F# Testing Patterns

Comprehensive testing patterns for F# applications using xUnit, FsUnit, Unquote, FsCheck, and modern .NET testing practices.

When to Activate

• Writing new tests for F# code
• Reviewing test quality and coverage
• Setting up test infrastructure for F# projects
• Debugging flaky or slow tests

Test Framework Stack

Unit Tests with xUnit + FsUnit

Basic Test Structure

module OrderServiceTests

open Xunit
open FsUnit.Xunit

[<Fact>]
let ``create sets status to Pending`` () =
    let order = Order.create "cust-1" [ validItem ]
    order.Status |> should equal Pending

[<Fact>]
let ``confirm changes status to Confirmed`` () =
    let order = Order.create "cust-1" [ validItem ]
    let confirmed = Order.confirm order
    confirmed.Status |> should be (ofCase <@ Confirmed @>)

Assertions with Unquote

Unquote uses F# quotations so failure messages show the full expression that failed, not just "expected X got Y".

module OrderValidationTests

open Xunit
open Swensen.Unquote

[<Fact>]
let ``PlaceOrder returns success when request is valid`` () =
    let request = { CustomerId = "cust-123"; Items = [ validItem ] }
    let result = OrderService.placeOrder request
    test <@ Result.isOk result @>

[<Fact>]
let ``order total sums item prices`` () =
    let items = [ { Sku = "A"; Quantity = 2; Price = 10m }
                  { Sku = "B"; Quantity = 1; Price = 5m } ]
    let total = Order.calculateTotal items
    test <@ total = 25m @>

[<Fact>]
let ``validated email rejects empty input`` () =
    let result = ValidatedEmail.create ""
    test <@ Result.isError result @>

Async Tests

[<Fact>]
let ``PlaceOrder returns success when request is valid`` () = task {
    let deps = createTestDeps ()
    let request = { CustomerId = "cust-123"; Items = [ validItem ] }

    let! result = OrderService.placeOrder deps request

    test <@ Result.isOk result @>
}

[<Fact>]
let ``PlaceOrder returns error when items are empty`` () = task {
    let deps = createTestDeps ()
    let request = { CustomerId = "cust-123"; Items = [] }

    let! result = OrderService.placeOrder deps request

    test <@ Result.isError result @>
}

Parameterized Tests with Theory

[<Theory>]
[<InlineData("")>]
[<InlineData("   ")>]
let ``PlaceOrder rejects empty customer ID`` (customerId: string) =
    let request = { CustomerId = customerId; Items = [ validItem ] }
    let result = OrderService.placeOrder request
    result |> should be (ofCase <@ Error @>)

[<Theory>]
[<InlineData("", false)>]
[<InlineData("a", false)>]
[<InlineData("user@example.com", true)>]
[<InlineData("user+tag@example.co.uk", true)>]
let ``IsValidEmail returns expected result`` (email: string, expected: bool) =
    test <@ EmailValidator.isValid email = expected @>

Property-Based Testing with FsCheck

Using FsCheck.xUnit

open FsCheck
open FsCheck.Xunit

[<Property>]
let ``order total is always non-negative`` (items: NonEmptyList<PositiveInt * decimal>) =
    let orderItems =
        items.Get
        |> List.map (fun (qty, price) ->
            { Sku = "SKU"; Quantity = qty.Get; Price = abs price })
    let total = Order.calculateTotal orderItems
    total >= 0m

[<Property>]
let ``serialization roundtrips`` (order: Order) =
    let json = JsonSerializer.Serialize order
    let deserialized = JsonSerializer.Deserialize<Order> json
    deserialized = order

Custom Generators

type OrderGenerators =
    static member ValidEmail () =
        gen {
            let! user = Gen.elements [ "alice"; "bob"; "carol" ]
            let! domain = Gen.elements [ "example.com"; "test.org" ]
            return $"{user}@{domain}"
        }
        |> Arb.fromGen

[<Property(Arbitrary = [| typeof<OrderGenerators> |])>]
let ``valid emails pass validation`` (email: string) =
    EmailValidator.isValid email

Mocking Dependencies

Function Stubs (Preferred)

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