pytest mark slow skip integration

Uses pytest markers to select fast tests, skip unfinished ones, and run integration checks with verbose output.

Easy Python 3.9+ Aug 9, 2026 Modern tooling 17 views 0 copies

pytest markers testing skip

Requires third-party packages — install first

pip install pytest

Python code

24 lines

Python 3.9+

import pytest

def test_fast():
    assert 1 + 1 == 2

@pytest.mark.slow
def test_slow():
    import time
    time.sleep(1)
    assert 5 * 5 == 25

@pytest.mark.skip(reason="Not ready for production")
def test_skipped():
    assert 2 + 2 == 5

@pytest.mark.integration
def test_integration():
    database = {"users": [{"id": 1, "name": "Alice"}]}
    user = database["users"][0]
    assert user["id"] == 1
    assert user["name"] == "Alice"

if __name__ == "__main__":
    pytest.main([__file__, "-v", "-m", "not slow"])

Output

stdout

============================= test session starts ==============================
platform linux -- Python 3.11.4, pytest-8.0.0, pluggy-1.4.0
rootdir: /path/to/test
collected 4 items

test_demo.py .s.                                                     [100%]

============================== 2 passed, 1 skipped, 1 deselected ==============

How it works

The @pytest.mark.slow and @pytest.mark.integration decorators tag tests with custom markers. Running with -m "not slow" deselects the slow test. The @pytest.mark.skip decorator prevents execution of the skipped test and reports it as skipped. pytest.main() runs the test file programmatically.

Common mistakes

Forgetting to register custom markers in pytest.ini to avoid warnings
Using `-m slow` without `not` to exclude slow tests
Placing `pytest.main()` inside `if __name__ == "__main__"` but not passing the file path
Assuming `@pytest.mark.integration` runs only integration tests without `-m`

Variations

Use `-m "not slow and not integration"` to exclude both slow and integration tests
Define markers in `pyproject.toml` under `[tool.pytest.ini_options]` with `markers = [...]`

Real-world use cases

Running fast unit tests in CI while deferring slow integration tests to nightly runs.
Skipping tests for features not yet deployed by marking them with `skip` and a reason.
Tagging API or database tests as `integration` to run them against a live staging environment.

pytest mark slow skip integration

Python code

Output

How it works

Common mistakes

Variations

Real-world use cases

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Python code

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Real-world use cases

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