Performance and load testing
Measuring response times and behaviour under expected and peak load.
Mandatory for 9 of 46 product types. Usually run by a developer.
What it catches
- slow endpoints
- bottlenecks
- crashes under load
What it misses
- correctness
- security
Which product types need it and why
| Product type | Status | Reason or condition |
|---|---|---|
| crypto exchange | mandatory | Risks: Outage during a demand peak |
| government services portal | mandatory | Risks: Outage during a demand peak |
| LLM-based assistant | mandatory | Risks: Outage during a demand peak |
| messaging app | mandatory | Risks: Outage during a demand peak |
| mobile game | mandatory | Risks: Outage during a demand peak |
| ride-hailing app | mandatory | Risks: Outage during a demand peak |
| telemedicine app | mandatory | Risks: Outage during a demand peak |
| event ticketing platform | mandatory | Risks: Outage during a demand peak |
| stock trading app | mandatory | Risks: Outage during a demand peak |
| buy now pay later service | recommended | Becomes mandatory when a signed merchant runs a seasonal sales event through the service. |
| data pipeline | recommended | Becomes mandatory when runs overlap or outage-under-load evidence is attached. |
| dating app | recommended | Becomes mandatory when a marketing campaign is planned that is expected to bring a spike in sign-ups. |
| ecommerce store | recommended | Becomes mandatory when a sale or campaign is planned that drives traffic above the store's past peak. |
| electronic health record system | recommended | Becomes mandatory when evidence shows chart load times slowing clinicians at shift change or during go-live. |
| email marketing platform | recommended | Becomes mandatory when large campaign sends drop or duplicate messages or make the app unusable. |
| ERP system | recommended | Becomes mandatory when outage-under-load evidence for close or payroll peaks is attached. |
| EV charging app | recommended | Becomes mandatory when the network serves motorway sites with holiday peaks. |
| fleet and logistics tracking | recommended | Becomes mandatory when a single tenant's fleet causes shift-start position spikes. |
| grocery delivery app | recommended | Becomes mandatory when shoppers cannot load slots or pay while a new week of delivery slots opens. |
| identity and access management service | recommended | Becomes mandatory when outage-under-load evidence for sign-in peaks is attached. |
| language learning app | recommended | Becomes mandatory when speech scoring slows at peak usage. |
| loyalty program app | recommended | Becomes mandatory when a promotion peak stops members from earning or redeeming. |
| online marketplace | recommended | Becomes mandatory when the platform runs a sitewide sale or drop above its past peak traffic. |
| machine learning model service | recommended | Becomes mandatory when outage-under-load evidence is attached or clients call the endpoint in real time. |
| mobile banking app | recommended | Becomes mandatory when salary-day or month-end traffic has slowed logins or the bank sets an impact tolerance for app access. |
| neobank | recommended | Becomes mandatory when a launch or referral campaign has slowed sign-ups or card approvals. |
| peer-to-peer payment app | recommended | Becomes mandatory when a peak has delayed payments or notifications. |
| patient portal | recommended | Becomes mandatory when results release in batches and patients sign in together after a notification. |
| SDK or client library | recommended | Becomes mandatory when a host app reports launch timeouts caused by the SDK. |
| social network | recommended | Becomes mandatory when a launch or live event is expected to bring a sign-up spike. |
| video conferencing tool | recommended | Becomes mandatory when outage-under-load evidence for meeting peaks is attached. |
| clinical trial management software | optional | May help: shows whether database lock and a full-study export finish while sites keep entering data. |
| desktop application | optional | Optional: helps when reviews cite slow start-up. |
| e-signature service | optional | Optional: helps when bulk send is sold, no outage-under-load evidence is attached. |
| kids app | optional | May help on low-memory family tablets. |
| software as a medical device | optional | May help measure phone battery and radio use over a full day of background readings. |
| travel booking app | optional | May help before fare sales or holiday peaks. |
| accounting and invoicing SaaS | not needed | Not needed: no outage under load is recorded for this type. Becomes recommended when a filing deadline produces a recorded slowdown or outage. |
| expense management tool | not needed | Not needed: no outage under load is recorded for this type. Becomes recommended when month-end report submission produces a recorded slowdown. |
| insurance app | not needed | Not needed: no outage under load is recorded for this type. Becomes recommended when a catastrophe event can drive a surge of claims filed in the app. |
| smart home or IoT app | not needed | Not needed: no demand-peak outage is evidenced for this product type. Becomes recommended when a holiday sale is expected to bring a setup spike. |
| lending platform | not needed | Not needed: loan applications arrive steadily and no peak-load incident is recorded for this type. Becomes recommended when a marketing campaign or rate promotion drives application spikes. |
| mental health app | not needed | Not needed while usage is spread across the day with no booking peaks. Becomes recommended when live group sessions or scheduled launches concentrate users. |
| pharmacy delivery app | not needed | Not needed: orders arrive at prescription pace with no drop or flash-sale peak. Becomes recommended when the app runs a public campaign or adds same-hour delivery in a large city. |
| subscription box service | not needed | Not needed: renewals run as scheduled jobs and sign-ups have no evidenced peak. Becomes recommended when a limited-edition box launch is promoted. |
| wearable companion app | not needed | Not needed: sync traffic is spread across users' days with no launch-day peak evidenced. Becomes recommended when a new band launch is expected to bring a pairing spike. |
Done conditions used on playbook pages
Each mandatory cell has its own done condition, written for that product type.
- crypto exchange (Fintech): With a replay of the busiest price-spike traffic on record, login, order placement and cancel stay within the agreed response target.
- government services portal (Public sector): Sign-in and form submission keep working while a load test simulates the opening hours of an enrolment window.
- LLM-based assistant (Infrastructure and developer products): One account sending prompts in a loop hits its own limit, and other accounts keep getting answers at their usual speed.
- messaging app (Consumer apps): A reconnect of all simulated clients at once, with empty caches, completes without errors and without new logins being refused.
- mobile game (Consumer apps): A load test at the launch or event forecast plus the margin the team set keeps login and match start within the team's target.
- ride-hailing app (Commerce): At the forecast New Year's Eve request rate, ride requests are matched, priced and billed with no rise in error responses on the status dashboard.
- telemedicine app (Healthcare): With as many test patients as join in the busiest appointment slot, every one reaches the waiting room and the clinician admits each without an error.
- event ticketing platform (Commerce): With a simulated onsale crowd larger than the biggest past onsale, the queue keeps admitting buyers and no seat is sold twice.
- stock trading app (Fintech): At the login and order volume of the busiest market open on record, login, quotes and order entry respond within the targets agreed with the broker's operations team.
Tools
Alphabetical. Not recommendations.
performance and load testing
- ArtilleryLoad testing with YAML scenarios. apiwebfreemium
- GatlingLoad testing with Scala, Java or Kotlin scenarios. apiwebfreemium
- JMeterLoad testing tool from the Apache Foundation. apiwebopen-source
- k6Load testing scripted in JavaScript. apiwebopen-source
- LighthouseAudits for accessibility and performance in Chrome. webopen-source
- LocustLoad testing scripted in Python. apiwebopen-source