✅ Watch specific file
npx vitest src/components/Button.spec.tsx

# ✅ Watch tests matching pattern
npx vitest --grep "Button"

File Naming

• Test files: ComponentName.spec.tsx (same directory as component)

Test Structure Template

import { render, screen, fireEvent, waitFor } from '@testing-library/react'
import Component from './index'

// ✅ Import real project components (DO NOT mock these)
// import Loading from '@/app/components/base/loading'
// import { ChildComponent } from './child-component'

// ✅ Mock external dependencies only
vi.mock('@/service/api')
vi.mock('next/navigation', () => ({
  useRouter: () => ({ push: vi.fn() }),
  usePathname: () => '/test',
}))

// Shared state for mocks (if needed)
let mockSharedState = false

describe('ComponentName', () => {
  beforeEach(() => {
    vi.clearAllMocks()  // ✅ Reset mocks BEFORE each test
    mockSharedState = false  // ✅ Reset shared state
  })

  // Rendering tests (REQUIRED)
  describe('Rendering', () => {
    it('should render without crashing', () => {
      // Arrange
      const props = { title: 'Test' }

      // Act
      render(<Component {...props} />)

      // Assert
      expect(screen.getByText('Test')).toBeInTheDocument()
    })
  })

  // Props tests (REQUIRED)
  describe('Props', () => {
    it('should apply custom className', () => {
      render(<Component className="custom" />)
      expect(screen.getByRole('button')).toHaveClass('custom')
    })
  })

  // User Interactions
  describe('User Interactions', () => {
    it('should handle click events', () => {
      const handleClick = vi.fn()
      render(<Component onClick={handleClick} />)

      fireEvent.click(screen.getByRole('button'))

      expect(handleClick).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1)
    })
  })

  // Edge Cases (REQUIRED)
  describe('Edge Cases', () => {
    it('should handle null data', () => {
      render(<Component data={null} />)
      expect(screen.getByText(/no data/i)).toBeInTheDocument()
    })

    it('should handle empty array', () => {
      render(<Component items={[]} />)
      expect(screen.getByText(/empty/i)).toBeInTheDocument()
    })
  })
})

Testing Workflow (CRITICAL)

⚠️ Incremental Approach Required

NEVER generate all test files at once. For complex components or multi-file directories:

1. Analyze & Plan: List all files, order by complexity (simple → complex)
2. Process ONE at a time: Write test → Run test → Fix if needed → Next
3. Verify before proceeding: Do NOT continue to next file until current passes

For each file:
  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
  │ 1. Write test                                  │
  │ 2. Run: npm run test-unit <file>.spec.tsx      │
  │ 3. PASS? → Mark complete, next file            │
  │    FAIL? → Fix first, then continue            │
  └────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Complexity-Based Order

Process in this order for multi-file testing:

1. 🟢 Utility functions (simplest)
2. 🟢 Custom hooks
3. 🟡 Simple components (presentational)
4. 🟡 Medium components (state, effects)
5. 🔴 Complex components (API, routing)
6. 🔴 Integration tests (index files – last)

When to Refactor First

• Medium Complexity: Break into smaller pieces before testing
• 500+ lines: Consider splitting before testing
• Many dependencies: Extract logic into hooks first

Testing Strategy

Path-Level Testing (Directory Testing)

When assigned to test a directory/path, test ALL content within that path:

• Test all components, hooks, utilities in the directory (not just index file)
• Use incremental approach: one file at a time, verify each before proceeding
• Goal: 100% coverage of ALL files in the directory

Integration Testing First

Prefer integration testing when writing tests for a directory:

• ✅ Import real project components directly (including base components and siblings)
• ✅ Only mock: API services (@/service/*), next/navigation, complex context providers
• ❌ DO NOT mock base components (@/app/components/base/*)
• ❌ DO NOT mock sibling/child components in the same directory

Core Principles

1. AAA Pattern (Arrange-Act-Assert)

Every test should clearly separate:

• Arrange: Setup test data and render component
• Act: Perform user actions
• Assert: Verify expected outcomes

2. Black-Box Testing

• Test observable behavior, not implementation details
• Use semantic queries (getByRole, getByLabelText)
• Avoid testing internal state directly
• Prefer pattern matching over hardcoded strings in assertions:

// ❌ Avoid: hardcoded text assertions
expect(screen.getByText('Loading...')).toBeInTheDocument()

// ✅ Better: role-based queries
expect(screen.getByRole('status')).toBeInTheDocument()

// ✅ Better: pattern matching
expect(screen.getByText(/loading/i)).toBeInTheDocument()

3. Single Behavior Per Test

Each test verifies ONE user-observable behavior:

// ✅ Good: One behavior
it('should disable button when loading', () => {
  render(<Button loading />)
  expect(screen.getByRole('button')).toBeDisabled()
})

// ❌ Bad: Multiple behaviors
it('should handle loading state', () => {
  render(<Button loading />)
  expect(screen.getByRole('button')).toBeDisabled()
  expect(screen.getByText('Loading...')).toBeInTheDocument()
  expect(screen.getByRole('button')).toHaveClass('loading')
})

4. Semantic Naming

Use should <behavior> when <condition>:

it('should show error message when validation fails')
it('should call onSubmit when form is valid')
it('should disable input when isReadOnly is true')

Required Test Scenarios

Always Required (All Components)

1. Rendering: Component renders without crashing
2. Props: Required props, optional props, default values
3. Edge Cases: null, undefined, empty values, boundary conditions

Conditional (When Present)

Coverage Goals (Per File)

For each test file generated, aim for:

• ✅ 100% function coverage
• ✅ 100% statement coverage
• ✅ >95% branch coverage
• ✅ >95% line coverage

Note: For multi-file directories, process one file at a time with full coverage each. See references/workflow.md.

Detailed Guides

For more detailed information, refer to:

• references/workflow.md – Incremental testing workflow (MUST READ for multi-file testing)
• references/mocking.md – Mock patterns and best practices
• references/async-testing.md – Async operations and API calls
• references/common-patterns.md – Frequently used testing patterns
• references/checklist.md – Test generation checklist and validation steps

Project Configuration

• vitest.config.ts – Vitest configuration
• vitest.setup.ts – Test environment setup
• Modules are not mocked automatically. Global mocks live in vitest.setup.ts (for example react-i18next, next/image); mock other modules like ky or mime locally in test files.