Overview

Goal-Based Testing is a Synthetic test type that uses prompted, non-deterministic, agentic testing to check that a user can reach a specific goal in your application. It’s well suited to testing AI features and to validating critical user journeys that shouldn’t require ongoing test maintenance.

Unlike a browser test, a Goal-Based test doesn’t follow a fixed, recorded set of steps. Instead, an agent explores your application, trying multiple paths toward the goal you describe.

Create a Goal-Based test

You can create a Goal-Based test in two ways:

• Generate one automatically with Bits Testing as part of a journey’s test suite.
• Create one manually by clicking New Test and selecting Goal-Based test.

Manual test creation

To create a Goal-Based test manually:

• Enter a starting URL for the application under test.
• Write a goal as a prompt in plain language (for example, “Ask the support chatbot for a product recommendation”).
• Select a location to run the test from. See supported locations.
• Optionally, select an Agent Profile to reuse variables such as login credentials.
• Click Run Now.

Supported locations

Goal-Based tests run only from the Datadog managed locations listed in Run Bits Testing.

Evaluate a test run

After you start a Goal-Based test, the agent explores your application from the starting URL, branching across the different paths a user might take toward the goal.

When the run finishes, the test reports a Pass result if one of the explored branches reached the goal. It reports a Fail result if no branch reached the goal or the agent ran into an error. Alongside the result, Goal-Based Testing shows:

• A summary explaining the rationale behind the Pass or Fail result.
• Step-by-step navigation through the actions the agent took, so you can review exactly what it tried.

Schedule and edit a test

After the first run completes, click the Edit test icon to:

• Schedule the test to run on a recurring basis.
• Edit the test name.
• Add tags.
• Change the selected Agent Profile.
• Click Save Test.

Billing

For pricing, see Bits Testing billing.

Further reading

Additional helpful documentation, links, and articles:

Bits TestingDOCUMENTATION Browser TestingDOCUMENTATION Test SuitesDOCUMENTATION Synthetic Monitoring pricingPRICING