4 Predictive Testgorilla Alternatives 2023

Should you be using assessment software at all? Is it worth it?

Traditional hiring processes are biased, inefficient and fail to identify genuinely qualified candidates.

Any recruitment software or pre-employment assessments that use anonymisation and tests for quantifiable skills is undoubtedly better than using either a CV process or standard hiring system that uses a candidate’s background and experience to make hiring decisions.

However, not all skill-based assessment software was created equal.

Whilst all of the platforms below will give you objective data to make decisions - not all of this data is going to be of equal value.

Here at Applied, we set out to build a hiring platform that tests candidates using only the most ethical and accurate assessments.

So, we’ll be looking at some of the more predictive Testgorilla alternatives on the market - and giving our honest opinion on how accurately they might identify people who will perform in the job… and how effectively they reduce bias.

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Testgorilla - a quick overview 

Testgorilla is a pre-employment testing tool for screening candidates. They offer multiple test types such as cognitive ability tests, online coding tests, software skill tests, personality tests, culture fit tests, language tests, etc.

Testgorilla features

• Aptitude Testing
•  Personality Testing
•  Skills Assessment
•  Custom Assessments
•  Online Tests
•  Automatic Grading
•  Candidate Management
•  Question Library

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What we like: impressive test library

Testgorilla’s library of assessments is pretty extensive - with over 250 test to choose from, which can be filtered by both skills and roles.

All of these assessments are verified using the UGESP framework of employee selection and the US Department of Labor’s skills analyses.

They’ve also taken steps to reduce unconscious bias - working with The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). 

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Things to consider: candidate experience

Although Testgorilla’s assessments claim to be ‘scientifically validated’, they’re not necessarily job-specific. They’re also multiple-choice, which might make collecting scores quick and easy, but doesn’t offer a genuine insight into how someone might think and work, should they get the job.

So whilst they may be able to accurately predict certain skills, this might not directly translate into job performance.

One of the biggest pitfalls of Testgorilla is its candidate experience - tests are timed which adds an unnecessary layer of pressure and candidates are photographed every 30 seconds to verify their identity - something some candidates may find to be intrusive.

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Testgorilla alternative #1: Criteria

Criteria is an assessment platform that combines data science with validation backed by I/O psychologists. They claim their suite of assessments is the most comprehensive on the market, covering aptitude, personality and emotional intelligence.

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Criteria features

• Aptitude Testing
•  Personality Testing
•  Skills Assessment
• Custom Assessments
•  Online Tests
•  Automatic Grading
•  Candidate Management

What we like: questions tested for cultural/gender bias

Criteria's assessments are backed by experts in I/O psychology - which is definitely a step up from making assumptions based on someone’s CV.

In terms of bias reduction, Criteria actually goes beyond just anonymisation. They test their questions for cultural sensitivity to reduce unconscious biases across both cultural and gender groups.

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Things to consider: assessments aren't job specific

We have no reason to doubt that Criteria is highly predictive when it comes to things like cognitive aptitude, personality traits and even core skills like computer literacy.

The problem is that none of these are in context. General cognitive and personality testing tend to be trusted since they sound fairly scientific… 

But the reality is that they were never intended to be the sole means of making hiring decisions - only as tools to help inform decision-making.

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Testgorilla alternative #2: WonScore

Backed by extensive scientific I/O research, WonScore assesses three crucial components: cognitive ability, personality, and motivation.

WonScore features

• Aptitude Testing
•  Personality Testing
•  Skills Assessment
•  Online Tests
•  Automatic Grading
•  Candidate Management

What we like: motivation testing

WonScore claims that its assessments can meaningfully predict job performance. Each of these predictors is said to be weighted based on the unique KSA requirements required for performance in each specific job.

Unlike some of their competitors in this list, WonScore tests candidates’ motivation for work-related interests like support, artistry, investigation etc.

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Things to consider: lack of customisation

WonScore’s job descriptions are pre-set, which means that you’ll be unable to tailor them to more niche roles within your organisation. This also means you’ll be stuck with a default skillset for each role, which may not be suitable for all roles.

Whilst we like that the platform looks at motivation, the specific tests here have little real-world correlation. We’d rather see less abstract tests that look at how interested candidates are in your organisation and its mission. 

As far as we can tell, WonScore also lacks any anti-bias measures. Although testing is not based on background (which is definitely a good thing), even someone’s name can trigger unconscious biases around ethnicity and gender, even amongst the most well-intentioned hirers. 

We’d also urge caution around personality-heavy assessments, as these tend to be biased towards extroverts and may not be neuro-inclusive.

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Testgorilla alternative #3: Harver

Built to help organisations with high-volume hiring, Harver combines data-driven matching and automation to help you hire candidates faster and fairer at scale.

Harver features

• Aptitude Testing
•  Personality Testing
•  Skills Assessment
• Custom Assessments
•  Online Tests
•  Automatic Grading
•  Candidate Management
•  Question Library

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What we like: predictive job preview tests

Beyond the usual behavioural, cognitive and soft skill assessments, Harver also allows you to use job knowledge and ‘realistic job preview’ tests.

This means job applicants are presented with realistic scenarios related to the day-to-day challenges they’ll be facing in the specific job they’re applying for.

This is the most predictive means of quantifying how suitable someone is for the job - which is why we take a similar approach to assessing candidates here at Applied.

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Things to consider 

Whilst this may be useful if you’re hiring at volume, Harver automatically scores candidates. The truth is - to gain a genuine insight into how someone would think and work on the job, sometimes you need a real human to review candidates.

And to ensure decisions are as diversity-optimised and fair as possible, we’d even recommend having three reviewers to average out any individual biases.

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Testgorilla alternative #4: Applied

Born out of the UK Government's Behavioural Insights Team (also known as the Nudge Unit), we designed Applied to reliably predict the best candidate for the job and measurably improve organisations’ diversity. 

Every step of our process has been purpose-built to make hiring ethical and predictive using anonymised applications and behavioural science-backed, behavioral assessments to improve diversity and identify the best talent.

Applied features

•  Skills Assessment
• Custom Assessments
•  Online Tests
• Automatic Grading
•  Candidate Management
•  Question Library

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How do we compare to other Testgorilla alternatives?

Unlike most other assessment tools currently on the market, Applied focuses solely on candidates' job-specific skills.

Since we don’t compromise on predictivity or fairness, the Applied Platform is an end-to-end platform - which means we’ll handle everything from inclusive job descriptions to interviews and feedback - all tracked via our advanced reporting suite

This means that candidates will only ever be tested using proven, bias-free assessments with a complete analytics suite to make reporting on diversity, accuracy and efficiency as streamlined as possible.

Like other Testgorilla alternatives, we offer an extensive library of role-specific questions to use - although we believe the most predictive, insightful questions are custom tests/questions crafted explicitly for the role and organisation you’re hiring for.

The Applied platform also allows you to use programming skills/coding skills for hiring software engineers as well as numerical tests for high-volume roles.