Paid Survey Sites: 18 of the Best Survey Apps & Websites That Pay Real Money

Taking surveys is a legitimate endeavor that does pay real money. Whether it’s worth it is another question.

Survey apps may pay via

• PayPal
• Venmo
• Prepaid cards
• Bank transfers
• Other methods

Gift cards are also a redemption option on most platforms.

However, the pay on most apps is incredibly low—much less than what you’d make at almost any other job or side hustle. Each survey you take will pay out just a few cents, and most sites require you to earn a certain amount before you can cash out your rewards (e.g., $10).

This means that taking surveys is a big time commitment for a small amount of money.

Additionally, not all paid-survey sites can be trusted. Bad actors are very common in this space, and many survey takers allege bad-faith behavior from popular survey sites, such as not honoring rewards and shutting down accounts without cause.

What is the best survey app or website?

The answer to this question is that there is no one best survey app or website. It depends on what you’re looking for.

We have two favorite platforms based on our own experience, but bear in mind that your experience may be different. Surveys often target specific demographics, so your eligibility for surveys will depend partly on your demographic profile (age, gender, etc.), along with other factors.

Our two favorite platforms are:

• InboxDollars: InboxDollars is available in both web and app versions. Partly thanks to the $5 signup bonus, this platform has comparatively good earning potential. It also offers many more tasks you can complete (in addition to surveys) to earn rewards.
• Forthright: Forthright is a simple affair with only surveys on offer. Unlike InboxDollars, it doesn’t offer a signup bonus or an app you can download. However, it has several other points in its favor and comparatively decent earning potential, so we recommend it nonetheless.

Before you start taking surveys, it’s important to be aware of the possible pitfalls. These tips will help you to manage your expectations and stay safe while taking online surveys:

• Guard your personal information: Be very careful about what information you provide to survey-taking platforms. Tailoring your profile can qualify you for demographic-specific surveys, but don’t relinquish information that can be stolen and used against you.
• Be very cautious about giving up bank information: In particular, if a survey site requires payment of any kind, it’s almost certainly a scam. Do not give up your credit card number or any of your personal financial information beyond your PayPal handle or the bank info required for direct deposit (i.e., your bank name and routing and account numbers).
• Use a VPN & anti-spyware: Use the appropriate software to keep your computer (and your sensitive info) safe. Many survey sites are on the sketchy side and have relationships with hackers and other bad actors, so keep your virtual guard up by installing a VPN and an anti-spyware program.
• Be prepared for disappointment: A common sentiment among people who take surveys as a side hustle is that it’s a hugely frustrating experience. Many claim that they often spend 20 minutes or more on a survey just to find out they don’t qualify for it. Even if you do qualify for a survey, you may end up spending the better part of an hour on one questionnaire that pays out mere cents. Don’t get your hopes up that paid surveys are a get-rich-quick scheme—they aren’t.

Here are 18 survey platforms we’ve tested ourselves. Many of these platforms have both web and app versions available, but a few of them don’t have apps (or only come in iOS or Android versions), meaning that you may be limited to using the website.

1. Survey Junkie

The market research group Survey Junkie invites users to “be an influencer” by sharing their opinions on brands through paid surveys. The group offers two types of research you can participate in:

1. Attitudinal: Share your opinions about a company’s products and marketing strategies.
2. Behavioral: Share access to your digital browsing activity to allow analysis of real users’ online behavior.

What you need to know about SurveyJunkie

• What SurveyJunkie says you can earn: SurveyJunkie itself says that you can earn as much as $40 a month by completing three surveys daily.
• What we earned: When we tested the site, we found that our hourly rate worked out at around $1.09 (which included the $0.85 signup bonus).
• What other sources say you can earn: Most sources indicate that you can make $0.50–$3 per survey.
• Factors affecting your earnings: Your payouts will depend on what you choose to share and what types of research you participate in.

2. Swagbucks

One of the most recognizable survey-taking platforms, Swagbucks claims that it has paid out over $870 million to users to date, and gives away 7,000 gift cards every day.

Doubling as a cashback app and a receipt-scanner app, making qualifying purchases and uploading receipts are two of the many ways you can make money with Swagbucks. Of course, users can also take surveys and answer polls in exchange for rewards.

What you need to know about Swagbucks

• What Swagbucks says you can earn: According to the Swagbucks site, most surveys pay between ​​$0.25 and $5.00. Occasionally, you may even find surveys with payouts of more than $20.
• What we earned: When we tested the site, we found that our hourly rate worked out to around $2.04 (which included the signup bonus).
• Getting paid: You’ll need at least $15 in rewards to cash out the first time (although the threshold may be lower for subsequent withdrawals).

3. InboxDollars

Sign up to take paid surveys for InboxDollars and immediately enjoy a $5 sign-up bonus when you confirm your email to activate your account. The site offers a variety of tasks you can complete for payment, including taking surveys, playing games, and watching ads.

What you need to know about InboxDollars

• What InboxDollars says you can earn: InboxDollars says that surveys pay between $0.25–$5 (depending on the survey and your qualifications).
• What we earned: When we tested InboxDollars, our hourly rate worked out at around $4.28 (including the $5 signup bonus).
• Getting paid: You’ll initially need at least $15 to redeem your rewards. After that, you can get payments in increments of $10 or more.

4. Zoombucks

If you’re willing to settle for a smaller signup bonus, consider creating an account with Zoombucks to make money by taking surveys (as well as by watching videos, signing up for offers, and other tasks).

This site can even make a viable online job for teenagers, as 13+ year-olds can sign up with parental permission. But don’t expect this gig to pay your college tuition—payouts are low, even for this type of work.

What you need to know about Zoombucks

• What Zoombucks says you can earn: Zoombucks claims that its members earn up to $20 per day.
• What we earned: When we tried out Zoombucks, we calculated that our hourly rate was around $0.37 (including the signup bonus of $0.45), which would make it very challenging to rake in $20 a day.
• Getting paid: We were able to get paid with just $1 worth of rewards (although Zoombucks led us to believe that we would need more for our first redemption).

5. PrizeRebel

Like Swagbucks and InboxDollars, PrizeRebel offers a variety of ways to earn in addition to surveys. You can sign up for deals, enter raffles, use the PrizeRebel browser extension, or jump through other hoops to earn more rewards.

However, the earning potential is a bit modest, so you might want to check out other rewards sites before you try this one.

What you need to know about PrizeRebel

• What PrizeRebel says you can earn: Unlike many survey sites, PrizeRebel doesn’t specify how much you can earn with them.
• What we earned: We earned around $0.51 per hour when we tested the site (including the small $0.15 signup bonus).
• Getting paid: Points can be redeemed in $4 increments, which is a reasonably low minimum threshold.

6. GrabPoints

GrabPoints offers rewards in exchange for completing surveys, exploring offers, and watching TV. This is a particularly intriguing offer for screen junkies, who can turn their video viewing into cash and gift cards.

What you need to know about GrabPoints

• What GrabPoints says you can earn: GrabPoints claims that some members earn as much as $20 per day.
• What we earned: When we tested GrabPoints, our hourly rate worked out at around $0.23 (including the $0.44 signup bonus), which would make it difficult to rake in $20 per day.
• Earning with videos: The amount that you’ll make for watching videos via GrabPoints will depend on the partner. For example, Lootably offers 5 points per video watched, while Hideout.TV offers 7. 1
• Redeeming points: Points are redeemable as gift cards in various increments from $1, with points usually being worth $0.001 (although this may vary).

7. InstaGC

Fill out surveys and questionnaires in exchange for gift cards with InstaGC, aka “Instant Gift Card.” The site advertises over 320 gift cards to choose from and over 1.4 million gift cards redeemed to date.

A major draw of this platform is its claim that it delivers its gift cards immediately when you redeem them (whereas many other sites have a waiting period). However, many of the cash redemption options take at least a day, so InstaGC might not live up to its name if you’re redeeming your earnings as cash.

What you need to know about InstaGC

• What InstaGC says you can earn: InstaGC says you can earn $1–$20 per day or up to $1 per survey on the site.
• What we earned: When we tested InstaGC, our hourly rate worked out at an unimpressive $0.39 (including the $0.10 signup bonus), meaning that it would be difficult to manage $1–$20 per day.

8. Forthright

Forthright (also called Forthright Surveys) is a no-frills survey site with several advantages, including speedy payouts, a very low minimum redemption threshold of $0.01, and some pretty lucrative surveys (including a survey that paid us $5 for around 20 minutes’ work).

What you need to know about Forthright

• What Forthright says you can earn: Forthright claims you can earn $5–$10 a day with its partner surveys (which are one of two survey types the site offers).
• What we earned: We only earned about $1.47 per hour from Forthright’s partner surveys, but our overall hourly rate was around $2.94 (including both types of surveys offered on Forthright). As such, we’d say $5 per day is achievable as a target for your total earnings.

9. Toluna Influencers

Toluna Influencers, originally known as Toluna, has been around since 2000, so it’s pretty well established. It comes in both app and web versions and is mostly focused on surveys, although there are a few other tasks you can complete to earn rewards (e.g., games and daily polls).

Because Toluna is available in many different countries, it may be a good option if you want an app you can use while you’re traveling outside the US. However, the downsides include a weirdly complicated points system that makes it difficult to monitor your earnings.

What you need to know about Toluna Influencers

• What Toluna Influencers says you can earn: Toluna Influencers claims you can earn about $0.004–$16.67 (15–50,000 points) per survey on their site.
• What we earned: The surveys we did on Toluna Influencers paid us about $0.03–$1.47. Overall, we earned $1.28–$1.50 per hour on the site.

10. MyPoints

Founded way back in 1996, MyPoints is another very well-established cashback site, which also has an app version available. It’s similar to Swagbucks and InboxDollars in terms of the tasks it offers. You’ll probably also see many of the same deals on these sites.

MyPoints is quite good for travel-related rewards, so you might want to use it if you’re saving up for a vacation or another trip. However, as with Toluna Influencers, the downsides include an unnecessarily complicated points system.

What you need to know about MyPoints

• What MyPoints says you can earn: MyPoints says you can expect to be paid about $0.32–$3.78 (or 50–600 points) per survey. However, they say that higher paying surveys offer as much as $50.
• What we earned: We earned around $0–$1.07 (or 0–170 points) per survey we completed on MyPoints, so we were definitely at the lower end of their predicted pay range. Our overall hourly rate was around $2.69 (including the $5 signup bonus), which is not bad compared with many other platforms we’ve tested.

11. Branded Surveys

Branded Surveys is another simple survey site with both web and app versions. It’s a good choice if you want a basic survey platform without too many complicated features.

What you need to know about Branded Surveys

• What Branded Surveys says you can earn: Branded Surveys says you can make $0.50–$5 per survey.
• What we earned: When we tested Branded Surveys, we earned about $0.05–$1.05 per survey we took, so our experience was a bit disappointing. Our hourly rate came to about $1.47 per hour, overall (including the $1 signup bonus).

12. LifePoints

LifePoints is another fairly simple site that also has both web and app versions available. This platform’s signup bonus is a bit insulting, but it’s still a reasonable way to make a few dollars a day.

What you need to know about LifePoints

• What LifePoints says you can earn: LifePoints says you could easily earn $50–$250 a month by completing surveys every day.
• What we earned: When we used LifePoints, our hourly rate worked out at around $1.95 (including the signup bonus of $0.13–$0.14), so it would be feasible to earn over $50 a month by spending around an hour a day on surveys.

13. Opinion Outpost

Opinion Outpost is another site that keeps things fairly simple and doesn’t offer much besides surveys for earning.

However, we did have some problems cashing out with this site. We got our money eventually, but it gave us a bit of a headache.

What you need to know about Opinion Outpost

• What Opinion Outpost says you can earn: Opinion Outpost says an average survey pays out around $1 (10 points) but can be worth as much as $25 (250 points).
• What we earned: When we used Opinion Outpost, the most lucrative surveys we completed paid $1.20 (12 points), and we earned around $1.73 per hour overall (including the signup bonus of $0.50).

14. Ipsos iSay

If you’re looking for apps that offer signup bonuses, give Ipsos iSay a miss, as it offers no freebies to new users. It’s also not the best option for impatient types, as you’ll need to wait 96 hours after registering to redeem rewards.

What you need to know about Ipsos iSay

• What Ipsos iSay says you can earn: Ipsos iSay doesn’t give an average figure for how much you can earn per survey or per month.
• What other sources say you can earn: Reports online cite rates of around $0.25–$2 per survey.
• What we earned: Our most lucrative Ipsos iSay survey paid $1, and we earned around $1.88 per hour using the site.

15. KashKick

KashKick offers a few different tasks for earning. However, you’ll have to take a very strategic approach and select the tasks that pay the best for this platform to be worthwhile.

What you need to know about KashKick

• What KashKick says you can earn: KashKick doesn’t provide information about how much users can earn.
• What we earned: We earned around $0.82 per hour using KashKick, which included the sign up bonus of $1. This suggests that casual users can expect to earn just a few dollars per week or around $10–$15 per month on the site.

16. Prime Opinion

The Prime Opinion survey platform has a few points in its favor. Perhaps most importantly, it’s great for fast payouts, as you can reach the minimum redemption threshold within 2–3 hours, and withdrawals get processed almost immediately.

What you need to know about Prime Opinion

• What Prime Opinion says you can earn: Prime Opinion says that the average user of their site earns around $11 per day, that surveys pay up to $5 each, and that the average user withdraws cash on the same day they sign up.
• What we earned: When we used Prime Opinion, the highest-paying survey we took was worth $1.08 (108 points). Our hourly rate worked out to around $1.88, including a signup bonus of $1. We calculated that it would take around 7 hours to earn $11, so withdrawing on the first day is an ambitious goal.

17. ySense

ySense might not pay as much as other, similar platforms. However, it works in many different countries, so you might want to try it if you need a site you can use while traveling abroad.

What you need to know about ySense

• What ySense says you can earn: ySense claims that motivated earners spending 30 minutes to 1 hour each day on their surveys can make $100 or more per month.
• What we earned: We earned around $0.83 per hour using ySense, including the signup bonus of $0.05. At this rate, it would be a struggle to make $100 a month unless you took surveys full time.

18. Lootup

Lootup is one of the less promising platforms on our list in terms of earning potential. However, it still has some interesting selling points, including the unusual option to redeem your rewards in the form of cryptocurrency, as well as via PayPal, prepaid cards, and more.

It also has a $1 threshold for withdrawal, which is low compared with many other sites (which often require you to earn $5–$15 before you can get paid).

What you need to know about Lootup

• What Lootup says you can earn: Lootup says that some people make $5–$15 per week or $20–$50 per month on the site.
• What we earned: We earned an hourly rate of around $0.34 on Lootup, which included a signup bonus of $0.32. At this rate, you would have to spend at least a couple of hours a day on surveys to earn the amounts that Lootup promises.

The apps and websites on this list are ones we haven’t yet tested. However, they’re often recommended as good options for earning money with surveys.

Valued Opinions

Over 3 million people work with Valued Opinions to give feedback to brands, and you can be one of them. You can earn money by completing surveys on their own, or you can test various products and services and review your experience.

What you need to know about Valued Opinions

• What Valued Opinions says you can earn: Valued Opinions itself claims to have relatively high earning potential. It says that you can earn up to $7 for each survey you take.
• Getting paid: Online reports suggest that rewards can only be redeemed as gift cards for retailers like Target and Amazon, but not as direct cash.

Google Opinion Rewards

If you’re worried about finding a reputable survey site to join, ease your mind by downloading Google’s own survey app, Google Opinion Rewards. The app lets you fill out surveys, opinion polls, and reviews in exchange for either Google Play credit or cash (paid out via PayPal).

What you need to know about Google Opinion Rewards

• What Google Opinion Rewards says you can earn: Google doesn’t advertise pay rates, as they vary per survey and may depend on your answers.
• What other sources say you can earn: Other online sources indicate that surveys typically pay between $0.14–$0.50.

Poll Pay

Poll Pay has quickly become a social media darling, most likely due to its user-friendly app and appealing aesthetic. It claims that users can choose what surveys to take based on what appeals to them, what they qualify for, or which offer the highest rewards.

What you need to know about Poll Pay

• What Poll Pay says you can earn: Poll Pay says that most of its online surveys pay $0.50–$5.00 (and take 3–25 minutes to complete).
• Getting paid: There are limited options for redeeming rewards on Poll Pay. You can redeem only via PayPal or gift cards.

Zap Surveys

We had a terrible experience with Zap Surveys, as it failed to pay us for many of the surveys we took on it. Because of this, we can’t recommend it as a good way to make money with surveys.

What you need to know about Zap Surveys

• What Zap Surveys says you can earn: Zap Surveys says you can make anywhere from $0.10 to $0.70+ per survey on their site. They also say that one of their users made $235 in two months.
• What we earned: When we used Zap Surveys, we earned an hourly rate of about $0.39, including a signup bonus of $2. Earning at this rate, you’d have to spend about 10 hours a day taking surveys to earn $235 in two months—not very realistic.

We’ve already mentioned that there is no one best survey app or website. It depends on what you want out of a platform. However, you can use our reviews to help you consider the pros and cons of various survey sites and apps to help you pick one (or more) that will best suit your needs.

Before you choose an app to use for earning money with surveys, consider the following factors:

• Whether it offers a signup bonus
• The hourly rate of pay you can expect
• The minimum amount you’ll need to earn before you can withdraw
• The payment methods on offer (e.g., gift cards, PayPal, prepaid cards, etc.)
• How easy it is to qualify for surveys
• Whether you want to get paid for other tasks besides surveys
• Whether you plan to take surveys while traveling in other countries

As noted, there’s also no rule saying you have to pick just one app. Often, the best way to earn money with paid surveys is to sign up for multiple sites and spend just a few minutes on each per day, taking the most lucrative surveys on offer and switching to another site once you hit the point of diminishing returns.

In addition, you can search for other survey sites that specifically target your demographic or profession. For instance, there are many medical survey sites designed for doctors, nurses, and patients. You can also look into other, similar ways to make money, such as:

• Participating in paid focus groups
• Doing product testing