PROGRAMMING SKILLS

Next.js test for hiring

See how candidates reason about Next.js code, routes, data behavior and production apps.

10 minutes
16 questions
Intermediate
Multiple choice
Questions in English
Phone and desktop

Use this test free See the question formats

The short answer

The Next.js test is a 10-minute, 16-question check of practical framework knowledge for working React developers. Multiple-choice questions use short code snippets and project layouts to assess routing, rendering, data loading and caching, production behavior, middleware and server actions. Use it when hiring intermediate Next.js, React, front-end, full-stack or JavaScript developers, or technical leads who review Next.js work.

What it measures

Practical Next.js skill: routing, server and client rendering, data loading and caching, production builds and performance, and middleware and server actions.

Routing, layouts and route handlers

See how files map to routes and how layouts and route handlers shape navigation and requests.

Server and client rendering, data loading and caching

Check where components run and how data loading, caching and refetching affect app behavior.

Building, shipping and performance tuning

Assess decisions about building, deploying and tuning a Next.js app for performance.

Middleware, server actions and framework configuration

Explore how middleware, server actions and framework configuration affect an application.

Question formats

Multiple choice

The candidate: Reads a short situation, table or statement and picks the right answer, or every right answer.

You see: Whether the candidate knows the material well enough to apply it, not just recognize it.

16 questions in 10 minutes, served one at a time.

Roles this test fits

Next.js, React, front-end, full-stack and JavaScript developers, and technical leads, architects and consultants who review or plan Next.js work.

Evidence from practical Next.js scenarios

Check file-to-route reasoning
Project layouts and code snippets show how a candidate identifies the route a file creates, rather than relying only on a resume’s framework list.
Probe data behavior
Questions about loading, caching and refetching show how candidates reason about what an app does with data, not just rendering terminology.
Account for framework context
Each question names the App Router or Pages Router and, when behavior varies by major version, the version assumed. This keeps the framework context clear.

What you get for each candidate

Example report (fictional data)Next.js

82%Percentile 70. Benchmark: HireValid candidates, n = 1,367

Routing, layouts and route handlers74%

Server and client rendering, data loading and caching89%

Building, shipping and performance tuning84%

Middleware, server actions and framework configuration79%

Integrity ScoreHigh confidence

Stayed on the test tab throughout
No pasted answers
Answered at a steady pace

Scores, profiles and integrity signals are evidence for you to review alongside an interview, never an automatic decision.

Use this test free

Test integrity signals for review

Each attempt draws a different question set, with question order and answer options shuffled. The browser shows one question at a time, and answer keys stay on HireValid’s servers. The 10-minute timer runs on the server; reloading brings back the same question with only the remaining time. Candidates cannot go back. Question text cannot be copied or selected, and blocked copy attempts are recorded. HireValid records signals such as time away from the test tab, pastes into answers and answers faster than a question can be read. An Integrity Score and evidence timeline summarize signals for employer review; they do not decide on their own. With candidate consent, an employer can add webcam photos at random moments.

How we prevent AI cheating · Integrity signals

Use the score as one piece of evidence

Review the Next.js score alongside a relevant work sample and a structured interview. Ask candidates to explain decisions in a project context, such as route behavior or caching, and use the discussion to understand how they reason. The score is evidence for a person to review, not a decision by itself. If you are comparing adjacent hiring needs, see the React, Express.js and Ruby on Rails tests.

Structured interview questions

How would you organize routes and shared layouts for a feature with several related pages?
Listen for a clear explanation of the route structure and how layouts support the pages.
Tell me how you would investigate data that appears cached when a user expects it to refresh.
Listen for a reasoned approach to data loading, caching and refetching in the app.
How would you decide whether a piece of work belongs in middleware or a server action?
Listen for a discussion grounded in the project behavior and the role of each feature.

Understand scoring and benchmarks

Fairness and accommodations

Every question names the router (App Router or Pages Router) and, where the framework's behavior changed between major versions, the version it assumes, so no candidate is marked down for knowing a different release. Snippets are short and use neutral names such as products, posts and orders, with no money symbols, idioms or local knowledge, and the English is kept plain so the test measures framework skill rather than reading speed.

You can give any candidate extra time as an accommodation. Results are evidence for a person to review, never an automatic decision.

Provisional: reliability is reported once 200 candidates have completed it.

Read our fairness approach

Test details

A short, timed check of practical Next.js knowledge for working React developers. Questions show small code snippets and project layouts and ask what the framework will do with them: which route a file creates, where a component runs, when data is cached or refetched, and how an app behaves once it is built and deployed.

Questions are in English.
No aids are needed.
Each question is answered once, in order, with no going back.
4 practice questions, 4 minutes, before the timed test.

Next.js, React, Node.js are trademarks of their owners. HireValid is not affiliated with or endorsed by them.

Frequently asked questions

How does the Next.js test account for different framework versions?+

Each question names the App Router or Pages Router. When behavior changed between major versions, it also names the version it assumes. Snippets use neutral names such as products, posts and orders, with plain English and no local knowledge required, so the question focuses on framework behavior.

Can candidates use aids during the Next.js test?+

No aids are allowed, and candidates cannot go back to an earlier question. Each question shows the code snippet or project layout it asks about, such as which route a file creates, so candidates reason from what is on screen rather than from memory of the documentation.

What practice is available before the Next.js test?+

Candidates can try a practice set of 4 questions in 4 minutes. It gives them a chance to see the question format, which uses short code snippets and project layouts to ask about framework behavior. The scored test itself has 16 questions and a 10-minute time limit.

Which roles and seniority fit the Next.js test?+

This intermediate test is intended for Next.js, React, front-end, full-stack and JavaScript developers, as well as technical leads, architects and consultants who review or plan Next.js work. It focuses on practical framework knowledge, including routing, rendering, caching and production behavior.