There’s a common misconception that surveys are a waste of time and are poorly paid. But that just isn’t the case. Join the right sites and you can make £1000s without ever having to leave your home. Between the sites listed below, I’ve made more than £20,000.
A few years back, I had racked up quite a lot of debt. My credit card bill was rising, our family income had dropped and we had three children under the age of four.
So, I looked at new ways to make money, one of which was completing online surveys.
Now, initially, it was quite a hard slog. I remember one night shift during my break, I spent 30-minutes earning 20 pence. Who in their right mind would work for so little? I just knew that there were better-paying sites out there.
So, I’ve spent the last 10 years testing and trying new survey sites. And it’s been a game-changer. Thanks to surveys, I’ve cleared my debt, paid off a chunk of our mortgage and managed to afford to have the heating on one day in December.
The best thing is, anyone can do it. You don’t need any special skills. All you need is a device and an internet connection.
Let’s take a look at some of the best available and how much I’ve earned.
Plus, here’s a clip of me appearing on BBC Morning Live talking about my earnings from surveys and interviews.
Prolific
This has been my biggest earning site since I started taking surveys more seriously. Surveys from Prolific can be quite fun, as they often involve tests of your mind rather than asking you about products. Plus, they can pay very well. As you can see, I’m not far off £10,000 from this site alone.
In fact, I’m such a big fan, I roped my wife into taking part. She’s slacking a little bit, but has managed close to £7,000.
Please note that because of Prolific’s popularity, there is often a waiting list to join. I certainly recommend you do it, though.
Branded Surveys
This is another site I use regularly. Unfortunately, Branded Surveys doesn’t keep track of my total earnings, but I’ve easily made over $5,000 since I’ve been a member. Yes, they pay in US$, but everything I earn is converted into £.
YouGov
Again, YouGov doesn’t keep track of my earnings, but I’ve made over £1,000 from this site. A fair amount of my money hasn’t actually come from their main survey site. I’ve made quite a bit from YouGov Finance (which sadly has closed), sharing my streaming data and YouGov Plus.
Qmee
Although Qmee has a desktop site, it also comes with a handy app. This, I find really handy when I’m out and about… or I can’t be bothered to move three feet to get to my laptop. I can also earn cashback from shopping and money from downloading and playing games. Decent earnings of over £1,350 from Qmee.
Testable
This is a site very similar to Prolific. Again, surveys are often set to test your mind and memory rather than your views on life. Unfortunately, it falls short of beating Prolific as there just aren’t as many surveys. Still, I’m sitting at just over $1,000.
Ipsos iSay
This is another site I love, but not really because of the money. The pay is okay, but the main plus point of iSay is the fact you get the chance to test products. I’ve been sent all manner of items, from toilet paper to chocolate bars to alcohol.
Earnings haven’t been so great with this site, but I estimate I’ve earned over £750. But it’s still a lot of fun.
OnePulse
I’m a big fan of this app. The more you use it, the more you earn. For every Money Pulse you answer (which is usually three multiple-choice questions), you’ll earn at least 30 pence. But you can increase this amount by answering XP Pulses too. The more XP you have, the more you earn.
This app has earned me over $1,500.
Eureka
The last survey company I want to mention is Eureka. It’s another app and so is great for earning when I’m out of the house. In all honesty, I’ve only earned just over £100 from Eureka, but that’s mainly because I haven’t been using it for that long.
Which sites should you join?
I would recommend all of them. The more sites you belong to, the more you can earn. And it’s important to know that your background may give you more earning opportunities on some sites compared to others.
And now the bad news
Unfortunately, you may have to pay tax on your earnings from surveys. If you earn over £1,000 per year from a side income, you will need to declare it on a self-assessment form on the HMRC website. This is actually far more straightforward than you would imagine. And who doesn’t love giving their hard-earned cash to the government…