The certificate of analysis (COA) is evidence of quality control and compliance for material. It serves as the document of test results for material characteristics, specifications, and acceptance criteria. It also serves as a printed report that displays the lot attributes and information about how they were obtained. The COA is the published product of the quality control process.

The COA is based on a closed quality order. It can be printed for an item lot, without regard to a specific customer order, or for an item lot on a sales order.