HackerEarth vs HackerRank: which technical assessment fits your engineering hiring?
HackerEarth and HackerRank both run technical assessments and live coding interviews, and both launched in the same era (HackerRank in 2009, HackerEarth in 2012). What's changed since we first compared them: HackerEarth's published pricing now starts at $209/month (Startup tier), not the $99/month it advertised earlier this year, and HackerRank's Starter tier runs $165 to $199/month depending on billing. Both companies also shipped AI interviewer products in 2026: HackerEarth's OnScreen (enterprise-only for now) and HackerRank's Chakra. Here is the current side-by-side.
HackerEarth is a technical assessment and interview platform built around three products: Assessments (auto-scored coding tests), FaceCode (live, rubric-scored coding interviews with video), and Hiring Challenges (hackathons and coding competitions run as a sourcing channel). In April 2026, HackerEarth added a fourth piece: OnScreen, an always-on AI interviewer that conducts structured technical interviews using a video avatar, currently in pilot for enterprise customers only.
Key capabilities:
Auto-scored coding assessments with a role-based template library (20 pre-built roles)
AI-assisted test creation that generates a role-specific assessment in minutes
FaceCode live coding interviews with structured, rubric-based evaluation
Smart Browser, a desktop proctoring app that blocks copy-paste, screenshots, and screen sharing
Continuous webcam and tab-switch monitoring, plus AI-flagged code-pasting patterns
OnScreen AI-avatar interviewer (enterprise pilot, launched April 2026)
Hiring Challenges: managed hackathons and coding competitions for sourcing
Detailed candidate reports covering code quality, maintainability, and security, not just pass/fail
G2 rating: 4.5/5 across 609 reviews.
What HackerRank does
HackerRank is built around two core products, Screen (async assessments) and Interview (live technical interviews in a shared IDE), plus Chakra, an AI interviewer that runs structured, scored conversations on its own. The test library is the largest in the category: 2,000+ questions on the entry tier, 4,000+ on Pro.
Key capabilities:
Role-based coding assessments across a 2,000 to 4,000+ question library, depending on plan
Live technical interviews in a shared IDE, with VIM mode and project-based questions
Chakra, an AI interviewer with quantitative 5-point scoring, structured section summaries, and Greenhouse and Ashby integrations
AI-Assisted IDE with copilot-style tooling (Pro and above)
AI proctoring and identity verification, plus object detection that flags phones and tablets in the webcam feed
Certified assessments for standardized, third-party-benchmarked scoring (Enterprise)
ATS integrations: Greenhouse, Lever, Ashby, plus Google Calendar and Outlook
G2 rating: 4.6/5 across 545 reviews.
Where they differ
The clearest split used to be hackathons versus test library depth. It still is, but 2026 added a second one: both companies now sell an AI interviewer as a distinct product. HackerEarth's OnScreen is an avatar that conducts the interview and is enterprise-pilot only. HackerRank's Chakra is available inside the Interview product and scores conversations on a 5-point scale. If you run coding competitions to source engineering talent, HackerEarth's Hiring Challenges are built for that. If you want the deepest hiring-test library and you're not ready to hand interviews to an AI avatar, HackerRank is the more conservative pick.
HackerEarth strengths and weaknesses
Strengths:
Reviewers praise the interface for setting up assessments quickly, and the role-based templates cut setup time further.
FaceCode and Smart Browser give you a live-interview and proctoring option in the same platform as the assessment.
Strong fit for university and hackathon-driven sourcing at scale.
Weaknesses:
Lag or slow loading during high-traffic periods, per multiple reviewers.
Support responsiveness is inconsistent across accounts.
OnScreen, the newest and most AI-forward piece, isn't available below the enterprise tier yet, so a small team can't try it.
HackerRank strengths and weaknesses
Strengths:
The largest test library in the category, and it gets deeper on Pro (4,000+ questions).
Live coding interview environment supports remote technical screening at scale.
Chakra's structured scoring and ATS integrations reduce manual scorecard work for teams that already run Greenhouse or Ashby.
Weaknesses:
Some users report unclear setup when building custom tests.
Brand fatigue is real: some senior candidates decline HackerRank tests because they've seen the same question sets elsewhere.
Pro-tier features (AI-Assisted IDE, ATS integrations, AI proctoring) sit behind a $375 to $449/month jump from Starter, which is steep for a team hiring one or two engineers a quarter.
HackerEarth vs HackerRank: feature breakdown
Feature
HackerEarth
HackerRank
Truffle
Category
Technical assessment + hackathons
Technical assessment
Candidate screening (resume + video + assessments)
Founded
2012 (San Francisco)
2009 (Mountain View)
2024
G2 rating
4.5/5 (609 reviews)
4.6/5 (545 reviews)
5/5
Coding tests
Yes (core)
Yes (larger library: 2,000-4,000+ questions)
Not the focus
Live coding interview tool
FaceCode
Shared IDE, VIM mode
No
AI interviewer product
OnScreen (avatar, enterprise pilot only)
Chakra (included in Interview product)
No standalone AI interviewer (one-way video instead)
Hackathons / coding challenges
Yes, built in (Hiring Challenges)
No
No
Proctoring
Smart Browser desktop app, webcam/tab monitoring
AI proctoring + identity verification, phone/tablet object detection (Pro+)
Not applicable (no timed coding tests)
Personality and SJT
No
No
Yes (validated IPIP Big Five, SJT, and Environment Fit also included)
One-way video interviews
No
No
Yes
Published entry pricing
$209/month (Startup, flat rate)
$165-199/month (Starter, depending on billing)
From $49/month
Free trial
14 days, no credit card
Available (self-serve tiers)
Yes (7 days, 30 credits, no credit card)
Best for
Mid-market and enterprise teams hiring developers at scale, especially with hackathon sourcing
Mid-market and enterprise teams that hire continuously and want the deepest test library
Small teams screening any role, not just engineering, without a recruiter to run it
Key differentiator
Hackathons versus test-library depth is still the cleanest split for the assessment itself. But the bigger 2026 shift is that both companies now sell an AI interviewer as a separate product: an avatar (OnScreen) on HackerEarth, a structured scoring conversation (Chakra) on HackerRank. Neither replaces the coding assessment. Both add a second AI-run stage before a human ever talks to the candidate.
HackerEarth vs HackerRank: pricing
HackerEarth pricing: a limited Free plan (5 test invites and 3 interview invites a month, up to 2 admins), then Startup at $209/month flat rate (20 test invites, 5 interview invites, up to 5 admins) and Enterprise at $419/month flat rate (50 test invites, 15 interview invites, up to 10 admins, API access). A 14-day free trial is available on paid plans, no credit card required. Higher volume and OnScreen access are quote-based.
HackerRank pricing: Starter runs $165/month billed annually ($1,990/year, 1 seat) or $199/month month-to-month, with 120 candidate attempts a year and a 2,000+ question library. Pro runs $375/month billed annually ($4,490/year, unlimited seats) or $449/month month-to-month, and adds the AI-Assisted IDE, AI proctoring, ATS integrations, and a 4,000+ question library. Extra attempts beyond your plan's cap cost $20 each on both tiers. Enterprise (certified assessments, 40+ integrations, SSO/SCIM) is quote-based. A free trial is available on the self-serve tiers.
Truffle pricing: from $49/month, credit-based and self-serve. No contracts, no per-seat pricing, no admin-seat caps. 7-day free trial, 30 credits, no credit card.
What you get for the price
Both HackerEarth and HackerRank price and gate by admin seats and monthly invite or attempt caps, on top of the plan fee. That model makes sense for a TA team running dozens of technical roles at once. It's a worse fit if you're hiring one or two developers a quarter and don't want to count seats or invites against a cap. Truffle's credit pool is shared across resumes, interviews, and assessments, with no seat limit and no per-role add-on.
Verdict
HackerEarth and HackerRank are close substitutes for most technical hiring use cases, and both got more expensive and more AI-forward in 2026.
Pick HackerEarth if hackathons and coding challenges matter as a sourcing channel, or if you want FaceCode's live-interview and proctoring stack in the same platform as the assessment. Its entry tier costs more than HackerRank's Starter ($209/month vs $165 to $199/month), but it now ships with a real 14-day free trial to test that against your workflow.
Pick HackerRank if you want the deepest hiring-test library, ATS integrations (Greenhouse, Lever, Ashby) baked into Pro, and you'd rather scale test volume than run hackathons.
Neither tool answers questions outside coding skill, and neither is built for a team without a dedicated recruiter to run the seats, invites, and admin permissions. Truffle's assessments measure personality, situational judgment, and environment fit, and pair with one-way video interviews and resume scoring in one credit pool with no seat caps.
HackerEarth and HackerRank measure whether a candidate can code. Truffle surfaces the signal a coding test can't reach: how someone communicates, how they'd actually work day to day, and whether their judgment lines up with what the role needs. Different questions, different tools.
Truffle is a candidate screening platform that combines resume screening, one-way video interviews, and talent assessments, and here's what that adds on top of a coding test:
Resume screening. Every resume scored against your criteria before anyone touches an assessment, so you're not spending assessment invites on obvious mismatches.
One-way video interviews. Candidates record answers on their own time. AI Match scores each response against your criteria, AI Summaries give you the key takeaways, and 30-second Candidate Shorts surface the most relevant moments so you're not watching every recording end to end.
Validated personality assessments. The IPIP Big Five inventory, scored against the trait profile your team decided fits the role.
Situational Judgment Tests. Real scenarios scored against how your team actually handles them, not a universal right answer.
Environment Fit assessments. Surface whether a candidate's work-style preferences match the role's reality, not just their resume.
If your only question is "can this candidate write Python," HackerEarth or HackerRank is the right tool. If you're the one screening (not a dedicated technical recruiter with seats to manage), Truffle's talent assessments give you signal on the rest of the job without a per-seat admin structure to configure first.
From $49/month, credit-based, one shared pool across resumes, interviews, and assessments. 7-day free trial, 30 credits, no credit card. See how Truffle's assessments work.
Is HackerEarth or HackerRank better for technical hiring?
HackerRank is better if you want the largest hiring-test library and ATS integrations built into a mid tier. HackerEarth is better if you want hackathons as a sourcing channel or a live-interview and proctoring stack (FaceCode, Smart Browser) alongside the assessment. G2 ratings are close: HackerEarth 4.5/5 (609 reviews), HackerRank 4.6/5 (545 reviews).
How much does HackerEarth cost compared to HackerRank?
HackerEarth's Startup plan is $209/month flat rate (20 test invites, 5 interview invites a month). HackerRank's Starter plan runs $165/month billed annually or $199/month month-to-month (120 attempts a year). HackerRank is cheaper at the entry tier now. Both companies raised or restructured pricing during 2026.
What are OnScreen and Chakra?
Both are AI interviewer products launched in 2026. HackerEarth's OnScreen is a video-avatar interviewer that conducts structured technical interviews around the clock. It's currently pilot access for enterprise customers only. HackerRank's Chakra runs inside the Interview product, scores conversations on a 5-point scale, and integrates with Greenhouse and Ashby. Neither is available to try on an entry-level plan yet.
Should I use HackerEarth or HackerRank for non-engineering roles?
Neither is built for that. Both are technical assessment platforms scoped to coding skill. For non-engineering roles, you need a screening platform that runs a validated personality assessment and situational judgment assessments alongside resume and interview review. Truffle is one option that does this without seat-based admin pricing.
Does HackerEarth's hackathon feature replace traditional sourcing?
No, but it complements it. Hiring Challenges work as a brand and sourcing channel for engineering talent, especially at scale. They don't replace inbound applications, referrals, or recruiter outreach.
Do HackerEarth and HackerRank offer free trials?
Yes, both do as of 2026. HackerEarth offers a 14-day free trial on paid plans with no credit card required. HackerRank offers a free trial on its self-serve Starter and Pro tiers.
