Behavior-Driven Testing: Why Behave is the Ultimate Tool for Fast, Reliable Tests

Learn how Behave simplifies automated testing with Behavior-Driven Development (BDD), making tests easy to write, understand, and collaborate on for faster, reliable results.

Writing test cases can be frustrating, especially when you're dealing with complex logic. But what if you could describe tests in plain English instead of writing tons of code?

That’s exactly what Behave allows you to do. It’s a Python library built for Behavior-Driven Development (BDD), which means you can define how your application should behave in simple, readable sentences before actually writing the code to make it work.

Think of it like a bridge between business logic and code. With Behave, you create test scenarios in plain English using Gherkin syntax, then connect those scenarios to Python functions that handle the actual execution.

It’s time to Behave. Check out other 3 Random Articles here.

Imagine you're subscribed to a newsletter called 3 Randoms. Each week, it introduces you to three lesser-known Python tools that can make your coding better. It's like expanding your toolbox and discovering new tricks.

This makes testing much easier to understand, not just for developers but also for testers and even non-technical team members. Everyone involved in a project can see what’s being tested without needing to read complex code.

I’ve used traditional testing frameworks like unittest and pytest, and while they work well, Behave takes a different approach. Instead of testing small functions in isolation, Behave focuses on real user behavior. This makes it perfect for things like automated acceptance testing and full end-to-end testing of applications.

With Behave, you define feature files using Given-When-Then steps. This structure helps you test everything from login systems to API endpoints. Whether you're automating UI tests, checking business rules, or making sure an entire workflow functions correctly, Behave makes it clear and organized.

One of the best things about Behave is that it encourages reusability. You can write test steps once and use them across multiple test scenarios, saving you a lot of time.

👉 If you get value from this article, please leave it a ❤️ and share it. This helps more people discover this newsletter, which helps me out immensely!

If you haven’t subscribed to my premium content yet, I highly encourage you to do so. With a subscription, you get full access to these articles and all the code that comes with them, so you can follow along!

Thank you for allowing me to continue to do work that I find meaningful. This is my full time job so I hope you will support my work.

Our I am the Machine series started the other week, it’s your gateway into the world of Machine Learning that here for my premium readers, check it out here!

Plus, you’ll get access to so much more, like monthly Python projects, in-depth weekly articles, this here '3 Randoms' series, and my complete archive!

By the end of this article, you’ll have a solid foundation for integrating Behave into your workflow. Let’s start by installing it. Open your terminal and run:

pip3 install behave

Now, sit back and let Behave handle your testing so you can focus on building great applications.

This Week’s Behave Tips