Jest: return a value from a test

Question

I would like to get the result (the returned value) of a test in another test (the next test) with Jest. Is there a way to do this?

I tried to return a value, but I don't now how to catch it and affect it to a const or a var.

test('a', () => {
  expect(1).toBe(1)
  return 'ok'
})

test('b', () => {
  // I want to use the value returned by the first test: "ok"
})

I know i can use "global" variable, but I feel like it's a bit hacky.

Is there a way to get the returned value of a test callback in order to use it in another test?

Answer 1

For a single execution, you could have a top level object that stores execution information, which you parse in an afterAll method.

Here is a dummy test suite which highlights what I mean. Of course you can get creative and be more organized, and have objects even at a higher level.

You could then store them in a file, send the results to a server, etc.

test.js

describe('A suite', () => {

  let suiteSpecificData = {};

  test('a test', () => {
    expect(1).toBe(1)
    suiteSpecificData["a test"] = "ok"
  })

  test('another test', () => {
    let theOtherTestData = suiteSpecificData["a test"];
    let thisTestData = suiteSpecificData["another test"] = {};

    if (theOtherTestData === "ok") {
       thisTestData.messageOne = "All good with the other test";
       thisTestData.someMoreRandomStuff = [1,2,3];
    }
  })

  afterAll(() => {
    console.log(JSON.stringify(suiteSpecificData));
  });
});