Rates, 2026
What should a QA tester charge in New York or LA?
About $650 a day for a QA tester who is working and booked in New York or Los Angeles. $475 in the first years, $825 when senior. A test cycle runs about $2,400.
Other markets: a major city · remote · a smaller market
First years
$475
a day · $60 an hour
Working, booked
$650
a day · $80 an hour
Senior, sought after
$825
a day · $100 an hour
The rate card, working level
- Day rate$650 per day
- Hourlyfor anything that does not fit a day$80 per hour
- A test cycle$2,400 per project
Sold by the hour, by the day, a project fee. The day is the unit; half days run 60%.
What to charge for each thing
Ranges for New York or Los Angeles: the low end is the first years, the high end is senior. Working and booked sits in the middle.
- Manual test pass$500 to $2,000 each
- Automation suite$3,000 to $12,000 each
- Regression run$300 to $1,200 each
- Accessibility audit$1,000 to $3,500 each
How the number is made
QA testers at this level day at about $650 ($400 to $900 in New York and LA). Put in the year you actually want on the perfect price page and the number moves with it.
A test cycle runs $800 to $4,000 and takes about 20 hours of your time; at your hourly that is $1,600. The number is the higher of the two, because the client is buying the outcome, not the hours.
Questions
- What is a fair day rate for a QA tester in New York or LA?
- About $650 a day for someone working and booked, $475 in the first years, $825 when senior and sought after. Half days usually run 60% of the day.
- How much is a test cycle?
- $2,400 at a working level in this market. The client is buying the outcome, so the price is the higher of what the market pays for it and what your hours in it are worth.
- Are these rates a rule?
- No. They are US 2026 ranges for the role, placed by level and moved for the market. What a client actually paid you beats all of it. The tool has a box for that, and it wins.
Your number, in five seconds.
Pick your level and market, get a card you can send the next client who asks. Then RostrLab quotes, papers, invoices and chases every job with it: free for 14 days, $29 a month, never a cut.
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