> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.equip.co/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Previewing an Assessment

> Preview any assessment for free, as a recruiter or as a candidate, before inviting anyone.

<Tip>
  Previews are **free and unlimited** for you and your whole team. Inviting anyone, including yourself, deducts credits like a normal candidate attempt. Preview first, invite later.
</Tip>

## Recruiter Preview vs Candidate Preview

Once you create an assessment, a **Preview** link appears on your dashboard. Existing assessments also show a **Preview** button at the top of the Assessment Settings page.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open your assessment">
    Go to the Assessments Dashboard and locate the assessment you want to check.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Click Preview">
    Use the preview link on the dashboard, or open the assessment's settings and click **Preview** at the top.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose a preview mode">
    Pick **As a Recruiter** for a quick look, or **As a Candidate** for the full candidate experience.
  </Step>
</Steps>

The two modes serve different purposes:

|                     | As a Recruiter                        | As a Candidate                                    |
| ------------------- | ------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------- |
| **Best for**        | Quickly checking how tests look       | Experiencing exactly what candidates see          |
| **Test navigation** | Jump freely between tests             | Must finish each test before the next one appears |
| **Proctoring**      | Disabled, no camera or screen sharing | Enabled, you grant camera and screen-share access |

<Note>
  Use **As a Candidate** at least once before sharing an assessment widely. It surfaces everything a candidate will encounter, including permission prompts and test order.
</Note>

## Sample Questions in Previews

The questions you see while previewing depend on the **test type** and whether the test uses Equip's content or your own.

| Content Source  | Test Type              | Questions in Preview      |
| --------------- | ---------------------- | ------------------------- |
| Your content    | Any test type          | Same as the candidate     |
| Equip's content | Everything except Quiz | Same as the candidate     |
| Equip's content | Quiz                   | **Sample questions** only |

For Equip-content quizzes, previews draw from a separate **Sample Question Bank** rather than the real one. Sample questions are matched to the same skill and difficulty you configured, so they are representative of what candidates will face.

This protection exists because anyone can self-onboard a team on Equip. Showing real quiz questions in previews would let people harvest the question bank and compromise test integrity.

<Note>
  If the Sample Question Bank has fewer questions than you configured, your preview shows fewer questions. For example, if you added 10 Medium-level Python MCQs but only 5 samples exist, you preview 5. Candidates still see all 10, because being allowed to select 10 during creation means the real bank has at least 10.
</Note>

<Warning>
  The only way to see the real Equip quiz questions is to invite yourself as a candidate, and that deducts credits from your account. If you need full visibility into questions, consider a [custom quiz](/custom-tests) instead.
</Warning>

## Unlocking Locked Questions

When you create an account, Equip-content quizzes let you add up to **4 questions per skill, per difficulty level**. For example, for the Python skill you can add 4 Medium, 4 Hard, and 4 Expert questions.

To add more than 4, purchase **at least 25 credits in a single transaction**. This unlocks up to 10 questions per skill per difficulty level.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Purchase 25 or more credits">
    Make a single purchase of at least 25 credits. The credits never expire and are used only for candidate assessments.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Return to the assessment builder">
    Open the Tests tab of your assessment and increase the question count for the skills you need.
  </Step>
</Steps>

This limit exists so that people cannot create free accounts just to browse Equip's question database. It applies narrowly:

| Content                                                                    | Question Limit Before Unlocking |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------- |
| Equip-content quizzes                                                      | 4 per skill per difficulty      |
| Equip content for other test types (Programming, SQL, CSS, Video Response) | No unlock needed                |
| Custom content                                                             | No unlock needed                |

<Note>
  Each Equip-content quiz also has an overall cap of 25 questions. If you need more, add a second quiz to the same assessment.
</Note>

## Related Resources

* [Assessment Invitations vs Preview](/invitations-vs-preview) - When each costs credits and what candidates see
* [Why You Cannot See Quiz Questions](/cannot-see-quiz-questions) - The reasoning behind hidden Equip quiz questions
* [Creating an Assessment](/create-assessment) - Build the assessment you want to preview
* [How Credits Work](/how-credits-work) - Purchasing credits and how they are deducted