Over the last few years I’ve gotten nearly 100 emails asking me what I thought of legitimate survey sites and why I’ve never listed any here.
Well, the truth is…. it’s just not my favorite way to earn extra money.
Personally, I get really bored filling out online forms and I often find with survey companies, I’m only making $7-8/hour.
But, it’s easy. If you’re interested in getting paid to take surveys, I’ve finally put together a list of our favorites.
It can be a little time consuming, but my recommendation is to signup for all sixteen survey sites at once. And that’s because each site is probably only going to be able to match you up with one or two surveys a month.
So, if you want to make any real money — you need to be a member of a LOT of panels.
I do this kind of work while I’m watching TV and if I’m able to complete all the surveys sent to me, I’m usually able to earn $250+/month.
Without further ado, here are the sixteen best survey sites…
1. Swagbucks
This is a definitely a reader favorite, because of the wide variety of ways to make extra cash beyond taking surveys. They are also famous for handing out free points (they’re called SB) at random just for being a member. It’s free to sign up and you’ll get a $5 bonus when you take your first survey.
You can redeem your SBs for cash via Paypal or gift cards to a number of popular retailers, including Amazon.
Sign up for Swagbucks here.
2. MyPoints
MyPoints is more than just a cash-back shopping portal. It’ll also pay you to take surveys.
Once you sign up and tell the site a little bit about yourself, it will find you surveys to take. Each is worth points that you can cash out for gift cards to popular shopping sites — like Amazon.
3. Survey Junkie
Survey Junkie’s clean look and “cashout wheel” keep you motivated to take as many surveys as you want.
The surveys are relatively quick to complete and reward you with points. Once you earn 1,000 points — or $10 — you can cash. Some surveys offers up to 300 points.
My dashboard was always full of surveys to take — and I cashed out with a $10 Amazon gift card within a month of signing up. You can also have cash deposited to your Paypal account, but I chose to support my Amazon addiction instead.
4. Inbox Dollars
I’ve written about Inbox Dollars before because I’ve made some easy money signing up for trial offers on their site. But, they also offer several short, daily surveys that you can take.
If you take all four each day, you could earn an extra $730/year. Not too bad.
Sign up for Inbox Dollars here.
5. Opinion Outpost
This company conducts polls for governments, public bodies, and local businesses. I usually get 5-10 surveys a month from them, so it’s not uncommon for me to get a check every couple of months.
Sign up for Opinion Outpost here.
6. eMiles
If you love to travel or have been craving a weekend getaway, you might want to join this survey site of more than 3 million members.
It’s called eMiles, and you get rewarded in points for hotels and flights for doing simple tasks — taking surveys, watching ads and claiming deals. The site claims to save consumers $20 to $30 on their next trip just by spending an hour on the site.
You can redeem these points for flights with major airlines like American Airlines, United or Southwest. If you’re not much of a traveler, you can also use them at Amazon or Starbucks.
Signing up takes approximately 10 seconds. You’ll just need your email address and to be a U.S. resident. Plus, for a limited time, you can snag bonus points, too.
7. Nicequest
Nicequest allows you to take surveys on your computer or on your phone via their mobile app.
You can sign up for free with your name, email and date of birth. You’ll get a bonus of 40 “shells,” Nicequest’s online currency.
After you fill out surveys that are sent to your inbox, you collect shells and redeem them for rewards and gift cards in Nicequest’s online shop.
The shop has hundreds of choices, including electronics, books, toys, beauty supplies and housewares. On average, you need 110 Shells to redeem for a $10 gift card.
8. Springboard Panel
As part of the Springboard Panel, you get to give feedback on a new ideas and test new products for extra cash. They reward you with points that you can use towards cash or gift cards.
Plus, once you join the site, you’ll be entered to win a $1,000 and can earn additional entries for each survey you complete.
9. Point Club
PointClub is awesome because you’ll get points for every single survey you take — guaranteed. Plus, the company gives you $5 just for signing up!
Once you accrue enough of them, those points are redeemable for gift cards to a ton of useful vendors like Walmart, Amazon and PayPal. Heck, you can even cash them in for charity. Sign up for PointClub here.
10. Valued Opinions
Valued Opinions is one of the easiest and highest paying survey sites — with lots of surveys paying at least $1.50.
Signing up is easy, and the layout of the website is inviting and simple to navigate. You fill out your personal info and the site determines which surveys you’re qualified to take.
Although you can’t redeem your survey money for actual cash, you can redeem it for a Visa gift card, or purchase gift cards for major retailers such as Macy’s, Nike and Amazon in $20 increments.
11. Harris Poll
This is another favorite because it’s run by the Nielsen company (so you know they’re legitimate).
They’re also famous for contacting survey panelists for local focus groups in their area.
One of my readers was asked to participate in a focus group for 2 hours about food and she earned an easy $80!
Sign up for Harris Poll Online here.
12. Ipsos Panel
You might recognize the Ipsos Panel name because they’re the same company that does most of the political polling during elections.
I’ve heard some of the top-end surveys can pay up to $95, but those are rare and can take awhile to complete. Most surveys pay a buck or two and only take 10-15 minutes.
Also, Ipsos rewards you with points which can then be redeemed for Paypal or gift cards to Amazon, iTunes, etc. (example: 1,000 points can be redeemed for $10 Paypal).
13. Vip Voice
This is a pretty popular site with readers that like the gamification behind taking surveys. Vip Voice gives you points after every survey which can lead towards gift cards, free vacations and electronics.
After you join VIP Voice and take a few surveys, look out for a special survey that offers a $25 reward (sit tight, you might have to take several surveys before you see this one).
Sign up for Vip Voice here.
14. YouGov
YouGov is a global online research and data company with more than 5 million members who actively participate in the decisions that affect our world.
From what members think of this year’s Academy Award-winning film “Moonlight,” to what they expect out of the economy under the Trump administration, it aims to track the pulse of the world.
As a member, you’ll share your opinions by completing online surveys and redeem points for cash and rewards from Visa, Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, iTunes, and more.
YouGov is actively recruiting new Hispanic and African American members for its panels.
15. OneOpinion 
OneOpinon makes it simple to make extra money for just giving — you guessed it — your opinions.
It’s free and only takes 60 seconds to sign up. Plus, you can take your first survey right away and decide when you want to take them.
You’ll get points for every survey you take and can cash out for prizes like Visa debit cards as soon as you hit 25,000.
16. Pinecone Research
They have a good amount of surveys, but what’s unique about this company is that you get paid cash after every survey you take. And there’s no minimum to cash-out (pays via Paypal).
The surveys pay $3 for each one completed. Sign up for PineCone here.
These aren’t the only survey companies out there — just my favorites. But, I’ve written some tips about how to avoid survey scams here in case you stumble upon another site…
