May 28, 2023
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NoMystery shopping is a fun and easy way to earn extra cash, but if you want to rake in serious money, you need to know which secret shopping companies offer the highest-paying work.
Just as importantly, choosing from a list of reputable mystery shopping companies will help you avoid common scams. To protect yourself and earn plenty of extra cash, stick to one of the options in our list of the best mystery shopping platforms.
The most reliable way to know for sure that you’re applying for a legit mystery shopping company is to choose from this database of companies approved by the Mystery Shopping Professionals Association (MSPA).
The MSPA is a trade association representing the mystery shopping industry. They’re a reliable authority that only lists legit companies on their website. This is a good place to start searching for jobs in your area or double check that a company is legit.
It’s a good idea to apply to multiple MSPA-approved companies, but there’s no need to sign up with all of them. JD, a mystery shopper based in NYC, told us “I have heard the advice to sign up with every company on the MSPA list. This seems excessive to me. There are hundreds of companies.”
Instead, you should choose just enough to fill up your work schedule—and be sure to pick companies that offer the types of shops you want to do, since many mystery shopping platforms specialize (e.g., in grocery stores or restaurants).
Out of the hundreds of secret shopping companies in the MSPA database, there are a few that stand out as the biggest names in the industry.
We’ve collected data and read reviews from actual shoppers on the most-talked-about companies to help you decide which are worth applying to. Read on to learn everything you need to know about these dominating companies, including how experienced shoppers rate them, what industries they serve, and how to apply.
Market Force Information is one of the biggest names in the field of mystery shopping. They claim to complete 100,000 mystery shops and 1,000,000 surveys every month. 1
The company is headquartered in Peachtree Corners, GA, but they also have offices in Canada and the UK.
MarketForce appears to be a common starting point for many beginner mystery shoppers. Experienced shoppers generally agree that they’re reliable and pay consistently.
The company works with a wide variety of businesses, making it a good place to get a feel for the type of shops you want to do. However, users report that the number of job opportunities you’ll get depends on where you live.
BestMark was founded in 1986, and they’re another one of the largest mystery shopper companies out there. They claim to have 600,000 mystery shoppers and complete hundreds of thousands of field visits per year. 2
The company is headquartered in Saint Louis Park, MN, and they operate in 54 US states and territories, as well as in Canada.
The main complaints from shoppers are that the assignments are usually low pay and lack variety. Many reviewers use BestMark to get free meals and purchases rather than earn a living.
The low pay apparently makes it difficult to actually earn a profit. According to one shopper who’s worked with the company for 3 years, they’ve never been able to stay within the budget allowed by BestMark: “For example, when they offered $50 reimbursement for a mystery dine at a restaurant, the lowest possible price I could find to meet the requirements cost me a total of $56, so I was $6 out of my own pocket. (However, I did get $50 worth of a free meal so I can’t complain).”
A couple of users also complain about the high number of shops for car dealerships, which will only appeal to a minority of shoppers.
Reality Based Group (RBG) is a rapidly growing mystery shopping company that’s acquired several competing companies in recent years, including Shoppers’ Critique, GuestCheck, Strategic Reflections, Nortin Norris, and Shoppers’ View.
The company has been providing mystery shopping services for over 25 years, and they operate in a wide range of industries.
Sign Up with Reality Based Group
Many of the company’s negative reviews come from video scouts, who stress the taxing nature of traveling from place to place. These workers claim the company puts them under enormous pressure with little regard for their well-being.
One forum user recommended staying away from RBG because they’re “exhausting to deal with” and seem to have “too many cooks in the kitchen,” and another user reported a bad experience trying to negotiate higher rates.
However, one shopper commented “I’ve found they’re very easy markers on the reports if you can conduct the shop without an incident,” adding that “it’s pretty much a sure 10/10” if you complete your assignments by the deadline.
Ipsos is a company that provides various customer experience solutions, one of which is mystery shopping. They were founded in 1975 in France and eventually expanded to have 1 million secret shoppers in 80+ countries, being named the third largest global market research company in 2017. 3 4
As an iShopFor Ipsos mystery shopper, you’ll have the option to take on in-person shops, as well as telephone and digital shops (contacting call centers and assessing websites, apps, and live chat functions)
Many shoppers report that Ipsos is reliable when it comes to sending out consistent and timely payments, and some of the shops can earn you good money. However, others warn that Ipsos will sometimes remove shops from your list of assignments without telling you, causing you to waste your time.
The consensus seems to be that they’re a great mystery shopping company when your shop is accepted because you’ll get good compensation and quick payment, but you need to be vigilant about following the shop instructions down to the last detail or else they may refuse to pay you.
Intouch Insight is a Canada-based marketing research company whose mystery shopping network (IntouchShop) consists of over 1 million shoppers. 5 The company’s growth hit new levels with their 2021 acquisition of SeeLevel HX, a large US-based mystery shopper company. 6
Intouch exclusively lists their jobs on the iSecretShop platform (linked below), so this is where you’ll go to choose your assignments. You’ll have a choice of jobs you can do on site, curbside, by telephone, online, or virtually.
Most shoppers only have had positive experiences with the company, with many even listing it among their favorite mystery shopping companies.
There aren’t many complaints online about Intouch Insight—the main gripe among shoppers is just that Intouch doesn’t offer many shops in their area.
One forum user commented that “The only problem I’ve experienced is the schedulers don’t work after 5 PM on Friday until Monday morning,” which can sometimes make it hard to pick up new assignments at the last minute.
IntelliShop is a large mystery shopping company and customer experience advisory firm based in Perrysburg, Ohio. According to the Better Business Bureau (BBB), the company was started in 1999.
Over 800,000 mystery shoppers have signed up with IntelliShop. 7 They offer on-site, digital, video, and telephone mystery shopping.
The consensus among secret shoppers about IntelliShop can be summed up by a comment from one forum user: “Overall, they are a good company to work for.” Many shoppers identify IntelliShop as a big company with plenty of work, which makes them ideal for starting out as a mystery shopper.
They have a good selection of jobs to choose from and pay consistently, which leaves shoppers without much to complain about. Some people say that IntelliShop is picky when it comes to evaluating shops and may not pay you if you don’t closely follow instructions, but this is the case with all companies.
TheSource (formerly MSI Services) is the mystery shopping division of the market research company TrendSource. The company is based in San Diego, CA, and they claim to have over 300,000 field agents. 8
TheSource mainly offers mystery shop opportunities at grocery stores and retail locations, which makes them an accessible option with assignments that most people can fit into their schedule.
Some people complain that TheSource doesn’t offer high enough compensation for their shops and that they sometimes ask shoppers to travel to remote destinations very far from where they live, which can make certain assignments not worthwhile.
However, many reviewers praise the company for making frequent and reliable payments. The focus of the company on grocery and retail stores is also a plus for practical shoppers who live near the shops on offer.
Coyle Hospitality Group (more commonly referred to as “Coyle”) is a mystery shopping company that was founded in 1996. They have a network of 40,000 mystery shoppers, and they serve businesses in 130 countries across the globe. 9
If you’re someone who loves to travel, Coyle could be a good company to have on your list. They primarily operate in the hospitality industry, catering to companies like hotels and resorts, although they also serve businesses in other sectors.
Sign Up with Coyle Hospitality
Reviews of Coyle Hospitality are generally positive, with many people saying there are opportunities to earn good money if you’re not afraid of writing lengthy reports. However, several people warn that it’s not the best company to start out with due to the high level of detail required in reports.
With that said, some users aren’t a fan of their system for assigning jobs to shoppers. As one forum user commented, “I have to admit I don’t like their ‘apply for a shop’ model.” They went on to complain that applications are followed by long wait times, during which you can’t apply for another shop on that particular date.
ath Power Consulting (APC) is a large marketing research firm that offers mystery shopping solutions to over 1,000 businesses and boasts a network of over 500,000 shoppers. 10 The company was founded in 1997 and is based in Massachusetts.
As a mystery shopper for ath Power Consulting, you’ll have the option to complete shops in person, online, through mobile apps, by telephone, or by mail.
Sign Up with ath Power Consulting
Many of the shoppers who work with ath Power Consulting say that it’s a decent company—not necessarily the best mystery shopping company ever, but a reliable one that’s never caused them any problems.
The main complaints shoppers have are slow payment distribution (despite the company’s bimonthly payment policy) and shops getting rejected due to internal errors. Nevertheless, ath Power Consulting seems to be a go-to option for mystery shoppers in the banking industry.
BARE International was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Washington, DC. They claim to process 50,000 evaluations each month for businesses in 165 countries.
One major benefit of BARE over many other mystery shopping companies is that you have multiple payment options. This makes it a good choice if you don’t have PayPal, which many competitors require.
Most people agree that BARE is a reliable mystery shopping company to keep in your arsenal. They do business with a wide range of companies, which gives users plenty of opportunities to shop with brands they like.
The main complaints that shoppers have about BARE are that jobs aren’t always available or that the pay sometimes isn’t worth it for the amount of time and work involved, but these are issues that people also have with many other mystery shopping companies.
Signing up with multiple companies will get you even more secret shopping job opportunities. The table below lists several other companies that are frequently talked about in the mystery shopping community.
| Company | Shop Types | Industries |
|---|---|---|
| Perception Strategies | In person Telephone |
Healthcare |
| Confero | In person Online Telephone |
Dining, hospitality, retail, grocery, travel, entertainment, healthcare, legal services, banking and financial services, automotive, education, and government |
| White Clay | In person | Dining, real estate/property management, financial services, utilities, retail, and automotive |
| Ann Michaels and Associates | In person Online (websites and social media) Telephone |
Retail, automotive, grocery, banking and financial services, sports betting, and food service |
| Curinos | Unspecified | Financial services |
| A Consumer’s Point of View (ACPVIEW) | In person Telephone Rideshare |
Dining, retail, financial services, government, utilities, call center and phone support, customer services, private and public transportation, taxi services, and parking |
| Mercantile Systems | Unspecified | Dining, food and beverages, storage, and retail |
Of course, there are many more legit mystery shopping companies than the ones listed above, and every shopper has their own set of favorite companies they default to.
The best options for you are going to be the companies that have plenty of opportunities in your area that fit your schedule and preferences.
There are a few different ways to apply for mystery shopping jobs, from internal job listings to third-party job boards.
The best place to find new shopper jobs is directly from mystery shopping companies themselves. You can easily get the most up-to-date information on available jobs by registering with different companies and regularly checking their job listings.
Experienced shoppers will tell you that they get plenty of good jobs directly from schedulers, who contact them directly about jobs before they’re even posted on job boards. However, it can take a while to build up enough experience and reputation to become a scheduler’s top pick.
Several websites post mystery shopping jobs offered by a variety of companies. Below are a few online mystery shopping job boards you should check out:
To find new secret shopping assignments on the go, you can use mystery shopping apps. These offer many benefits to shoppers with smartphones, including quicker payouts and the ability to claim and complete shops while you’re out.
For example, one mystery shopper we spoke to started using the Presto app early on (available on Google Play or the Apple Store), which turned out to be “a hub for many of the better companies.”
They also told us that using Presto meant they could get reimbursed for their shops in a matter of days rather than weeks, which is a huge plus. “There are a ton of companies out there that pay once per month and you have to wait for the money,” they added, explaining that this can be especially tough if you’re doing reimbursement shops.
There are many different types of mystery shopper apps to choose from. Some are developed by the mystery shopping companies themselves (meaning you’ll only be able to complete shops for that one company), whereas others are third-party apps that can get you assignments with multiple companies.
Many mystery shopping companies have social media accounts that they sometimes use to list urgent jobs or assignments that are hard to fill. You won’t find a comprehensive list of shopping jobs, but it can be worth checking listings on Facebook and Twitter to cover all your bases.
