ETL Testing Data Warehouse Testing Tutorial (A Complete

Guide)
Last Updated:May 30, 2021

ETL Testing / Data Warehouse Process and Challenges:

Today let me take a moment and explain my testing fraternity about one of the much in demand and
upcoming skills for my tester friends i.e. ETL testing (Extract, Transform, and Load).

This tutorial will present you with a complete idea about ETL testing and what we do to test ETL
process.
Complete List Tutorials in this series:
 Tutorial #1: ETL Testing Data Warehouse Testing Introduction guide
 Tutorial #2: ETL Testing Using Informatica PowerCenter Tool
 Tutorial #3: ETL vs. DB Testing
 Tutorial #4: Business Intelligence (BI) Testing: How to Test Business Data
 Tutorial #5: Top 10 ETL Testing Tools
It has been observed that Independent Verification and Validation is gaining huge market potential and
many companies are now seeing this as prospective business gain.

Customers have been offered a different range of products in terms of service offerings, distributed in
many areas based on technology, process, and solutions. ETL or data warehouse is one of the offerings
which are developing rapidly and successfully.
 Through ETL process, data is fetched from the source systems, transformed as per business rules and
finally loaded to the target system (data warehouse). A data warehouse is an enterprise-wide store which
contains integrated data that aids in the business decision-making process. It is a part of business
intelligence.

What You Will Learn: [hide]

 Why do organizations need Data Warehouse?
 ETL process
 ETL Testing Techniques
 ETL/Data Warehouse Testing Process
 Difference between Database and Data Warehouse Testing
 ETL Testing Challenges
 Recommended Reading

Why do organizations need Data Warehouse?

Organizations with organized IT practices are looking forward to creating the next level of technology
transformation. They are now trying to make themselves much more operational with easy-to-
interoperate data.

Having said that data is most important part of any organization, it may be everyday data or historical
data. Data is the backbone of any report and reports are the baseline on which all the vital management
decisions are taken.

Most of the companies are taking a step forward for constructing their data warehouse to store and
monitor real-time data as well as historical data. Crafting an efficient data warehouse is not an easy
job. Many organizations have distributed departments with different applications running on distributed
technology.
ETL tool is employed in order to make a flawless integration between different data sources from
different departments. ETL tool will work as an integrator, extracting data from different sources;
transforming it into the preferred format based on the business transformation rules and loading it in
cohesive DB known are Data Warehouse.

Well planned, well defined and effective testing scope guarantees smooth conversion of the project
to the production. A business gains the real buoyancy once the ETL processes are verified and validated
by an independent group of experts to make sure that data warehouse is concrete and robust.
ETL or Data warehouse testing is categorized into four different engagements irrespective of
technology or ETL tools used:
 New Data Warehouse Testing – New DW is built and verified from scratch. Data input is taken
from customer requirements and different data sources and new data warehouse is built and
verified with the help of ETL tools.
 Migration Testing – In this type of project customer will have an existing DW and ETL
performing the job but they are looking to bag new tool in order to improve efficiency.
 Change Request – In this type of project new data is added from different sources to an existing
DW. Also, there might be a condition where customer needs to change their existing business rule
or they might integrate the new rule.
  Report Testing – Report is the end result of any Data Warehouse and the basic propose for which
DW builds. The report must be tested by validating layout, data in the report and calculation.
ETL process
(Note: Click on the image for enlarged view)

ETL Testing Techniques

1) Data transformation Testing: Verify that data is transformed correctly according to various business
requirements and rules.
2) Source to Target count Testing: Make sure that the count of records loaded in the target is matching
with the expected count.
3) Source to Target Data Testing: Make sure that all projected data is loaded into the data warehouse
without any data loss and truncation.
4) Data Quality Testing: Make sure that ETL application appropriately rejects, replaces with default
values and reports invalid data.
5) Performance Testing: Make sure that data is loaded in data warehouse within prescribed and
expected time frames to confirm improved performance and scalability.
6) Production Validation Testing: Validate the data in production system & compare it against the
source data.
7) Data Integration Testing: Make sure that the data from various sources has been loaded properly to
the target system and all the threshold values are checked.
8) Application Migration Testing: In this testing, it is ensured that the ETL application is working fine
on moving to a new box or platform.
9) Data & constraint Check: The datatype, length, index, constraints, etc. are tested in this case.
10) Duplicate Data Check: Test if there is any duplicate data present in the target systems. Duplicate
data can lead to wrong analytical reports.
Apart from the above ETL testing methods other testing methods like system integration testing, user
acceptance testing, incremental testing, regression testing, retesting and navigation testing is also carried
out to make sure everything is smooth and reliable.

ETL/Data Warehouse Testing Process

Similar to any other testing that lies under Independent Verification and Validation, ETL also goes
through the same phase.
  Requirement understanding
 Validating
 Test Estimation based on a number of tables, the complexity of rules, data volume and
performance of a job.
 Test planning based on the inputs from test estimation and business requirement. We need to
identify here that what is in scope and what is out of scope. We also look out for dependencies,
risks and mitigation plans in this phase.
 Designing test cases and test scenarios from all the available inputs. We also need to design
mapping document and SQL scripts.
 Once all the test cases are ready and are approved, testing team proceed to perform pre-execution
check and test data preparation for testing
 Lastly, execution is performed till exit criteria are met. So, execution phase includes running ETL
jobs, monitoring job runs, SQL script execution, defect logging, defect retesting and regression
testing.
 Upon successful completion, a summary report is prepared and closure process is done. In this
phase, sign off is given to promote the job or code to the next phase.
The first two phases i.e. requirement understanding and validation can be regarded as pre-steps of ETL
test process.

So, the main process can be represented as below:

It is necessary to define test strategy which should be mutually accepted by stakeholders before starting
actual testing. A well-defined test strategy will make sure that correct approach has been followed
meeting the testing aspiration.

ETL/Data Warehouse testing might require writing SQL statements extensively by testing team or maybe
tailoring the SQL provided by the development team. In any case, a testing team must be aware of the
results they are trying to get using those SQL statements.

Difference between Database and Data Warehouse Testing

There is a popular misunderstanding that database testing and data warehouse is similar while the fact is
that both hold different direction in testing.
 Database testing is done using a smaller scale of data normally with OLTP (Online transaction
processing) type of databases while data warehouse testing is done with large volume with data
involving OLAP (online analytical processing) databases.
 In database testing normally data is consistently injected from uniform sources while in data
warehouse testing most of the data comes from different kind of data sources which are
sequentially inconsistent.
 We generally perform the only CRUD (Create, read, update and delete) operation in database
testing while in data warehouse testing we use read-only (Select) operation.
 Normalized databases are used in DB testing while demoralized DB is used in data warehouse
testing.
There is a number of universal verifications that have to be carried out for any kind of data warehouse
testing.
Below is the list of objects that are treated as essential for validation in this testing:
 Verify that data transformation from source to destination works as expected
 Verify that expected data is added to the target system
 Verify that all DB fields and field data is loaded without any truncation
 Verify data checksum for record count match
 Verify that for rejected data proper error logs are generated with all details
 Verify NULL value fields
 Verify that duplicate data is not loaded
 Verify data integrity
=> Know the difference between ETL/Data warehouse testing & Database Testing.
ETL Testing Challenges
This testing is quite different from conventional testing. There are many challenges we faced while
performing data warehouse testing.

Here are few challenges I experienced on my project:

 Incompatible and duplicate data
 Loss of data during ETL process
 Unavailability of the inclusive testbed
 Testers have no privileges to execute ETL jobs by their own
 Volume and complexity of data are very huge
 Fault in business process and procedures
 Trouble acquiring and building test data
 Unstable testing environment
 Missing business flow information
Data is important for businesses to make the critical business decisions. ETL testing plays a significant
role validating and ensuring that the business information is exact, consistent and reliable. Also, it
minimizes the hazard of data loss in production.

Hope these tips will help ensure your ETL process is accurate and the data warehouse build by this is a
competitive advantage for your business.

Complete List of ETL Testing Tutorials:

 Tutorial #1: ETL Testing Data Warehouse Testing Introduction guide
 Tutorial #2: ETL Testing Using Informatica PowerCenter Tool
 Tutorial #3: ETL vs. DB Testing
 Tutorial #4: Business Intelligence (BI) Testing: How to Test Business Data
 Tutorial #5: Top 10 ETL Testing Tools
This is a guest post by Vishal Chhaperia who is working in an MNC in a test management role. He is
having extensive experience in managing multi-technology QA projects, Processes and teams.
Further reading =>> Best ETL Test Automation Tools
Have you worked on ETL testing? Please share your ETL/DW testing tips and challenges below.
Recommended Reading
 Alpha Testing and Beta Testing (A Complete Guide)
 ETL Testing Interview Questions and Answers
 Best Software Testing Tools 2021 [QA Test Automation Tools]
 10 Best ETL Testing Tools in 2021 [TOP SELECTIVE]
 Build Verification Testing (BVT Testing) Complete Guide
 Functional Testing Vs Non-Functional Testing
 The 4 Steps to Business Intelligence (BI) Testing: How to Test Business Data
 Testing Primer eBook Download
CategoriesDatabase TestingPost navigation
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203 thoughts on “ETL Testing Data Warehouse Testing Tutorial (A
Complete Guide)”

Comment Navigation
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1. jai krishna
hi, i am MBA Graduate and i want to learn ETL testing can i know which is the best training center
in ameerpet and 100% placement institution.
mobile no9849497976
jai krishna

Reply
2. Shekhar Lamba
Very nice article. Thanks for posting.

Reply
3. bhanu
Hi all, I Want to learn ETL testing , Can you please suggest me the best institutes in hyderabad

Reply
 Hiqmat Ali
If you want to learn ETL testing .
In Bangalore have one Institution name is NSR Technologist at BTM Layout.

Reply
4. bhanu
Hi all, I Want to learn ETL testing , Can you please suggest me the best institutes in hyderabad.
Please mail me [email protected]
Reply
5. Prasanna Mishra
The above post regarding ETL testing is really good that helps me to enhance my theory
knowledge. Can anyone share some useful documents that I can use to improve my practical
knowledge.

Reply
6. Prasanna Mishra
Share on [email protected]
Reply
7. Vani
Hi All,

I have 9 years of experience in Manual testing . I would like to know which tool is better to learn now
ETL/Data Warehouse testing tool or Selenium Webdriver. Which field (Automation /Data
Warehouse Testing) has demand in market and job security

Reply
 chaitanya
Hi Vani,

Selenium and phython either of them is better

 Reply
8. subha
Very informative in simple working…thanks Vishal Chhaperia for the post.

Reply
9. subha
Very informative in simple wordings…thanks Vishal Chhaperia for the post.

Reply
10. Bhanu
Hi can anyone send me materials of etl testing basics

Reply
11. Bhanu
Hi can anyone send me materials of etl testing basics my mail id is [email protected]
Reply
12. Ravi
Hi Vishal,

Very good column.

You have written a statement in Difference between Database testing and DWH testing like this:

Normalized databases are used in DB testing while demoralized DB is used in data warehouse
testing.

Here is that demoralized or de-normalized?

Regards,
Ravi

Reply
13. Kishore jk
Hi,

Good Post.

Currently i am in Manual testing and interested in ETL testing i have some good knowledge on SQL
concept. With SQL concept i can survive ETL testing?

Reply
14. Santosh
Hi All,

I have 8 years of experience in Manual testing . I would like to know which tool is better to learn now
ETL/Data Warehouse testing tool or Selenium Webdriver. Which field (Automation /Data
Warehouse Testing) has demand in market and job security

Reply
15. durai
I have one year exp in automation testing and 7 months of exp as as a data analyst (back end work)
in ms SQL with this knowledge can I switch my career in etl testing n let me know the scope for etl
testing
 Reply
16. Kishore
It’s really provides good idea to the ETL Testers .– Thanks…

Reply
17. Vijay
what are different ETL Testing tools available in the industry?
whether etl tools and etl testing tools are same or not.

Reply
18. Sandeep
Hi,

I am sandeep working in an MNC as ETL Test Professional.

You can Reach out to me for Online classes on ETL Testing .

I use to cover ETL,Data warehosue and BI Testing.

contact me at [email protected] for Demo Classes

Thanks

Reply
19. kalpana
Hi please let me know if any one carried out ETL Testing tranings(not online) in pune

Reply
20. Murugesh
Hi
we can have different kinds of dataware housing testing based my consern.
like …..
1.ETL testing
2.Report testing
3.Data Reconciliation testing.

ETL testing is table level testing . we will have different sorts of source from BU.i mean they will
come up with DB table,excel etc and provide BU logic .we need to check based on businees rule its
getting loaded or not and then all the source data is getting loaded into target dataware house or
not.we have to check the source table matched with target database table .the etl load may be
happen based schedule that might be consider incremental load(transation data have been loaded
in incremental load ).
Report testing would be format level and data level.
dataware house data published or displayed in reporting.we have to check the BU expecting
format.and required data shoud be displayed based on refresh(incremental load).
Reconciliation testing is nothing but back tracking.
thanks ,
Murugesh
[email protected]
Reply
21. Shankernath
Hi,
I’m beginner to learn ETL , I got the info abot ETL ,its very nice..share more info…
[email protected]
Reply
22. sandeep
 Great Article !

Reply
23. Anil
Hi,

Very Informative share.

Can anyone share me the ETL Testing Tutorials and related Docs.
My Mail ID: [email protected]
Reply
24. zaffar
Hi All, any one suggest me how was the market for ETL testing. I am zaffar i have experience in
siebel admin. I want to learn pls suggest me any online training institue.

Reply
25. aman kumar
I want to learn ETL testing in Noida location. Anyone?

Reply
26. Megha
Is SQL requiered for DWH/ETL testing? SInce i wish to pursue career in same i would like to know
the criteria required for DWH/ETL training..

Reply
27. Lavanya
Hi all

Is anyone working as a Etl tester or informatica Qa tester

In USA please respond me back with ur email id
I need some tips n confidence from you guys
As I started searching a job.
My email id [email protected]
Thanks
Lavanya
Reply
28. Prakash
Nice article.

Reply
29. Siva Krishna
Is it possible if I work as ETL tester for and then want change my domain to developer

Reply
30. Nikhil Undale
what are different ETL tools available in the industry?
whether ETL tools like Informatica and ETL tools are same or not.

Reply
31. Anuj Singh
Hello Friend
I am working in MNC in Delhi and I have 5 years Experience in QTP . If anyone is interested in
QTP.
Please feel free to contact on the below numbere
 8510087247

Reply
32. Sravanti KN
Hi,

I have 4.2 years of experience in Manual testing. I am planning to move to ETL.Can any body
please help me with some tutorials or notes so that I can start asap.

Reply
33. Bala
An informative one. ETL topics coverage and the order created this article is good. It gives a single
learning point to start with ETL basics which would make a reader to understand easily.

I am also starting off creating a similar kind of knowledge, share base especially ETL. My goal is, I
would like to share across my knowledge whatever I have learnt in DWBI testing.

Reply
34. Prachi Nare
I want to move into ETL. HAving experience of 6.5 years in manual testing. have small experience
in ETL testing but want to explore more. plz help me with institute name.

Reply
35. Elaine
As an ex data warehouse developer, now tester, I agree with much of the advice. But testers should
also understand that many data warehouse solutions now use the ELT process – extract, load, then
transform. Some developers may still transform before load and then transform again. So it’s
important to speak with the developers and understand what methods they are using to get the data
into the data marts.

Reply
36. Souvik SVD
Do a ETL tester need to be an expert in Informatica/QLIKVIEW or any BI tool or Testing Knowledge
with strong SQL/Unix concepts will suffice?

Reply
37. Farrukh Shahzad Ahmed
Hi STH Team,

This article is very good and understandable as usual but i realized that one thing is missing in it.
Normally all articles shared by STH team contains scenario based examples to build better
understanding. These examples are core of STH articles and should not be missed.

Thank you
Farrukh Shahzad Ahmed Islamabad Pakistan

Reply
38. Jazzy
Awful English. Grammatically wrong, poor sentence structure, clumsily worded. It’s like an out of
tune piano being played by a drunk. Should we feel sorry for the “demoralized” DB?
—excerpt from article below—-
“Normalized databases are used in DB testing while demoralized DB is used in data warehouse
testing.”
 Reply
39. Pavel Kochan
We had many issue with ETL testing, primarily because production data do not always cover all
business rules in ETL and manual preparation of test data is quite expensive process.
At the end of the day, we had to developed a GTL QAceGen: Business Logic Driven Data
Generator. Description is on informatica market place in case you are interested

Reply
40. sasi
Please send test strategy for data migration testing (common scenario) for windows application

Reply
41. Intrepid
i need your help, i facing problem to clear a informatica Developer Interview, i always rejected after
first round, and not getting exactly reason. so please share to me about how to prepare and what is
flow of preparation.
please share all things .Email ID – [email protected]
please share study material.
Reply
42. Trang
Hi all, I Want to learn ETL testing , Can you please suggest me the best institutes in hyderabad.
Please mail me [email protected]
Reply
43. Hugo Delgadinho
Interesting perspective on this issue, in my understanding ETL is the operation that connects OLTP
and OLAP, basically collects data from several OLTP sources and puts it in OLAP data allowing
cross system analysis

Reply
44. John Orazio
for DIM tables the easiest way to test source to target is using an SQL minus operation. For a fact
table this approach is generally nor possible, you can either write your own SQL code (which may
be very long and complex) or compare the FACT table or MI report to the source data at the
relevant point in time.

Reply
45. Titli
How do I access the Tutorial? Please let me know. When I click on Tutorials link, it is bringing me to
this Intro page.

Reply
46. shabanam
i want test cases for security functionality related to data protection, identification and authetication
of mysql server.
can anyone help me.

Reply
47. Sangamesh
I completed ETL course, can any one help me to get job. Cell no, 7259422660

Reply
48. Sravan
Hi,
 I am Sravan having 8 Years of working experience in MNC organization as ETL Tester
Professional.

You can Reach out to me for Online ETL Testing classes below Email Id.

[email protected]
Duration : 45 Hours
Fees : 3500

Thanks
Sravan

Reply
49. Kumar Vikash
what are performance testing checks one should do in etl testing and cloud based etl architecture?
please help with this topic or give me a link which could help me

Reply

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