Opinions are like belly buttons, everyone seems to have one. That’s why so many companies are willing to pay you to share yours. While survey companies will reward you in pennies and gift cards to answer questions, other companies are willing to pay you way better to participate in studies and focus groups. So we scoured the web for the Best Paying Research Studies Companies. So next time you feel like sharing your two cents, these 10 companies may pay you for the best for your time.
What Are Paid Research Studies?
It can be fairly easy to confuse research studies with paid surveys. Paid surveys are usually shorter online questionnaires that pay very little. Paid research studies are complex, may require you to visit a market research facility and come in different flavors. But they pay quite well as they’re usually lengthy and really extensive.
A paid research study can be the following:
- Focus groups – Usually involves going to a research facility, sitting with the researchers and your fellow participants and taking part in a discussion or study.
- One-on-one Interviews – This requires you discussing a topic with a researcher either one-on-one, via phone or online.
- In-home interviews – A researcher will visit you at your home for a one-on-one interview.
- Answering questionnaires – You may be asked to fill out a questionnaire either online, over the phone or get one sent to your mail box.
- Mock trial/mock jury – This is a group research usually done by lawyers who evaluate the potential reactions of jurors to evidences and arguments before a case goes to trial
- Taste testing – Usually involves consumers tasting products within a controlled environment and then sharing their opinion about the product.
Research Paid Studies Participation Requirements
While most research paid studies are free to join, most require you to be of a very specific demographic, usually filtered by age, location, occupation, annual salary and so on. However, there are standard minimum requirements that are uniform with most paid research companies including:
- Be at least 18 years of age
- Ability to read/speak in a specific language
- Be legally living in your country of residence
- Be able to get compensated through predetermined channels
How Much Money Can I Make?
How much you make mostly depends on the research method Involved, and how long it takes. The lengthier the method, the more you stand to make.
If you have to visit a facility to participate in a focus group, the pay can be up to $1,000. Whereas online questionnaires are the least lucrative, with most studies paying between $10-$100 for a full length survey. Interviews vary with the workload, location and length, with some paying as little as $50 while others paying upwards of $500.
Since most studies are based on demographics or invite-only, you can’t rely on paid research surveys for consistent income.
You stand a better chance if you have multiple streams of income rather than just depending on paid online research studies. That said, you can also make money reading emails, visiting websites, watching videos at sites like SwagBucks.com and FusionCash.com. But if you want a more stable and reliable way to make a full time income online, check outMy Best Work At Home Recommendation.
Top 10 Best Paying Online Research Studies
So now let’s check out the companies that will pay you to participate in online research studies.
Respondent, Inc. was founded by Harri Thomas, Jack Pratten and Pierrick Ganonin in 2016 on the way to becoming one of the most popular consumer research companies online. The New York-based company basically works as a marketplace where clients outsource respondents from all over the world. Clients can schedule timed timed survey questions, interviews and focus groups participants.
They pay respondents $140 an hour on average via PayPal or check immediately after the client approves your work. But gigs are rare to come by as the studies tend to target very specific groups. You can sign up as a respondent for free here.
Carnegie Mellon University Research
This University’s research department continuously conducts online studies about decision-making, human judgment, interpersonal perceptions, personal beliefs, attitudes, group performance and more. You can make around $10 per hour in cash and gift cards.
You can go here to sign up for free but you’ll have to be at least 18y/o to participate.. Surveys usually last 20 minutes, but they can be rare to come by. Just make sure you give out as much information as possible while signing up.
Probe Market Research is a New York-based market research recruiting company that assembles focus group members to take part in interviews, focus groups, research and the like. The company has been around since 2005.
You can expect to make over $400 for an entire study paid via check a few days after your study is complete. You can sign up online for free here, and most studies don’t require you to move locations. However, it seems you’ll need to belong to a special demographic to qualify for recruitment. .
Engage Studies conducts paid consumer and healthcare market research projects. If you are interested in taking part in focus groups, online discussions, website usability studies and more, you can go here to sign up.
You can earn anywhere between $50 and $250 sent to your PayPal after completion of a study. Be sure to provide as much information as possible to stand a higher chance of qualifying for studies. However, users say you can go for months without landing single survey invite, let alone qualifying for one. But they do pay quite well compared to other similar companies.
Resolution Research is among the popular research studies companies for focus groups, product and device tests, taste tests, mock juries, online surveys, in-person interviews and more. You can make as little as $2 and as much as $400 per session, and a couple of cents for referring others.
The company pays via Payoneer or Amazon and Dining Dough Gift Cards, but payment may take 2-6 weeks once you hit that $10 minimum payout amount. However, as you’ll see here in our complete review, surveys can be rare and more often than not you’ll need to physically move to make money.
Also known as MTurk, Amazon Mechanical Turk hires members to participate in paid research studies when available. You can either get a direct invite or apply for one when available in the jobs board.
While normal surveys here pay a few cents to a couple of dollars, some research studies can pay upwards of $100. MTurk pays you immediately you complete a task to either your bank account or in Amazon gift cards. You can go here to get started. Unfortunately these types of studies are only available to US residents and they can be hard to come by. You can read out full Amazon MTurk review here.
Besides normal short surveys, Vindale Research also enables their clients to assemble focus groups from available panelists. As a panelist, you can make up to $100 an hour participating in interviews, research studies, product trials and focus groups.
Vindale pays every start and end of the month via PayPal or mailed check as long as you’ve made at least $50. However, some users say they ran into some lame payment issues with the company. You can read all about that here. All the same signing up is free and you can do that by going here.
Inspired Opinions is perhaps one of the oldest research studies companies around, dating back to the mid 60’s. They pay you to participate in focus groups in person at any of their 16 offices across the US and answer surveys over the phone.
You can make around $50 an hour and they pay via PayPal once you earn at least $10. But they only pay in gift cards. Gift cards may be as good as money but I know some of ya’ll just prefer cold hard cash. Anyway, you can go here to get started. You can also read our full Vindale Research review to find out more.
American Consumer Opinion (ACOP) is another company that will pay you to do online paid research studies besides answering short surveys questions. You can make upwards of $100 if you fit a certain demographic and land well-paying gigs. They pay via PayPal cash, HyperWallet cash and Sweepstake tickets. You can also donate to charity.
However, research studies are not always available and according to some users, making money can take weeks after you hit the $10 minimum. Joining is free and you can go here to sign up. Feel free to read more about the company in our full review here.
WatchLab is among the popular market and consumer research studies companies with interests in medicine, tech, finance and education research. They conduct in-person, in-home and online focus groups, interviews, mock jury, taste tests and more.
You can make anywhere between $40-$100 per study. They pay exclusively via check sent to your mail. You can go here to sign up for free. The opportunity is open to anyone above the age of 18 years living in the US. All the same, it’s no guarantee that if you sign up you’ll immediately land a gig. They take you through a screening process to determine the best qualified candidates based on the available opportunities.
So Are Paid Online Research Studies Legit?
Taking part in paid online studies is a legit way of making a little money on the side when you have the time. However, they are very rare and you’ll need to belong to a unique demographic to stand a chance of landing regular studies.
So the best way to earn earn real money from paid online research studies is to sign up with several companies.
That being said, you can also make money doing other things online, besides taking part in research studies. You can get paid to read emails, visit websites, watch videos, play games and more at sites like SwagBucks.com and FusionCash.com.
If you’re looking for a legitimate business opportunity that will pay the bills consistently, then My Best Work At Home Recommendation might be something you want to look into instead. You’ll be able to earn real money working part time or full time online.
Well, it’s a wrap. Which of the above mentioned companies would you join? Feel free to chime in on the comments section below!
Until next time
Eddy with a Y