Test.IO Review – Can You Make Money As A Freelance QA?

Test.IO is a company that hires you to do QA work, or quality assurance. The company’s clients are startups, individual developers, and other businesses that need to identify bugs and other errors in their websites, apps, and other software products before releasing them into the market. 

Your job as a QA or tester is essential to the software development process. You’re tasked to seek out these errors and report them to Test.IO, who will then report it to their clients. 

Note that Test.IO is not a QA company in itself. Rather they provide a QA service to individual developers and startups who can’t afford an actual QA company.

Test.IO is open to freelance testers from around the world. But you’ll need to meet specific requirements in order to become a tester for the platform. 

Basic requirements include: 

• Having a desktop or laptop, mobile phone, and tablet

• At least 18 years of age

If you meet these requirements, you can proceed to sign up for the program. Completing the registration will then take you to your tester’s dashboard. 

This is where the application process will continue. 

The Tutorial

The tester’s dashboard will have you undergo a tutorial. The tutorial goes over finding bugs and reporting them correctly. 

In a test, there is a drop down menu of potential bugs that you can report. This makes it easier for you to carry out the testing process because the guesswork has been removed entirely. 

If the bug is not listed on the dropdown menu, then it means that it’s out of scope and will not be reported. 

The tutorial will also provide tips on how to properly describe a problem and show you how not to do it as well. The last section of the tutorial will go over explaining the bug or problem in greater detail.

Test.IO will also show the steps on how to trigger a potential bug in this tutorial, so you’re not exactly looking for a needle in a haystack. 

The Quiz After The Tutorial

Once you complete the first tutorial with Test.IO, you’re going to complete a quiz to test your knowledge so far. These are multiple choice questions and are pretty straightforward. 

Passing the test will have you proceed to the next section called the Onboarding. 

It’s also worth noting that you can always proceed with the next process any time you wish. 

The Onboarding Test

This is where things become more serious. 

The onboarding test consists of practice tests that will determine whether or not you’ll become an active tester here.

Don’t worry though since you’ll get access to the Test.IO Academy, which contains the resources and information needed to help you pass these different tests. 

The onboarding tests will have you going over several tasks, such as finding a specific bug or identifying the different types of bugs that you can report. 

Some users have complained that the onboarding tests can be a bit overwhelming and end up surrendering the application process. 

How To Make Money with Test.IO?

Your income potential here is dictated by the number of devices you listed during your application. Test.IO will only invite you to test projects if you listed specific devices and if you pass the onboarding process. 

Test.IO doesn’t list out a specific rate for their tests. At most, you can earn $50 for finding critical bugs. But high-paying opportunities like these are rare and you’d be lucky enough to get them. 

On average, you’re going to earn about $2 to $3 per bug reported. 

How To Get Paid by Test.IO?

There is no minimum payout requirement here with Test.IO. Rather, Test.IO pays out once a month through PayPal, Skrill, Payoneer, and direct bank transfer. 

Payments are fast and take no longer than 48 hours. 

Referral Program

You can also increase your income by taking part in their referral program. You will be rewarded per application accepted by Test.IO, but only after they complete the onboarding test and discover 5 bugs after.

Test.IO is meant for people who have a solid understanding of how QA works and how apps, websites, and other software should function. 

Note that this is also for people who have a slight understanding of IT industry jargon too.

#1 Once A Month Payout!

We’re kind of annoyed that the program only pays out once a month. But we’re inclined to think that this might be attributed due to the fact that there aren’t a lot of tests going around for everyone and it would make financial sense for the company for a monthly payout to avoid paying unnecessary fees. 

If you’re in a rush to get the dough, this might not be the best program for you. 

On the one hand, you can pool up your earnings for one big payday (if ever) so that’s the plus side of it all. 

#2 Bugs Not Getting Paid!

The biggest complaint about the site is that some of the bugs are not getting paid for. This means that the testers are not properly getting credited for the bugs they reported. 

Take a look at some of these complaints from GlassDoor. 

This greatly affects your income potential because 88% of their QA testers have cited this particular complaint and have not recommended Test.IO because of it.

#1 Decent Income Potential

You’re earning a few bucks here and there if you’re lucky. It’s quite higher compared to doing generic surveys and other GPT tasks too. 

This is probably the only saving grace this program has, but then again, you have a chance of not getting paid at all.

Test.IO is a legitimate QA site that hires you as a tester for their clients. You’re tasked with testing their apps, programs, and websites and get paid for finding these errors and bugs. 

The income potential is there, but I wouldn’t recommend this program as a source of full-time income. 

There are several complaints about users not getting paid for the bugs they report, and that’s quite the biggest disappointment here with the program. 

They also payout once a month, so if you’re looking for something to get you cash instantly, then this isn’t the program for you. 

Overall, we wouldn’t recommend this to anyone but it doesn’t really hurt to check it out for yourself. Maybe your experience will be different from the others.