AfterQuery and Terac both pay professionals for expert work, packaged differently. AfterQuery runs projects of two to three weeks at 10 to 20 hours a week and pays every Friday through Stripe, with an $85 median listed rate. Terac mixes AI output review with paid market research interviews and surveys, screens with a short AI interview, and pays once a project is completed; its homepage roles list $24 to $40 an hour worked. AfterQuery suits part-time project work. Terac suits short studies around a full-time job.
Quick verdict
AfterQuery pays more on live listings: AfterQuery $87/hr median (middle half $70 to $115, 172 distinct listed rates across 216 open listings) vs Terac $70/hr median (middle half $40 to $90, 18 distinct listed rates across 28 open listings). Updated October 4, 2026. How we count.
Typical Pay (Median)
AfterQuery
$87/hr listed median · 24% higher
Faster Onboarding
Terac
AfterQuery: Medium (assessment, then project invitations) Terac: Fast (short AI interview)
Global Access
Limited to Specific Regions
AfterQuery: 95 Stripe payout countries (48 unsupported) Terac: Set per study
Trustpilot Score
Terac
AfterQuery: /5 Terac: 4.4/5
The Case for AfterQuery
AfterQuery hires through talent pools: each pool has one unpaid assessment, there is no pass or fail notice, and you hear back when a matching project opens. Projects typically run two to three weeks at 10 to 20 hours a week, and listed hourly rates have an $85 median. Pay lands every Friday for the prior week's approved work, through Stripe only, in the 95 countries Stripe pays out to, and the first payout has a 7-day hold.
The Case for Terac
Terac pays verified professionals for two kinds of work: market research interviews and surveys, and reviewing AI outputs in their field for AI labs. It screens with a short conversational AI interview and usually wants undergraduate-level expertise or professional experience. Its homepage roles list $24 to $40 an hour worked, open listings vary widely by field, and payment terms are set before a project starts and paid on completion.
| Metric | AfterQuery | Terac |
|---|---|---|
| Typical Pay (Median) | $76/hr
Generalist median: $76/hr
Specialist median: $87/hr
| $30/hr
Generalist median: $30/hr
Specialist median: $90/hr
|
| Payment Schedule | Weekly, every Friday (Stripe; Mon-Sun PT pay periods) | Per project, on completion |
| Geo Accessibility | 95 Stripe payout countries (48 unsupported) | Set per study |
| Onboarding Speed | Medium (assessment, then project invitations) | Fast (short AI interview) |
| Top User Complaint | "Project-based — work arrives in bursts, not a steady queue" | "Entry-level tasks pay very little ($2-$5/hr)" |
| Trustpilot Rating | /5 | 4.4/5 |
| Full-Time Commitment (35+ hrs/wk, from listings) | 2% (n=48) | Not enough tracked listings yet |
Interview, hours, contract-length, and timezone figures come directly from live job listings we track and manually verify, not platform marketing copy.
AfterQuery
AfterQuery hires ML researchers, PhD scientists and niche-domain professionals (COBOL, audit accounting, atmospheric modeling) as well as generalists. Hourly listings run $15 to $175/hr with an $85 median, legal, finance and quant roles reach $150 to $175/hr, and pay lands every Friday through Stripe. Each talent pool has one unpaid assessment, projects run 2 to 3 weeks at 10 to 20 hrs/wk and arrive in bursts, and payouts reach the 95 countries Stripe supports.
- ✓ Listed hourly rates have an $85 median, up to $175/hr
- ✓ Paid every Friday, with no fees from AfterQuery
- ✓ Niche domain coverage rare elsewhere (COBOL, EDA, climate ML, audit)
Current Openings
3 latest listings from afterquery
Legal Experts
Biology Experts
Medical Expert
Terac
Terac pays verified professionals, such as software engineers, clinicians, lawyers, accountants and consultants, for two kinds of work: paid market research interviews and surveys, and reviewing AI outputs in their field for AI labs. It screens with a short AI interview, its homepage roles list $24 to $40 an hour worked, and specialist studies list higher. Payment terms are set before a project starts and paid on completion.
- ✓ Homepage roles list $24-$40 per hour worked
- ✓ Two work streams: AI evaluation and paid research interviews/surveys
- ✓ Short conversational AI interview, no prior AI experience required
Current Openings
3 latest listings from terac
Software Engineers: Paid Code Review for AI Agent Evaluation
Photography Evaluators: Paid Task on Image Quality and Brand Guidelines
LATAM Software Engineers: Coding Tasks for AI Evaluation
AfterQuery vs Terac: common questions
- Which pays more, AfterQuery or Terac?
- AfterQuery pays more on live listings: AfterQuery $87/hr median (middle half $70 to $115, 172 distinct listed rates across 216 open listings) vs Terac $70/hr median (middle half $40 to $90, 18 distinct listed rates across 28 open listings). Updated October 4, 2026.
- Which is easier to start, AfterQuery or Terac?
- Terac onboards faster. AfterQuery: Medium (assessment, then project invitations). Terac: Fast (short AI interview). AfterQuery has no interview-rate data yet; Terac has no interview-rate data yet.
- Can I work on both AfterQuery and Terac?
- Yes. Both are independent-contractor platforms with separate accounts and separate payouts (AfterQuery: Weekly, every Friday (Stripe; Mon-Sun PT pay periods); Terac: Per project, on completion). Exclusivity, where it exists, is set per project in the agreement you sign, so check each project's terms before overlapping hours.
Both platforms are legitimate and widely used. The best choice depends on your background, goals, and location.