Payment Testing 101: Frequently Asked Questions

If your business can’t accept payments, you’re not going to be in business for long. The digital transformation of commerce has introduced new revenue streams for many businesses – along with complexities and added testing considerations for software developers. Payment testing is an essential element in any release where customers expect to be able to buy products or move money.  

What is payment testing and why is it important in software development?

Payment testing assesses whether fund transfers work properly, including purchases, returns, exchanges, subscriptions and other transactions that move money from one account to another. Payment testing is an essential component in software releases to ensure that businesses capture payment and customers receive the correct goods and/or services in exchange for those payments, along with proper documentation for each transaction. It’s an essential activity to validate payment transactions and ensure the accuracy of payment processing.

What are the different types of payment methods that need to be tested (e.g. credit card, PayPal, etc.)?

If you plan to accept a payment method, you should test it. To decide which payment methods you should accept, learn which options are most popular in each market where you operate and which options your customers favor. At the bare minimum, test credit and debit cards from your market’s leading financial service providers, as well as your company’s gift cards and coupon codes. If you’re offering services such as Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) through a third party partner, test that functionality. You may also want to add in the top mobile and digital wallets, which vary by region. While Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay and PayPal are popular worldwide, AliPay and WeChat Pay have large market share in China, and there are many emerging providers serving different countries in Africa.

How can payment testing be integrated with the software development process?

Integrating payment testing into all phases of the software development process is critical to ensure that payments work smoothly. Here are some ways to integrate payment testing at each phase of the SDLC.  

• Requirement gathering: Clearly define payment-related requirements, including supported payment methods, currencies, and security standards. Collaborate with stakeholders to understand which business rules and regulations govern payments.

• Design: Design payment workflows, including authorization, processing and settlement. Plan for various payment scenarios, including successful transactions, declined payments, split payments and refunds. Design test scenarios and test data that cover both positive and negative payment scenarios.

• Development: Develop payment workflows that support the defined requirements and designs. Include appropriate security measures, such as encrypting payment data. Use automation for unit testing to ensure payment modules are functional and reliable. 

• Integration: Integrate payment modules with other components of the software and test to ensure the modules communicate seamlessly. Test end-to-end payment workflows to validate the entire payment process, including user interactions and backend processing.
• Testing: Conduct comprehensive tests with real payment instruments, including a variety of scenarios and different transaction states: expired cards, failed transactions, BNPL, special promotions, insufficient funds. 
• Deployment: Verify that all defects have been addressed before releasing to production. Perform smoke tests and regression tests to verify that payment functionalities work as expected in the production environment.
• Monitoring and maintenance: Conduct regular monitoring to track payment transactions and detect any anomalies or failures.

What are some common challenges in conducting payment testing and how can they be overcome?

One of the greatest payment testing challenges is getting access to all the payment instruments the organization wants to validate — let alone all the devices needed to test payment workflows. Crowdtesting is an efficient, effective way to gain access to real, live payment instruments in a variety of balance states, as well as the devices customers use for different types of transactions. 

Another challenge is covering the wide range of different transaction types that require testing: purchases, order cancellations, returns, split payment methods, BNPL, subscriptions or automatic charges, cross-border payments… the list goes on. In addition, payment transactions typically involve many complex integrations and hand-offs. It’s crucial to understand all the integration requirements, including supported payment methods, transaction types, currencies and regulatory compliance standards. Develop comprehensive test scenarios covering all the different transaction types, possible outcomes and edge cases. 

What are the best practices for conducting payment testing?

Some best practices for payment testing include: 

• Using live payment instruments. Testing the happy path with a fake card or only one payment method doesn’t provide adequate insight into where problems lie. Using real payment methods allows developers and QA teams to capture details on error messages, determine whether or not taxes calculate correctly, see how charges appear on statements and more.
• Testing whenever you make changes. Adding a new payment instrument? Changing payment gateways? Rolling out a new checkout process? Establishing a new loyalty program? Accepting BNPL for the first time? Making any adjustments that could impact your ability to receive payments? Test.    
• Include negative testing scenarios. Consider both positive and negative test scenarios to validate different outcomes and error handling processes. 
• Assessing the end-to-end payment experience. Payments encompass more than just the money transfer. Look at how charges appear on statements and receipts, post-purchase communication, subscription processes and autopay options to make sure every touchpoint related to the payment is seamless.  
• Including industry-specific testing scenarios. Financial services companies and fintechs have their own unique testing considerations, along with retailers, gambling and sportsbooks, media and telecommunications providers. Make sure your test plans encompass all the scenarios that occur in your industry, whether it’s a checking account holder setting up a monthly transfer to savings or a streaming media customer taking advantage of a free trial through a partner’s co-marketing program. 

What tools and technologies are available for payment testing?

Many software testing tools typically used for functional testing can be used to test payments as well — like test automation frameworks and tools typically used to test APIs, security and performance. Some payment gateway providers offer sandbox environments for testing payment integrations; many regulatory authorities provide similar options to help ensure compliance with industry standards and regulatory requirements. 

What is the role of payment testing in ensuring the success and quality of e-commerce software? 

Payment testing can uncover both functional issues in e-commerce software and friction points in the purchase process. From a functional perspective, in addition to revealing problems with specific payment instruments, payment testing also validates whether taxes, shipping costs, coupons and rewards calculate correctly, protecting revenue. On the user experience side, payment testing ensures that payment workflows are intuitive, efficient and error-free, leading to higher conversion rates and customer satisfaction. Identifying and resolving issues such as payment failures, incorrect billing, or confusing payment interfaces helps optimize the checkout process and minimize cart abandonment.

E-commerce platforms must comply with various regulations and industry standards related to payment processing, such as PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) and GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation). Testing helps ensure that e-commerce software adheres to these regulations and standards, reducing the risk of non-compliance penalties and safeguarding customer data. Payment testing for e-commerce software helps minimize risks and build customer confidence. 

How can payment testing results be analyzed and used to improve the payment process?

Systematically analyzing payment testing results and using the data to drive continuous improvement initiatives allows organizations to enhance the quality, reliability, and security of their payment processes, leading to better user experiences and business outcomes. Look for patterns and trends to help identify the root cause of issues. Prioritize issues based on their severity, impact on the payment process and potential risks to the business and customers, then focus on addressing the most critical issues first. Use data to optimize testing and improve the overall payment process.

How can payment testing be used to comply with payment industry standards and regulations?

Payment testing plays a critical role in ensuring compliance with payment industry standards and regulations, such as PCI DSS, GDPR, and Payment Services Directive (PSD2). Organizations must test security, encryption and authentication mechanisms to ensure compliance. In addition, documenting tests and test run results helps demonstrate compliance with industry standards and regulations. Maintaining records of payment testing activities, test plans, test cases, test results, and remediation actions can support regulatory reporting requirements and audits.

What are the best ways to design and execute payment testing scenarios?

Designing and executing effective payment testing scenarios requires careful planning and consideration of various payment use cases. To begin, develop comprehensive lists of all the requirements, including supported payment methods, transaction types, currencies, and regulatory compliance standards. Identify and prioritize payment testing scenarios based on critical business functions, user interactions and system integrations. Make sure to consider various payment use cases, such as new account registration, payment processing, refunds, chargebacks and subscription billing.

Create test scenarios that cover both positive and negative test cases to validate expected behavior and error handling mechanisms. Test for scenarios such as successful payments, declined or failed payments, expired cards, insufficient funds and network errors. Include test scenarios for different payment methods, such as credit cards, debit cards, digital wallets, bank transfers and any alternative payment methods you accept. Validate payment processing workflows for each payment method, ensuring compatibility and consistency across all options.

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