Software testing is the process used to help identify the correctness, completeness, security and quality of developed computer software.

Software testing may be viewed as a sub-field of software quality assurance but typically exists independently (and there may be no SQA areas in some companies). In SQA, software process specialists and auditors take a broader view on software and its development. They examine and change the software engineering process itself to reduce the amount of faults that end up in the code or deliver faster.

Regardless of the methods used or level of formality involved the desired result of testing is a level of confidence in the software so that the developers are confident that the software has an acceptable defect rate.

A common practice of software testing is that it is performed by an independent group of testers after finishing the software product and before it is shipped to the customer. This practice often results in the testing phase being used as project buffer to compensate for project delays. Another practice is to start software testing at the same moment the project starts and it is a continuous process until the project finishes.