Search Engine Evaluator Jobs: Make $11-$17 Per Hour as a Search Rater

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Search Engine Evaluator Jobs: Make $11 - $17 Per Hour as a Search Rater

Working from home has its perks, and there’s plenty of potential to make a decent amount of money whether full-time or part-time. Search engine evaluator jobs and Google Rater jobs are interesting options for freelancers and side hustlers who want to make extra income from home.

Have you ever entered a basic search on Google, Bing, or Yahoo and the results aren’t quite what you were looking for? That’s because the search results are based on an algorithm, and the results aren’t always perfect. That’s where search engine evaluators (also known as web search evaluators) come in.

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What is a Search Engine Evaluator?

A search engine evaluator is a person who manually reviews the results of internet searches and provides feedback regarding the accuracy and helpfulness of the search results. This feedback helps engineers to adjust the search algorithm to produce the best results.

A search engine algorithm can only do so much. Think about building a program to determine the search results of nearly any search inquiry on a major search engine. Sound complicated? That’s because it is. Some things require a human touch, and one of those things is the occasional irrelevant search results from common search engine inquiries.

Search engine evaluation jobs typically go to contracted employees such as freelancers, work-from-home individuals, and remote workers. Other names that you might see for essentially the same position include:

  • Ads Quality Tester
  • Ads Quality Rater
  • Web Search Evaluator
  • Internet Assessor
  • Google Rater
  • Human Evaluator
  • Human Search Evaluator
  • Internet Judge

All of which are relating to the same work of evaluating the relevance of search engine results.

What Does a Search Engine Evaluator Do?

A search engine evaluator’s job is to determine whether the results of common searches are relevant to the entered keyword or phrase. They also determine relevancy for paid ads from people using PPC programs like Google Adwords, Microsoft Advertising (formerly Bing Ads) and other paid traffic programs.

The web search evaluator will provide feedback on the search results for a specific query. They will rate the search results to determine if they are relevant to the query and if they are helpful.

In today’s search environment, search results include much more than simply links to articles and pages. The search engine results pages (SERPs) might feature videos, recipes, maps, business listings, biographical info, and other types of rich snippets pulled from various sources. All of these results must be evaluated to ensure relevance.

It’s a flexible job that’s usually done part-time as an independent contractor from home.

Requirements for the Job

Just about anyone with internet access, a drive to learn, and some basic knowledge of search engines can get started, making it a good entry-level work from home job. There are a few things you will need to have both in terms of knowledge and equipment. They are:

  • Access to high-speed internet: Internet with download speeds of at least 25 megabits per second
  • Anti-virus protection software: Many computers come with their brand’s version of this installed, but other options include Avast, Norton or McAfee (for example).
  • Basic knowledge of how search engines work: You don’t have to be an expert, but a general understanding of search engine optimization, link building, and how search engines discover websites via web crawlers, etc.
  • Excellent research skills: The ability to find the answer to unknown questions, topics and find related resources.
  • Fluent language skills: You must be fluent in reading and writing for the language you wish to apply for. If you are fluent in multiple languages at both reading, speaking and writing, you may be a more marketable candidate for more positions.
  • Study and test taking skills: Ability to study for and pass a skills test for skills related to search engine evaluations.
  • You must be at least 18 years of age or older.

The biggest barrier to getting started is passing the exam. If you’re driven enough, you can expect to pass the exam relatively quickly and get started applying for jobs.

The Pros & Cons Of Working as a Search Engine Evaluator

Being able to work from home in search engine evaluation has its pros and cons and is worth considering before spending time meeting the above-mentioned requirements. Here are some pros and cons to think about:

Pros:

  • Flexible schedule: Set your working hours however you want (make it a weekend job if you already have a full-time job).
  • Work from home: No need to leave your home or deal with rush hour traffic traveling to and from the office when you can make money from home.
  • Work anywhere you have internet: Anywhere you have access to the internet can turn into your new office. Work from vacation, the cabin, your bedroom or virtually anywhere.
  • Great way to make extra money: Perfect for side hustles or stay-at-home parents looking to make some extra cash.
  • Build your knowledge: Search engines aren’t going anywhere anytime soon, and the knowledge of how they work could be useful and a great building block for your resume.

Cons:

  • Project availability: Work is not always available, and projects are posted on an as-needed basis.
  • Part-time work: Most available positions are only part-time work which may or may not be ideal for you.
  • Not the highest pay: Not only are web search evaluators limited by the number of web search evaluator jobs available, but the pay also doesn’t pay that much.

How Much Does a Search Engine Evaluator Make?

According to Glassdoor, the average salary for a full-time search engine evaluator job is $33,973, which averages out to about $17 per hour (however, most positions are part-time). Evaluator job listings typically disclose a rate of pay somewhere between $11 – $17 per hour.

It’s worth noting that there are some higher-paying opportunities as you get more experience, although they tend to fill up quickly.

It’s not the most lucrative side hustle idea, but it’s not a bad way to make some extra money.

Companies Hiring Search Engine Evaluators

Aside from your basic job boards like Glassdoor, Indeed, and ZipRecruiter, those seeking to work as a web search evaluator can find job openings on more industry-specific websites. Among the many companies and job boards that offer this service for work as a search evaluator are:

1. Appen

Appen is an independent contracting company that hires independent agents who seek to own their own business providing digital and internet-related work. Some common jobs available through Appen are:

  • Search Media Evaluation (Work with the world’s top search engine companies)
  • Social Media Evaluation (Help improve social media around the globe)
  • Translation
  • Transcription
  • Survey and Data Collection (Short projects that last from 15 minutes to three hours)
  • Linguistic Specialties (Text to Speech, Computational, Phonetics, Pronunciation, Annotation, etc.)
  • Lexicon Annotation
  • Speech Evaluation

Appen has some basic requirements to get started on top of the general requirements listed above. They are:

  • Web research skills and analytical skills
  • Comprehension and communication skills
  • In some cases, fluency in another language
  • A computer that is able to run Googles free Chrome web browser, version 45

2. Lionbridge

Lionbridge is a company that originally began in translation and later expanded to sister industries and services such as content creation, testing services, and artificial intelligence such as search engine evaluations. Working for Lionbridge will be more of a full-time position working with Lionbridge to provide their customers with search engine evaluation services and other related web services.

3. ZeroChaos / Workforce Logiq

Zero Chaos is now known as Workforce Logiq and provides their contracted employees with multiple kinds of remote work. They work with companies from over 50+ countries and have over 1,000+ hired experts. Some of the types of work they hire include accounting, resource management, sales, and also search engine evaluation positions, and other related projects.v

4. Google

Perhaps the best opportunity as a search engine evaluator is working for the leading search engine themselves, Google. Google will occasionally post web search evaluator positions to their career page and generally seek people with a basic understanding of their search engine, a Google / Gmail account, and basic communication skills.

Is Working as a Search Engine Evaluator Right For You?

For the most part, working as a search evaluator is a job that many people seek if they are looking to work from home, have a second side hustle job, or simply want to make some extra cash on top of their full-time job. It can also be a good fit for stay-at-home parents looking to have some flexible work.

Here’s a quick recap of what’s involved with working as a web search evaluator:

  • Your work is evaluating the search results to common search inquiries
  • Other names and titles for search engine evaluators include Ads Quality Tester, Ads Quality Rater, and Web Search Evaluator.
  • Job availability, for the most part, is per project and contracted work (although full-time positions are available, but are harder to find)
  • Approximate pay will range from $11 – $17 per hour
  • Starting points to find jobs are looking on websites like Appen, Lionbridge, iSoftStone, Workforce Logiq, and Google. Checking the websites of these companies is usually the best way to find a job opportunity.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does a search engine evaluator make?

Most part-time entry-level positions pay $11/hour to $17/hour. The number of hours you’re able to work may be limited, so full-time hours are often not possible in this position.

How do I become a search engine evaluator?

Job openings are often listed by companies like Appen, Lionbridge, Workforce Loqic, and Google. Job seekers can find openings on these companies’ websites or on major job search websites.

What is a search engine evaluator?

A search engine evaluator provides feedback related to the accuracy and helpfulness of search results. The position is critical in helping engineers to adjust and improve algorithms to produce the best results. There are also some other variations of the job, like social media evaluation.

Is being a search engine evaluator hard?

This is an entry-level position that generally doesn’t require industry experience. While it’s not really hard work, the job type does require attention to detail and research skills.

Where can I work from?

You can work from anywhere, as long as you have a reliable internet connection. Most people in this position choose to work from home, but it’s also an option for digital nomads who are constantly traveling.

Is this opportunity only available in English?

No, raters are needed for all languages. People are hired in many different countries to work in their respective languages.

Final Thoughts on Search Engine Evaluator Jobs

No doubt you can make some side cash in your spare time, the question is how valuable is your spare time and how much do you expect to make? If your answer aligns with the bullet points in the summary list above, you’re a great fit to get started with your new side hustle as a web search evaluator.

READ NEXT: How to Start a Side Hustle


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