When do you use @WebMvcTest versus @SpringBootTest for a controller?

Chooses a focused MVC slice or full application context based on whether the risk is the web contract or complete wiring.

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TL;DR

@WebMvcTest loads a focused MVC slice around selected controllers and web infrastructure, so controller collaborators are supplied as test beans or mocks. It is useful for request mapping, binding, validation, serialization, exception handling, and configured web filters. @SpringBootTest loads the full Spring Boot application context and is appropriate when the test must prove complete wiring across controllers, services, repositories, security, and configuration.

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MVC slices, full context, MockMvc, collaborators, filters, serialization, validation, and configuration coverage.

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Core answer
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Overview
Both can exercise MVC behavior, but they load different application scope and answer different questions.
@WebMvcTest loads a focused MVC slice around selected controllers and web infrastructure, so controller collaborators are supplied as test beans or mocks. It is useful for request mapping, binding, validation, serialization, exception handling, and configured web filters. @SpringBootTest loads the full Spring Boot application context and is appropriate when the test must prove complete wiring across controllers, services, repositories, security, and configuration.
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Stronger answer
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A slice can accidentally omit custom configuration that the production request depends on, while a full-context test can pass through mocked adapters and still fail to prove infrastructure. I state which beans and filters must participate and inspect the test context when behavior surprises me. does not start a real server by default; with MockMvc it can still use mock Servlet requests. Real transport behavior requires an appropriate web environment and client.

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Details

Calling WebMvcTest a plain unit test.
Assuming SpringBootTest always starts a server.
Disabling security filters in all controller tests.

When do you use @WebMvcTest versus @SpringBootTest for a controller?

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