| title | Create and manage manual test cases |
|---|---|
| titleSuffix | Azure Test Plans |
| description | Create and manage manual test cases in Azure Test Plans to validate deliverables, assign testers, and organize your testing process. Start improving quality now. |
| ms.assetid | C3C10A82-C7F2-4AB6-9CED-B43DAF722800 |
| ms.service | azure-devops-test-plans |
| ms.custom | UpdateFrequency3, copilot-scenario-highlight |
| ms.topic | how-to |
| ms.author | pliaros |
| ms.reviewer | chcomley |
| author | rohit-batra |
| monikerRange | <= azure-devops |
| ms.date | 04/28/2026 |
| ai-usage | ai-assisted |
| ms.update-cycle | 1095-days |
[!INCLUDE version-lt-eq-azure-devops]
Create manual test cases to validate that each deliverable meets user requirements. Test cases define the individual steps testers perform, and can include shared steps and parameters for data-driven testing. Organize test cases in test plans and test suites, and then assign testers to run them.
For key concepts, see Test objects and terms.
Note
Test iterations are for data-driven scenarios, not workflow-driven ones. If two test scenarios follow different workflows, create separate test cases. For more information, see FAQs for manual testing.
[!INCLUDE prerequisites-define]
::: moniker range="azure-devops" [!INCLUDE ai-assistance-mcp-server-tip] ::: moniker-end
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If you didn't already, create a test plan.
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Select a requirement-based test suite and select New Test Case.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/new-test-case-button.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing test cases with New Test Case button highlighted.":::
[!NOTE] This test suite links to a User Story work item from the backlog. When you add a test case to a requirement-based suite, you automatically link it to the backlog item. You can also create test cases directly from the backlog by opening the context menu for a work item and selecting Add test.
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Enter a title and select Click or type here to add a step.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/test-case-steps.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the steps entered for a test case.":::
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Add test steps with an Action and Expected Result for each step. You can add attachments to any step.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/add-attachment-test-case.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing test case with links button highlighted.":::
For more information, see Share steps and Copy or clone stories, issues, and other work items.
To open a test case, double-select its name in the Define tab, or select it in the Execute tab, open the context menu, and select Edit test case. For more information, see Define tab context menu options.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/open-test-case-edit.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the Edit test case option for a test case in the context menu.":::
You can link a test case to test suites, requirements, and bugs. To see linked items, in the Define tab, open the context menu for a test case, and select View Linked Items. For more information, see View linked items.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/view-linked-items.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the Linked Items dialog box for a test case with options to view Test Suites, Requirements, and Bugs.":::
You can run the same test across different operating systems, browsers, or other variations by assigning configurations at the suite or test case level. For detailed steps on creating configurations and assigning them, see Test different configurations.
The reorder method depends on the suite type:
| Suite type | How to reorder |
|---|---|
| Static suite | Drag and drop test cases in the test case list. |
| Requirement-based suite | Reorder the backlog items in the backlog view. |
| Query-based suite | Modify the query's sort columns. |
Select a test step and use the up and down arrows to move it. You can select and move multiple steps together.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/change-step-order.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the arrows used to move test steps up or down.":::
Tip
If several test cases share the same steps, use shared steps to keep them in sync. Updating a shared step applies the change to all test cases that reference it.
Add existing test cases to a test suite by using the following steps.
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Select a test suite. From the New Test Case menu, select Add existing test cases.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/add-existing-test-cases.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the Add existing test cases option to select.":::
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Add search clauses, as needed, and then select Run query.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/add-test-case-suite.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the Add test cases to suite dialog box with the Run query button highlighted.":::
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When you find the test cases you want, select them and choose Add test cases.
Tip
You can create a test case that automatically links to a requirement - User Story (Agile), Product Backlog Item (Scrum), Requirement (CMMI), or Issue (Basic) - when you create a test from the board. For more information, see Add, run, and update inline tests.
::: moniker range="<=azure-devops"
By using the Grid view, you can edit test cases directly and copy data between Excel and your test cases.
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Select the Grid View icon.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/grid-view-button.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the Grid View button used to open the Grid view.":::
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Select one or more test cases, and then select Edit test cases in grid.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/edit-multiple-test-cases-grid.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing several test cases selected with the context menu open and Edit test case(s) in grid selected.":::
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Add, delete, or clear rows.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/grid-context-menu.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the Grid context menu to insert, delete, or clear rows.":::
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To add multiple test cases to the test suite, select Add test cases using grid.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/add-test-cases-grid.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing option to add test cases using the Grid view.":::
In the List view, use column options to select the fields in the test case work item. You can view and edit these fields when you switch to the Grid view.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/column-options.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the Column Options button.":::
You can also copy test cases and test steps from Excel. Copy the columns for title, action, and expected results, and then paste them into the Grid view. Only multiline formatting is preserved when copying between Excel and the Grid.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/save-test-cases-grid.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the save option for steps copied from Excel to the Grid view.":::
Note
Don't use the Teams plugin for Excel to add or update test case work items. Excel can't parse the format that stores test steps, which can corrupt test case formatting.
::: moniker-end
::: moniker range="<=azure-devops" Assign test cases so that different testers can run them. You can assign all test cases in a test suite to multiple testers, which is useful for acceptance testing.
Testers need Basic access to run tests from Azure Test Plans.
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In the context menu for a test suite, select Assign testers to run all tests.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/assign-testers-all-tests.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the Assign testers to run all tests option in a test suite context menu.":::
The Select testers to run all the tests in suite dialog opens.
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Add or remove testers from the list. After you select the testers, select Send email and edit the message so they know that tests are ready for them to run.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/select-testers-dialog-box.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing Assigning testers to run all tests dialog box with Search users and Send email called out.":::
The email contains a link that testers can open to see the list of assigned tests.
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In the Execute tab for a test suite, select a test, and then open the context menu.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/assign-tester-test-case.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the context menu for a test case with the Assign tester option selected.":::
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Select Assign tester. Search for and select a tester.
::: moniker-end
You can edit more than one test case at a time. Select several test cases in a test suite and select Edit test cases. For more information, see Export, import, and bulk update of test-specific work items.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/bulk-edit-work-items.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing the Edit work items dialog box where you can select fields and values for several test cases.":::
Select a Field and enter a Value. Select Add new field to add another field-value pair.
Tag test cases to filter and group them. For example, tag all sign-in tests so you can quickly rerun them after a bug fix. You can filter by tag in the Test Plans web portal and create query-based suites from tags.
To add new tags, you need at least Basic access and the project-level Create new tag definition permission set to Allow. For more information, see Add work item tags.
You can add tags when editing a test case or bulk edit tags in the Grid view.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/test-case-tags.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing tags for a test case.":::
You can rename or remove test cases from a test suite.
Rename a test case: Open the test case from the context menu, and then edit the name.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/open-test-case-option.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing a test case with its context menu with Open test case selected.":::
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/change-test-case-name.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing a test case with its name selected to edit.":::
Remove a test case: From the context menu for the test case, select Remove.
:::image type="content" border="true" source="media/create-test-cases/remove-test-case.png" alt-text="Screenshot showing removed test case.":::
::: moniker-end
::: moniker range="azure-devops"
If you configure the Azure DevOps MCP Server, you can use AI assistants to manage your test cases by using natural language prompts.
| Task | Example prompt |
|---|---|
| Create a test case | Create a new test case in <Contoso> project titled '<Verify login with valid credentials>' |
| List test cases | Show all test cases in test suite <67890> in project <Contoso> |
| Find unassigned test cases | List test cases in test plan <12345> that have no tester assigned |
| Update test cases | Update work item <5678> to set State = <Ready> and Priority = <2> |
| Search by keyword | Find all test cases in <Contoso> that contain 'checkout' in the title |
| Identify stale tests | List test cases in <Contoso> project that haven't been run in the last 90 days |
| Check test case coverage | Show all active test cases in area path <Contoso\\Payments> grouped by state |
| Find tests without steps | List test cases in test plan <12345> that have no test steps defined |
| Spot duplicate test cases | Find test cases in project <Contoso> that have the same title |
| Review high-priority gaps | Show test cases in area path <Contoso\\Payments> with Priority = <1> that have State = <Design> |
Tip
If you're using Visual Studio Code, agent mode is especially helpful for troubleshooting complex test case scenarios.
- To avoid using stale or cached data from previous queries, add to your prompt, "Do not use previously fetched data."
::: moniker-end
[!div class="nextstepaction"] Run manual tests