Technical debt scorecard: how healthy is your codebase?
Answer 10 yes/no questions to get a technical debt risk score with prioritized recommendations — in under 60 seconds.
Rate your codebase
0 of 10Answer each question honestly for the most accurate assessment.
Do you have automated tests for your critical features?
Unit, integration, or end-to-end tests that run automatically.
Does your team use code reviews or pull requests before merging?
Changes are reviewed by at least one other person before going live.
Do you use automated deployment (CI/CD) to release changes?
Code is built, tested, and deployed automatically — not manually via FTP or SSH.
Do you have error monitoring or alerting in production?
Tools like Sentry, LogRocket, or Datadog notify you when something breaks.
Have your dependencies been updated in the last 6 months?
Frameworks, libraries, and packages are reasonably current.
Has your app had a security review or vulnerability scan in the last year?
Automated scanning (npm audit, OWASP ZAP) or a professional assessment.
Could your application handle 5× its current traffic without a major rewrite?
Your system can scale up without fundamental architecture changes.
Do you monitor page load times or API response times in production?
Performance dashboards or alerts for slow responses.
Is there documentation for how to set up, run, and deploy the project?
A new developer could get the project running from the README alone.
Could your project continue if any single team member left tomorrow?
Critical knowledge is shared — not trapped in one person's head.
How the scorecard works
This scorecard evaluates your codebase across five dimensions that matter most for long-term project health: code quality and testing, DevOps and deployment, security and dependencies, architecture and scalability, and maintainability.
Each question is weighted by real-world impact. Testing and security carry the highest weight (3 points each) because gaps in those areas lead to the most expensive problems. Your health score is the percentage of total points you earn — 100 means every best practice is in place.
The recommendations are prioritized by severity, so you can focus on the highest-impact improvements first.
The five dimensions of technical debt
Code Quality & Testing
Automated tests and code reviews are your safety net. Without them, every change risks breaking something — and you won't know until a user reports it.
DevOps & Deployment
CI/CD pipelines and error monitoring mean faster, safer releases. Manual deployments and missing alerts are two of the most common sources of preventable outages.
Security & Dependencies
Outdated dependencies and missing security reviews are ticking time bombs. A single vulnerability can expose user data and destroy trust overnight.
Architecture & Scalability
Can your system handle growth? Performance monitoring and scalable architecture decisions today prevent expensive rewrites when traffic increases.
Maintainability
Documentation and knowledge sharing reduce your "bus factor" — the risk that losing one team member could halt the project. These are low-effort, high-impact improvements.
Understanding your score
| Grade | Score | Risk level | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 90–100 | Low | Well-managed codebase with strong engineering practices |
| B | 75–89 | Moderate | Mostly solid — a few areas need attention before they compound |
| C | 50–74 | Elevated | Technical debt is slowing the team — address top issues soon |
| D | 25–49 | High | Significant issues impacting velocity, reliability, and security |
| F | 0–24 | Critical | Urgent intervention needed to avoid costly failures or rewrites |
Frequently asked questions
- What is a technical debt scorecard?
- A quick assessment tool that evaluates your codebase across key dimensions — testing, DevOps, security, architecture, and maintainability — to produce a health score and prioritized recommendations. It helps founders and CTOs understand hidden risks in their software.
- How is the score calculated?
- Each of the 10 questions is weighted by its real-world impact. Testing and security carry the highest weight (3 points each) because gaps there lead to the most expensive problems. Your score is the percentage of total possible points you earn.
- What's a good technical debt score?
- A score of 75+ (Grade B or A) means your codebase follows most engineering best practices. Between 50–74 (Grade C), debt is accumulating and should be addressed. Below 50 signals high risk — development will slow and bugs will increase.
- Can technical debt be completely eliminated?
- Some technical debt is deliberate and acceptable — for example, taking shortcuts to ship an MVP faster. The goal isn't zero debt, but managing it intentionally. Regular assessments (quarterly is a good cadence) help you stay ahead of it.
- How often should I assess technical debt?
- We recommend quarterly, or before major milestones like fundraising, scaling, or onboarding new developers. Technical debt compounds over time — catching it early is dramatically cheaper than fixing it after a failure.
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