Braintrust vs micro1: Honest Comparison

Braintrust pays $50–200/hr and takes zero from workers — the full client-facing rate goes to you. Enterprise clients support rates at the high end of this range. The vetting process takes 1–2 weeks and is genuinely selective. Once approved, you access a marketplace where clients post projects directly with rates visible.

micro1 pays $25–80/hr with its signature 1-hour AI interview vetting process. The ceiling is meaningfully lower than Braintrust, but the floor is accessible and the path to first payment is dramatically faster. The 1-hour format makes micro1 one of the least time-intensive vetting processes among premium platforms.

Braintrust's earning ceiling ($200/hr) is 2.5x micro1's ceiling ($80/hr). For senior engineers who can pass Braintrust's vetting, the earnings difference compounds quickly over a long engagement. micro1 is the better choice when speed-to-first-payment matters more than maximizing the hourly ceiling.

Braintrust covers software engineering, AI/ML, data science, product management, and design. The breadth is wider than micro1 and the enterprise client base supports longer, larger engagements. Both short (weeks) and long (months) project durations are available, giving significant flexibility.

micro1 focuses primarily on software engineering and technical roles: full-stack, backend, frontend, data, and AI/ML adjacent work. The platform is more narrowly focused than Braintrust but well-suited for engineers whose skills are in production software development rather than design or product management.