A project's testers have little or no programming experience. Which kind of tool does the syllabus call a viable choice for them?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 1.2.2
In a waterfall project, when do automated test runs usually take place?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 1.2.1
Which of these is a potential disadvantage of test automation?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 1.1.1
Which statement describes a limitation of test automation?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 1.1.1
2. Preparing for test automation 6
A test automation engineer analyzes a web shop that calls a third-party payment service the test team cannot reach. Which requirement from the syllabus list covers this case?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 2.2.1
A test automation engineer records the findings of a tool evaluation in a comparison table. How does the syllabus lay the table out?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 2.2.2
What is a preproduction environment mostly used to assess?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 2.1.2
Which aspect of testability means the system under test offers interfaces through which a test can perform actions on it?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 2.1.1
Which checks can run in the build environment without deployment to any other environment?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 2.1.2
Which environment does the syllabus name as the first where monitoring should be present?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 2.1.2
Show all 48 questions (38 more)
3. Test automation architecture 7
A login page of the system under test changes, and the engineer wants to update its locators in one place only. Which pattern provides this?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 3.1.5
A team wants test analysts to add automated tests by filling in .csv files that feed the same test scripts. Which approach is this?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 3.1.4
A test automation engineer writes a login test script in a layered framework. Which call should the script not make?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 3.1.3
Acceptance criteria are written in a given, when, then format and stored in feature files that a tool executes. Which approach is this?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 3.1.4
In the generic test automation architecture, which interface describes how test case definitions map to automated test cases?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 3.1.1
What sets out the technical design of the whole test automation solution?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 3.1.2
Which capability of a test automation architecture does the syllabus call optional?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 3.1.1
4. Implementing test automation 5
An automated test meets an unexpected pop-up, but the test case's flow is not broken. Which log level fits this event?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 4.2.1
During a test automation pilot, what does the syllabus recommend doing with the solution and the code already implemented?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 4.1.1
Once a test automation pilot project is complete, who evaluates the effort?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 4.1.1
What does the syllabus say about hardcoding values in test automation code?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 4.3.1
Which practice does the syllabus recommend in version control, apart from the clean code principles?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 4.3.1
5. Implementation and deployment strategies 7
How can testware be matched exactly to one version of the system under test?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 5.1.2
In a pipeline, which tests are part of the build step and act as quality gates on individual components?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 5.1.1
In consumer-driven contract testing, who sets the expectation of how the provider shall respond?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 5.1.3
System tests run within the deployment phase, once the components are deployed. Which drawback of this approach does the syllabus name?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 5.1.1
Test cases run as a separate pipeline that a successful deployment triggers. What follows for an unsuccessful deployment?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 5.1.1
What is contract testing, as the syllabus defines it?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 5.1.3
Which three things does configuration management in test automation include, according to the syllabus?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 5.1.2
6. Reporting and metrics 5
A reliability test repeats the same test cases over many cycles. What should be logged so it is easy to tell how many times they ran?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 6.1.1
A test case uses random parameters. What should the test automation solution log about them?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 6.1.1
An automated test reports a failure, yet the actual result of the system under test matches the expected result. What does the syllabus say is most likely?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 6.1.2
What must a test progress report contain?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 6.1.3
Which test execution status applies when the defect is not in the system under test?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 6.1.1
7. Verifying the test automation solution 7
A test automation solution has just been installed in an environment of the system under test. What should be done before the system is used?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 7.1.1
A test case gives unreliable results because of a race condition. What should happen to it?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 7.1.2
What can a high level of intrusion by automated test tools cause?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 7.1.2
What is an advantage of installing the test automation solution automatically or copying it from a repository?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 7.1.1
What may missing assertions in a test script result in?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 7.1.3
Which is an example of non-functional testing of framework components?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 7.1.1
Which security violation in test automation code does the syllabus give as an example for static analysis to find?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 7.1.4
8. Continuous improvement 7
A major new version of the core libraries of a framework is released. What should come first?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 8.1.2
After a change to the system under test, an engineer updates the test automation solution in small steps. What is the final step in confirming that the change did no harm?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 8.1.3
An API must return six mandatory elements, each a string. How does schema validation help the engineer?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 8.1.1
Several test cases repeat the same sequence of test steps. What does the syllabus recommend?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 8.1.2
Tests fail at random because scripts wait a fixed number of milliseconds for a page to load. Which wait mechanism does the syllabus rate above both hard coded waits and polling?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 8.1.2
What does a test histogram enable test automation engineers to do?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 8.1.1
What does the syllabus mean by data aging as a use of test automation?ISTQB CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 (2024), section 8.1.4
How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to the Certified Tester Advanced Level Test Automation Engineering (CTAL-TAE) Syllabus v2.0 of May 3, 2024 (copyright ISTQB; authors Andrew Pollner (chair), Péter Földházi, Patrick Quilter, Gergely Ágnecz and László Szikszai), downloaded on 2026-10-12 from https://www.istqb.org/certifications/certified-tester-advanced-level-test-automation-engineering-ctal-tae-v2-0/. Chapter counts follow the ISTQB Exam Structures and Rules tables v1.19 (August 19, 2026), read the same day: the real exam asks 3, 5, 6, 4, 6, 4, 6 and 6 questions from chapters 1 to 8; this bank holds 4, 6, 7, 5, 7, 5, 7 and 7. Licence: Questions, choices and explanations are original work of this site. The syllabus they are based on is the work and copyright of its authors and ISTQB.
How it works
This ISTQB test automation engineer practice test asks 48 questions of our own on the Advanced Level syllabus, version 2.0, with the syllabus section under every answer. Unofficial: not affiliated with or endorsed by ISTQB.
Read the full guide
Chapter by chapter
ISTQB's Exam Structures and Rules tables give the real exam 40 questions: 3, 5, 6, 4, 6, 4, 6 and 6 from chapters 1 to 8 of the syllabus. This bank holds one more from each chapter, 48 in all.
Points, not questions
ISTQB scores the real exam in points: a question on understanding carries one, on applying two and on analyzing three. So a count of right answers here gives no verdict.
A timed run
The timed test is the real length: 40 questions in 90 minutes.
Every keyword listed under a chapter heading is examinable, even where no learning objective names it.
Standards and books the syllabus names are not examinable beyond what the syllabus itself summarizes from them.
Questions and answers
Is there an ISTQB Advanced Level Test Automation Engineering certification study guide?
ISTQB publishes the syllabus itself, free: the CTAL-TAE Syllabus v2.0 of May 2024, eight chapters of learning objectives and keywords. The exam is based on it, and ISTQB names self-study from the syllabus as an option beside accredited training.
How many questions are on the ISTQB test automation engineer exam?
40 multiple-choice questions in 90 minutes, worth 66 points in all. Twenty questions test understanding, 14 applying and 6 analyzing.
What is the passing score for CTAL-TAE?
43 of the 66 points, which is at least 65 percent of the points, by ISTQB's Exam Structures and Rules tables.
Do I need the ISTQB Foundation Level certificate first?
Yes. ISTQB requires the Certified Tester Foundation Level certificate, version 4.0 or an earlier one, and sufficient practical experience, which the member board or exam provider defines.