> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.qa.tech/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# How to review test results

Different stages of your development workflow need different testing approaches. This guide helps you choose the right testing strategy for your needs and efficiently manage results across your workflow.

<Note>
  **Foundation for Testing**

  Before using any testing approach below, ensure you've [crawled your website](/core-concepts/crawling) to build the [knowledge graph](/core-concepts/knowledge-graph) and configured [authentication](/best-practices/handle-auth). These prerequisites enable the AI agent to test efficiently.
</Note>

## Choosing Your Testing Strategy

Different testing approaches fit different scenarios. Choose based on when you need results and what you're validating:

| Testing Approach      | Best For                                   | When to Use                                | Setup Guide                                     |
| --------------------- | ------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------- |
| Manual test runs      | Ad-hoc testing, debugging, development     | Quick validation, iterating on test design | [Running Tests](/best-practices/running-tests)  |
| Scheduled test plans  | Production monitoring, regression suites   | Daily/nightly checks, SLA monitoring       | [Test Plans](/core-concepts/test-plans)         |
| PR-triggered testing  | Pre-merge validation, preview environments | Every PR, feature branches                 | [GitHub Actions](/configuration/github-actions) |
| API-triggered testing | Custom workflows, deployment pipelines     | Post-deploy validation, multi-environment  | [API Reference](/api-reference/start-run)       |

**Recommended progression:**

* **Start with:** Manual runs while building tests, then add PR testing
* **Add next:** Scheduled nightly runs for comprehensive coverage
* **Advanced:** API integration for custom deployment workflows
* **Pro tip:** Use test plans to organize tests for different scenarios (smoke vs. full regression)

## Organizing Tests with Test Plans

Test plans help you run the right tests at the right time. Organize tests strategically to separate fast smoke tests from comprehensive regression suites.

**Common test plan patterns:**

* **Smoke tests plan** - 5-10 critical tests, runs on every PR (\~5 min)
* **Regression plan** - Full suite, runs nightly (\~30-60 min)
* **Production monitoring plan** - Key flows, runs every 4 hours
* **Preview environment plan** - Dynamic URLs, runs on deploy

<Note>
  Test plans enable parallel execution - 20 tests complete in \~3 minutes instead of 60 minutes sequential. See [Test Plans](/core-concepts/test-plans#performance--parallel-execution).
</Note>

Use test plans to:

* Separate fast tests (PR-triggered) from slow tests (scheduled)
* Target different environments (staging vs. production)
* Control what runs when based on your workflow

### Quick Triage Workflow

<Steps>
  <Step title="Filter to failures">
    Use RESULT=FAILED + STATUS=COMPLETED to see only actionable failures. See [Tests and Results](/core-concepts/tests-and-results#filtering-and-searching-results) for filter options.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Review by scenario">
    Grouped failures often share root cause - review scenario by scenario
  </Step>

  <Step title="Categorize each failure">
    Determine if it's a product bug, test needs update, flaky test, or environment issue
  </Step>

  <Step title="Take action">
    Create issues for bugs, update tests for intentional changes, add waits for flaky tests
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Getting Notified

Configure notifications based on your testing approach:

* **PR tests** - GitHub comments post automatically (see [GitHub Actions](/configuration/github-actions))
* **Scheduled runs** - Slack/email for failures (see [Notifications](/core-concepts/notifications))
* **Production monitoring** - Immediate alerts for critical failures

**Tip:** Set up different notification channels for different severity levels (Slack for critical, email for nightly)

## Exporting Issues

When you find bugs during review:

* Export to Linear, Jira, or Trello: [Configure integrations](/integrations/linear)
* Include playback URL and context before exporting
* Tag with environment and test run for traceability