Bulk Import Test Cases into QTest Using CSV

Desired outcome

Create or update test cases in a QTest project from a CSV file while preserving fields such as External ID, Title, Description, Steps, Expected Result, Owner, and Component.

Prerequisites

• QTest account with Project Admin or Tester role in the target project.
• Access to the Import module (Project → Module → Import → Test Cases).
• A CSV file encoded in UTF‑8 without BOM that follows QTest’s template: External ID,Title,Description,Step Description,Expected Result,Owner,Component.
• Optional: download the sample template from the Import screen to verify column order.

Procedure

1. Log in and navigate

   Sign in to QTest, select the desired project, then go to Module → Import → Test Cases.

2. Prepare the CSV

   If you do not have a template, click Download Sample Template, open it in a spreadsheet editor, and fill rows with your test‑case data. Ensure:

   • No extra commas inside a field unless the field is wrapped in double quotes.
   • Each row corresponds to one test case; blank rows are ignored.
   • The External ID column is unique unless you intend to update existing cases.

   Save the file as testcases.csv.

3. Start the import

   Click Choose File, select testcases.csv, and press Open. QTest will attempt to auto‑map columns; verify that each header matches the expected field. If any column is unmapped, use the dropdown to assign it manually.

4. Run the import

   Click Start Import. A progress bar appears; do not navigate away until the process finishes. When complete, a notification shows the number of processed rows and any errors.

Expected checks

1. Open the Import History (Project → Module → Import → History) and locate the most recent job. Confirm:
• Status = Completed.
• Processed rows = number of non‑header lines in your CSV.
• Error count = 0.
2. In the Test Design module, apply a filter for the External ID values you imported. Open a few records and verify that Title, Description, Steps, Expected Result, Owner, and Component match the CSV.
3. If you enabled the “Update existing” option, open a test case that existed before the import and confirm its fields were overwritten as intended.

Recovery options

If the import fails or creates incorrect data:

1. Download the import log from the Import History page; it lists rows that caused errors and the reason (e.g., missing required field, duplicate External ID).
2. Correct the problematic rows in the CSV (fix quoting, supply missing Owner, ensure unique External IDs unless updating).
3. Re‑import the file. To avoid creating duplicates, enable the Update existing toggle so that rows with matching External IDs modify the existing test case instead of creating a new one.
4. If many test cases were created incorrectly, use the bulk delete feature (select the cases in Test Design → More Actions → Delete) or restore the project from a backup if your QTest plan includes periodic snapshots.

Limitations and practical tips

• File size: QTest may time‑out on CSV files larger than ~10 MB. Split large datasets into multiple files (e.g., 5000 rows each) and import sequentially.
• Special characters: Fields containing commas, line breaks, or double quotes must be enclosed in double quotes; internal double quotes should be escaped by doubling them (e.g., "He said ""Hello""").
• Encoding: Ensure the CSV is saved as UTF‑8 without BOM; otherwise accented characters may appear garbled.
• Owner mapping: The Owner column must contain a username that exists in the project; otherwise the import will skip that field and log a warning.

Verification (optional)

To double‑check data integrity, export the imported test cases back to CSV:

1. In Test Design, select the imported test cases (use the External ID filter).
2. Choose Export → CSV and save the file.
3. Compare the exported file with the original (ignore system‑generated columns like Created Date or Internal ID). Any mismatch indicates a problem during import.