Updated 2 November 2026
AfterQuery is a real company in San Francisco. It calls itself an applied research lab, and it hires experts as independent contractors to build training data for AI. It pays every Friday, through Stripe only, for the previous week’s approved work. It cannot pay a bank account in Egypt or Saudi Arabia at the moment. Its assessments are unpaid, and you get one attempt per pool. On Trustpilot it scores far lower than Mercor or micro1.
My own status is simple. I opened my AfterQuery expert account in October 2026, with a referral code that works on every role. In November 2026 I applied to an opening myself, and there was no interview, only a form to fill. AfterQuery has not matched me to a project yet. So this page is mostly what AfterQuery’s own help centre says, plus what reviewers report, and I say which is which. The facts come from those sources as they read on 2 November 2026.
AfterQuery
For professionals in fields such as law, medicine, finance, software or research, who live in a country AfterQuery can pay. Job boards listed its roles at typically $50 to $125 an hour in October 2026.
This is my referral link. AfterQuery pays me a referral bonus, and nothing comes out of your pay.
What AfterQuery is
AfterQuery describes itself as an applied research lab. It works with domain experts to create training data, evaluation datasets and environments for AI systems. Its official sites are afterquery.com and experts.afterquery.com, and its help centre lives at docs.afterquery.com. The help centre lists the kinds of data work as text, images, audio and tasks that mix them. Your assessments, your onboarding and your earnings all live in the expert portal.
Its own site announces a $30 million Series A at a $300 million valuation, and a revenue run rate above $100 million. On its Trustpilot profile, AfterQuery says it hires software engineers, PhDs and experienced professionals in finance, law, data science, health and business.
How to apply: the path
The application takes about five minutes: a résumé and a set of structured questions. When I applied in November 2026, that was all there was: a form, with no interview. AfterQuery then reviews your résumé against a rubric. Some roles add a written assessment for an expert pool, and the next section covers it.
Then comes onboarding, at experts.afterquery.com/onboarding. You sign in with Google, with no separate password. There are four required steps, and each one opens when you finish the one before:
- Sign two agreements in the app.
- Verify your phone number through Persona.
- Verify your identity through Persona, with a government ID and a selfie.
- Connect Stripe, so AfterQuery can pay you.
The two agreements are a non-disclosure agreement and a data submission form, which covers the work you submit and who owns it. Your Documents page then shows both as signed, and you can reopen them at any time. Persona texts a four-digit code to your phone. For your identity it accepts documents such as a passport or a driving licence. It flags blurry photos, screenshots, photos of a screen and expired documents, and it works in several languages. The name on your account has to match your ID, middle names included. Linking your LinkedIn profile is optional. AfterQuery says to set aside 10 to 15 minutes, with your ID, a device with a camera and your bank details nearby. It allows one account per person, per email and per identity. Before you start, check your country: AfterQuery asks people in unsupported countries not to begin onboarding at all.
On the Stripe step, most contractors register as an individual. AfterQuery says to choose business only if you have a registered business with its own bank account. If you are unsure, it suggests asking a tax professional. Choose your country with care: a Stripe account stays tied to that country, so a mistake means a new account. Stripe also runs its own ID check, and the step stays open until you finish Stripe’s setup to the end.
Finishing onboarding makes you ready for projects. It does not put you on one. If AfterQuery selects you, a welcome email from notifications@afterquery.com gives your next steps. Projects run two to three weeks, at 10 to 20 hours a week.
What the work asks of you
AfterQuery’s work guidelines put quality before speed. They ask you to follow instructions exactly and to ask for clarification rather than guess. They also ask you to keep the same approach across similar tasks, and to check your work before you submit it.
Your contract sets the payment terms, the quality requirements, confidentiality and the conditions for ending the work. AfterQuery also expects you to meet deadlines on tasks you accept and to report problems early. As an independent contractor, you choose when and how much you work, and you can accept or decline tasks.
The assessment: one attempt, unpaid, no pass or fail
Your Assessments tab lists the expert pools that are open. Each pool has one assessment, built to look like real project work rather than a multiple-choice test. You see a time estimate before you start.
You get one attempt. AfterQuery says assessments cannot be retaken or reassessed, so it asks you to submit with the care you would give real project work. Assessments are unpaid. You can take the assessment of any pool that interests you, and each pool counts on its own.
You will not see a pass or a fail. AfterQuery matches projects to assessment fit and follows up when a relevant one comes up. It says silence usually means there is no matching project yet, not that something went wrong. A strong result makes you a good candidate, and it does not guarantee a project.
How AfterQuery pays
AfterQuery pays everyone through Stripe, to a bank account in your own legal name, in a country Stripe supports. There are no cards and no PayPal, and AfterQuery charges no fees. Stripe rejects joint accounts, business accounts you do not own and accounts in someone else’s name.
Your bank account has to be in the same country as your registered location. If they differ, Stripe holds the payout and starts a manual review, which delays your pay. A name that differs between your offer, Stripe and your bank causes the same problem, so use your exact legal name everywhere.
Payouts go out every Friday by 11:59 p.m. Pacific time, for the previous Monday to Sunday of approved work. Unapproved hours can slide to a later week. Stripe holds your very first payout for seven days. Rates are in US dollars, and Stripe converts them at payout outside the US. US experts also need their Social Security number for Stripe. AfterQuery plans to add Wise, but it is not available yet.
You can open the payment setup at any time from your Earnings dashboard. AfterQuery’s payments page also has an estimator that shows the Friday your pay goes out. As a contractor you handle your own taxes. AfterQuery’s tax guide says so plainly, and US experts receive a 1099-NEC.
Which countries AfterQuery can pay
If your bank account is in Egypt or Saudi Arabia, AfterQuery cannot pay you at the moment. It goes by where your bank is and the location on your profile, not by your nationality. So AfterQuery can pay an Egyptian who lives and banks in France. Its help centre lists other countries it cannot pay yet, including Nigeria, Ghana, Brazil and Bangladesh. It says some of these may open as Stripe expands, while others stay closed for legal reasons. Mercor, which I also work on, pays bank accounts in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and Ghana.
It can pay about 95 countries. They include France, the UK, the US, India, Kenya, Pakistan, Morocco and the UAE. Check the list on its Payment Countries page before you apply, because you waste the onboarding if your bank sits in an unsupported country. If your country is on neither list, ask support@afterquery.com before you start.
What AfterQuery pays
Job boards that track AfterQuery listings recorded these rates in October 2026. Roles typically paid $50 to $125 an hour. Law, medicine and finance roles paid $75 to $125. The top rates, around $160 to $175 an hour, went to tax attorneys, medical doctors and quant analysts. AfterQuery itself says rates and schedules are specific to each opportunity, so the terms in your own offer are the ones that count.
What reviewers complain about, and where I stand
On 2 November 2026, Trustpilot showed 115 reviews of AfterQuery Experts, with a TrustScore of 2.9 out of 5. One-star reviews made up 26% and five-star reviews 16%. AfterQuery claimed the profile in July 2026. Trustpilot notes that AfterQuery has not invited reviews lately, so the reviews may not be representative. It also notes that AfterQuery has not replied to negative ones.
The hardest complaints came in late September 2026. Reviewers wrote that AfterQuery permanently closed their accounts for an unnamed breach of its Terms of Service. They also wrote that they lost the pay for work still marked “Needs Review”. Other reviewers describe work waiting weeks for review, which holds up payment, and projects paused or removed after they had started. One reviewer in September 2026 wrote that an hourly-looking role turned into pay per task, for tasks that took far longer than an hour. A few positive reviews mention timely payment and a good variety of projects.
I cannot confirm either side yet, because AfterQuery has not matched me to a project. What I can say is what I do with that information. I read the terms in every offer before I accept it, and I keep a record of what I submit.
Who AfterQuery suits
AfterQuery suits professionals in its fields who live in a country it can pay. Experts in Kenya, Pakistan, India and Morocco can be among them, since all four are on its list. It suits people who can work in sprints of two to three weeks, at 10 to 20 hours a week. It also suits people who can wait for reviews without counting on the money. Take the assessment seriously, since you only get one attempt per pool.
It does not suit anyone whose bank account sits in an unsupported country, at least for now. Mercor pays several of those countries, including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and Ghana. It also does not suit anyone who needs fast, predictable pay, given what reviewers report about review delays.
What AfterQuery keeps about you
AfterQuery’s data policy says it keeps your contact details and your application answers. It also keeps your education, your work history, your certifications and work samples, and the documents you sent to verify your identity.
You can delete your account from your My Account page, and AfterQuery emails you a confirmation. The deletion does not reach data that client organisations may already have copied during their review. AfterQuery also keeps some records where the law requires it.
How to recognise the real AfterQuery
AfterQuery says its real emails come only from notifications@afterquery.com or from a staff member’s own @afterquery.com address. Contract work goes through experts.afterquery.com. Its trust page asks you to check the full address of every link, and to read the written terms before you accept anything. It also asks you to send any unexpected message, with the sender, the role and the link, to support@afterquery.com.
Frequently asked questions
Is AfterQuery legit?
It is a real company with an official expert portal and a public help centre at docs.afterquery.com, and it pays through Stripe. Its Trustpilot score is low, at 2.9 out of 5 on 2 November 2026, with complaints about closed accounts and slow reviews. I have an account but no project yet.
Does AfterQuery have an interview?
Not for the opening I applied to in November 2026. The application was a form, with no interview, unlike the AI interviews on Mercor and micro1. Some roles add a written assessment for an expert pool.
Does AfterQuery pay in Egypt or Saudi Arabia?
Not to a bank account there, for now. Both are on its list of unsupported countries, along with Nigeria, Ghana, Brazil and Bangladesh. AfterQuery plans to add Wise, which could reach more countries. Mercor already pays bank accounts in Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
Can I retake the AfterQuery assessment?
No. Each pool has one assessment and one attempt, and AfterQuery does not reassess. You can still take the assessments of other pools.
Are AfterQuery assessments paid?
No. AfterQuery says assessments are unpaid. AfterQuery pays for project work every Friday through Stripe, once it approves the work.
When does AfterQuery pay?
Every Friday by 11:59 p.m. Pacific time, for the previous Monday to Sunday of approved work. Stripe holds your first payout for seven days, and your bank sets the arrival date.
How much does AfterQuery pay?
Job boards recorded roles at typically $50 to $125 an hour in October 2026, with law, medicine and finance at $75 to $125. The top rates, around $160 to $175, went to tax attorneys, medical doctors and quant analysts.
How long do AfterQuery projects last?
Usually two to three weeks, at 10 to 20 hours a week. Each project states its own terms in your offer.
Can I have two AfterQuery accounts?
No. AfterQuery allows one account per person, per email address and per identity.
Why haven’t I heard back after my AfterQuery assessment?
AfterQuery sends no pass or fail. It says silence usually means there is no matching project yet, and that it follows up when one comes up for your pool.
Can I use PayPal or a card with AfterQuery?
No. AfterQuery pays only through Stripe, to a bank account in your own legal name. Stripe does not pay to cards.
AfterQuery
For professionals in fields such as law, medicine, finance, software or research, who live in a country AfterQuery can pay. Job boards listed its roles at typically $50 to $125 an hour in October 2026.
This is my referral link. AfterQuery pays me a referral bonus, and nothing comes out of your pay.