Test Zap steps

When you create a Zap, you should test each step while building, including your trigger and all action steps. This helps you ensure that your steps are set up correctly and provides you with data that you can use to build subsequent steps. You can test steps one by one. You can also test all un-tested steps or all steps at once. Learn more about setting up your trigger and action steps.

What happens when I test a Zap step?

Each time you test a step, Zapier will create a test record. It is a representative sample of the step’s data when the Zap runs live. If it’s a trigger or search action step, the sample will be data that the step receives from your app. If it’s an action step, the sample will be data that the step sends to and creates in your app.

Test records include both fields and values. Fields are specific types of data and values are the specific data in a field. For example, “First name” can be a field and “Sofia” its value. In trigger steps, your app may provide real fields and values that you see in the app, or it may provide only representative fields and/or values.

Ensure the step is set up correctly by comparing the data in your test record to what you see in the app itself. If needed, you can edit the values in the test record. Once you’re satisfied with your test record, you can use its data in subsequent Zap steps by mapping fields.

Example

If your trigger is a new email in Gmail, Zapier will pull in a recent email you've received to use as a trigger test record. You can map fields from your Gmail step to later steps in your Zap, like sending the body of the email to yourself in a Slack message or adding the sender's email address to your contact list.

Triggers Actions Status section End to end

Test triggers

When you test a trigger step, Zapier will load test records from your app.

1. Open your Zap and click Edit to enter edit mode.
2. Select your trigger step.
3. Select the Test tab.
4. Click Test trigger. Zapier will retrieve data from your trigger app and display it as a test record.
   • Some apps will only return generic sample test records rather than real data from your app account.
5. Select a test record. A dropdown menu will open and display the test record's data for your review.
6. (Optional) You can load newer data at any time by clicking Find new records. 
7. Click Continue with selected record.

Learn how to troubleshoot your trigger if your trigger test fails or if Zapier cannot find a trigger event.

Test actions

When you test an action step, Zapier will perform the action on your behalf. Testing is live and may result in changes made in your app. 

In your action step:

1. Open your Zap and click Edit to enter edit mode.
2. Select your trigger step.
3. Select the Test tab.
4. Click Test step.
5. (Optional) You can re-test a step at any time by clicking Retest step.
6. Click Continue.

The Data out tab will display your testing results and any error messages that may occur. Use AI-powered troubleshooting to automatically review errors and suggested solutions.

Test in the Status section

The Zap Status section of the left sidebar will display any steps that should be tested at the top of the Steps section in Zap Status. To test or skip testing:

• Open your Zap and click Edit to enter edit mode.
• In the left sidebar, click the status icon .
• Click either:
  • Test step below an individual step to test it.
  • Skip tests to remove the warning icon without testing.
  • Test steps to test all steps that display the warning icon.
    • Zapier will test all steps one at a time.
    • The step that Zapier is currently testing will display a “Testing in progress” notification.
    • Upcoming steps will display a “Test in queue” notification.
• Once testing begins, you can click Stop to prevent the next steps from testing.
  • Zapier will complete any tests that are in progress.
  • Zapier will remove any steps in the queue from testing, and the step will display a warning icon and the message “Please test this step”.

When you test an action step, Zapier will perform the action on your behalf. Testing is live and may result in changes made in your app. If you have issues when testing, you can review error messages in the Data out tab or use AI-powered troubleshooting to automatically review errors and suggested solutions.

Test end-to-end

You can test every step in your Zap with one click. When you test a trigger step, Zapier will load test records from your app. When you test an action step, Zapier will perform the action on your behalf. Testing is live and may result in changes made in your app.

1. Open your Zap and click Edit to enter edit mode.
2. In the top right, click Test run. The left sidebar will open to the Zap runs section.
3. Select a trigger test record to start the Zap run on.
4. Click Test run .

The Data out tab will display your testing results and any error messages that may occur. Use AI-powered troubleshooting to automatically review errors and suggested solutions.

Tip

Click the refresh icon to load new trigger records.

Limitations

• Your steps will display a warning icon until you finish their setup and testing.
  • You must test your trigger step and all Filter and Paths steps. The Publish button will be disabled until you successfully test those steps.
  • You can skip testing in any other action step.
  • You can review all untested steps in the Status section of the left sidebar.
• If you edit fields in your app, when you load a new trigger test record, the new field will not automatically update in your existing test records.
  • For example, if you change a field from “Last Name” to “Surname” in your trigger app, you must load a new trigger test record and replace the fields in subsequent action steps.
• When you edit a step in your Zap:
  • If you change a required field, the step test is reset. You should re-test the step to ensure there are no errors.
  • If you change an optional field, the step test result is retained. You do not need to re-test the step, but you can if you want to test the changed field.
• You can run end-to-end testing on up to 500 loops when using the Looping tool. The Zap will throttle additional loops.
• During end to end testing, in trigger steps:
  • File fields may not include any file values.
    • You can still map the file field to subsequent steps, but those steps will not receive any values from the file field during testing, which may cause errors.
    • File fields will have values when the Zap runs live.
  • Field values may be truncated.
    • The Zap will not truncate field values when it runs live.