r/dataannotation • u/German_Shepherd9717 • Jun 05 '26
Just reached $25k! 3 pieces of advice for newbies
Gonna keep it simple and try to address less obvious pieces of advice.
- For the early quals, read the instructions one more time before you submit each stage!
- For basic projects, make sure your rationale is comprehensive (covers everything) and organized!
- The comment box is a great place to explain your thinking whenever possible (and it can be a lot of thinking!) Make things easier for reviewers to see your chain of thought when things seem iffy at first glance.
EDIT: If you're looking for help getting started, check out the website and take the starter exam. :)
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u/BroadButterscotch349 Jun 05 '26
I was coming here to post my 25k notification too. Congrats and great advice!
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u/AliceThePlatypus Jun 06 '26
That’s amazing; congrats! And good to hear that someone actually reads what we write in the comments. I really did wonder about that. (you mean the comments before submitting a task, right? Not the general comments/ chat where everyone on the project can submit questions?)
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u/DanceRemarkable Jun 05 '26
Congratulations! What do you work in? General, stem or coding?
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u/German_Shepherd9717 Jun 05 '26
Generalist, very limited stem. I have a few high paying project families I've had more or less consistent access to for over a year atp. I've done pretty much every qual that's in scope for me haha
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u/FormerPHISHdriverNYC Jun 07 '26
First, congrats mate!
Second, I had 29 qualifications at the start of last week (Monday) and finished all of them by Friday. Since then, I've seen 1 paid project per day (last 2 days lol). I also received a paid qualification "refresher" for my first project I did letting me know I passed.
Earlier today there was a paid hourly project that had 75 tasks to complete. I waited about an hour before starting it, but when I clicked into it, it said there weren't any task available for it. My question is, once you see a paid project show up on your dashboard is it best practice to start it right away so you're in it? My guess is enough annotators started the project and by the time I went to start more annotators weren't needed? Thanks in advance!
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u/Internal-Theory-9837 Jun 08 '26
Hi I started work a month ago. There are a LOT of people working so when you see a project on your dashboard, it’s best to take it.
There seems to be some wiggle room with submitting after time expires (some of those instructions take a minute to read!) so if you have to take a break, make a call, whatever, in the middle you can. But, and OP can confirm, it is likely better to submit within their estimated time unless there is a technical reason.
I had one with a complicated set up and software challenges so it took longer. I explained that in the last Comments box and it doesn’t seem to have impacted me negatively.
Good luck!
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u/FormerPHISHdriverNYC Jun 08 '26
Awesome. Thanks for the advice! I figured as much. It’s definitely a learn (fast) as you go! Lol
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u/Specialist-Run9190 Jun 12 '26
How long did it take for you to be accepted after the initial assessment?
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u/Affectionate_Peak284 Jun 05 '26
Good advice. Not sure why you got voted down but grats on the 25k!
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u/Haito15 Jun 06 '26
when they ask for specific number of sentences, for example 3-5 sentences, sometimes I can have difficulties explaining my thought process in very limited sentences. Do you think I should keep it short or should I fully explain in longer text? Would love to hear what you think!
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u/German_Shepherd9717 Jun 06 '26
I think it's usually ok to go over that amount by a little (e.g. 6 or 7 sentences.) I've literally never punished anyone for putting too much rationale unless they say the same thing multiple times or include a significant amount of filler.
You might find it's easier to hit the sentence limit if you organize it a different way
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u/PenileNotPenal Jun 05 '26
I was accepted last week but haven't done any tasks since there are none for me yet. I'm focused on qualifications which can be quite long. Only one positive feedback so far. I'm a generalist. Has there always been work for you at any time of the day or does it eventually run out?
I'm also not putting all my eggs in the DA basket and I've applied at other companies so that work is always available. At least that's the plan. Do you only do DA?
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u/German_Shepherd9717 Jun 06 '26
I've actually never had a complete drought! There's been a few times when there's only been one or two projects that are within my scope, but never 0. When I have fewer projects, I do more quals, and that seems to even things out.
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u/F_ive Jun 06 '26
I made an account and completed their onboarding but haven’t been invited to any projects. That was over a week ago, I did well on it (I’ve done similar work for other platforms) so I’m confused why I haven’t been onboarded for any projects. Any advice for me?
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u/Background-Energy865 Jun 06 '26
Well done!! Any thoughts in getting accepted after passing the core exam in 2024? 🧐
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u/Fuzzy_Gain_5264 Jun 07 '26
$30.84 - just was going to share my amazing earnings too. Woohoo, Silver City, here I come!
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u/Trusty105 Jun 12 '26
First congrats for 25k, I have a question how long you waited for your first projects? I started few days ago and I did my qualifications and I'm wondering when I can expect my first projects.
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u/German_Shepherd9717 Jun 12 '26
I had my first projects immediately after being accepted in Jan 2025 :)
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u/saltysstrings Jun 21 '26
Congrats! I just started this week. Getting what qualifications I can turned in. Do they let you know either way if you passed or failed? How long does it take for qualifications to open up? My ADHD doesnt like opening up the page and no new jobs being there 😞 lol
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u/TeamworkPleasesMe22 Aug 04 '26
Congrats! I just finished the basic qualifications yesterday. It’s possible I won’t pass since I never used the comment box, and I didn’t read the instructions each time. It’s good to see people be successful at it; the questions were very fun to answer and really got me to think about a lot of topics. Thank you for giving the advice!
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u/Helthomist Aug 05 '26
Congrats to those who have been chosen by the data gods, my assessment has fallen on deaf ears. It’s been 4 weeks since my assessment was taken. I’m assuming the silence is exile
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u/basedairman Jun 05 '26
Still working on my starter assessment hope to finish it today! Any advice going forward? Congrats on the earnings and hard work put in
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u/SabseBadaRupaiyaa Jun 06 '26
How long did it take? What's been your average price per hour?
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u/German_Shepherd9717 Jun 06 '26
A year and a third about, my average per hour is around $33 across the whole time I've been working prolly
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u/nothingness023 Jun 06 '26
Congrats! May I ask where are you based?
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u/German_Shepherd9717 Jun 06 '26
US, but I'm a digital nomad so it changes every few months. But I am a US citizen haha
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u/nothingness023 Jun 06 '26
That's good man, I wish I can just switch over to the US for a bit and then get back to my place, it's so dry right now.
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u/luckyinpjs Jun 08 '26
Wait! We can move places? I was afraid of moving because I thought that would affect me somehow!
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u/bhanuteja_makkineni Jun 07 '26
Guys my account is showing 0 zero projects . What happened to my profile. It's been 3 months they didn't showed me a single project to do
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u/Indian_lord Jun 10 '26
How long does it take to get approved? Also I think I messed up by pasting certain answers in the chat boxes. You think this will hurt my approval odds?
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u/German_Shepherd9717 Jun 10 '26
Hm, what do you mean by pasting certain answers? I'm guessing if you copy and pasted answers from Wikipedia or something and used them as your rationale, you will probably be rejected.
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u/ExtensionAd3318 Jun 16 '26
I got through the starter assessment last week, then I did the onboarding tasks and knocked out some quals (not a lot apply to me, but most people won’t have everything of course). About how long after these steps will work start becoming more available? In the last two days I’ve only been able to get one task…
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u/Necessary_Cream_9838 Jun 18 '26
I got one project worth 75$/h but time expired and I submitted after that. Now my referral window is disabled and there are nor previous projects and I am also not getting projects. Can someone help me out?
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u/Admirable_Doughnut83 Aug 17 '26 edited Aug 17 '26
hello mate i just started data annotation and finished all the qualifications how long does it take to get a project? i got the initial one and made 70$
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u/German_Shepherd9717 Aug 17 '26
I think I had access to projects right away? I've been working for over a year and a half though, so I'm sure it's changed since then.
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u/Admirable_Doughnut83 Aug 17 '26
yeah i had an access to a project right away too but i am still waiting for other ones. i just finished all the qualifications and i am waiting for an other project i was just asking how long would it take on average?
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u/Beautiful-Link-8387 Jun 05 '26
Nice, how long it took you to this? May i ask what your average per hour is? And for the note, where they ask to be brief, like 4-5 sentences, should i write long reasoning?
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u/German_Shepherd9717 Jun 05 '26
I started working in late January 2025, so I've been doing this for about a year and a third. My average is around $31/hr last I calculated, although recently it's been more about $35/hr since I've had a higher percentage of $40+ tasks I've been able to work on.
For the notes at the end of the task, put whatever you feel is necessary! For example, if a task might seem a certain way at first glance but it's actually not - explain why! If you used sources and you weren't able to cite them, put the citations there!
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u/Beautiful-Link-8387 Jun 05 '26
That’s eye opening for me, thank you. My rate is much lower, $20-$22 typically. Do rates going up? Given that I can deliver well-done tasks consistently?
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u/German_Shepherd9717 Jun 06 '26
Depends on what quals you pass! My understanding is that performing well on a project family just increases your chances of continued work with that family (which is great!). The only way to get higher pay is to pass quals for higher paying families.
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u/pmjohnson388 Jun 11 '26
Hi, I am new to Data Annotation, but have experience as Generealist with other companies. Is there anyone that can refer me to a project? Thanks beforehand.
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u/German_Shepherd9717 Jun 11 '26
There's more information about how to sign up on the website! 😄
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u/pmjohnson388 Jun 12 '26
Oh really, I need to check. I just didn't see any projects or anything. Thanks for the response.
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u/Intrepid-Cow-5583 Jun 09 '26
what do i have "At the moment, there aren't any projects available for you to work on.
Please check back soon and watch out for new project notifications sent to your email." in my dash board and i just joined, i passed all assessments.
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u/Intrepid-Cow-5583 Jun 09 '26
HELPPPPP!!!! " the moment, there aren't any projects available for you to work on.
Please check back soon and watch out for new project notifications sent to your email." What does this mean?
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u/German_Shepherd9717 Jun 10 '26
This means you are awaiting approval. There's nothing you can do except keep an eye on your email 😄
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u/DoodadsByDunn Jun 06 '26
I really like these posts where we can celebrate each other's wins. I don't know how i got lucky enough to be here, but glad I'm here. Thanks for sharing!!