Quality Gate
A quality gate is a predefined checkpoint where specified quality criteria must be satisfied before work can proceed to the next stage.
“A milestone at which a decision about proceeding to the next phase is taken based on predefined quality criteria.”
(Definition reproduced from the ISTQB Glossary. Copyright belongs to ISTQB.)
View the complete ISTQB GlossaryWhat is Quality Gate?
Quality gates help ensure that products meet agreed standards before development, testing, or deployment continues.
Decision point: Progress depends on meeting defined criteria.
Objective evaluation: Decisions are based on measurable evidence.
Risk reduction: Prevents low-quality work from advancing.
Real World Example
A regulated product team is preparing a release where Quality gate appears in reviews, test design conversations, or defect triage rather than as an isolated glossary word.
The risk is that the team treats Quality gate as interchangeable with nearby ISTQB terms. That makes test scope blurry and can lead to weak evidence for the release decision.
The tester anchors the discussion in the official definition, asks where the concept appears in the product, and designs examples that show the difference between Quality gate and similar ideas.
The page becomes useful in practice because Quality gate is connected to a specific testing decision, not memorized as a detached definition.
Practice Questions
Question 1
Which statement BEST describes Quality gate in the context of ISTQB terminology?
Question 2
A tester needs to explain Quality gate to a non‑technical stakeholder. Which approach is MOST appropriate?
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