# Check Importance

Source: https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/importance/

Every check carries an **Importance**: **Low**, **Medium**, **High**, or **Critical**. Importance says how much a check's failures matter when Qualytics ranks the [impact](https://userguide.qualytics.io/anomalies/deep-dive/triage/impact/) of the anomalies it finds.

| Level | What it means |
| --- | --- |
| **Low** | Failures of this check count less when Qualytics ranks an anomaly's impact. |
| **Medium** | Failures of this check count normally. |
| **High** | Failures of this check count more. |
| **Critical** | Failures of this check count the most. |

Qualytics sets a check's importance; you can't pick it directly. You influence it through the tags on the check and their weights.

## How Importance Is Decided

Importance comes from three things:

1. **Who wrote the check.** An [Authored](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/authored-checks/) check, written by a user, starts at **Medium**. An [AI Managed](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/ai-managed-checks/) check, inferred by Qualytics from your data, starts at **Low**.
2. **The weights of the check's tags.** Tags the check inherits from its table or datastore count too.
   - Only the tag with the highest weight raises importance: a weight of **2 to 7** raises it one level, and a weight of **8 or more** raises it two levels. Other positive tags add nothing more.
   - A tag with a **negative** weight lowers importance one level. Several negative tags still lower it only once.
   - Tags weighted **0** or **1** have no effect.
3. **Active anomalies, for AI Managed checks only.** While an AI Managed check has an **Active** anomaly, its importance is at least **Medium**. An Authored check's importance never changes with its anomalies.

Importance never goes below Low or above Critical.

## Example

| Check | Tags | Importance |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Authored | None | **Medium** |
| Authored | `payments` (weight 5) | **High** (one level up) |
| Authored | `payments` (weight 5) and `pii` (weight 10) | **Critical** (only `pii` counts: two levels up) |
| Authored | `payments` (weight 5) and `sandbox` (weight -3) | **Medium** (one up, one down) |
| AI Managed | None | **Low** |
| AI Managed | None, with an Active anomaly | **Medium** |
| AI Managed | `sandbox` (weight -3), with an Active anomaly | **Medium** |

## How Was This Decided?

Hover over a check's importance to see an explanation of its level. Under **How was this decided?**, the explanation lists:

- **Source**: whether the check was written by a user or is an AI Managed check.
- **Tags**: how the check's tag weights influence its importance, when they do.
- **Active anomalies**: shown when an AI Managed check was raised to Medium because it has an Active anomaly.

## When Importance Updates

Importance stays current on its own. It is decided again when:

- A tag is added to or removed from the check, its table, or its datastore.
- The weight of one of the check's tags changes, or the tag is deleted.
- An AI Managed check gets its first Active anomaly, or its last Active anomaly closes.
- An AI Managed check is converted to Authored.

Every importance change is recorded in the check's timeline, credited to the person whose action caused it with a **Qualytics** co-author badge, or to **Qualytics** alone when no person did (for example, a scan).

When a tag change moves a check's importance, Qualytics also updates the impact of that check's open anomalies. See [When Impact Updates](https://userguide.qualytics.io/anomalies/deep-dive/triage/impact/#when-impact-updates).

## Where Importance Appears

- **Check details**: the **Importance** value in the Summary section and on the check card.
- **Check lists**: the **Importance** sort, which is the default order, and the **Importance** filter. See [Filter and Sort Checks](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/how-tos/filter-and-sort/).
- **Important tab**: the **Important** tab of a check list shows checks of **Medium** importance or higher.
- **Anomaly impact**: each failed check's importance raises or lowers the impact of the anomaly. See [Anomaly Impact](https://userguide.qualytics.io/anomalies/deep-dive/triage/impact/).
- **API**: the `importance_level` field of a check. `GET /api/quality-checks` filters by it: pass `importance_level` once per level, for example `importance_level=critical&importance_level=high`, or use `in` and `not_in` inside `filters`. Any value other than `low`, `medium`, `high`, or `critical` returns a `422`.

> **Info: Not the same as quality score weights**
>
> Tag weights also decide how much tables, files and fields count in quality scores, which is separate from check importance. See [Tag Weight Modifier](https://userguide.qualytics.io/tags/deep-dive/weight-modifier/#how-tag-weights-affect-quality-scores).

## See Also

- **Impact Metrics**

  Numbers measured over a check's failed records that show how big a failure is.

  [Impact Metrics](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/impact-metrics/)
- **Dry Run**

  What a Dry Run evaluates and how to read its results, anomalies, and source records.

  [Dry Run](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/dry-run/)
- **Check Views**

  The check lists, the check page, and the side panel: how to reach each one, what it shows, and what you can do there.

  [Check Views](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/check-details/check-views/)
- **Check Anomalies**

  The anomalies a check has produced, and how to triage them from the check's page.

  [Check Anomalies](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/check-details/anomalies/)
- **Check Timeline**

  The change log of a check, its past versions, and the comments your team leaves on it.

  [Check Timeline](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/check-details/timeline/)
- **Check Examples**

  Scenarios that show ownership and AI Managed checks in practice.

  [Check Examples](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/examples/)
- **Check Permissions**

  Which team permissions can view, create, edit, archive, and delete checks, change owners, and edit AI Managed checks.

  [Check Permissions](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/permissions/)
- **How a Check Works**

  What a check is made of, who creates it, how AI Managed checks are generated, how a Scan evaluates it, and how its status changes.

  [How a Check Works](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/how-it-works/)
- **Authored Checks**

  What an Authored check is, who governs it, and how it differs from an AI Managed check.

  [Authored Checks](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/authored-checks/)
- **AI Managed Checks**

  What an AI Managed check is, which edits convert it to Authored, and how to go back.

  [AI Managed Checks](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/ai-managed-checks/)
- **Check Ownership**

  Who is responsible for a check, the four ways ownership changes, notifications, and filtering by owner.

  [Check Ownership](https://userguide.qualytics.io/data-quality-checks/checks/deep-dive/ownership/)

*Last updated: November 10, 2026.*