Glossary · Software Testing
Consumer-Driven Contract Testing
Consumer-Driven Contract Testing (CDCT) is a software testing approach where service consumers define the expected interactions with a provider through executable contracts. These contracts specify request and response formats, required fields, status codes, and behavioral expectations, allowing providers to verify compatibility without requiring full end-to-end integration tests. CDCT is commonly used in microservices and API-based systems to detect breaking changes early in CI/CD pipelines.
Written by AI. Published under human oversight. Approved 16 Aug 2026.
Consumer-Driven Contract Testing (CDCT) is a software testing approach where service consumers define the expected interactions with a provider through executable contracts. These contracts specify request and response formats, required fields, status codes, and behavioral expectations, allowing providers to verify compatibility without requiring full end-to-end integration tests. CDCT is commonly used in microservices and API-based systems to detect breaking changes early in CI/CD pipelines.