Top free online survey tools
Online survey tools
1. MySurvey
The number one reason why I liked MySurvey the best out of the 30-something sites I had the privilege or misfortune to try, wasno doubt its versatility. This versatility is present not only in the reward system and the referral program – which are important aspects on their own – but clearly shows in their surveys too. Filling out boring surveys always feels like hard work, even though it’s really not if you think about it. With MySurvey, you will see a huge variety of different topics.Depending on the length of these surveys, you will be able to earn anything from 10 to 500 points per, provided you’ve managed to qualify of course. For more information, check out our MySurvey Review.The cleanly designed website has a large number of surveys, so you’ll get a chance to fill out plenty, and they are usually matched to your profile and interests. And to encourage you to stay active, monthly sweepstakes are run which randomly select 10 people and award them with 1,000 points each ($100) for regularly filling out surveys.As well as using your laptop, you can fill in MySurvey forms on the move by using their app available for both Apple and Android phones. This is perfect because surveys should really be about filling time, rather than dedicating particular time to them, so being able to pass time in queues or while commuting and simultaneously make money is very appealing.While I was timed out a couple of times, I have managed to successfully complete the vast majority of my surveys, and for more points (and equivalently, money) than at any other sites that I have tried. 1200 points equals to about $10 and you can get as much as 500 points for a single survey. That’s pretty good.The other thing is the reward system. There could be a service that offers even more options than MySurvey, but the sheer amount of possibilities that I’ve ran into here was simply astounding.Amazon gift cards and PayPal are obviously popular choices, so naturally like most sites MySurvey had those. These guys did not stop there though. At the time of writing (I double checked) they also offer various sweepstakes, gift cards to restaurants, you can donate to charities like UNICEF through them, they have iTune gift cards, their very own merchandising products and also Starbucks, Walmart and Tango gift cards among many more options!
Summary: A real favourite, MySurvey is a popular panel allowing members to participate in market research surveys for money, covering topics like the media, tourism and products like electronics. It’s easy to set up an account on the site and begin earning points, which vary between 10 and 500 per survey, but are typically around the 100 mark for an average survey which would take 15 minutes to fill out.To top it off, their minimum required balance for withdrawals currently stands at a measly $10 limit, which is once again something that is very good for us survey enthusiasts. We don’t like when we are limited regarding our withdrawal options. At MySurvey, there are no such limits.
2. Swagbucks
One of the most popular sites, and rightfully so, Swagbucks offers traditional surveys as well as a range of additional ways to make cash. Filling out surveys for money will reward you with points called Swagbucks which can be cashed out through PayPal, or redeemed as gift cards for shops including Amazon.com. As a sweetener, they’ll even give you $5 just for signing up.Swagbucks remains popular as they are a reliable site, offering novel ways to earn rewards, including playing games and watching videos. Completing polls and surveys for money takes around 10 minutes each and can make up the bulk of your time on the site. You won’t always qualify, and getting to a late stage in a survey application process and then finding out you’re not qualified can be pretty galling. The slickly designed website is straightforward and pleasing to use and also allows you to make money on your shopping by offering a range of affiliate links. By simply clicking on the Swagbucks link and shopping at sites including Amazon, Walmart and Nike, you will earn points, as those companies are paying Swagbucks to link to them, and you get a share of their fee.The site will even allow you to monetise your internet searches, if you swap from Google or Safari to their own search engine. The Swagbucks search engine, which is actually running Yahoo, will pay you Swagbucks every time you search. For games, there are options like Scrabble and Wheel of Fortune, which won’t pay you much, but could be worth a go if you fancied playing a game anyway! Swagbucks TV allows you to watch advertising videos on a range of topics, including news, fitness and entertainment. There’s a snag – your earnings are capped at 150 Swagbucks, but it is worth a look if you’re prone to wasting time watching viral clips.Free to join, the site runs a range of special offers, including awarding prizes at random, giving you daily targets to hit for which you receive bonus points, and posting deals on their social media feeds. They have a great new app and a strong referral scheme. However, like everything, it’s not perfect – it can start to suck up a lot of your time. Swagbucks runs on the premise of incentivising day to day internet use to make both you and them money, so it is worth being aware of this so it doesn’t end up seeping into too much of your life!
3. Vindale Research
One of the oldest and longest running survey sites, Vindale Research is a legitimate option for making some money from filling out surveys. Based in New York, the company offers both traditional surveys and evaluations, by testing products or online services. It’s free to sign up, and surveys pay between $1 and $5 each and product testing starts at $5 and moves up from there. The site claims significantly higher rates of pay, but as this involves slightly inflated pricing, for example discounting fees you may have to pay out to join subscription sites before receiving your end payout, they won’t be included here.There’s lots of additional ways to boost your income on Vindale, including rewards for opening adverts sent to your email account, or small payments for watching advertising videos online. The site pays out in plain and simple cash, and doesn’t mess around with rewards or gift cards, which many people familiar with the survey landscape find a welcome relief. However, as with OnePoll, you’ll have to earn $50 before you can remove you money from the site, which may not be as tempting as some companies where the threshold is much lower.Sometimes survey invitation links direct you to other survey companies, rather than keeping things in-house, which can feel a bit like spam. As is common in the industry, you can sometimes get stuck filling out lengthy qualifying questions which take up to 30 minutes just to see if you’re eligible for a survey. Needless to say if you find out you are not then this is extremely frustrating.One nice feature is the ability to shop through Vindale, as they often have offers available through affiliate links. Before buying something new, like an appliance, it is worth signing into their easy to use website and checking if you can get it for less through Vindale. There’s also a popular daily consumer survey paying $1.50 which you can complete every day, for an easy and reliable boost.
4. Pinecone Research
Pinecone is a notoriously exclusive company offering surveys and product testing – by invite only! While you can’t just sign up like our other top nine websites, Pinecone still makes it to the top, because if you manage to get in, it can prove to be extremely lucrative with great paying deals.Joining isn’t as straightforward as merely signing up, because you need an invite. However it’s not as tough as it sounds, as there are plenty of links doing the rounds online if you look hard enough, and Pinecone also advertises on websites, so you might get lucky by keeping an eye on banner adverts. Once you’ve signed up, you’ll be vetted to see if you qualify – based on whatever demographics their clients want at that point – and if so, the fun begins!This site pays highly – at least $3 a survey and up to $6 for testing products. If you stay with them, the pay even increases by a few dollars, taking the wage far above the standard survey rate. Owned by the renowned New York market research company Nielson, Pinecone offers a variety of content and emails surveys to members as and when they are suited to you.By only sending you questionnaires you are already qualified for, Pinecone wastes far less of your time than many sites which require you to fill our qualifying questions before starting each survey. However some users have said they don’t receive very many surveys, which could be a consequence of their careful filtering. Equally the site retains the right to remove you from their panel if you no longer fit their desired demographic, so make the most of your membership while you have it!Rewards are paid in points, with 100 points totting up to $1. You only need 300 points, or $3, to claim your funds, which is a lot lower than many survey sites. Pinecone pays out cash via PayPal, or like many sites, offers Amazon vouchers, along with those for other stores, including Walmart.Product testing can be a fun way to make some extra money and also get a chance to try something new before the general public. This should be treated as a bonus though, as you have no control over whether you’ll be chosen, as it is down to whether the company thinks you are the correct audience. The firm also runs lucky draws throughout the year, where you can win between $500 and $5,000, and you are entered into them as a reward each time you fill out a survey.
Source:surveycool.com