Using Test Table Struct for Golang Unit Tests

Test tables are a common way to organize unit tests, making them more structured, easier to maintain, and simple to expand. In this article, I'll show you how to implement test tables in Golang, using the Fixture Design Pattern to mock entities—a topic I covered in another article.

Defining the Struct

There are different ways to structure test tables, but I’ll use a map where the key is a string representing the test name or description, and the value is a struct containing all necessary fields.

Creating Test Scenarios

Next, populate the testTable map with individual test cases. Each case describes the input, mock behavior, expected output, and any expected errors.

Executing the Test Scenarios

Finally, iterate through the testTable map and execute each test case using t.Run. This ensures that all scenarios are run independently, and the results are clearly reported.

Conclusion

This structure is easy to read and straightforward to maintain. For each new scenario, you only need to add a new item to the testTable map with its specific requirements. This approach keeps your test cases organized and scalable, making it an excellent choice for clean and efficient testing in Golang.