OpenAPI Data in Tests

The definition of each operation determines what data is used in generated testing. In addition to the data type system shaping data, OpenAPI Specification supports examples. Test generation automatically uses defined examples when available. In the absence of defined examples, test generation attempts to use a realistic example based on the type, format (if set), and property name (if applicable).

Example Property

By default, a single test is created based on any example properties found throughout any defined operation parameters, requestBody, and responses.

Consider the below example. The generator traverses the OpenAPI document to create a single test for the updatePet operation with id, name, and photoUrls data:

openapi.yaml


paths:
  "/pet":
    put:
      tags:
        - pet
      summary: Update an existing pet
      description: Update an existing pet by Id
      operationId: updatePet
      requestBody:
        description: Update an existent pet in the store
        content:
          application/json:
            schema:
              "$ref": "#/components/schemas/Pet"
        required: true
      responses:
        "200":
          description: Successful operation
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                "$ref": "#/components/schemas/Pet"
components:
  schemas:
    Pet:
      required:
        - name
        - photoUrls
      type: object
      properties:
        id:
          type: integer
          format: int64
          example: 10
        name:
          type: string
          example: doggie
        category:
          "$ref": "#/components/schemas/Category"
        photoUrls:
          type: array
          items:
            type: string
        tags:
          type: array
          items:
            "$ref": "#/components/schemas/Tag"
        status:
          type: string
          description: pet status in the store
          enum:
            - available
            - pending
            - sold

Here’s how the generator parses this example document:

paths[/pet].put.updatePet - The test uses the updatePet operationId in the test name.
paths[/pet].put.requestBody - The test uses the Pet shared component for both the constructed request body and response object.
components.schemas.Pet.required - The Pet shared component is an object type with required name and photoUrls properties.
components.schemas.Pet.id - While not required, the Pet object id property has an example property, which is automatically included in the test.
components.schemas.Pet.name - The required Pet object name property has an example property, which is included in the test.
components.schemas.Pet.photoUrls - The required Pet object photoUrls property does not include an example property, however it has an example value automatically created since it is required.

This definition creates a test with Pet object request body and response data:


id: 10
name: doggie
photoUrls:
  - <value>

Examples Property

Multiple tests for an operation can be defined using the examples property, which in this context is a mapping of example name string keys to example values. Prevent missing or mismatched test generation by ensuring the same example name key is used across all necessary parameters, requestBody, and responses parts of the operation. If desired, define reusable examples under components similar to schemas.

In this example, multiple tests (fido and rover) are created for the addPet operation:

openapi.yaml


paths:
  "/pet":
    post:
      tags:
        - pet
      summary: Add a new pet to the store
      description: Add a new pet to the store
      operationId: addPet
      requestBody:
        description: Create a new pet in the store
        content:
          application/json:
            schema:
              "$ref": "#/components/schemas/Pet"
            examples:
              fido:
                summary: fido request
                description: fido example requestBody for test generation
                value:
                  name: Fido
                  photoUrls:
                    - https://www.example.com/fido.jpg
                  status: available
              rover:
                summary: rover request
                description: rover example requestBody for test generation
                value:
                  name: Rover
                  photoUrls:
                    - https://www.example.com/rover1.jpg
                    - https://www.example.com/rover2.jpg
                  status: pending
        required: true
      responses:
        "200":
          description: Successful operation
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                "$ref": "#/components/schemas/Pet"
              examples:
                fido:
                  summary: fido response
                  description: fido example response for test generation
                  value:
                    id: 1
                    name: Fido
                    photoUrls:
                      - https://www.example.com/fido.jpg
                    status: available
                rover:
                  summary: rover response
                  description: rover example response for test generation
                  value:
                    id: 2
                    name: Rover
                    photoUrls:
                      - https://www.example.com/rover1.jpg
                      - https://www.example.com/rover2.jpg
                    status: pending

Ignoring Data

Data properties can be explicitly ignored in testing via the x-speakeasy-test-ignore annotation.

In this example, the other property is omitted from test generation:


paths:
  /example:
    get:
      # ... other operation configuration ...
      responses:
        "200":
          description: OK
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                type: object
                properties:
                  data:
                    type: string
                  other:
                    type: string
                    x-speakeasy-test-ignore: true

Last updated on September 16, 2025