How do i take surveys for money

Taking surveys for money won't earn you a lot, but some online survey sites are more fruitful than others. Maximize the return on your time by focusing on these legit paid survey sites.

How do i take surveys for money
Grant Sabatier

last updated December 21, 2022 18 min read

There are dozens of legitimate surveys that pay money for your opinion. However, not every online survey site or survey company is reputable or worth your time.

Selecting the right paid survey websites can make a big difference, especially since you won’t qualify for every survey you see. Paid surveys have eligibility requirements based on your demographic information and personal habits, so you don’t want to waste time on the wrong survey sites.

The survey sites in this guide are Millennial Money tested and approved!

In This Article

11 Best Survey Sites to Make Money in 2022

Here are the highest-paying sites to get paid to take surveys in your spare time:

  1. 🏆 Branded Surveys
  2. Swagbucks
  3. LifePoints
  4. Survey Junkie
  5. Inboxdollars
  6. MyPoints
  7. Ipsos i-Say Panel
  8. Toluna
  9. Suzy
  10. Opinion Outpost
  11. Valued Opinions

1. Branded Surveys

🏆 Best Overall

The Branded Surveys platform offers 100 points just for signing up and has several brief “get to know you” survey questions.

There’s also a Branded Elite loyalty program. As you take surveys, you advance through bronze, silver, and gold levels. You move up by collecting credits for completed surveys or tasks like referring friends and family. Higher levels unlock more earning potential and better survey opportunities.

You can get money sent to your PayPal account, use Branded Pay (a bank account transfer in the United States), or get gift cards for restaurants and major retailers.

  • Availability: US, UK, Canada
  • Age requirement:16+ years old
  • Trust:  4.2 based on 66k reviews on Trustpilot

Branded Surveys Details

Average Payout (per survey)

$0.30 – $3

Payment Method

PayPal, bank transfer, or gift cards

Minimum to Cash Out

$5

$$ Sign Up Bonus

100 points

Sign Up At Branded Surveys

Read our full Branded Surveys review

2. Swagbucks

Swagbucks is a fun rewards program that allows you to earn points by shopping online, watching videos, and taking surveys. At a minimum, you can use the Swagbucks search engine to do your regular daily web browsing.

Once you sign up, you can earn Swagbucks (SB) points to redeem for cash back or gift cards for popular retailers. Swagbucks offers tens of thousands of paid survey opportunities. It’s one of the biggest and most legitimate survey companies available.

  • Availability: US, Ireland, France, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, India, Canada, Spain, Portugal, UK
  • Age requirement: 13+ years old
  • Trust:  4.3 based on 31k reviews on Trustpilot

Swagbucks Details

Average Payout (per survey)

$0.40 – $2

Payment Method

PayPal or gift cards

Minimum to Cash Out

$3 for gift cards; $25 for PayPal

$$ Sign Up Bonus

$20

Sign Up At Swagbucks

Read our full Swagbucks review

3. LifePoints

LifePoints is one of the largest influencer communities worldwide. The company offers a welcome bonus of 10 LifePoints for new users.

Qualifying for paid surveys on LifePoints is easier than with competitors, and most of the surveys can be completed in 10 minutes or less. This can lead to lower payouts per survey; however, the ROI of your time is comparable and you won’t have to worry about being tied to a lengthy survey.

  • Availability: US, Canada, UK, and 41 other countries around the world
  • Age requirement: 18+ years old
  • Trust:  4.3 based on 27k reviews on Trustpilot

LifePoints Details

Average Payout (per survey)

$0.60 –$1

Payment Method

PayPal or Amazon gift card

Minimum to Cash Out

$20

$$ Sign Up Bonus

10 LifePoints

Sign Up At LifePoints

Read our full LifePoints review

4. Survey Junkie

With Survey Junkie, you’ll earn automatic points by signing up and completing your profile. It’s 100% free, and you can sign up with Facebook, Google+, or any email address.

From there you get paid points for each completed survey. When you reach the payout threshold, your points can be transferred to PayPal, cash, or a free gift card.

Survey Junkie is easy to use and doesn’t spam you with emails. Plus, it’s hard to run out of survey invitations since it offers so many.

  • Availability: US, Canada, Australia
  • Age requirement: 18+ years old
  • Trust:  4.3 based on 41k reviews on Trustpilot

Survey Junkie Details

Average Payout (per survey)

$1 – $3

Payment Method

PayPal, eGift cards, or bank transfer

Minimum to Cash Out

$10 (1000 points)

Sign Up Bonus

N/A

Sign Up At Survey Junkie

Read our full Survey Junkie review

5. InboxDollars

With a quick sign-up process (literally took me about 30 seconds!) and a simple format, InboxDollars works on a real cash reward system, not a point system. If you do a few quick surveys regularly throughout the day, you can earn quite a bit in less time than you’d think.

InboxDollars also offers rewards for carrying out everyday tasks, like playing games online, watching videos, reading emails, and online shopping.

You can get paid with checks, an Amazon gift card, or regular gift vouchers.

  • Availability: US, UK (as InboxPounds)
  • Age requirement: 18+ years old
  • Trust:  4.2 based on 34k reviews on Trustpilot

InboxDollars Details

Average Payout (per survey)

Up to $5

Payment Method

Check, prepaid VISA or gift cards

Minimum to Cash Out

$30

$$ Sign Up Bonus

$5

Sign Up At InboxDollars

Read our full InboxDollars review

6. MyPoints

MyPoints allows you to earn gift cards for answering questions, taking polls, watching videos, and completing other online activities like shopping.

With MyPoints, you earn points even when you don’t qualify for a given survey, and it offers a welcome bonus of either a $10 Amazon gift card or a $10 Visa gift card.

However, it’s worth noting that many offers will navigate you away from the MyPoints portal and onto third-party sites, which can be less intuitive to use.

  • Availability: US, Canada
  • Age requirement: 13+ years old
  • Trust:  4.4 based on 18k reviews on Trustpilot

MyPoints Details

Average Payout (per survey)

$2.50

Payment Method

Gift cards

Minimum to Cash Out

$3

$$ Sign Up Bonus

$10

Sign Up At MyPoints

Read our full MyPoints review

7. Ipsos i-Say Panel

One of the largest online survey sites, i-Say by Ipsos lets you earn points towards free Amazon gift cards, PayPal, cash, or merchandise.

The minimum reward threshold is low, so you can get gift cards fast. You can also use points to purchase merchandise. If you don’t have enough points to cover an item, you can pay the difference in cash from your PayPal account.

One downside, however, is that the surveys themselves don’t offer the highest compensation rates. So keep that in mind before signing up.

  • Availability: United States
  • Age requirement: 18+ years old
  • Trust:  4.2 based on 43k reviews on Trustpilot

Ipsos i-Say Panel Details

Average Payout (per survey)

$0.10 – $1

Payment Method

PayPal or gift cards

Minimum to Cash Out

$10 for gift cards; $15 for PayPal or VISA

Sign Up Bonus

N/A

Sign Up At Ipsos i-Say Panel

Read our full Ipsos i-Say Panel review

8. Toluna

Toluna is a survey app based on the theme of brands; it boasts that you can use the surveys as a chance to let your opinion be known and influence companies.

You can participate in daily lotteries through the app, too, which could win you a million points (around $300). It also has a social side; various members report they enjoy the community.

You can receive your balance as a PayPal cash transfer or a gift card. Be careful not to leave your points building up too much, though—they’ll expire 16 months after you earn them.

  • Availability: Worldwide
  • Age requirement: 16+ years old (but any awards earned by a minor will be issued to their legal guardian)
  • Trust:  2.1 based on 4.7k reviews on Trustpilot

Toluna Details

Average Payout (per survey)

$1 – $5

Payment Method

PayPal or gift cards

Minimum to Cash Out

$10

Sign Up Bonus

N/A

Sign Up At Toluna

Read our full Toluna review

9. Suzy

Suzy is a newer tech-forward platform that provides surveys, focus groups, interviews, and product testing to give companies across a wide range of industries insights into how audiences engage with their products.

The platform delivers surveys to consumers through the Crowdtap platform. A lot of surveys can be completed in a few minutes’ time, but you could also be eligible for more in-depth questionnaires and interviews with higher payouts.

One downside is that it only pays out its users with gift cards, which are delivered to your inbox within 2 days. However, you can cash out when you hit $5, a lower minimum than some sites.

  • Availability: US
  • Age requirement: 17+ years old
  • Trust: 2.3 (based on 553 Trustpilot reviews of Crowdtap)

Suzy Details

Average Payout (per survey)

$0.50 –$2

Payment Method

Gift cards

Minimum to Cash Out

$5

Sign Up Bonus

N/A

Sign Up At Suzy

10. Opinion Outpost

A company with a low payout threshold and straightforward design, Opinion Outpost is easy for paid survey beginners. It works on a points system, and you can cash out to your PayPal account or gift cards for popular retailers, making it flexible, too.

The site offers a high number of surveys on any given day, increasing the odds that you’ll qualify for at least a few. But, the average earning is fairly low.

  • Availability: United States
  • Age requirement: 17+ years old
  • Trust:  3.5 based on 4k reviews on Trustpilot

Opinion Outpost Details

Average Payout (per survey)

$0.50 –$5

Payment Method

PayPal or gift cards

Minimum to Cash Out

$5 for gift cards; $10 for PayPal

Sign Up Bonus

N/A

Sign Up At Opinion Outpost

Read our full Opinion Outpost review

11. Valued Opinions

While you might not see a lot of surveys, your odds of qualifying for Valued Opinions surveys are relatively high.

The Valued Opinions platform uses your profile information to help match you to opportunities, so you only see relevant paid surveys.

In most cases, you earn between $1 and $5 for each survey, which takes around 15 to 20 minutes to complete. New survey invitation emails tell you approximately how long the survey will take, and give you a deadline.

  • Availability: United States
  • Age requirement: 17+ years old
  • Trust:  3.2 based on 2.6k reviews on Trustpilot

Valued Opinions Details

Average Payout (per survey)

$1 –$5

Payment Method

Gift cards

Minimum to Cash Out

$20

Sign Up Bonus

N/A

Sign Up At Valued Opinions

Read our full Valued Opinions review

Summary of Top Paid Online Surveys for Money

SiteAverage Payout (Per Survey)Payment MethodMinimum To Cash OutBranded Surveys$0.30 – $3PayPal, bank transfer, or gift cards$5Swagbucks$0.40 – $2PayPal or gift cards$3 for gift cards; $25 for PayPalLifePoints$0.60 – $1PayPal or Amazon gift card$20Survey Junkie$1 – $3PayPal, eGift cards, or bank transfer$10 (1000 points)InboxDollarsUp to $5Check, prepaid VISA or gift cards$30MyPoints$2.50Gift cards$3Ipsos i-Say Panel$0.10 – $1PayPal or gift cards$10 for gift cards; $15 for PayPal or VISAToluna$1 – $5PayPal or gift cards$10Suzy$3 minimumGift cards$5Opinion Outpost$0.50 – $5PayPal or gift cards$5 for gift cards; $10 for PayPalValued Opinions$1 – $5Gift cards$20

Other Survey Sites Reviewed

While these survey sites did not make our best list, here are other options you can explore:

  • E-Rewards
  • KashKick
  • Survey Voices
  • Survey Club
  • Pinecone Research
  • PointClub
  • PrizeRebel

Ultimate Surveys For Money ROI Calculator

Once you’re signed up and ready to take surveys, use this calculator to prioritize which surveys or activities to complete first. This will help you identify the highest-paid activities.

The key to success is to only take surveys that have the highest time-to-point (payout) ratio. If you’re going to make money taking surveys, it’s important to identify the surveys that will pay the most for the least amount of time.

Unfortunately, this isn’t always clear. Each platform values its points or rewards differently, making it hard to compare the top survey sites.

Our tool demystifies this, however, and lets you calculate how much each activity is offering to pay you – in simple, consistent dollars per hour.

Check it out!

Survey Platform

What survey site are you using? Each site values their points slightly differently.

Rewards Earned

How many reward points does the site say you'll get for completing the survey?

Time Required

How many minutes does it say the survey or activity will take to complete?

20 minutes

Calculate Reset


That survey pays

Tips for Earning the Most Money from an Online Survey Site

Online survey sites won’t make you rich, but there are a few ways you can maximize your earnings when taking surveys for money:

  • Fill out your profile: Not only can you usually earn a few welcome points by completing your personal profile when you sign up for a new survey site, but keeping your profile up to date with any life changes will help you get matched with relevant offers.
  • Use our calculator to prioritize the highest-paying surveys: Compared to a normal job where you earn a certain rate per hour, taking surveys for money is more obscure. In fact, survey sites will try to distract you from the ultimate goal: making the most money in the least amount of time. They do this by valuing the payouts in points (with unique redemption values) and separating the payout from the time requirement. Taking a few minutes to plug the offers into our calculator and then prioritizing the surveys that pay the most per hour will help you make more money overall.
  • Take advantage of free offers: You can sometimes earn points by referring friends, sharing something on social media, signing up for a free newsletter, answering a quick daily poll, or downloading the site’s app.

Best Practices When Taking Online Surveys

In addition to the money-maximizing tips, here are some other best practices to keep in mind when taking online surveys:

  • Create an email address just for survey sites: In our experience, many of the survey sites send daily emails – sometimes multiple each day. Signing up for these sites with a separate email will keep your main inbox clean.
  • Take breaks: Surveys can be long and tedious. Take frequent breaks to give your eyes a rest and to avoid answering inconsistently, which can get you blocked from a site.
  • Install antivirus software: This cautionary step helps ensure that your computer is protected, in case one of the sites directs you to a spammy third-party.
  • Under 18 crowd: Ask your parents! If you’re under 18, make sure you get permission from your parents to join the site and participate in surveys. Most of the sites that allow minor members require this step anyway, but you should run it by your parents regardless.

Warning Signs That A Survey Site May Not Be Legit

Taking online surveys is an attractive side hustle for a lot of people. Understandably so. Anyone can join a survey site and start making money, and it can be done from anywhere with an internet connection.

But keep in mind not every survey site on the web is trustworthy. If you venture away from those on our list, here are some things to look out for:

  • Membership fees: If you’re asked to pay money to join a survey site, move on…quickly. While some of the top survey sites also have a cashback feature – where you shop at legitimate retailers through the survey site and receive a percentage of your total back – that’s different than being asked for an upfront membership fee. Legitimate sites will always be free to join.
  • Lack of customer reviews: The best sites have been around for a while and you should be able to find real users sharing their experiences. Don’t waste your time on a survey site that has no buzz online.
  • Small payouts: As we’ve said, survey sites won’t make you rich, and you won’t find many opportunities to earn a ton on a single survey. But, once you’ve joined a few different sites, you’ll start to get a feel for the average payout opportunities. If you join a new site and find only penny surveys, don’t bother.
  • Asking for private information: If you’re asked to give your Social Security number, driver’s license, or bank account information, leave.
  • Difficult qualification: Answering a few preliminary questions only to find you don’t qualify for the full questionnaire is a reality of taking online surveys. However, if you find a site where you’re denied more often than you’re approved, you’re better off focusing your time somewhere else.

Frequently Asked Questions

You’ve probably got questions about these sites—why they’re offering easy money for surveys, and if they’re legit. Check out the frequently asked questions below for more useful information.

Are surveys for money legit?

Yes. There are legitimate surveys for money. All of the sites in our review are safe and legit places that will pay you for taking surveys online. The best part is that taking surveys can be done on your smartphone from anywhere, at any time. If you’re looking to develop a more sustainable, truly wealth-building side hustle for extra income, then check out our article on the best side hustles.

How much money can you make by taking surveys online?

You can make anywhere from less than a dollar to more than $20 by taking surveys online. Compensation depends on how long the surveys take and the number of surveys available, and how often you take them.

Do you get paid immediately after each survey?

Survey sites have a minimum payout threshold. This means you’ll need to continue completing surveys and building up points, then cash out those points once the threshold is met.

How do you get paid for surveys?

Most online survey sites let you build up “points” which represent a certain dollar value. Once you have enough points to meet the minimum payout threshold, you can convert those points to real dollars.

Here are the most common ways survey websites pay you:

  • Gift cards (virtual or posted to you)
  • PayPal cash
  • Bank transfer (mostly for USA residents)
  • Check in the mail
  • Donate to charity instead of paying you
  • Amazon gift card

How long does it take to complete an online survey?

Most surveys for money take about 15 – 20 minutes to complete. But some of the more thorough and targeted surveys can take up to an hour. Typically each site will tell you approximately how long the survey will take before you accept and start the job.

Is it just surveys for money, or are there other paid activities?

In addition to completing questionnaires, survey sites may let you get paid to:

  • Watch Videos
  • Shop Online
  • Surf the Web
  • Provide Product Feedback
  • Test Products
  • Mystery Shop

Check with each survey site above and read individual reviews to see the best activities to get paid for.

What surveys pay cash instantly?

Swagbucks, InboxDollars and MyPoints are survey sites that offer cash instantly or provide signing bonus points when you create a profile. Also, check out these articles for how to get free money and sites that offer sign-up bonuses!

Why do companies pay you to take surveys?

Brands, companies, and organizations pay you to take online surveys because they depend on the opinions of people like you to shape the products they develop and how they ultimately market them. Offering surveys for money is a way to get information directly from individuals, without having to pay for an expensive market research company.

How old do you have to be to take surveys for money?

Almost all survey websites allow anyone 18 and older to join. But, some select sites allow kids as young as 13 to complete activities with a parent or guardian. It’s best to read all the terms of each site before signing up.

How do I avoid survey scams?

Take these steps to avoid survey scams;

  • Don’t overshare personal info like your SSN.
  • Set up a new email account just for these survey sites.
  • Install anti-virus software on your device before signing up
  • Take breaks. It can take longer than you think.
  • Don’t pay to take surveys.
  • Remember you won’t get paid quickly.
  • Don’t depend on income from taking surveys. There are better gigs out there.

How can I make the most money taking online surveys?

To make the most money taking online surveys, only spend time on the survey sites with a steady stream of new surveys, reliable payouts, and favorable cash-out terms. Next, focus on surveys with a high payout-to-time requirement ratio. Consider the ROI of each survey. The better the ROI, the better your survey side hustle game.

What types of paid online surveys can I take?

Here are some of the most popular types of online surveys for money:

  • Advertising effectiveness surveys
  • Brand recognition surveys
  • Product appeal surveys
  • Surveys about services
  • Focus groups

Can kids take paid surveys?

Here are the best-paid survey sites for kids:

  • Swagbucks: 13 years or older
  • MyPoints: 13 years or older

Although these sites allow younger teens to join and earn money for surveys, young users should have consent from their parents or legal guardians before signing up.

Learn More:

  • Best Surveys for Kids
  • Best Surveys for Teens

Are Paid Surveys Worth It?

Regardless of which paid survey site, you use, the earnings can be pretty low and most require you to earn a certain dollar amount or number of points before they’ll pay out.

So consider carefully if it’s worth it to you to potentially make less than the federal minimum wage on your time spent taking surveys. This is also why we recommend taking surveys while commuting on the bus or train or sitting in front of the TV.

Which paid survey sites are legit?

Which paid survey sites are legitimate? Online surveys are a legitimate way for brands to get consumer feedback on their products and services. Some of the best survey sites include Branded Surveys, Toluna, Swagbucks, LifePoints, OnePoll, i-Say (IPSOS), InboxPounds, PopulusLive, Opinion Outpost and Valued Opinions.

What is the best survey to make money?

11 Best Survey Sites to Make Money in 2022.
🏆 Branded Surveys..
Swagbucks..
LifePoints..
Survey Junkie..
Inboxdollars..
MyPoints..
Ipsos i-Say Panel..
Toluna..

What survey site pays the most?

12 Highest Paid Survey Sites To Make Money Fast.
Survey Junkie..
Swagbucks..
LifePoints..
Vindale Research..
PointClub..
Branded Surveys..
Pinecone Research..
MySoapBox..