TradingAgents/docs/testing/README.md

Testing Overview

TradingAgents uses a comprehensive testing strategy to ensure code quality and reliability.

Testing Philosophy

Our testing approach combines:

• Unit Tests: Fast, isolated tests for individual components
• Integration Tests: Tests for component interactions
• End-to-End Tests: Full workflow validation
• Regression Tests: Prevent fixed bugs from returning

Test Structure

tests/
├── unit/                   # Unit tests (fast, isolated)
│   ├── test_analysts.py
│   ├── test_dataflows.py
│   └── test_utils.py
├── integration/            # Integration tests (medium speed)
│   ├── test_graph.py
│   ├── test_llm_providers.py
│   └── test_data_vendors.py
├── regression/             # Regression tests
│   └── smoke/             # Critical path tests (CI gate)
├── fixtures/              # Shared test fixtures
└── conftest.py            # pytest configuration

Running Tests

All Tests

pytest tests/

Specific Test Categories

# Unit tests only
pytest tests/unit/

# Integration tests only
pytest tests/integration/

# Regression tests only
pytest tests/regression/

# Smoke tests (critical path)
pytest -m smoke

With Coverage

pytest tests/ --cov=tradingagents --cov-report=html

Specific Test File

pytest tests/unit/test_analysts.py -v

Specific Test Function

pytest tests/unit/test_analysts.py::test_market_analyst_initialization -v

Test Categories

Unit Tests

Purpose: Test individual functions and classes in isolation

Characteristics:

• Fast (<1 second per test)
• No external dependencies
• Use mocks for LLMs and data vendors
• High coverage target (90%+)

Example:

def test_analyst_initialization():
    """Test analyst can be initialized."""
    llm = Mock()
    tools = []

    analyst = MarketAnalyst(llm, tools)

    assert analyst.name == "market"
    assert analyst.llm == llm

Integration Tests

Purpose: Test component interactions

Characteristics:

• Medium speed (1-30 seconds)
• May use test APIs or mocks
• Validate workflows
• Coverage target (70%+)

Example:

def test_data_vendor_integration():
    """Test data vendor can provide data."""
    interface = DataInterface()
    data = interface.get_stock_data("NVDA", "2024-01-01", "2024-01-10")

    assert "close" in data
    assert len(data["close"]) > 0

End-to-End Tests

Purpose: Test complete workflows

Characteristics:

• Slow (30+ seconds)
• Use real or test LLM APIs
• Validate full system
• Minimal count (critical paths only)

Example:

@pytest.mark.integration
def test_full_analysis_workflow():
    """Test complete trading analysis."""
    ta = TradingAgentsGraph()
    state, decision = ta.propagate("NVDA", "2024-05-10")

    assert decision["action"] in ["BUY", "SELL", "HOLD"]
    assert 0.0 <= decision["confidence_score"] <= 1.0

Test Fixtures

Common fixtures are defined in tests/conftest.py:

@pytest.fixture
def mock_llm():
    """Mock LLM for testing."""
    llm = Mock()
    llm.invoke.return_value = Mock(content="Test response")
    return llm

@pytest.fixture
def mock_data_tools():
    """Mock data access tools."""
    return {
        "get_stock_data": Mock(return_value={"close": [150, 151, 152]}),
        "get_indicators": Mock(return_value={"RSI": {"rsi": [65]}}),
    }

@pytest.fixture
def test_config():
    """Test configuration."""
    from tradingagents.default_config import DEFAULT_CONFIG

    config = DEFAULT_CONFIG.copy()
    config["max_debate_rounds"] = 1
    return config

Writing Tests

See Writing Tests Guide for detailed patterns and examples.

Coverage Goals

• Overall: 80%+
• Unit Tests: 90%+
• Integration Tests: 70%+
• Critical Paths: 100%

Continuous Integration

Tests run automatically on:

• Pull requests
• Pushes to main branch
• Pre-commit hooks (optional)

Best Practices

1. Write Tests First: TDD approach when possible
2. One Assertion: Focus tests on single behaviors
3. Clear Names: test_<function>_<scenario>_<expected>
4. Use Fixtures: DRY principle for setup
5. Mock External Calls: Don't hit real APIs in unit tests
6. Fast Tests: Keep unit tests under 1 second
7. Isolation: Tests should not depend on each other
8. Documentation: Add docstrings to complex tests

See Also

• Running Tests
• Writing Tests
• Test Organization Best Practices