Acceptance testing and UAT services
Acceptance testing checks that your software meets business requirements and user expectations before deployment. We plan and run user acceptance testing (UAT) with your stakeholders and take it through to formal sign-off.
Forms of acceptance testing
- User acceptance (UAT)End users
- Operational acceptance (OAT)Operations and IT
- Regulatory acceptanceCompliance
- Contractual acceptanceLegal and vendor
- Alpha testingBefore release
- Beta testingReal users
What is acceptance testing?
Acceptance testing is formal testing with respect to user needs, requirements and business processes, carried out to determine whether a system satisfies the acceptance criteria and to let the users, customers or another authorized party decide whether to accept it.
It checks that the software delivers what the business needs, before it goes live.
Source: ISTQB Foundation Level syllabus v4.0.1, section 2.2.1.
Types of acceptance testing
The forms of acceptance testing named in ISTQB CTFL v4.0.1 (2.2.1), and who is involved in each one:
| Type | Description | Stakeholder |
|---|---|---|
| User acceptance testing (UAT) | End users check the functionality against their daily workflows, to confirm the system supports their actual work. Sometimes called business acceptance testing. | End users |
| Operational acceptance testing (OAT) | Operations or system administration staff confirm that backup and restore, installation, maintenance, disaster recovery and security procedures work before go-live. | Operations and IT |
| Regulatory acceptance testing | Confirms compliance with industry regulations, standards and legal requirements before release. | Compliance |
| Contractual acceptance testing | Confirms the delivered software meets the contractual obligations and specifications in the agreement. | Legal / vendor |
| Alpha testing | Acceptance testing done before release, in the supplier's own environment, by people outside the team that built the product. | Internal testers and selected users |
| Beta testing | Potential or existing users try the product at their own location after development and in-house testing, and give feedback from the market. Common for off-the-shelf software and SaaS. It has no predefined test procedures, so it supplements acceptance testing rather than replacing it. | Potential or existing users |
Our acceptance testing process
Requirements analysis
We read the business requirements and acceptance criteria to understand what success looks like for your stakeholders. Acceptance criteria are measurable statements that are either true or false for an implementation, and we help your business analysts write them.
Test scenario design
We write realistic scenarios that mirror your actual business workflows and user interactions.
Stakeholder coordination
We run the testing sessions with business users, product owners and key stakeholders.
Results and sign-off
We document the results clearly and take the release to formal acceptance, or name what still needs work.
Why acceptance testing matters
Reduce post-launch issues
Requirement gaps and usability problems are caught before production, where the difference between what was built and what people need shows up.
Stakeholder confidence
Business users check the functionality themselves, which builds confidence and eases adoption. Clear sign-off criteria remove doubt about when the project is done.
Business value validation
Confirms the technical work delivers the business value it was meant to.
Your users have no time for UAT?
We prepare the scenarios and run the sessions, so their hours go on judgement, not setup. Talk to us
The level before this one is system testing. For how a usable product is checked in depth, see usability testing.
How BetterQA does acceptance testing
We write the UAT scenarios from your acceptance criteria, run the sessions with your business users, and document the results so the sign-off says what was accepted and on what evidence. In Agile teams we write the acceptance tests with the product owner before the build, as in acceptance test-driven development (ATDD) and behavior-driven development (BDD).
Engineers who test for a living
50+ QA engineers, working since 2018. People plan and run UAT with your stakeholders and report what the results mean for go-live.
Bugs you can act on
Every defect we find is written up in BugBoard, our own test management tool, or in your tracker, with steps to reproduce, the expected and actual result, and the environment.
A certified process
ISO 9001 for quality management and ISO 27001:2022 for information security. See our certifications.
How an engagement works
- €20-45 per hour
- First month is a trial
- First two weeks complimentary if you are not happy
- 30 days' notice after that
Acceptance testing: common questions
What is acceptance testing?
Formal testing against user needs, requirements and business processes, to decide whether a system meets its acceptance criteria and can be accepted.
What is user acceptance testing (UAT)?
Acceptance testing done by the people who will use the system, against their real workflows, before it goes live.
What are the types of UAT and acceptance testing?
User acceptance, operational acceptance, contractual acceptance and regulatory acceptance testing, plus alpha and beta testing (ISTQB CTFL v4.0.1, 2.2.1). Business acceptance testing is another name people use for UAT.
Can you outsource user acceptance testing?
Yes. We prepare the scenarios, coordinate and run the sessions, and record results and sign-off. Your business users still make the acceptance decision.
What is the difference between system testing and acceptance testing?
System testing checks the system against its specification. Acceptance testing checks it against what the business and its users need, and ends in a decision to accept.
What does it cost?
Our rate is €20-45 per hour. For ongoing work the first month is a trial, the first two weeks are complimentary if you are not happy, and after that it is 30 days' notice.
Ready for acceptance testing?
Tell us who has to sign off and by when. We will prepare the UAT scenarios, run the sessions with your users and get you to a clear decision.