diff --git a/tests/test_base.py b/tests/test_base.py
index 239a3380..fb51ae67 100644
--- a/tests/test_base.py
+++ b/tests/test_base.py
@@ -23,14 +23,14 @@ class TestBase(testtools.TestCase):
 
     def test_resource_repr(self):
         r = base.Resource(None, dict(foo="bar", baz="spam"))
-        self.assertEqual(repr(r), "<Resource baz=spam, foo=bar>")
+        self.assertEqual("<Resource baz=spam, foo=bar>", repr(r))
 
     def test_getid(self):
-        self.assertEqual(base.getid(4), 4)
+        self.assertEqual(4, base.getid(4))
 
         class TmpObject(object):
             id = 4
-        self.assertEqual(base.getid(TmpObject), 4)
+        self.assertEqual(4, base.getid(TmpObject))
 
     def test_two_resources_with_same_id_are_equal(self):
         # Two resources of the same type with the same id: equal
diff --git a/tests/test_http.py b/tests/test_http.py
index e439ede0..e8631bc5 100644
--- a/tests/test_http.py
+++ b/tests/test_http.py
@@ -59,7 +59,7 @@ class TestClient(testtools.TestCase):
         kwargs = {'token': u'fake-token',
                   'identity_headers': identity_headers}
         http_client_object = http.HTTPClient(self.endpoint, **kwargs)
-        self.assertEqual(http_client_object.auth_token, 'auth_token')
+        self.assertEqual('auth_token', http_client_object.auth_token)
         self.assertTrue(http_client_object.identity_headers.
                         get('X-Auth-Token') is None)
 
@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@ class TestClient(testtools.TestCase):
         kwargs = {'token': u'fake-token',
                   'identity_headers': identity_headers}
         http_client_object = http.HTTPClient(self.endpoint, **kwargs)
-        self.assertEqual(http_client_object.auth_token, u'fake-token')
+        self.assertEqual(u'fake-token', http_client_object.auth_token)
         self.assertTrue(http_client_object.identity_headers.
                         get('X-Auth-Token') is None)
 
@@ -143,20 +143,20 @@ class TestClient(testtools.TestCase):
         headers = {"test": u'ni\xf1o'}
         resp, body = self.client.raw_request('GET', '/v1/images/detail',
                                                     headers=headers)
-        self.assertEqual(resp, fake)
+        self.assertEqual(fake, resp)
 
     def test_headers_encoding(self):
         headers = {"test": u'ni\xf1o'}
         encoded = self.client.encode_headers(headers)
-        self.assertEqual(encoded["test"], "ni\xc3\xb1o")
+        self.assertEqual("ni\xc3\xb1o", encoded["test"])
 
     def test_raw_request(self):
         " Verify the path being used for HTTP requests reflects accurately. "
 
         def check_request(method, path, **kwargs):
-            self.assertEqual(method, 'GET')
+            self.assertEqual('GET', method)
             # NOTE(kmcdonald): See bug #1179984 for more details.
-            self.assertEqual(path, '/v1/images/detail')
+            self.assertEqual('/v1/images/detail', path)
 
         http_client.HTTPConnection.request(
             mox.IgnoreArg(),
@@ -169,7 +169,7 @@ class TestClient(testtools.TestCase):
         self.mock.ReplayAll()
 
         resp, body = self.client.raw_request('GET', '/v1/images/detail')
-        self.assertEqual(resp, fake)
+        self.assertEqual(fake, resp)
 
     def test_customized_path_raw_request(self):
         """
@@ -178,13 +178,13 @@ class TestClient(testtools.TestCase):
         """
 
         def check_request(method, path, **kwargs):
-            self.assertEqual(method, 'GET')
-            self.assertEqual(path, '/customized-path/v1/images/detail')
+            self.assertEqual('GET', method)
+            self.assertEqual('/customized-path/v1/images/detail', path)
 
         # NOTE(yuyangbj): see bug 1230032 to get more info
         endpoint = 'http://example.com:9292/customized-path'
         client = http.HTTPClient(endpoint, token=u'abc123')
-        self.assertEqual(client.endpoint_path, '/customized-path')
+        self.assertEqual('/customized-path', client.endpoint_path)
 
         http_client.HTTPConnection.request(
             mox.IgnoreArg(),
@@ -197,15 +197,15 @@ class TestClient(testtools.TestCase):
         self.mock.ReplayAll()
 
         resp, body = client.raw_request('GET', '/v1/images/detail')
-        self.assertEqual(resp, fake)
+        self.assertEqual(fake, resp)
 
     def test_raw_request_no_content_length(self):
         with tempfile.NamedTemporaryFile() as test_file:
             test_file.write(b'abcd')
             test_file.seek(0)
             data_length = 4
-            self.assertEqual(client_utils.get_file_size(test_file),
-                             data_length)
+            self.assertEqual(data_length,
+                             client_utils.get_file_size(test_file))
 
             exp_resp = {'body': test_file}
             exp_resp['headers'] = {'Content-Length': str(data_length),
@@ -236,8 +236,8 @@ class TestClient(testtools.TestCase):
             test_file.write(b'abcd')
             test_file.seek(0)
             data_length = 4
-            self.assertEqual(client_utils.get_file_size(test_file),
-                             data_length)
+            self.assertEqual(data_length,
+                             client_utils.get_file_size(test_file))
 
             exp_resp = {'body': test_file}
             # NOTE: we expect the actual file size to be overridden by the
@@ -269,7 +269,7 @@ class TestClient(testtools.TestCase):
         with tempfile.NamedTemporaryFile() as test_file:
             test_file.write(b'abcd')
             test_file.seek(0)
-            self.assertEqual(client_utils.get_file_size(test_file), 4)
+            self.assertEqual(4, client_utils.get_file_size(test_file))
 
             def mock_request(url, method, **kwargs):
                 return kwargs
@@ -313,7 +313,7 @@ class TestClient(testtools.TestCase):
         endpoint = 'http://example.com:9292'
         test_client = http.HTTPClient(endpoint, token=u'adc123')
         actual = (test_client.get_connection_class('https'))
-        self.assertEqual(actual, http.VerifiedHTTPSConnection)
+        self.assertEqual(http.VerifiedHTTPSConnection, actual)
 
     def test_get_connections_kwargs_http(self):
         endpoint = 'http://example.com:9292'
@@ -399,7 +399,7 @@ class TestResponseBodyIterator(testtools.TestCase):
         resp = utils.FakeResponse({}, six.StringIO('X' * 98304))
         iterator = http.ResponseBodyIterator(resp)
         chunks = list(iterator)
-        self.assertEqual(chunks, ['X' * 65536, 'X' * 32768])
+        self.assertEqual(['X' * 65536, 'X' * 32768], chunks)
 
     def test_integrity_check_with_correct_checksum(self):
         resp = utils.FakeResponse({}, six.StringIO('CCC'))
@@ -432,4 +432,4 @@ class TestResponseBodyIterator(testtools.TestCase):
         resp = utils.FakeResponse(
             {'content-length': str(size)}, six.StringIO('BB'))
         body = http.ResponseBodyIterator(resp)
-        self.assertEqual(len(body), size)
+        self.assertEqual(size, len(body))
diff --git a/tests/test_progressbar.py b/tests/test_progressbar.py
index c8380311..beb3c281 100644
--- a/tests/test_progressbar.py
+++ b/tests/test_progressbar.py
@@ -32,10 +32,10 @@ class TestProgressBarWrapper(testtools.TestCase):
             sys.stdout = output = test_utils.FakeTTYStdout()
             # Consume iterator.
             data = list(progressbar.VerboseIteratorWrapper(iterator, size))
-            self.assertEqual(data, ['X'] * 100)
+            self.assertEqual(['X'] * 100, data)
             self.assertEqual(
-                output.getvalue(),
-                '[%s>] 100%%\n' % ('=' * 29)
+                '[%s>] 100%%\n' % ('=' * 29),
+                output.getvalue()
             )
         finally:
             sys.stdout = saved_stdout
@@ -52,8 +52,8 @@ class TestProgressBarWrapper(testtools.TestCase):
             while chunk:
                 chunk = file_obj.read(chunksize)
             self.assertEqual(
-                output.getvalue(),
-                '[%s>] 100%%\n' % ('=' * 29)
+                '[%s>] 100%%\n' % ('=' * 29),
+                output.getvalue()
             )
         finally:
             sys.stdout = saved_stdout
@@ -70,6 +70,6 @@ class TestProgressBarWrapper(testtools.TestCase):
             while chunk:
                 chunk = file_obj.read(chunksize)
             # If stdout is not a tty progress bar should do nothing.
-            self.assertEqual(output.getvalue(), '')
+            self.assertEqual('', output.getvalue())
         finally:
             sys.stdout = saved_stdout
diff --git a/tests/test_ssl.py b/tests/test_ssl.py
index 569fabbe..00206316 100644
--- a/tests/test_ssl.py
+++ b/tests/test_ssl.py
@@ -122,7 +122,7 @@ class TestVerifiedHTTPSConnection(testtools.TestCase):
         cert = crypto.load_certificate(crypto.FILETYPE_PEM,
                                        file(cert_file).read())
         # The expected cert should have CN=0.0.0.0
-        self.assertEqual(cert.get_subject().commonName, '0.0.0.0')
+        self.assertEqual('0.0.0.0', cert.get_subject().commonName)
         try:
             conn = http.VerifiedHTTPSConnection('0.0.0.0', 0)
             conn.verify_callback(None, cert, 0, 0, 1)
@@ -137,7 +137,7 @@ class TestVerifiedHTTPSConnection(testtools.TestCase):
         cert = crypto.load_certificate(crypto.FILETYPE_PEM,
                                        file(cert_file).read())
         # The expected cert should have CN=*.pong.example.com
-        self.assertEqual(cert.get_subject().commonName, '*.pong.example.com')
+        self.assertEqual('*.pong.example.com', cert.get_subject().commonName)
         try:
             conn = http.VerifiedHTTPSConnection('ping.pong.example.com', 0)
             conn.verify_callback(None, cert, 0, 0, 1)
@@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ class TestVerifiedHTTPSConnection(testtools.TestCase):
         cert = crypto.load_certificate(crypto.FILETYPE_PEM,
                                        file(cert_file).read())
         # The expected cert should have CN=0.0.0.0
-        self.assertEqual(cert.get_subject().commonName, '0.0.0.0')
+        self.assertEqual('0.0.0.0', cert.get_subject().commonName)
         try:
             conn = http.VerifiedHTTPSConnection('alt1.example.com', 0)
             conn.verify_callback(None, cert, 0, 0, 1)
@@ -173,7 +173,7 @@ class TestVerifiedHTTPSConnection(testtools.TestCase):
         cert = crypto.load_certificate(crypto.FILETYPE_PEM,
                                        file(cert_file).read())
         # The expected cert should have CN=0.0.0.0
-        self.assertEqual(cert.get_subject().commonName, '0.0.0.0')
+        self.assertEqual('0.0.0.0', cert.get_subject().commonName)
         try:
             conn = http.VerifiedHTTPSConnection('alt1.example.com', 0)
             conn.verify_callback(None, cert, 0, 0, 1)
@@ -201,7 +201,7 @@ class TestVerifiedHTTPSConnection(testtools.TestCase):
         cert = crypto.load_certificate(crypto.FILETYPE_PEM,
                                        file(cert_file).read())
         # The expected cert should have CN=0.0.0.0
-        self.assertEqual(cert.get_subject().commonName, '0.0.0.0')
+        self.assertEqual('0.0.0.0', cert.get_subject().commonName)
         try:
             conn = http.VerifiedHTTPSConnection('mismatch.example.com', 0)
         except Exception:
@@ -218,8 +218,8 @@ class TestVerifiedHTTPSConnection(testtools.TestCase):
         cert = crypto.load_certificate(crypto.FILETYPE_PEM,
                                        file(cert_file).read())
         # The expected expired cert has CN=openstack.example.com
-        self.assertEqual(cert.get_subject().commonName,
-                         'openstack.example.com')
+        self.assertEqual('openstack.example.com',
+                         cert.get_subject().commonName)
         try:
             conn = http.VerifiedHTTPSConnection('openstack.example.com', 0)
         except Exception:
diff --git a/tests/test_utils.py b/tests/test_utils.py
index d2003365..06f9a465 100644
--- a/tests/test_utils.py
+++ b/tests/test_utils.py
@@ -34,9 +34,9 @@ class TestUtils(testtools.TestCase):
         size = 98304
         file_obj = six.StringIO('X' * size)
         try:
-            self.assertEqual(utils.get_file_size(file_obj), size)
+            self.assertEqual(size, utils.get_file_size(file_obj))
             # Check that get_file_size didn't change original file position.
-            self.assertEqual(file_obj.tell(), 0)
+            self.assertEqual(0, file_obj.tell())
         finally:
             file_obj.close()
 
@@ -45,9 +45,9 @@ class TestUtils(testtools.TestCase):
         file_obj = six.StringIO('X' * size)
         file_obj.seek(consumed)
         try:
-            self.assertEqual(utils.get_file_size(file_obj), size)
+            self.assertEqual(size, utils.get_file_size(file_obj))
             # Check that get_file_size didn't change original file position.
-            self.assertEqual(file_obj.tell(), consumed)
+            self.assertEqual(consumed, file_obj.tell())
         finally:
             file_obj.close()
 
@@ -77,7 +77,7 @@ class TestUtils(testtools.TestCase):
         finally:
             sys.stdout = saved_stdout
 
-        self.assertEqual(output_list.getvalue(), '''\
+        self.assertEqual('''\
 +-------+--------------+
 | ID    | Name         |
 +-------+--------------+
@@ -85,9 +85,10 @@ class TestUtils(testtools.TestCase):
 | 1     | another      |
 | 65536 | veeeery long |
 +-------+--------------+
-''')
+''',
+                         output_list.getvalue())
 
-        self.assertEqual(output_dict.getvalue(), '''\
+        self.assertEqual('''\
 +----------+--------------------------------------------------------------+
 | Property | Value                                                        |
 +----------+--------------------------------------------------------------+
@@ -96,7 +97,8 @@ class TestUtils(testtools.TestCase):
 |          | eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee |
 |          | ery long value                                               |
 +----------+--------------------------------------------------------------+
-''')
+''',
+                         output_dict.getvalue())
 
     def test_exception_to_str(self):
         class FakeException(Exception):
@@ -104,11 +106,11 @@ class TestUtils(testtools.TestCase):
                 raise UnicodeError()
 
         ret = utils.exception_to_str(Exception('error message'))
-        self.assertEqual(ret, 'error message')
+        self.assertEqual('error message', ret)
 
         ret = utils.exception_to_str(Exception('\xa5 error message'))
-        self.assertEqual(ret, ' error message')
+        self.assertEqual(' error message', ret)
 
         ret = utils.exception_to_str(FakeException('\xa5 error message'))
-        self.assertEqual(ret, "Caught '%(exception)s' exception." %
-                         {'exception': 'FakeException'})
+        self.assertEqual("Caught '%(exception)s' exception." %
+                         {'exception': 'FakeException'}, ret)