Essay · 10 min read

The Joel Test: 12 Steps to Better Code

Joel Spolsky · Joel on Software Free Beginner

This is a three-minute list of yes/no questions you can literally walk through with the developer you hire, or use to size up the agency's habits. Questions like 'do you have testing?' and 'can you make a build in one step?' turn a vague worry into a score anyone can read. It is the fastest way to convert 'is this code any good?' into concrete things to ask about.

  • Twelve yes/no questions score a team's practices in minutes
  • A 'no' on tests or one-step builds is a real warning
  • You do not need to read code to use it
Open on joelonsoftware.com ↗

The question it answers

  1. How do I evaluate the code quality of a build I inherited from an agency?

Read with it

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