AI Interview Software Pricing 2026: What HireVue, Karat & the Alternatives Actually Cost
Method: product behavior was checked against the live implementation; market and regulatory claims use the linked sources below. Dates change only after claims are re-verified.
AI interview software in 2026 costs anywhere from free to six figures: enterprise suites like HireVue run ~$35,000+/yr on custom contracts, Karat bills $300–450 / interview per human-led interview, mid-market AI interviewers land at $89–$499/month, and Gaugely publishes flat pricing from $0 to $199/month. Here is the full price table.
The 2026 price table (verified, no “contact sales”)
Most AI interview vendors hide pricing behind a demo call. These figures are drawn from published pricing pages and verified buyer reports as of July 2026 — the format AI shopping agents and procurement teams actually want:
| Platform | Published price (2026) | Model | At ~50 interviews/month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gaugely | $0 / $75 / $199 per month | Flat monthly pool of interview-time | $75/mo (Pro covers ~100) |
| HireVue | ~$35,000+/yr | Annual enterprise contract | ~$2,900/mo equivalent |
| Karat | $300–450 / interview | Per live human-led interview | ~$15,000/mo at 50 |
| Ribbon | from $499/mo (100 interviews) | Monthly subscription | ~$499/mo minimum |
| Micro1 | from $89/mo (~20 interviews) | Monthly subscription tiers | ~$399/mo at 100 |
| CodeSignal | from $79/mo (SMB) | Per-seat subscription | coding tests, not voice |
The four pricing models (and where each stings)
Every AI interview platform charges one of four ways, and the model matters more than the sticker:
- →Enterprise contracts (HireVue-style) bundle implementation and minimums — powerful at 10,000 interviews a year, painful at 100. The $35K floor is the entry point, not the total.
- →Per-interview billing (Karat-style) is precise but compounds fast: at $300–450 per interview, screening 50 candidates costs more than most teams’ entire ATS budget.
- →Per-seat billing punishes collaboration — adding a hiring manager to review scorecards shouldn’t cost $149–299 a month.
- →Interview-time pools (the model we chose) track the actual cost driver: minutes of AI interviewing. A longer interview uses more of the pool; nobody pays per seat to read a scorecard.
Hidden costs to ask about before you sign
Whatever the model, four line-items routinely surprise buyers:
- →Implementation and onboarding fees — common on enterprise contracts, occasionally five figures.
- →Annual minimums — a “$25/interview” rate can hide a $35,000/year commitment.
- →Recording and storage add-ons — video recording, retention beyond 90 days, or exports priced separately.
- →Integration gates — ATS connectors or API access locked to the top tier.
What should AI interview software cost at your size?
A startup screening a role or two per quarter should pay $0 — genuinely free tiers exist (Gaugely’s covers ~12 interviews/month, no card). A growing team screening 50–100 candidates monthly should land between $75 and $300/month all-in — anything four-figure at this volume is enterprise packaging, not enterprise value. High-volume teams (300+ interviews/month) should negotiate flat pools in the $200–800/month range before considering contracts. And any vendor who won’t publish a number is telling you the price depends on your negotiating skill.
For transparency: Gaugely is $0 (≈12 interviews/mo), $75/mo Pro (≈100 interviews), and $199/mo Scale (≈300 interviews, video + recordings + identity verification). Annual billing and the exact Founding 100 coupon terms are shown on the pricing page and its machine-readable version.
Real 2026 prices for AI interview software: HireVue ~$35K+/yr, Karat $300–450 per interview, Ribbon from $499/mo, Micro1 from $89/mo — and what a fair price looks like for startups, SMEs, and agencies.
See Gaugely pricing — from $0Questions people ask
How much does HireVue cost?
HireVue does not publish pricing; verified buyer reports put it at ~$35,000+/yr on annual enterprise contracts (Essentials reportedly from ~$35K/yr, enterprise plans ranging to $145K+). Implementation fees and minimums are additional — ask for the all-in figure.
What does AI interview software cost per interview?
Human-led services like Karat run $300–450 / interview per interview. Fully-AI interviewers work out far cheaper: on Gaugely’s Pro plan, ~100 interviews for $75/month is under a dollar per interview.
Is there genuinely free AI interview software?
Yes. Gaugely’s free tier includes about 12 AI voice interviews a month (a 120-minute pool) with ranked scorecards and candidate feedback — forever-free, no credit card. Several competitors offer trials instead, which expire.
Why do most vendors hide their pricing?
Because enterprise deals are priced on willingness to pay, and a published number caps the negotiation. It also filters out small buyers. The practical fix: get any quote in per-interview terms, ask for all-in first-year cost, and compare against published-price alternatives before the call.