Chapter 4 – Test Analysis & Design
Pairwise Testing – ISTQB Definition
Last Updated: July 12, 2026 · SoftwareTestPilot QA Team
Official ISTQB Definition
A black-box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute all possible discrete combinations of each pair of input parameters.
In simple words
Instead of testing every combination, test every pair of inputs at least once — catches most combination bugs with far fewer tests.
Exam tip
Pairwise (a.k.a. all-pairs) drastically cuts test count while covering the majority of interaction defects.
Related terms
- Combinatorial TestingA family of techniques (pairwise, orthogonal arrays, classification tree) that shrink an exploding combination space to a manageable subset.
- Orthogonal Array TestingA math-based way of picking a small, balanced set of test cases that still covers every pair of input values.
- Classification TreeA tree that breaks each input into partitions and sub-partitions so you can combine them systematically.
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