Our promise
No payment. No subscription.
You should know what a test costs before you spend twenty minutes on it. Here is what we do, how the usual trap works, and how to spot it elsewhere.
Your score is free
Estimate, likely range, percentile and the explanation of every puzzle, shown the moment you finish.
We ask for nothing
No email address. No card. No account. There is nothing on file that could be charged.
No subscriptions, ever
If we ever sell extras, they will be one-time purchases with the full price shown first.
Nothing is stored
Your result lives in a link that only you have. We keep no copy.
How the subscription trap works
- The test is advertised as free. You answer every question.
- The score is withheld. A page offers to reveal it for a small fee, typically about one dollar, described as a trial.
- The trial converts. After a few days it becomes a recurring charge, commonly around thirty dollars every month or every four weeks.
- The recurring price is hard to see. It may appear only in small print below the payment button.
This is not a fringe problem. The UK consumer organisation Which? reported receiving 32 complaints about unwanted IQ-test subscriptions in a single quarter. When its researchers tested one site, the monthly fee was visible only by scrolling to the very bottom of the page, and the button to get the score jumped past that disclosure to the payment step. One person it spoke to had been charged 31 times. The company concerned denies the allegations. Read the Which? report.
How to spot it before you start
- Look for the price first. A site that will show your score for free usually says so plainly on the first screen. If pricing is hard to find, assume there is some.
- Search the page for “trial”, “renews” and “subscription”. Check the footer and the terms.
- Be wary of an email wall. Being asked for an email “to send your results” is often the step before the payment page.
- Distrust “official” and “certified”. No online test is official. Recognised scores come from supervised tests given by psychologists or testing organisations.
- Search the site’s name with “subscription” before entering card details.
If you have already been charged
- Cancel in your account on the site and save the confirmation.
- If there is no working cancel option, email the company asking to cancel, so you have a dated record.
- Ask your card issuer to stop future payments to the merchant.
- Dispute any charge you did not knowingly agree to. Give the issuer screenshots of the checkout if you have them.
- Report it: to the FTC or your state attorney general in the US, or to Trading Standards via Citizens Advice in the UK.
Why we publish this
Because the trap works by keeping people uninformed until the test is finished. Ours is built the other way round: the terms come first. The scoring method and its limits are published on the method page.
Questions people ask
Is there an IQ test that is free with no payment at the end?
Yes. Upfront IQ shows your score, percentile and a full explanation without asking for an email address or card details at any point. Several long-standing non-commercial tests are also free to the end.
Why did an IQ test charge me every month?
Some sites sell the result as a low-cost “trial”, typically around one dollar, that converts automatically to a recurring charge of about thirty dollars a month unless cancelled within a few days. The recurring price is often disclosed only in small print below the payment button.
How do I cancel an IQ test subscription?
Cancel in your account on the site and keep the confirmation. If you cannot find a way to cancel, email the company so you have a dated record, then ask your card issuer to block further payments to that merchant and to dispute charges you did not knowingly agree to.
Can I get my money back?
Ask the company first, in writing. If that fails, contact your card issuer about a dispute; issuers take unclear recurring-billing terms seriously. In the UK and EU you may also have a 14-day right to withdraw from an online purchase.
How does Upfront IQ make money?
Today it does not charge for anything. If paid extras are ever offered, they will be one-time purchases with the full price shown before you start, never a subscription, and your score will stay free.