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How to Get Your First QA Job in 2026: A Junior QA Roadmap

Written with data from 1,183 open QA jobs on QA Job Board, November 2026.

Getting a first QA job is harder than it was a few years ago. Only 4% of the QA jobs we track are clearly junior or entry-level (47 of 1,183). Most companies ask for 2+ years of experience. Junior roles still exist, but you need a plan. Here is one that works in 2026.

1. Understand what junior QA jobs ask for

Junior QA job posts usually ask for:

  • knowing how to write clear test cases and bug reports;
  • basic SQL to check data;
  • API testing with Postman;
  • using Jira or a similar tracker;
  • some exposure to an automation tool, often Playwright, Selenium or Cypress.

These are not senior skills. You can learn every one of them in 3–6 months.

2. Learn the skills in this order

  1. Testing fundamentals (2–3 weeks): test cases, test types, how to write a good bug report, exploratory testing.
  2. SQL (2 weeks): SELECT, JOIN and GROUP BY are enough to start. 24% of QA jobs mention SQL.
  3. API testing with Postman (2 weeks): requests, status codes, simple test scripts. 20% of QA jobs mention Postman.
  4. One automation tool (6–8 weeks): we recommend Playwright with TypeScript or Python. Selenium (29%) and Playwright (25%) are the two most requested tools. See which QA tools employers want.
  5. Git and CI (1–2 weeks): push your tests to GitHub and run them with GitHub Actions.

3. Build proof, not just certificates

Certificates such as ISTQB Foundation can help with some employers, especially in Europe and India. A small portfolio usually helps more:

  • A public test project: 15–20 Playwright tests for a demo shop, running in GitHub Actions.
  • Bug reports: 3–5 well-written reports of real bugs you found in public apps (screenshots, steps, expected vs actual result).
  • A short test plan for a feature of an app you use every day.

Put the GitHub link at the top of your resume.

4. Apply where junior roles actually are

  • Job titles to search: Junior QA Engineer, QA Analyst, Software Tester, QA Trainee, Manual QA Engineer, Associate QA Engineer.
  • Look at contract and part-time roles. 171 of the QA jobs we track are contracts. Contracts are often easier to get and count as real experience.
  • Consider remote roles in your region. Many companies hire remotely in Eastern Europe, Latin America, India and the Philippines.
  • Avoid "testers wanted" gig platforms that pay per bug. They rarely lead to a full-time job.

Start with junior QA jobs, QA Analyst jobs and Software Tester jobs.

5. What a junior QA job pays

Junior QA job posts that publish pay have a median of about $85,000 per year (USD equivalent), with most between $70,000 and $98,000. Most of these posts are US-based, so expect lower numbers elsewhere. Read the full QA salary report.

6. Prepare for the QA interview

Expect questions like these:

  • "How would you test a login page?" Cover positive and negative cases, security, accessibility and different devices.
  • "What is the difference between severity and priority?"
  • "Write a SQL query to find users without orders."
  • "Walk me through a bug you found." This is where your portfolio pays off.

A realistic timeline

If you study 10–15 hours a week, expect 3–4 months of learning and 1–3 months of applying. Apply to 5–10 well-matched jobs a week rather than 100 random ones.

Get new junior QA jobs by email: sign up for QA job alerts on QA Job Board.

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