API Testing Patterns

<default_to_action> When testing APIs or designing API test strategy:

1. IDENTIFY testing level: contract, integration, or component
2. TEST the contract, not implementation (consumer perspective)
3. VALIDATE auth, input, errors, idempotency, concurrency
4. AUTOMATE in CI/CD with schema validation
5. MONITOR production APIs for contract drift

Quick Pattern Selection:

• Microservices → Consumer-driven contracts (Pact)
• REST APIs → CRUD + pagination + filtering tests
• GraphQL → Query validation + complexity limits
• External deps → Mock with component testing
• Performance → Load test critical endpoints