Halts coverage measurement and prepares the collected data for reporting.

Signals that the measurement of executed code should cease, allowing the coverage data to be finalized and reported.

After executing the code block whose coverage you want to measure, following a prior cov.start() call, and before generating any coverage report.

Used in test scripts, coverage scripts, or any script where you want to measure which lines of code were executed during a specific execution window.

cov.stop()

cov . stop ()

cov: coverage.Coverage object; stop: method name (no arguments)

• cov.start()
• cov.report()
• cov.html_report()
• cov.xml_report()

• cov.erase() – clears collected data instead of stopping
• cov.save() – saves raw data to file without reporting
• cov.xml_report() – generates XML report directly after stop.

Calling cov.stop() before cov.start() – results in no coverage data being collected, leading to empty reports. Calling cov.stop() multiple times – harmless but unnecessary; may hide logic errors where start/stop pairing is mistaken. Failing to call cov.stop() before generating a report – causes the report to include coverage from subsequent unrelated code execution. Assuming cov.stop() writes a report – it only stops measurement; a separate report call is required. Using cov.stop() in multiprocessing without proper synchronization – can lead to incomplete or corrupted coverage data.

cov.start() – begins coverage measurement; opposite action of stop. cov.resume() – resumes measurement after a pause; unlike stop, it does not finalize data. cov.erase() – clears all collected data; unlike stop, it does not preserve data for reporting. cov.report() – outputs a textual report; must be called after stop to see results.

Coming from Java's JaCoCo: may expect agent.stop() to both stop and dump data; in coverage.py you must call stop() then a separate report method. Coming from Go's coverage tool: expects 'go test -coverprofile' to automatically write a file; in coverage.py you must explicitly call stop() and then a report function.

• cov.start
• cov.stop
• cov.report
• cov.html_report
• cov.xml_report
• cov.erase
• cov.save

Do not call stop() before start(); doing so yields no data and can hide bugs in test setup. The performance overhead of coverage measurement is modest but non‑zero; stopping promptly minimizes impact on long‑running suites. After stop(), the coverage data remains in memory until you explicitly call a reporting or saving method; otherwise it is lost on interpreter shutdown.

Enables accurate measurement of which lines of code are executed by your tests, allowing you to assess test coverage and identify untested areas.

Think of cov.stop() as turning off a recorder after you’ve finished speaking – it ends the coverage recording session so you can play back the captured data.

After calling cov.stop(), call cov.report() or cov.html_report() to generate a coverage report.