What is the difference between a use case and a user story, and when would you use each?
What the interviewer wants to hear
- User story is a short statement of need from a user's view
- Use case describes detailed interaction steps, including main and alternate flows
- Stories suit agile backlogs and conversation
- Use cases suit complex interactions or where detail is required
- They can be combined
Model answer
A user story is a short statement of need from the user's point of view, such as 'As a customer, I want to save my card so that checkout is faster'. It is a placeholder for conversation and is backed by acceptance criteria. A use case is more detailed. It describes how an actor interacts with the system step by step, including the main success flow, alternate flows and exceptions, plus preconditions and postconditions. I use stories for most agile backlog work because they are small and easy to prioritise. I use use cases when an interaction is complex, involves several systems, or needs detail for regulation or a vendor contract. The two can work together: a use case can give the big picture and then be split into several stories for delivery.
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