Head-to-head
Mindrift vs Outlier (Scale AI)
Which pays more, which is easier to start, and which fits the work you want. Compared on real pay, work model, payout, and the roles open right now.
Mindrift
Outlier (Scale AI)Mindrift vs Outlier (Scale AI): the short answer
, AITraining.jobs lists 54 open Mindrift roles and 7 open Outlier (Scale AI) roles.
Mindrift pays more on typical work ($15–$100+/hr vs Outlier (Scale AI)'s Up to $7–$50/hr; ML, EE and quant finance up to $150/hr), a 50% chance on the rates the two boards state.
Both are expert networks, so the barrier to start is similar: gated by a screen for a degree, professional expertise, or a skills test.
Both hire for Coding, Math & STEM, Domain Experts, AI Evaluation, and Writing; Mindrift also covers Red-Teaming; Outlier (Scale AI) also covers Multilingual.
Right now Mindrift has more live roles (54 vs 7).
Bottom line: Mindrift pays more, so pick Mindrift for the higher rate, or Outlier (Scale AI) if its specific work fits you better.
| Mindrift | Outlier (Scale AI) | |
|---|---|---|
| Typical pay | $15–$100+/hr | Up to $7–$50/hr; ML, EE and quant finance up to $150/hr |
| Work model | Expert network · Freelance specialist projects | Expert network · Expert queue (Scale AI) |
| Kinds of work | Coding, Math & STEM, Domain Experts, AI Evaluation, Writing, and Red-Teaming | AI Evaluation, Writing, Coding, Math & STEM, Domain Experts, and Multilingual |
| How you get paid | Twice a month, on the 5th and 20th, for tasks completed and accepted in the half-month before, through Payoneer or Tipalti (PayPal) depending on your country; the platform deducts no fee, though the payment providers may (its FAQ and its 'How Mindrift pays' article of 3 Sep 2026, read 3 Nov 2026). | Weekly (Tuesdays) via PayPal, Airtm or ACH bank transfer. |
| Where you can work | Global, except the sanctioned jurisdictions on its eligibility page (Russia, China including Hong Kong and Macau, Belarus, Iran and others) and the places it cannot yet support, among them Kenya, Switzerland, Taiwan and DR Congo (page updated 27 May 2026, read 3 Nov 2026). Its live board (3 Nov 2026) is mostly US: 1,483 of its 2,002 location rows, many of them in-person studies in New York, Los Angeles and the Bay Area. | Remote, from the places its working guidelines list (effective 15 Jul 2026, read 8 Nov 2026): the US, the UK, India, the Philippines, Brazil and Egypt among them, but not Nigeria, Kenya, Pakistan or Ukraine. English projects dominate, with multilingual projects. |
| Open roles now | 54 live | 7 live |
| Worker ratings | Trustpilot 3.5/5 (1,129 reviews) · Google Play (Mindrift app) 4.0/5 (1.99K reviews) (read November 2026) | Trustpilot 3.9/5 (5,781 reviews) (read November 2026) |
Pay shows each platform's live measured band where its feed has enough hourly-stated roles, otherwise our compiled benchmark. How we compile pay.
Best for professionals and specialists chasing the highest rates.
54 open roles now →Best for people with a degree or professional skills who want vetted, higher-skill work.
7 open roles now →Some links on AITraining.jobs are referral links. If you sign up through one, AITraining.jobs may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It never changes what a platform pays you.
How their pay compares with the market
Mindrift. On 11 Nov 2026, 3.7% of its open roles stated an hourly rate, advertising 1 distinct rate beside 1 advertised maximum ("up to $X/hr", left out): too few for a median (it needs 3). Mindrift Hiring Data
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Mindrift vs Outlier (Scale AI): common questions
Which pays more, Mindrift or Outlier (Scale AI)?
Mindrift pays more on typical work ($15–$100+/hr vs Outlier (Scale AI)'s Up to $7–$50/hr; ML, EE and quant finance up to $150/hr), a 50% chance on the rates the two boards state.
Is Mindrift or Outlier (Scale AI) easier to get started with?
Both are expert networks, so the barrier to start is similar: gated by a screen for a degree, professional expertise, or a skills test.
Can you work on both Mindrift and Outlier (Scale AI)?
Yes. They are independent platforms, and many contributors join several at once to keep a steady flow of work, especially since both hire for Coding, Math & STEM, Domain Experts, AI Evaluation, and Writing. Signing up for one does not affect the other.
More comparisons
Ordered by what applying to their platforms is worth, lifted by a referral boost for a platform that pays us a referral fee; it never changes what a platform pays you.