Briefle words · Product & specs
Unhappy path
A scenario where something goes wrong, such as bad input, an error or a limit, and how the product helps the user recover.
Say it to an AI
Acceptance criteria for gift card payment at checkout: one happy-path line, then the unhappy paths and edge cases: partial balance, expired code, zero balance, and brute-force guessing. Each criterion names the exact message or behavior.
How an expert would brief the stronger version of “Gift card at checkout”.
See it
Try it as a puzzle →An online home-goods store is adding gift card payments; the card is about to move into development.
Why: B spells out the expired code, the $0 card and repeated wrong codes, each with the exact message or behavior.
More ways experts use it
Map the send-money flow: happy path Amount → Recipient → Confirm → Sent, then the main unhappy paths under the step where each happens (low balance, unknown recipient, Face ID failure, bank decline), each with the recovery action the user gets.
Money transfer flow · Product & specs
Related words
Room 3 · User stories
Learn “Unhappy path” in a five-minute lesson