Test types

Every performance test has a goal. Choosing the wrong type wastes time and can produce misleading results. This section defines each test type, explains when to reach for it, and shows you how to configure and run it in MaxoPerf.

Which test type should I run?

Use the matrix below to match your goal to the right test type. Follow the link to the type page for a concrete MaxoPerf walk-through.

My goal	Test type	Typical profile
Verify the system starts and basic flows work	Smoke test	1–5 VUs, 30–60 s
Confirm behaviour under expected peak load	Load test	50–500 VUs, 10–30 min
Find the point where the system degrades	Stress test	Ramp past expected peak
Measure reaction to a sudden traffic surge	Spike test	Instant jump to 10× normal
Detect slow leaks (memory, connections, drift)	Soak / endurance test	Normal load, 2–12+ h
Find the absolute ceiling before failure	Breakpoint / capacity test	Step-ramp to failure
Validate horizontal scale-out behaviour	Scalability test	Repeated runs at N, 2N, 4N VUs
Measure performance with large data sets	Volume test	Normal load, large payloads / DBs
Compare performance across configurations	Configuration test	Fixed load, repeated across configs
Catch performance regressions in CI / CD	Baseline regression test	Same profile each build
Benchmark REST/gRPC/GraphQL endpoint latency	API performance test	Per-endpoint isolation
Measure real-browser Core Web Vitals	Frontend / browser performance test	Selenium / browser runner

Test type spectrum

Tests sit on a spectrum from “tiny sanity check” to “find the cliff”:

Smoke → Load → Stress → Breakpoint
               ↕
            Spike  ← (orthogonal: sudden surge)
               ↕
         Soak / Endurance ← (orthogonal: time dimension)

Baseline regression and API performance tests are practices that layer on top of any of the above types.

Reading order

New to performance testing? Read the types in this order:

1. Smoke test — start here; cheapest, fastest feedback.
2. Load test — the workhorse of performance testing.
3. Stress test — push beyond normal load.
4. Spike test — sudden surge scenario.
5. Soak / endurance test — long-duration stability.
6. Breakpoint / capacity test — absolute ceiling.
7. Scalability test — validate scale-out.
8. Volume test — data-scale dimension.
9. Configuration test — compare infra variants.
10. Baseline regression test — CI gate.
11. API performance test — API focus.
12. Frontend / browser performance test — browser & Core Web Vitals.

Where to go next

• Foundations — understand latency, throughput, VUs, and baselines before choosing a type.
• Cookbook — step-by-step recipes for common performance testing goals.
• Do & Don’t — patterns that separate good tests from misleading ones.