Tiered Bug Approval: Additional Payouts for high-value bugs
In addition to the Base Bug Report Payout Rate which will vary by test cycle, you may receive an additional payout based on the customer's assessment of your report. Approved reports fall into three categories: Exceptionally Valuable, Very Valuable, and Somewhat Valuable. Approved reports with the Somewhat Valuable categorization will simply be paid out at the Base Payout Rate mentioned on the test cycle. While these figures will vary from test cycle to test cycle here is an example: approved reports with the Very Valuable and Exceptionally Valuable categorizations will be paid out the Base Payout Rate plus an additional $5 and $10, respectively. This is just one scenario but it should give you a good idea of what to expect.
Sample Payout Table (varies from test cycle to test cycle)
The above payment structure is just example of what you may see in a test cycle. Rates will vary from cycle to cycle and we will always try to balance compensation with the amount of work involved in a test cycle.
Gold, Silver, and Bronze testers are also paid at a higher rate for all approved reports. Click here for more details on how the Tester Rating System affects payouts.
Regarding bug status changes and their effect on payouts
If a bug was approved with $X and subsequently the bug was changed to a different approval status (changing the payout $), testers may see the new payout reflected in the platform but they will still be paid out the original amount.
For example: If a customer approves a UI bug as Feedback (in accordance to the test cycle's scope and instructions) and after the test cycle locks the customer chooses to edit the bug back to being labeled as "UI" for internal tracking purposes, the payout will not increase. The tester will be paid out at whatever his/her bug was originally approved at.
Special note for uTesters who participated prior to the tiered bug payout structure
While the new tiered bug approval and payout structure, uTest will likely be paying out more per test cycle. However, the distribution of earnings will favor those who dig deeper and report more valuable bugs. For further discussion on earnings, please visit the uTest Forums. Always check the payout information of a test cycle before accepting because rates will vary.
