Best Practices for Writing Cucumber Scenarios: A Beginner's Guide

BDD (Behavior-Driven Development) emphasizes communication between developers, testers, and business stakeholders using common language to describe system behavior.

What is Cucumber?

Cucumber enables BDD implementation using the Gherkin language — a plain-text format that describes application behavior in “Given-When-Then” structures that everyone on the team can understand.

Getting Started

1. Setup with Maven

Add the required dependencies to your pom.xml:

• cucumber-java — for step definitions
• cucumber-junit — for test runner integration

2. Write Feature Files

Feature files use .feature extension and contain Gherkin scenarios:

Feature: User Login
  Scenario: Successful login
    Given the user is on the login page
    When they enter valid credentials
    Then they should see the dashboard

3. Define Step Definitions

Map Gherkin steps to Java code that performs the actual testing.

4. Create Test Runner

Use JUnit to discover and execute your Cucumber features.

Best Practices

• Use plain language — scenarios should be readable by non-technical stakeholders
• Keep scenarios focused — one behavior per scenario
• Reuse steps — write generic steps that can be combined
• Avoid implementation details — describe what, not how
• Use background for common setup — reduce duplication

Advantages

• Plain language — bridges communication gaps
• Collaboration — involves all stakeholders in testing
• Reusability — steps can be shared across scenarios
• Automation integration — works with Selenium, Appium, and more
• CI/CD integration — runs as part of your pipeline

Conclusion

Cucumber and BDD transform testing from a technical activity into a collaborative one. When practiced well, it ensures your software does what the business actually needs.