How to Make Extra Cash by Taking Surveys

Are you looking to make a little extra cash for the holiday season (or just in general)? You may be able to do just that by signing up for some paid survey sites. You then have the opportunity to make some extra cash or earn other great rewards without leaving the comfort of your home.

Here’s How it Works:

You sign up for a survey site and complete a member profile. Then you’ll get sent an email anytime they have a survey that matches your profile. The email should specify how long the survey will take and how much you’ll be compensated for your time. Most surveys take about 15-20 minutes and cash payments vary anywhere from $1 to $50. Payment is also sometimes issued in points that can be redeemed for prizes, products, or sweepstakes entries.

Where to Find Reputable Survey Companies

  • Survey Police: survey takers can go to this site and rate surveys based on things like speed of payment, reliability, and recruiting practices. They take this data and then rank the top 10 survey sites. Users can also file complaints against survey sites, and Survey Police tries to remedy these.
  • Harris Polls: this survey site awards a lot of points for each survey you take, and their rewards include things like gift cards, prizes and great sweepstakes entries.
  • ZoomPanel: this site sends out several survey invitations a week. Their rewards include the latest books and movies, electronics, appliances, jewelry, home decor and more.
  • Opinion Place: AOL’s survey site lets you choose your immediate reward from the following 5 rewards: Amazon gift cards, PayPal credits, AAdvatage Miles, AOL credits or sweepstakes entries.
  • Volition: provides a database of the best paid surveys out there.

Here are some of Erin from Frugal Living’s best tips for maximizing your survey earnings:

  1. Sign up for many survey sites to increase your odds of getting surveys.
  2. Respond to survey invitations as soon as you can since the spaces usually fill up quickly.
  3. Be sure to keep your profile up to date. This is used to determine which surveys you qualify for.

For more about making some extra cash with surveys and to learn how to avoid scams, check out Frugal Living’s How to Get Paid to Take Surveys.