When creating new products for your small business or product features for your startup, the best usability testing can help you determine how user-friendly your mobile apps or e-commerce website design is.
Working with freelance usability testing professionals can help you enhance your end-user experience. Freelance usability testers are an affordable option to consider instead of an A/B testing firm.
Usability testing freelancers are typically product managers or tech professionals that have trained extensively and even been certified by the International Software Testing Qualifications Board (ISTQB) to hone their user research and user testing skills.
The cost to hire a usability testing freelancer or user experience designer will vary due to many factors, including years of experience, scope of work, project timeline, market conditions, and the freelancer’s location.
Experience and expertise
To hire a usability testing freelancer, it’s important to consider their level of expertise and years of experience. A more seasoned usability testing freelancer with full-time mobile app testing experience may command higher pay to complete your usability testing needs. Rates for an experienced usability testing professional can start around $75 per hour. A freelancer that is new to working in usability may be more competitive and cost less, but require a longer timeline to provide any wireframes or test results. Rates for a beginner or intermediate usability testing freelancer tend to start around $45 an hour.
There are multiple elements a usability testing project could include, such as UX research, functional testing, automation, and quality assurance. Keep in mind that a usability testing freelancer with experience in project management, WordPress, software development, web design, and information architecture could be valuable to your project, but could affect the cost of your job.
Scope of work
The scope of work is a step-by-step outline of the project milestones, timeline, expertise, and recommended years of experience needed to get the job done. Be sure to develop a detailed scope of work before hiring a usability testing freelancer, so the costs associated with your specific UX/UI project are accurate. Before hiring a usability testing freelancer, you must first define the project requirements. Do you have or need user research to get started? Will you need wireframes for your app design or web design? Is your mobile app testing for iOS or Android?
Timeline
A beginner usability testing freelancer should be able to qualify your website design or a product’s user interface in a short period of time. However, more complex quantitative user testing could take several weeks or months to complete. If your schedule is flexible, you may be able to negotiate a lower invoicing rate with even the most experienced usability testing freelancer. If you are on deadline or need the project completed last minute, you might have to pay a premium.
Geography
The cost of hiring freelance usability testing or UI designers can also be affected by their geographic location. Outsourcing your project to freelance usability testing architects in another country with a lower cost of living can help reduce your cost to hire or increase your ability to negotiate a fixed price. However, if you prefer a freelancer in a country with a higher cost of living, you may have to adjust your expected pay or budget for their time and effort. Also, paying your freelancer in USD is another way to negotiate a lower rate.
Popular usability testing projects & costs examples
While there will be multiple iterations included in your costs, here are a few common usability testing projects you can find on Upwork:
Software testing: $100-$200/hourly rate
The cost of testing an API or software on mobile apps will depend on the skill level of the tester and their knowledge of the best testing services for the project.
Accessibility testing: $100-$200/hourly rate
The cost of testing the accessibility of your mobile app or website optimization can be relatively affordable depending on the tester’s experience and their knowledge of the best testing services for the project.
QA manual testing: $150-$250/hourly rate
The cost of creating a usability testing database tied to data and queries from your business will depend on the independent professional’s skill level and if there will be data science involved in completing the project.
Find talent at the world’s work marketplace
Usability testing offers several solutions, including user research, functional testing, and software testing, to optimize the user experience of your product design. Usability testing freelancers can help you increase your conversion rates via social media or a web application. If you’re looking to hire a UX designer or software tester to deliver high-quality results, Upwork has the best usability testing freelancers for the job to complete your project on time and within budget.
Upwork is not affiliated with and does not sponsor or endorse any of the tools or services discussed in this section. These tools and services are provided only as potential options, and each reader and company should take the time needed to adequately analyze and determine the tools or services that would best fit their specific needs and situation.