Coding Assessment Platform Cost Comparison 2026: 8 Tools Priced

The short answer

There is no single cheapest coding-assessment platform, because they use different pricing models. For very low volume, pay-per-candidate TestDome ($20/candidate, no subscription) avoids any annual commitment. For a self-service subscription, HackerRank Starter and CodeSignal Build tie at $948/yr for 60 units, with Codility Starter at $1,200/yr for 120 invites ($10 each, the lowest per-unit entry plan). TestGorilla’s paid plans start from $77/mo billed annually, a floor that rises with credit volume. For live coding only, CodeInterview from $69/mo billed annually is the floor. Every platform reserves high volume for a custom quote. Each price checked against the vendor’s own pricing page in October 2026.

Every platform, priced side by side.

The entry price and the mid tier are the published self-service bands. The top tier is custom-quoted on most platforms, so the figures below cover the self-service range. Prices are annual billing unless marked otherwise, checked October 2026 on each vendor’s pricing page. Each platform links to its full cost breakdown below.

CodeSignal
Pricing model: Credit-based (1 credit per candidate start)
Entry price: Build $948/yr (60 credits); $99/mo monthly
Mid tier: Grow $5,748/yr (420 credits); $599/mo monthly
High tier: Pro custom

HackerRank
Pricing model: Attempt-capped subscription
Entry price: Starter $948/yr (60 attempts); $99/mo monthly
Mid tier: Pro $5,028/yr (360 attempts); $529/mo monthly
High tier: Enterprise custom

Codility
Pricing model: Invite-based
Entry price: Starter $1,200/yr (120 invites, annual only)
Mid tier: Scale $6,000/yr or $600/mo (300 invites/yr)
High tier: Custom

TestGorilla
Pricing model: Credit-based
Entry price: Free (10 credits/mo); Core from $77/mo billed annually
Mid tier: Plus from $520/mo billed annually
High tier: Floors rise with credit volume

Adaface
Pricing model: Credit-based annual
Entry price: Individual $180/yr (12 credits)
Mid tier: Scale $3,000/yr (500 credits)
High tier: Growth $5,500/yr (1,000 credits)

TestDome
Pricing model: Pay-per-candidate
Entry price: $20/candidate (5 for $100)
Mid tier: $7/candidate (600 for $4,200)
High tier: No subscription tier

CoderPad
Pricing model: Interview volume, unlimited users
Entry price: Starter $80/mo billed annually ($960/yr); $120/mo monthly
Mid tier: Team $400/mo billed annually ($4,800/yr); $500/mo monthly
High tier: Custom

Karat
Pricing model: Outsourced interviews (quote-only)
Entry price: Not published
Mid tier: Quoted by volume and role mix
High tier: Enterprise contracts

Platform	Pricing model	Entry price	Mid tier	High tier
CodeSignal	Credit-based (1 credit per candidate start)	Build $948/yr (60 credits); $99/mo monthly	Grow $5,748/yr (420 credits); $599/mo monthly	Pro custom
HackerRank	Attempt-capped subscription	Starter $948/yr (60 attempts); $99/mo monthly	Pro $5,028/yr (360 attempts); $529/mo monthly	Enterprise custom
Codility	Invite-based	Starter $1,200/yr (120 invites, annual only)	Scale $6,000/yr or $600/mo (300 invites/yr)	Custom
TestGorilla	Credit-based	Free (10 credits/mo); Core from $77/mo billed annually	Plus from $520/mo billed annually	Floors rise with credit volume
Adaface	Credit-based annual	Individual $180/yr (12 credits)	Scale $3,000/yr (500 credits)	Growth $5,500/yr (1,000 credits)
TestDome	Pay-per-candidate	$20/candidate (5 for $100)	$7/candidate (600 for $4,200)	No subscription tier
CoderPad	Interview volume, unlimited users	Starter $80/mo billed annually ($960/yr); $120/mo monthly	Team $400/mo billed annually ($4,800/yr); $500/mo monthly	Custom
Karat	Outsourced interviews (quote-only)	Not published	Quoted by volume and role mix	Enterprise contracts

CodeInterview, the other live-coding option, is Starter $69/mo billed annually ($828/yr, 96 interviews) or $89/mo monthly, and Pro $299/mo billed annually ($3,588/yr, 480 interviews) or $320/mo monthly. TestGorilla’s monthly-billed plans start from $287/mo (Core) and $694/mo (Plus). Karat is the outlier: it sells outsourced interviewing (a real interviewer conducts and scores the screen), not self-service software, so its per-interview price is not comparable to the per-assessment tools above and it does not publish a rate. See the Karat cost page for that model in full.

Which model fits your hiring volume.

The pricing model matters more than the headline number, because it decides how your bill scales. Match your hiring pattern to the model rather than chasing the lowest sticker.

Sporadic or seasonal hiring

Best fit: TestDome (pay-per-candidate)

If you hire in bursts and run nothing between, a subscription bleeds money during the quiet months. Pay-per-candidate means you pay $20 per candidate on the smallest pack when you are hiring and nothing when you are not. Ten candidates is $200, against $948 for the cheapest coding-assessment subscriptions on annual billing. Adaface's Individual plan ($180/yr for 12 credits) also fits if you can commit to a year.

See the cost math →

Steady mid-volume auto-graded screening

Best fit: CodeSignal, HackerRank, Codility

If you run a consistent stream of auto-graded coding assessments, a credit, attempt or invite subscription amortises well. HackerRank Starter and CodeSignal Build tie at $948/yr for 60 units ($15.80 each), and Codility Starter is $1,200/yr for 120 invites ($10 each) with one platform user. At the mid tier, CodeSignal Grow is $13.69 per credit, HackerRank Pro $13.97 per attempt and Codility Scale $20 per invite on annual billing. Pick on library depth, users and format, not dollars alone.

See the cost math →

Live coding interviews, not take-homes

Best fit: CoderPad, CodeInterview

If your process is synchronous live coding rather than auto-graded take-homes, you do not need an assessment library, and per-interview-volume pricing with unlimited users fits. CodeInterview Starter is $69/mo billed annually or $89/mo monthly, and CoderPad Starter $80/mo billed annually or $120/mo monthly. On annual billing CodeInterview sits just under HackerRank Starter's $79/mo and CoderPad level with it, so the case for them is format fit rather than a lower price.

See the cost math →

Broad multi-role skills testing

Best fit: TestGorilla, Adaface

If you test beyond engineering as well as coding, a broad credit-based skills platform covers more ground. TestGorilla has a free plan with 10 credits a month, and paid plans from $77/mo (Core) and $520/mo (Plus) billed annually, floors that rise with credit volume. One TestGorilla credit covers a candidate taking up to five skills tests in one assessment; an AI interview is two credits. Adaface runs annual credit plans from $180/yr, working out at $15 down to $5.50 per credit on its published tiers through Growth.

See the cost math →

The number that actually decides value.

On every platform here the subscription fee is small next to the engineer-time the assessment saves or wastes. An auto-graded assessment cuts roughly 10 to 25 minutes of reviewer time per submission versus manually scoring a coding exercise. At a senior IC loaded rate of about $122 an hour (see our technical phone interview cost page), that is $20 to $50 of engineer time saved per assessment. Across a few hundred assessments a year that saving outweighs the $948 to $6,000 annual price of the published entry and mid tiers, which is why the right question is which platform’s format and library best fit your roles, not which has the lowest sticker.

Use the comparison table to rule out obvious model mismatches, then decide on fit. To see how a chosen platform’s cost flows into your full cost-per-hire, plug it into the five-component calculator.

Run your own numbers.

Add your chosen platform's cost to the calculator and see the per-hire impact.

Run the calculator

Frequently asked questions

What is the cheapest coding assessment platform in 2026?

It depends on volume, because the platforms use different pricing models. For very low volume, pay-per-candidate TestDome costs $20 per candidate on its 5-pack ($100) with no subscription, so 10 candidates is $200; Adaface Individual is $180 a year for 12 credits if you can commit annually. Among coding-assessment subscriptions, HackerRank Starter and CodeSignal Build tie as the cheapest entry plan at $948 a year billed annually (60 units each), with Codility Starter at $1,200 a year (120 invites) just above them in total but the lowest per unit at $10 an invite. TestGorilla has a free plan with 10 credits a month and paid plans from $77 a month billed annually, a floor that rises with credit volume. For live-coding interviews only, CodeInterview Starter at $69 a month billed annually is the floor. Prices checked against each vendor's pricing page in October 2026.

How do the pricing models differ?

Attempt-capped subscription (HackerRank): a flat fee that includes a fixed number of candidate attempts, with $20 per extra attempt. Credit-based (CodeSignal, TestGorilla, Adaface): you buy a credit allowance and spend credits as candidates take assessments; CodeSignal uses one credit per candidate start, and TestGorilla one credit per candidate for up to five skills tests in one assessment. Invite-based (Codility): the annual fee includes a fixed number of assessment invites. Pay-per-candidate (TestDome): no subscription, a flat price per candidate that falls with pack size. Karat is different again: it is outsourced interviewing priced per completed interview, not software. The model matters more than the headline price, because it decides how your bill scales as hiring volume moves.

Which coding assessment platform is best value at high volume?

At high volume every platform pushes you toward a custom Enterprise or Pro quote, so the published self-service tiers stop being the right comparison. Among the published tiers on annual billing: HackerRank Pro is $13.97 per attempt at 360 attempts, CodeSignal Grow $13.69 per credit at 420 credits, and Codility Scale $20 per invite at 300 invites. Pay-per-candidate TestDome drops to $7 per candidate on the 600-pack ($4,200), and Adaface Growth works out to $5.50 per credit at $5,500 a year for 1,000 credits. Beyond the published allowances, the negotiated rate is what decides high-volume value, and that is quote-only across all of them.

Do HackerRank and CodeSignal cost the same?

At the entry tier, yes: HackerRank Starter and CodeSignal Build are both $948 a year billed annually for 60 units, or $99 billed monthly. At the mid tier HackerRank Pro is $5,028 a year (360 attempts) against CodeSignal Grow at $5,748 a year (420 credits), so Pro is $720 cheaper a year while Grow is slightly cheaper per unit ($13.69 against $13.97). Both reserve high volume for custom quotes. Full head-to-head math is on the HackerRank vs CodeSignal page.

Which platforms publish real prices and which are quote-only?

Seven of the eight publish self-service prices you can read without talking to sales: HackerRank, CodeSignal, Codility, TestGorilla, Adaface, TestDome and CoderPad. CodeInterview, covered alongside CoderPad, publishes its prices too. Karat does not publish a rate at all: it sells outsourced interviewing rather than software, and prices each contract by quote. For the platforms that publish, the top Enterprise, Pro or Custom tier is still quote-only, so the published prices cover the self-service band only.

Should I pick a platform on price alone?

No. The platform fee is rarely the largest cost in a technical hiring loop; the engineer-hours the assessment saves or wastes usually dominate. An auto-graded assessment saves roughly 10 to 25 minutes of reviewer time per submission versus manual scoring, which at a senior IC loaded rate of about $122 an hour is $20 to $50 of engineer time per assessment. That saving is comparable to or larger than the per-assessment platform cost on the published tiers here once you run real volume, so the right question is which platform's assessment format and library best fit your roles, not which has the lowest sticker. Use the price comparison to rule out obvious mismatches, then decide on fit.