Earning Points
Some online surveys pay in cash money however, a larger percentage of online survey sites pay their members in reward “points” rather than doling out hard cash. Typically, the way it goes down is that you collect up enough points in your account and then redeem them for merchandise, cash or gift cards.
For example, many survey companies use an easy-to-understand point system where one point equals one penny. So right off the bat, you know what you are getting into earning-wise when you sign up to take the paid survey – no need to pull out a calculator. If your invitation says the paid survey is worth 300 points, then you know that is the cash equivalent of 3 dollars. Other survey sites have similar systems where the points are worth different values like 5 cents, 10 cents or 25 cents. Not quite as easy to calculate quickly, but still straightforward.
Some online survey sites have points that are actually just a fraction of a cent; it takes lots of points to just rack up 1 dollar. For example, one paid survey site that comes to mind (which won’t be mentioned because it is still technically an earning opportunity for you and I wouldn’t want to scare anyone away) only offers 1/30th of 1 cent. Yes, you read that correctly; you’d have to earn 3000 points just to earn a single buck.
Because there are so many types of point programs in place across hundreds of different survey sites, it is impossible to describe a standard system. The responsibility falls on you, the survey site member, to educate yourself about each company’s policy and how they award points. When you understand how you are being “paid” and the effort that goes along with each paid survey, you will quickly ferret out your favorite spots to take surveys online – come back and visit these gems often. Remember, not all survey site points are created equal!
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