name	testcontainers-go
description	A comprehensive guide for using Testcontainers for Go to write reliable integration tests with Docker containers in Go projects. Supports 62+ pre-configured modules for databases, message queues, cloud services, and more.
license	MIT

Testcontainers for Go Integration Testing

A comprehensive guide for using Testcontainers for Go to write reliable integration tests with Docker containers in Go projects.

Description

This skill helps you write integration tests using Testcontainers for Go, a Go library that provides lightweight, throwaway instances of common databases, message queues, web browsers, or anything that can run in a Docker container.

Key capabilities:

Use 62+ pre-configured modules for common services (databases, message queues, cloud services, etc.)
Set up and manage Docker containers in Go tests
Configure networking, volumes, and environment variables
Implement proper cleanup and resource management
Debug and troubleshoot container issues

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when you need to:

Write integration tests that require real services (databases, message queues, etc.)
Test against multiple versions or configurations of dependencies
Create reproducible test environments
Avoid mocking external dependencies in integration tests
Set up ephemeral test infrastructure

Prerequisites

Docker or Podman installed and running
Go 1.24+ (check go.mod for project-specific requirements)
Docker socket accessible at standard locations (Docker Desktop on macOS/Windows, /var/run/docker.sock on Linux)

Instructions

1. Installation & Setup

Add testcontainers-go to your project:

go get github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go

For pre-configured modules (recommended):

# Example: PostgreSQL module
go get github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/modules/postgres

# Example: Kafka module
go get github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/modules/kafka

# Example: Redis module
go get github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/modules/redis

Verify Docker availability:

func TestDockerAvailable(t *testing.T) {
    testcontainers.SkipIfProviderIsNotHealthy(t)
    // Test will skip if Docker is not running
}

2. Using Pre-Configured Modules (Recommended Approach)

Testcontainers for Go provides 62+ pre-configured modules that offer production-ready configurations, sensible defaults, and helper methods. Always prefer modules over generic containers when available.

Why Use Modules?

Sensible defaults: Pre-configured ports, environment variables, and wait strategies
Connection helpers: Built-in methods like ConnectionString(), Endpoint()
Specialized features: Module-specific functionality (e.g., Postgres snapshots, Kafka topic management)
Automatic credentials: Secure credential generation and management
Battle-tested: Used in production by thousands of projects

Available Module Categories

Databases (17 modules):

postgres, mysql, mariadb, mongodb, redis, valkey
cockroachdb, clickhouse, memcached, influxdb
arangodb, cassandra, scylladb, dynamodb
dolt, databend, surrealdb

Message Queues (6 modules):

kafka, rabbitmq, nats, pulsar, redpanda, solace

Search & Vector Databases (9 modules):

elasticsearch, opensearch, meilisearch
weaviate, qdrant, chroma, milvus, vearch, pinecone

Cloud & Infrastructure (6 modules):

gcloud, azure, azurite, localstack, dind, k3s

Services & Tools (13 modules):

consul, etcd, neo4j, couchbase, vault, openldap
artemis, inbucket, mockserver, nebulagraph, minio
toxiproxy, aerospike

Development (10 modules):

compose, registry, k6, ollama, grafana-lgtm
dockermodelrunner, dockermcpgateway, socat, mssql

Basic Module Usage Pattern

package myapp_test

import (
    "context"
    "testing"

    "github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/modules/postgres"
)

func TestWithPostgres(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    // Start PostgreSQL container with sensible defaults
    pgContainer, err := postgres.Run(ctx, "postgres:16-alpine")
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, pgContainer)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Get connection string - credentials auto-generated
    connStr, err := pgContainer.ConnectionString(ctx)
    require.NoError(t, err)
    // connStr: "postgres://postgres:password@localhost:49153/postgres?sslmode=disable"

    // Use connection string with your database driver
    db, err := sql.Open("postgres", connStr)
    require.NoError(t, err)
    defer db.Close()

    // Run your tests...
}

Module Configuration with Options

Modules support three levels of customization:

Level 1: Simple Options (via testcontainers.CustomizeRequestOption)

pgContainer, err := postgres.Run(
    ctx,
    "postgres:16-alpine",
    testcontainers.WithEnv(map[string]string{
        "POSTGRES_DB": "myapp_test",
    }),
    testcontainers.WithLabels(map[string]string{
        "env": "test",
    }),
)

Level 2: Module-Specific Options

// PostgreSQL with init scripts
pgContainer, err := postgres.Run(
    ctx,
    "postgres:16-alpine",
    postgres.WithInitScripts("./testdata/init.sql"),
    postgres.WithDatabase("myapp_test"),
    postgres.WithUsername("custom_user"),
    postgres.WithPassword("custom_pass"),
)

// Redis with configuration
redisContainer, err := redis.Run(
    ctx,
    "redis:7-alpine",
    redis.WithSnapshotting(10, 1),
    redis.WithLogLevel(redis.LogLevelVerbose),
)

// Kafka with custom config
kafkaContainer, err := kafka.Run(
    ctx,
    "confluentinc/confluent-local:7.5.0",
    kafka.WithClusterID("test-cluster"),
)

Level 3: Advanced Configuration with Lifecycle Hooks

// PostgreSQL with custom initialization
pgContainer, err := postgres.Run(
    ctx,
    "postgres:16-alpine",
    postgres.WithDatabase("myapp"),
    testcontainers.WithLifecycleHooks(
        testcontainers.ContainerLifecycleHooks{
            PostStarts: []testcontainers.ContainerHook{
                func(ctx context.Context, c testcontainers.Container) error {
                    // Custom initialization after container starts
                    return nil
                },
            },
        },
    ),
)

Module-Specific Helper Methods

Most modules provide convenience methods beyond ConnectionString():

// PostgreSQL: Snapshot & Restore for test isolation
func TestDatabaseIsolation(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    pgContainer, err := postgres.Run(ctx, "postgres:16-alpine")
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, pgContainer)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    connStr, _ := pgContainer.ConnectionString(ctx)
    db, _ := sql.Open("postgres", connStr)
    defer db.Close()

    // Create initial data
    db.Exec("CREATE TABLE users (id SERIAL PRIMARY KEY, name TEXT)")
    db.Exec("INSERT INTO users (name) VALUES ('Alice')")

    // Take snapshot
    err = pgContainer.Snapshot(ctx, postgres.WithSnapshotName("initial"))
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Make changes
    db.Exec("INSERT INTO users (name) VALUES ('Bob')")

    // Restore to snapshot
    err = pgContainer.Restore(ctx, postgres.WithSnapshotName("initial"))
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Bob is gone, only Alice remains
}

// Kafka: Get bootstrap servers
kafkaContainer, _ := kafka.Run(ctx, "confluentinc/confluent-local:7.5.0")
brokers, _ := kafkaContainer.Brokers(ctx)

Finding the Right Module

Browse available modules: https://testcontainers.com/modules/?language=go (complete, up-to-date list)
Check the modules directory: /modules/ in the testcontainers-go GitHub repository
Module documentation: https://golang.testcontainers.org/modules/ (online docs for each module)
Browse by category (see lists above)
Search for examples: Each module has examples_test.go in its directory

Module location pattern:

github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/modules/<module-name>

3. Using Generic Containers (Fallback)

When no pre-configured module exists, use generic containers.

IMPORTANT: Always add a wait strategy when exposing ports to ensure the container is ready before tests run. This is critical for reliability, especially in CI environments. Never use time.Sleep as a substitute - it's an anti-pattern that leads to flaky tests.

func TestCustomContainer(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    ctr, err := testcontainers.Run(
        ctx,
        "custom-image:latest",
        testcontainers.WithExposedPorts("8080/tcp"),
        testcontainers.WithEnv(map[string]string{
            "APP_ENV": "test",
        }),
        // CRITICAL: Always add wait strategy for exposed ports
        testcontainers.WithWaitStrategy(
            wait.ForListeningPort("8080/tcp").WithStartupTimeout(time.Second*30),
        ),
    )
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, ctr)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Get endpoint
    endpoint, err := ctr.Endpoint(ctx, "http")
    require.NoError(t, err)
}

Common generic container options:

testcontainers.Run(
    ctx,
    "image:tag",

    // Ports
    testcontainers.WithExposedPorts("80/tcp", "443/tcp"),

    // Environment
    testcontainers.WithEnv(map[string]string{
        "KEY": "value",
    }),

    // Files
    testcontainers.WithFiles(testcontainers.ContainerFile{
        Reader:            strings.NewReader("content"),
        ContainerFilePath: "/app/config.yml",
        FileMode:          0o644,
    }),

    // Volumes
    testcontainers.WithHostConfigModifier(func(hc *container.HostConfig) {
        hc.Binds = []string{"/host/path:/container/path"}
    }),

    // Wait strategies (REQUIRED when using WithExposedPorts)
    // Use wait.ForListeningPort for reliability - never use time.Sleep!
    testcontainers.WithWaitStrategy(
        wait.ForListeningPort("80/tcp"),
        // Or use other strategies: wait.ForLog(), wait.ForHTTP(), etc.
    ),

    // Commands
    testcontainers.WithAfterReadyCommand(
        testcontainers.NewRawCommand([]string{"echo", "initialized"}),
    ),

    // Labels
    testcontainers.WithLabels(map[string]string{
        "app": "myapp",
    }),
)

4. Writing Integration Tests

Test Structure Best Practices

package myapp_test

import (
    "context"
    "testing"

    "github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/modules/postgres"
)

func TestDatabaseOperations(t *testing.T) {
    // 1. Setup: Create context
    ctx := context.Background()

    // 2. Start container
    pgContainer, err := postgres.Run(ctx, "postgres:16-alpine")

    // 3. CRITICAL: Register cleanup BEFORE error check
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, pgContainer)

    // 4. Check for errors
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // 5. Get connection details
    connStr, err := pgContainer.ConnectionString(ctx)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // 6. Connect to service
    db, err := sql.Open("postgres", connStr)
    require.NoError(t, err)
    defer db.Close()

    // 7. Run your tests
    err = db.Ping()
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Test your application logic here...
}

Critical pattern: Cleanup BEFORE error checking

// CORRECT:
ctr, err := testcontainers.Run(ctx, "nginx:alpine")
testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, ctr)  // Register cleanup immediately
require.NoError(t, err)                   // Then check error

// WRONG: Creates resource leaks
ctr, err := testcontainers.Run(ctx, "nginx:alpine")
require.NoError(t, err)                   // If this fails...
testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, ctr)  // ...cleanup never registers

Table-Driven Tests with Containers

func TestMultipleVersions(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    versions := []struct {
        name  string
        image string
    }{
        {"Postgres 14", "postgres:14-alpine"},
        {"Postgres 15", "postgres:15-alpine"},
        {"Postgres 16", "postgres:16-alpine"},
    }

    for _, tc := range versions {
        t.Run(tc.name, func(t *testing.T) {
            pgContainer, err := postgres.Run(ctx, tc.image)
            testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, pgContainer)
            require.NoError(t, err)

            // Run tests against this version...
        })
    }
}

Parallel Test Execution

func TestParallelContainers(t *testing.T) {
    t.Parallel()  // Enable parallel execution

    ctx := context.Background()

    pgContainer, err := postgres.Run(ctx, "postgres:16-alpine")
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, pgContainer)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Each parallel test gets its own container
}

5. Container Networking

Connecting Multiple Containers

import "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/network"

func TestMultipleServices(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    // Create custom network
    nw, err := network.New(ctx)
    testcontainers.CleanupNetwork(t, nw)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Start database on network
    pgContainer, err := postgres.Run(
        ctx,
        "postgres:16-alpine",
        network.WithNetwork([]string{"database"}, nw),
    )
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, pgContainer)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Start application on same network
    appContainer, err := testcontainers.Run(
        ctx,
        "myapp:latest",
        testcontainers.WithEnv(map[string]string{
            "DB_HOST": "database",  // Can reach via network alias
            "DB_PORT": "5432",      // Use internal port, not mapped port
        }),
        network.WithNetwork([]string{"app"}, nw),
    )
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, appContainer)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Test application can communicate with database...
}

Accessing Container Ports

func TestPortAccess(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    ctr, err := testcontainers.Run(
        ctx,
        "nginx:alpine",
        testcontainers.WithExposedPorts("80/tcp"),
    )
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, ctr)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Method 1: Get full endpoint (recommended)
    endpoint, err := ctr.Endpoint(ctx, "http")
    require.NoError(t, err)
    // endpoint = "http://localhost:49153"

    // Method 2: Get mapped port only
    port, err := ctr.MappedPort(ctx, "80/tcp")
    require.NoError(t, err)
    portNum := port.Int()  // e.g., 49153

    // Method 3: Get host and port separately
    host, err := ctr.Host(ctx)
    require.NoError(t, err)
    // host = "localhost" (or docker host IP)
}

6. Resource Management & Cleanup

Cleanup Methods

Method 1: testcontainers.CleanupContainer() (Recommended)

func TestRecommendedCleanup(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    ctr, err := testcontainers.Run(ctx, "nginx:alpine")
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, ctr)  // Registers with t.Cleanup
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Container automatically cleaned up when test ends
}

Method 2: t.Cleanup() (Manual)

func TestManualCleanup(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    ctr, err := testcontainers.Run(ctx, "nginx:alpine")
    require.NoError(t, err)

    t.Cleanup(func() {
        err := testcontainers.TerminateContainer(ctr)
        require.NoError(t, err)
    })
}

Method 3: defer (Legacy)

func TestDeferCleanup(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    ctr, err := testcontainers.Run(ctx, "nginx:alpine")
    require.NoError(t, err)

    defer func() {
        err := testcontainers.TerminateContainer(ctr)
        require.NoError(t, err)
    }()
}

Cleanup Options

// Cleanup with custom timeout
testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, ctr,
    testcontainers.StopTimeout(10*time.Second),
)

// Cleanup and remove volumes
testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, ctr,
    testcontainers.RemoveVolumes("volume1", "volume2"),
)

// Combine options
testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, ctr,
    testcontainers.StopTimeout(5*time.Second),
    testcontainers.RemoveVolumes("data"),
)

Automatic Cleanup with Ryuk

Testcontainers for Go uses Ryuk, a garbage collector that automatically cleans up containers even if tests crash or timeout:

Runs as a sidecar container (testcontainers/ryuk:0.13.0)
Monitors test session lifecycle
Cleans up containers when session ends
Handles parallel test execution

Control Ryuk behavior:

// Disable Ryuk (not recommended)
os.Setenv("TESTCONTAINERS_RYUK_DISABLED", "true")

// Enable verbose logging
os.Setenv("RYUK_VERBOSE", "true")

// Adjust timeouts
os.Setenv("RYUK_CONNECTION_TIMEOUT", "2m")
os.Setenv("RYUK_RECONNECTION_TIMEOUT", "30s")

7. Configuration Patterns

Environment Variables

testcontainers.Run(
    ctx,
    "myapp:latest",
    testcontainers.WithEnv(map[string]string{
        "DATABASE_URL": "postgres://localhost/db",
        "LOG_LEVEL":    "debug",
        "API_KEY":      "test-key",
    }),
)

Executing Commands in Containers

When executing commands with Exec(), it's recommended to use exec.Multiplexed() to properly handle Docker's output format:

import "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/exec"

// Execute command with Multiplexed option
exitCode, reader, err := ctr.Exec(ctx, []string{"sh", "-c", "echo 'hello'"}, exec.Multiplexed())
require.NoError(t, err)
require.Equal(t, 0, exitCode)

// Read the output
output, err := io.ReadAll(reader)
require.NoError(t, err)
fmt.Println(string(output))

Why use exec.Multiplexed()?

Removes Docker's multiplexing headers from the output
Combines stdout and stderr into a single clean stream
Makes the output easier to read and parse

Without exec.Multiplexed(), you'll get Docker's raw multiplexed stream which includes header bytes that are difficult to parse.

Files and Directories

// Copy single file
testcontainers.Run(
    ctx,
    "nginx:alpine",
    testcontainers.WithFiles(testcontainers.ContainerFile{
        Reader:            strings.NewReader("server { listen 80; }"),
        ContainerFilePath: "/etc/nginx/conf.d/default.conf",
        FileMode:          0o644,
    }),
)

// Copy multiple files
testcontainers.Run(
    ctx,
    "myapp:latest",
    testcontainers.WithFiles(
        testcontainers.ContainerFile{...},  // config.yml
        testcontainers.ContainerFile{...},  // secrets.json
    ),
)

// Copy from container after start
ctr, _ := testcontainers.Run(ctx, "nginx:alpine")
reader, err := ctr.CopyFileFromContainer(ctx, "/etc/nginx/nginx.conf")
content, _ := io.ReadAll(reader)

Volume Mounts

testcontainers.Run(
    ctx,
    "postgres:16",
    testcontainers.WithHostConfigModifier(func(hc *container.HostConfig) {
        // Bind mount
        hc.Binds = []string{
            "/host/data:/var/lib/postgresql/data",
        }

        // Named volume
        hc.Mounts = []mount.Mount{
            {
                Type:   mount.TypeVolume,
                Source: "pgdata",
                Target: "/var/lib/postgresql/data",
            },
        }
    }),
)

Temporary Filesystems

testcontainers.Run(
    ctx,
    "myapp:latest",
    testcontainers.WithTmpfs(map[string]string{
        "/tmp":      "rw",
        "/app/temp": "rw,size=100m,mode=1777",
    }),
)

8. Wait Strategies

Wait strategies are critical for reliable tests. They ensure containers are fully ready before tests run, which is especially important in CI environments where timing can vary.

Best Practices:

✅ Always use wait.ForListeningPort() when exposing ports - This is the most reliable approach
✅ Choose appropriate wait strategies based on your service (HTTP health checks, log patterns, etc.)
❌ Never use time.Sleep() - This is an anti-pattern that leads to flaky tests
✅ Set reasonable timeouts to handle slow CI environments

Port-Based Waiting (Recommended for Exposed Ports)

import "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/wait"

testcontainers.Run(
    ctx,
    "postgres:16",
    testcontainers.WithWaitStrategy(
        wait.ForListeningPort("5432/tcp").
            WithStartupTimeout(30*time.Second).
            WithPollInterval(1*time.Second),
    ),
)

Log-Based Waiting

testcontainers.Run(
    ctx,
    "elasticsearch:8.7.0",
    testcontainers.WithWaitStrategy(
        wait.ForLog("started").
            WithStartupTimeout(60*time.Second).
            WithOccurrence(1),
    ),
)

HTTP-Based Waiting

testcontainers.Run(
    ctx,
    "myapp:latest",
    testcontainers.WithWaitStrategy(
        wait.ForHTTP("/health").
            WithPort("8080/tcp").
            WithStatusCodeMatcher(func(status int) bool {
                return status == 200
            }).
            WithStartupTimeout(30*time.Second),
    ),
)

SQL-Based Waiting

testcontainers.Run(
    ctx,
    "postgres:16",
    testcontainers.WithWaitStrategy(
        wait.ForSQL("5432/tcp", "postgres", func(host string, port nat.Port) string {
            return fmt.Sprintf("postgres://user:pass@%s:%s/db?sslmode=disable",
                host, port.Port())
        }).WithStartupTimeout(30*time.Second),
    ),
)

Multiple Wait Strategies

testcontainers.Run(
    ctx,
    "myapp:latest",
    testcontainers.WithWaitStrategy(
        wait.ForAll(
            wait.ForListeningPort("8080/tcp"),
            wait.ForLog("Application started"),
            wait.ForHTTP("/health"),
        ),
    ),
)

9. Troubleshooting

Check Docker Availability

func TestDockerConnection(t *testing.T) {
    testcontainers.SkipIfProviderIsNotHealthy(t)

    ctx := context.Background()
    cli, err := testcontainers.NewDockerClientWithOpts(ctx)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    info, err := cli.Info(ctx)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    t.Logf("Docker version: %s", info.ServerVersion)
    t.Logf("OS: %s", info.OperatingSystem)
}

Debug Container Logs

func TestWithLogging(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    // Method 1: Stream to stdout
    ctr, _ := testcontainers.Run(
        ctx,
        "myapp:latest",
        testcontainers.WithLogConsumers(
            &testcontainers.StdoutLogConsumer{},
        ),
    )
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, ctr)

    // Method 2: Read logs manually
    rc, _ := ctr.Logs(ctx)
    defer rc.Close()
    logs, _ := io.ReadAll(rc)
    t.Logf("Container logs:\n%s", string(logs))

    // Method 3: Inspect container
    info, _ := ctr.Inspect(ctx)
    t.Logf("Container state: %+v", info.State)
}

Common Issues

Issue: Container startup timeout

// Increase wait timeout
testcontainers.WithWaitStrategy(
    wait.ForListeningPort("5432/tcp").
        WithStartupTimeout(60*time.Second),  // Increase from default
)

// Check logs to see what's happening
testcontainers.WithLogConsumers(&testcontainers.StdoutLogConsumer{})

Issue: Port already in use

Testcontainers auto-assigns random ports
Don't manually specify host ports unless necessary
Check for leaked containers: docker ps -a

Issue: Image pull failures

# Pull manually first to verify
docker pull postgres:16

# For private registries, login first
docker login registry.example.com
# Testcontainers will use credentials from ~/.docker/config.json

Issue: Container not cleaning up

// Verify Ryuk is running
docker ps | grep ryuk

// Check cleanup is registered correctly
testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, ctr)  // Before error check!

Environment Variables for Debugging

# Enable Ryuk verbose logging
export RYUK_VERBOSE=true

# Adjust timeouts
export RYUK_CONNECTION_TIMEOUT=2m
export RYUK_RECONNECTION_TIMEOUT=30s

# Custom Docker socket
export DOCKER_HOST=unix:///var/run/docker.sock

# Registry prefix for private registry
export TESTCONTAINERS_HUB_IMAGE_NAME_PREFIX=private.registry.com

Examples

Example 1: PostgreSQL Integration Test

package myapp_test

import (
    "context"
    "database/sql"
    "testing"

    _ "github.com/lib/pq"
    "github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/modules/postgres"
)

func TestUserRepository(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    // Start PostgreSQL container
    pgContainer, err := postgres.Run(
        ctx,
        "postgres:16-alpine",
        postgres.WithDatabase("testdb"),
        postgres.WithUsername("testuser"),
        postgres.WithPassword("testpass"),
        postgres.WithInitScripts("./testdata/schema.sql"),
    )
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, pgContainer)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Get connection string
    connStr, err := pgContainer.ConnectionString(ctx, "sslmode=disable")
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Connect to database
    db, err := sql.Open("postgres", connStr)
    require.NoError(t, err)
    defer db.Close()

    // Test your repository
    repo := NewUserRepository(db)

    t.Run("CreateUser", func(t *testing.T) {
        user := &User{Name: "Alice", Email: "alice@example.com"}
        err := repo.Create(user)
        require.NoError(t, err)
        require.NotZero(t, user.ID)
    })

    t.Run("GetUser", func(t *testing.T) {
        user, err := repo.GetByEmail("alice@example.com")
        require.NoError(t, err)
        require.Equal(t, "Alice", user.Name)
    })
}

Example 2: Redis Cache Test

package cache_test

import (
    "context"
    "testing"
    "time"

    "github.com/redis/go-redis/v9"
    "github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/modules/redis"
)

func TestRedisCache(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    // Start Redis container
    redisContainer, err := redis.Run(
        ctx,
        "redis:7-alpine",
        redis.WithSnapshotting(10, 1),
        redis.WithLogLevel(redis.LogLevelVerbose),
    )
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, redisContainer)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Get connection string
    connStr, err := redisContainer.ConnectionString(ctx)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Connect to Redis
    opt, err := redis.ParseURL(connStr)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    client := redis.NewClient(opt)
    defer client.Close()

    // Test cache operations
    t.Run("SetAndGet", func(t *testing.T) {
        err := client.Set(ctx, "key1", "value1", time.Minute).Err()
        require.NoError(t, err)

        val, err := client.Get(ctx, "key1").Result()
        require.NoError(t, err)
        require.Equal(t, "value1", val)
    })

    t.Run("Expiration", func(t *testing.T) {
        err := client.Set(ctx, "key2", "value2", time.Second).Err()
        require.NoError(t, err)

        time.Sleep(2 * time.Second)

        _, err = client.Get(ctx, "key2").Result()
        require.Equal(t, redis.Nil, err)
    })
}

Example 3: Kafka Producer/Consumer Test

package messaging_test

import (
    "context"
    "testing"
    "time"

    "github.com/segmentio/kafka-go"
    "github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/modules/kafka"
)

func TestKafkaMessaging(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    // Start Kafka container
    kafkaContainer, err := kafka.Run(
        ctx,
        "confluentinc/confluent-local:7.5.0",
        kafka.WithClusterID("test-cluster"),
    )
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, kafkaContainer)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Get bootstrap servers
    brokers, err := kafkaContainer.Brokers(ctx)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    topic := "test-topic"

    // Create producer
    writer := kafka.NewWriter(kafka.WriterConfig{
        Brokers: brokers,
        Topic:   topic,
    })
    defer writer.Close()

    // Create consumer
    reader := kafka.NewReader(kafka.ReaderConfig{
        Brokers: brokers,
        Topic:   topic,
        GroupID: "test-group",
    })
    defer reader.Close()

    // Test message flow
    t.Run("ProduceAndConsume", func(t *testing.T) {
        // Produce message
        err := writer.WriteMessages(ctx, kafka.Message{
            Key:   []byte("key1"),
            Value: []byte("Hello, Kafka!"),
        })
        require.NoError(t, err)

        // Consume message
        msg, err := reader.ReadMessage(ctx)
        require.NoError(t, err)
        require.Equal(t, "Hello, Kafka!", string(msg.Value))
    })
}

Example 4: Multi-Container Application Stack

package integration_test

import (
    "context"
    "net/http"
    "testing"

    "github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/modules/postgres"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/modules/redis"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/network"
)

func TestFullStack(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    // Create custom network
    nw, err := network.New(ctx)
    testcontainers.CleanupNetwork(t, nw)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Start PostgreSQL
    pgContainer, err := postgres.Run(
        ctx,
        "postgres:16-alpine",
        network.WithNetwork([]string{"database"}, nw),
    )
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, pgContainer)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Start Redis
    redisContainer, err := redis.Run(
        ctx,
        "redis:7-alpine",
        network.WithNetwork([]string{"cache"}, nw),
    )
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, redisContainer)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Start application
    appContainer, err := testcontainers.Run(
        ctx,
        "myapp:latest",
        testcontainers.WithEnv(map[string]string{
            "DB_HOST":    "database",
            "DB_PORT":    "5432",
            "REDIS_HOST": "cache",
            "REDIS_PORT": "6379",
        }),
        testcontainers.WithExposedPorts("8080/tcp"),
        network.WithNetwork([]string{"app"}, nw),
    )
    testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, appContainer)
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Get application endpoint
    endpoint, err := appContainer.Endpoint(ctx, "http")
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Test application
    resp, err := http.Get(endpoint + "/health")
    require.NoError(t, err)
    require.Equal(t, 200, resp.StatusCode)
}

Example 5: Docker Compose Stack

package compose_test

import (
    "context"
    "testing"

    "github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go"
    "github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go/modules/compose"
)

func TestComposeStack(t *testing.T) {
    ctx := context.Background()

    // Start services from docker-compose.yml
    composeStack, err := compose.NewDockerCompose("./docker-compose.yml")
    require.NoError(t, err)

    t.Cleanup(func() {
        if err := composeStack.Down(ctx); err != nil {
            t.Fatalf("failed to down compose stack: %v", err)
        }
    })

    err = composeStack.Up(ctx, compose.Wait(true))
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Get service container
    webContainer, err := composeStack.ServiceContainer(ctx, "web")
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Test service
    endpoint, err := webContainer.Endpoint(ctx, "http")
    require.NoError(t, err)

    // Run tests against the stack...
}

Best Practices

Always use pre-configured modules when available - They provide sensible defaults and helper methods
Register cleanup immediately - Call testcontainers.CleanupContainer(t, ctr) before checking errors
Always add wait strategies when exposing ports - Use wait.ForListeningPort() to ensure reliability, especially in CI. Never use time.Sleep() - it's an anti-pattern that causes flaky tests
Choose appropriate wait strategies - Use wait.ForHTTP() for health endpoints, wait.ForLog() for log patterns, or wait.ForListeningPort() for port availability
Leverage table-driven tests - Test against multiple versions or configurations
Use custom networks - For multi-container communication
Keep containers ephemeral - Don't rely on state between tests
Check Docker availability - Use testcontainers.SkipIfProviderIsNotHealthy(t)
Enable parallel execution - Use t.Parallel() for faster test suites
Use module helper methods - E.g., ConnectionString(), Snapshot(), Restore()
Debug with logs - Use WithLogConsumers() when troubleshooting

Additional Resources

Official Documentation: https://golang.testcontainers.org/
Available Modules: https://testcontainers.com/modules/?language=go (complete, up-to-date list)
Module Documentation: https://golang.testcontainers.org/modules/ (online docs for each module)
GitHub Repository: https://github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-go
Module Examples: Check modules/*/examples_test.go files in the GitHub repository
Community Slack: testcontainers.slack.com

Install Skill

SKILL.md