Stop 04 · SDLC, Agile & Testing MethodologiesTopics · 8/9

Definition of Done for QA

In short

'It's done, just not tested.' If you've heard that, the team needs a Definition of Done. It's the shared checklist every story must pass before anyone calls it finished.

A team's explicit, shared checklist for when a story is truly complete from a quality perspective — tested, no known critical bugs, documentation updated — preventing the 'it's done except for testing' problem.

The purple blob hands a room key to a warden at a hostel desk with a packed bag beside it.

Think of it like this

Hostel checkout checklist

Leaving the hostel isn't just walking out. Return the keys, clear the mess bill, get the room inspected, collect your deposit slip. Until every box is ticked, you haven't checked out. Stories work the same way.

Watch it happen

Ticking off a story's Definition of Done

Code reviewed

Unit tests pass

Criteria tested

No open major bugs

Regression green

Docs updated

1/5Developer checks: the code is reviewed and unit tests pass in CI.

The big ideas

What you need to know

Team-owned

The whole team agrees the DoD and applies it to every story, not just QA.

DoD vs acceptance criteria

Acceptance criteria are specific to one story. The DoD applies to all stories.

It grows with the team

Start small and add items like 'accessibility checked' or 'automated test added' as the team matures.

Save yourself the pain

Common mistakes

Oops

Letting stories be 'done' with testing moved to next sprint.

Do this instead

Testing is part of the DoD. If it's not tested, it goes back, however awkward that is.

Oops

A DoD so long nobody can actually meet it.

Do this instead

Keep items the team can really do every sprint, and grow the list over time.

Your mission

Write a team DoD

~15 min

Quick check

A story's features work, but QA hasn't tested two acceptance criteria yet. Under a good DoD, is it done?

Go deeper

1Draft a Definition of Done checklist specifically covering QA's completion criteria.
2Learn why 'done' without QA criteria causes disputes at sprint review.
3Practice defending why a story shouldn't be marked done without adequate test coverage.