4 recruitment assessment tools available in Japanese

An online candidate assessment platform can help you to objectively measure and compare candidates’ skills before hiring. With advanced algorithms and customizable assessments, they provide valuable insights into candidates’ abilities. Not only does this save time and resources in the hiring process, it helps ensure a fair and accurate evaluation.

However, very few pre-employment assessment platforms offer tools for testing candidates’ level of Japanese. And even fewer offer the full range of cognitive, behavioral, and job-specific tests in Japanese.

This makes it difficult for both English-speaking and Japanese businesses to hire Japanese talent with confidence. 

In this article, we look at four of the best platforms on the market, their features, pros and cons, so you can find the best Japanese-speaking candidates for your job.

Top 4 talent assessment tools in Japanese at a glance

Top 4 talent assessment tools for evaluating Japanese skills: Comparisons

Now that we’ve seen an overview of the top assessment tools in Japanese, let’s take a closer look at each one. Here, we cover the pros and cons and give our verdicts about which recruitment tools are best for whom.

1. TestGorilla

TestGorilla takes the guesswork out of measuring candidate ability. Simply type in the position you’re hiring for, and TestGorilla will recommend relevant skills assessment tests. Select the tests you want to use, add in any custom questions, and send an invitation to applicants. It allows you to go beyond hiring based solely on years of experience and instead get a 365º view of candidates’ hard and soft skills, personality, and more. 

The platform has two Japanese fluency tests, both of which are compatible with the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR): Proficient/C1 and intermediate/B1. These tests measure grammar, sentence composition, vocabulary, and reading and listening comprehension.

TestGorilla also has a localized Japanese-language website. Japanese-speaking recruiters can use this website to create assessments entirely in Japanese and test candidates for job-specific skills in their local language. 

Best for: Companies looking for an all-in-one solution for assessing Japanese-language candidates

TestGorilla’s pricing plans and features are appropriate for companies of all sizes. It can be used by English-speaking companies to hire Japanese language experts or Japanese-fluent candidates or as a comprehensive pre-employment assessment platform for Japanese businesses or branches hiring locally. So whether you’re hiring a bilingual speaker for your US office or Japanese candidates in Japan or abroad, TestGorilla has you covered.  

Features:

• Applicant reports

• Library of 300+ scientifically validated tests

• API and ATS integrations

• Custom questions and coding challenges

Pros:

• Localized website in Japanese

• Easy to use, even if you’ve never used assessment software

• GDPR compliant

Cons:

• Limited candidate onboarding features

Pricing:

• Free forever at $0 - 10 free tests, including all personality tests.

• Depending on the size of your company, paid plans begin with:

• Starter from $75 USD per month ($900 per year paid upfront)  - start with skills-based hiring for all roles. There is also the option to pay monthly, starting from $85 USD per month.

• Pro from $115 USD per month ($1,380 per year paid upfront) - maximize your hiring with advanced features. There is also the option to pay monthly, starting from $130 USD per month.

Verdict:

TestGorilla is one of the strongest contenders among pre-employment assessment platforms in Japanese. It not only has Japanese-language tests, but the entire platform is available in Japanese.

TestGorilla also has all the features you need. It’s easy to use, and there’s a free-for-life plan for small businesses. Anti-cheating measures and tests created by subject-matter experts mean you can be fully confident in your applicants’ results.

Candidate reports show you exactly how each applicant performed and how they rank against their cohort. Finally, you can easily collaborate with your hiring team through comments and shared reports.  

2. Recruit Management Solutions Co., Ltd.

Recruit Management Solutions Co., Ltd. offers the SPI test (Synthetic Personality Inventory) in Japanese. This is a multiple-choice pre-employment test widely used in Japan to test job applicants.

This test evaluates personality as well as basic math and Japanese language skills, including grammar and reading comprehension.

Best for: SPI testing in Japan

Recruit Management Solutions Co., Ltd. is best for Japanese companies who are hiring locally and are focused on candidates at the start of their career. It offers specific college and high school recruitment tests designed for recent graduates.

Unfortunately, the platform is also entirely in Japanese, so English-speaking recruiters will not be able to use the site easily.  

Features:

• SPI tests for Japanese applicants

• In-person and online testing

• Aptitude tests for employees to improve their skills

Pros:

• Separate tests for mid-career and new job seekers

• Created by a Japanese company for the Japanese job market

Cons:

• No option for English-language recruiters

• The platform focuses on personality assessments

Pricing:

• Calculated based on candidate (high-school, college or mid-career), test content (personality test or basic ability test) and implementation method (computer or paper) and location (dedicated venue, on-site, or custom location). 

• Prices generally range from 4,000 yen to 5,500 yen (approximately $27.95 to $38.40 USD) per test taker. 

Verdict:

Recruit Management Solutions Co., Ltd. offers pre-employment assessments for personality and basic language and math aptitude for Japanese candidates in the form of the widely used SPI.

The platform has some nice features, including separate tests for recent graduates and mid-career candidates. On-site and online testing is available, but there is no website in English, which can be a serious barrier for companies outside of Japan.

3. Testlify

Testlify is an online recruitment assessment platform that allows companies to create assessments by using a test library. Once companies create assessments they can send invitations to candidates to complete the tests.

Testlify has three Japanese fluency tests, all based on the CEFR: Proficient/C1, Upper Intermediate/B2, and Japanese Basic/A1. Each takes about ten minutes and includes 12 questions.

Best for: Testing fluency in Japanese

Testlify has no free plan, although API options and white labeling to create a branded experience for candidates make it a good solution for large companies.

Finally, Testlify has a Japanese-language website, so Japanese-speaking recruiters can test job-specific skills in that language.

Features:

• API and ATS integration

• White label solutions (costs extra)

• Localized Japanese website and three Japanese language tests

• Anti-cheating measures

Pros:

• Library of 1000+ tests

• Candidates can choose to see test instructions in Japanese

Cons:

• No free plan

• Custom branding and native ATS integration is only available on the most expensive plan

Pricing:

• Starter: $19/month for 100 assessment invitations per year, plus $3 for each additional invite)

• Basic: $39/month for 300 assessment invitations per year, plus $2 for each additional invite

• Business: $199/ month for unlimited invites and credits

• White label: for $599/ month for unlimited invites and credits, and the ability to use your own custom domain as well as other features

Verdict:

Testlify allows English-speaking recruiters to evaluate candidates’ fluency in Japanese and Japanese recruiters to conduct pre-employment assessments for Japanese candidates in their native language. 

The main drawback is that custom branding and native ATS integration are only available on the Business plan, starting at $7,188.00 per year at the time of writing. 

4. ExpertRating

Like TestGorilla, ExpertRating lets you create custom questions or design assessments by choosing questions from a test library.

One of the unique features of ExpertRating is that it has evaluations for Japanese translators: the Japanese to English Translation Skills Test and English to Japanese Translation Skills Test.

Both tests are 40 minutes long and consist of 40 multiple-choice questions. Candidates are evaluated on their understanding of nouns, direct and indirect speech, and more.

Best for: Companies hiring Japanese translators

ExpertRating is best for small companies who only need to hire a few Japanese translators. The pay-as-you go model is most cost-effective if a business only needs a few tests.

Companies who have Japanese-language recruiters will not find a localized website here, and larger companies have no way to evaluate Japanese fluency on the Common European (CEFR) or any other recognized framework.

Features:

• Custom test questions

• API access

Pros:

• Pay-per-test plans

• Anti-cheating measures 

Cons:

• Japanese tests limited to translation

• Platform not localized into Japanese

Pricing:

The pay-as-you-go model starts at $10/test for 10 tests. The more  tests you buy, the less each costs. For example, tests 501 to 1000 each cost just $4.00.

Verdict:

ExpertRating is unique for its Japanese-English translation tests, making it a good choice for companies hiring bilingual candidates who will need to translate effectively.

The pay-as-you go model can become expensive if you have larger hiring needs, though. Plus, there are no Japanese-language fluency tests and no way of evaluating Japanese-speaking candidates on job skills in their native language.

Conclusion: Our top 3 choices

Our top three choices for recruitment assessment tools available in Japanese are TestGorilla, Testlify and Recruit Management Solutions Co., Ltd. 

TestGorilla and Testlify are designed to help companies create assessments to evaluate Japanese language proficiency and job skills. Both offer large testing libraries and good assessment and comparison features, although native ATS integration and branding is only available from Testlify on the most expensive plan. 

Recruit Management Solutions Co., Ltd. allows companies to offer the SPI standardized test, but is only available in Japanese and doesn’t offer other job-specific tests. 

Disclaimer: The information on TestGorilla competitors has been taken from the relevant competitor website and is accurate at date of publication.