expect

Write better assertions

expect is a thin wrapper around node's assert module that lets you write better assertions.

When you use expect, you write assertions similarly to how you would say them, e.g. "I expect this value to be equal to 3" or "I expect this array to contain 3". When you write assertions in this way, you don't need to remember the order of actual and expected arguments to functions like assert.equal, which helps you write better tests.

Usage

expect(object).toBe(value, [message])

Asserts that object is strictly equal to value using assert.strictEqual.

expect(object).toNotBe(value, [message])

Asserts that object is not strictly equal to value using assert.notStrictEqual.

expect(object).toEqual(value, [message])

Asserts that the given object equals value using assert.equal.

expect(object).toNotEqual(value, [message])

Asserts that the given object is not equal to value using assert.notEqual.

expect(block).toThrow([error], [message])

Asserts that the given block throws an error using assert.throws. The error argument may be a constructor, RegExp, or validation function.

expect(function () {
  throw new Error('boom!');
}).toThrow(/boom/);

expect(block).toNotThrow([message])

Asserts that the given block does not throw using assert.doesNotThrow.

expect(object).toExist([message])

Asserts the given object is truthy.

expect('something truthy').toExist();

expect(object).toNotExist([message])

Asserts the given object is falsy.

expect(null).toNotExist();

expect(object).toBeA(constructor, [message])

expect(object).toBeAn(constructor, [message])

Asserts the given object is an instanceof constructor.

expect(new User).toBeA(User);
expect(new Asset).toBeAn(Asset);

expect(object).toBeA(string, [message])

Asserts the typeof the given object is string.

expect(2).toBeA('number');

expect(string).toMatch(pattern, [message])

Asserts the given string matches pattern, which must be a RegExp.

expect('a string').toMatch(/string/);

expect(number).toBeLessThan(value, [message])

expect(number).toBeFewerThan(value, [message])

Asserts the given number is less than value.

expect(2).toBeLessThan(3);

expect(number).toBeGreaterThan(value, [message])

expect(number).toBeMoreThan(value, [message])

Asserts the given number is greater than value.

expect(3).toBeGreaterThan(2);

expect(array).toInclude(value, [comparator], [message])

expect(array).toContain(value, [comparator], [message])

Asserts the given array contains value. The comparator function, if given, should compare two objects and either return false or throw if they are not equal. It defaults to assert.deepEqual.

expect([ 1, 2, 3 ]).toInclude(3);

expect(array).toExclude(value, [comparator], [message])

expect(array).toNotContain(value, [comparator], [message])

Asserts the given array does not contain value. The comparator function, if given, should compare two objects and either return false or throw if they are not equal. It defaults to assert.deepEqual.

expect([ 1, 2, 3 ]).toExclude(4);

expect(string).toInclude(value, [message])

expect(string).toContain(value, [message])

Asserts the given string contains value.

expect('hello world').toInclude('world');
expect('hello world').toContain('world');

expect(string).toExclude(value, [message])

expect(string).toNotContain(value, [message])

Asserts the given string does not contain value.

expect('hello world').toExclude('goodbye');
expect('hello world').toNotContain('goodbye');

Spies

expect.js also includes the ability to create spy functions that can track the calls that are made to other functions and make various assertions based on the arguments and context that were used.

var video = {
  play: function () {},
  pause: function () {},
  rewind: function () {}
};
 
var spy = expect.spyOn(video, 'play');
 
video.play('some', 'args');
 
expect(spy.calls.length).toEqual(1);
expect(spy.calls[0].context).toBe(video);
expect(spy.calls[0].arguments).toEqual([ 'some', 'args' ]);
expect(spy).toHaveBeenCalled();
expect(spy).toHaveBeenCalledWith('some', 'args');

Chaining Assertions

Every assertion returns an Expectation object, so you can chain assertions together.

expect(3.14)
  .toExist()
  .toBeLessThan(4)
  .toBeGreaterThan(3);

Installation

Using npm:

$ npm install expect

Or, include dist/expect.min.js in your page using a <script> tag:

<script src="expect.min.js"></script>

Issues

Please file issues on the issue tracker on GitHub.

Tests

To run the tests in node:

$ npm install
$ npm test

To run the tests in Chrome:

$ npm install
$ npm run test-browser

License

MIT