Google Interview Warmup alternative: how to practice now that it's gone
Google has retired Interview Warmup, its free tool for answering interview questions out loud. To replace it, you can prompt a voice assistant like Gemini Live or ChatGPT to act as an interviewer, use a speaking coach app for delivery, or use an AI mock interview like Hopali that runs a live conversation based on your résumé and the job.
What happened to Google Interview Warmup?
Interview Warmup was a free practice tool from Grow with Google. You picked a field, answered interview questions out loud, and the tool transcribed your answers and highlighted patterns such as job-related terms and the words you repeated most. It was simple and useful for getting used to speaking your answers.
Google has retired it. There was no big announcement: the tool stopped being available, and as of September 2026 its old page on grow.google shows general interview tips and points to Gemini Live for practice instead.
What Interview Warmup did
- Price: free.
- Questions: standard questions by field, such as IT support or data analytics.
- Your answers: spoken, then transcribed.
- Feedback: patterns in your wording, such as job-related terms, your most-used words and talking points.
- Follow-up questions: none. One question, one answer, then the next question.
- Based on your résumé or a specific job: no.
So the replacement depends on what you used it for.
The alternatives, by what you need
You want free practice with a voice assistant
General voice assistants like Gemini Live or ChatGPT's voice mode can play the interviewer if you give them clear instructions. A prompt that works:
"Act as a recruiter interviewing me for [job title] at [type of company]. Ask one question at a time, wait for my answer, and ask a follow-up question when my answer is vague. After six questions, tell me which answer was the weakest and why."
It's flexible and often free, within each tool's usage limits. The downside: you have to set everything up yourself, the interviewer doesn't know your résumé unless you paste it in, and the feedback varies a lot from one session to the next.
You want to work on how you speak
If your main issue is delivery (filler words, pace, rambling), a speaking coach app that analyzes your speech is a better fit than an interview simulator. These tools focus on how you say things more than on what you say.
You want a real person
Your university career center, a mentor or a friend in your field can run a mock interview for free. It's the most realistic option, but hard to schedule the night before an interview.
You want a realistic mock interview based on your résumé and the job
This is what Hopali does. An AI recruiter reads your résumé and the job description, then runs the interview as a live conversation: you answer out loud, you can cut in, and it follows up on what you just said. After the interview, the feedback quotes your own sentences and tells you what to rework first.
Interview Warmup vs. Hopali
- Price. Interview Warmup was free. Hopali's first interview is free, then a one-time Practice Pack costs €24.99 for 90 minutes, with no subscription.
- Questions. Warmup used standard questions by field. Hopali prepares questions from your résumé and the job description.
- Format. Warmup asked one question at a time. Hopali runs a live spoken conversation, with interruptions and follow-ups.
- Interview rounds. Warmup had one. Hopali has a recruiter screen, then a hiring manager interview with the pack.
- Feedback. Warmup showed word patterns. Hopali scores five criteria from 1 to 4 and quotes what you said.
- Privacy. Hopali doesn't record your audio.
Hopali is not a free replacement in every way. If you only want to hear standard questions and see a transcript, a voice assistant with the prompt above is enough. If you have a real interview coming up for a specific job, a mock interview built on that job is closer to the real thing.
Keep preparing
Whatever tool you use, the questions stay the same. Start with tell me about yourself, then the phone screen interview questions recruiters ask first.
Frequently asked questions
Is Google Interview Warmup still available?
No. Google has retired the tool, and its former page on grow.google now shows general interview tips and points to Gemini Live.
Is there a free alternative to Interview Warmup?
Yes. Voice assistants like Gemini Live or ChatGPT's voice mode can act as an interviewer with the right prompt, within their usage limits. Hopali's first mock interview is also free.
What does Hopali do that Interview Warmup didn't?
Hopali prepares questions from your résumé and the job description, runs a live spoken conversation with follow-up questions, and gives feedback that quotes your own answers.