How to Earn Up to £100 p/h with Paid Market Research Projects

The Penny Pincher Team
Jun 11
9 min read

Can you get paid for market research? What is involved for you to participate in paid market research projects?

Market research is a simple way to earn extra money in your spare time.

Companies want your honest opinions and genuine feedback. You can help shape products, services, and campaigns, and they'll pay you for your time!

You don’t need experience; there are no wrong answers. The people asking the questions want to know what you think, and they'll pay you up to £100 an hour, sometimes more, for your input. So, it's a great way to earn some extra money.

If this sounds like a great way to earn some extra money, you'll find my guide helpful in learning how paid market research works, what you can earn, and the best companies to sign up with.

I’ve participated in several studies, including testing washing-up liquid, providing feedback on shopping habits, and discussing mobile phone contracts and current affairs, such as Covid-19 and politics.

The market research side hustle can be perfect for everyone! It suits students, stay-at-home parents, or anyone looking to earn a bit extra. You can do it during your lunch break or in the evening after work, and it can be an interesting way to earn some extra money!

What is Market Research?

Businesses need to know what works and what doesn’t. Market research enables them to test ideas and refine products before launch, so they'll compensate individuals like you for your feedback and suggestions.

You might answer a few questions, test something new, or join an online group chat.

Who Can Take Part?

Anyone! If you’ve bought a product or used a service, your opinion matters.

Market research companies want a range of people. Your age, lifestyle or background might be exactly what they need.

Types of Research Projects

Online Surveys

Quick and simple. Often just ticking boxes or giving short answers. These are known as qualitative research projects, which means you don't have to speak to anyone; you get on and complete the research tasks, and then you'll be compensated in points or cash incentives once you've completed the study. Nice and easy!

Phone Interviews

Telephone interviews are simply conversations with a researcher over the phone, during which the researcher asks about your habits, opinions, or choices. Don't worry, it's not scary, I've never had an unpleasant interview yet!

One-to-One Interviews (Online or In Person)

You might meet in person or join a video call. These are usually more detailed. In-person interviews, without using an app such as Teams, are very rare these days; it's almost always via a video call, especially since the researcher might be thousands of miles away from you.

You'll often be asked to share your screen, and you might be asked to perform a specific task, such as road testing a mobile app prototype, or perhaps a user test of a website, or answer some questions about how you do certain things, or they'll ask your opinion on new products or services. Most of these types of online chats are video-recorded for later use.

Focus Groups

You participate in online focus groups or group interviews, discussing a topic with other panel members. A researcher guides the research study, and you all participate in the conversation as needed or prompted.

These can be pretty interesting, and if you're a people watcher like me, it's fascinating to see the other research participants who join the meeting, as they come from all around the UK, or even the world, creating a diverse mix of people.

These types of focus groups might be in-person meetups, but nowadays they're more likely to be online panels that you can join via your phone or computer, and you'll participate via webcam from the comfort of your own home.

IDR Medical offers a comprehensive, in-depth guide on the nature and methods of focus groups. If you're interested, you can read more on their website to become familiar with the process should you decide to participate in one yourself.

Product Testing

They send you something to use. You try it out and share your thoughts either via email, or most likely, you'll get a link to complete surveys online.

I tested a pet food brand and an oven cleaner that actually outperformed what I usually use, so I found a new product that I still use today as a resuly of taking part in a study!

How Much Could You Earn?

It depends on the task, and how the task goes on for:

Surveys: £1 to £5
Phone or video interviews: £20 to £75
Focus groups: £50 to £250
Product testing: Free items, sometimes extra money

Specialist or longer projects pay more! You can earn hundreds per month. Even occasional work adds up.

How You Get Paid

Most companies will pay you via a payment method such as:

Bank transfer
PayPal
Gift cards (Amazon, Tesco, etc)

Some pay in British pounds. Others in US dollars via PayPal (easy to convert to GBP!)

Payout times vary. Some pay within minutes, while others pay within hours or days. Others take a few weeks.

My Top Tips for Success in taking part in paid market research projects

Sign up with several market research companies to see more projects; sticking with one or two will limit the number of projects you can participate in, and that's going to restrict your earning capabilities.
Fill out your profile completely and accurately with your personal details. The more they know about you, the easier it is for them to match you to paid projects.
Use a separate email to stay organised. You'll receive lots of emails about the latest paid research opportunities, and you don't want to miss out on projects because you haven't seen the invitation email!
Apply quickly. Good projects fill up fast, so don't hang about thinking about it!
Be honest. Don’t fake knowledge or experience, you'll look stupid when you have no idea what they're talking about!
Join calls on time with working tech. Test it before you try to use it!
Choose a quiet place to avoid interruptions, nothing worse than the phone ringing, or someone walking into the room! (Put your phone on silent!)
Be clear and polite. Say, if you don’t know the answer, they want honesty, not guesses as to what you think they want to hear! They are real people and know you won't know the answer to every question or every aspect of the subject matter.
Ensure you have a PayPal account; you'll likely need one.

I missed out on a £100 project because my webcam failed, which was so frustrating. Now I test everything way before the call starts!

Recommended UK Market Research Companies

My Top 5 recommended market research companies to join

Respondent: High-paying interviews, especially for specialist topics. I’ve made over £300 from a few studies. It's an American-run site that offers compensation via Tremendous.com gift cards, allowing you to select the gift card of your choice, such as Amazon, Tesco, etc.
You're likely to see a wide range of current projects at any given time, and they can be some of the highest payments you're likely to come across, especially for niche projects, but also you'll coma across very low paying projects, such as $5 or $10 projects, but thrser are usually 5 minute type studies, so still work at a good 'hourly' rate of pay, plus can be done quickly! They also offer you the opportunity to refer friends to projects for a referral bonus.
User Interviews: US-based, like Respondent, and also has a wide selection of projects underway at any given time, with generous rates of pay on many of the more niche projects. Most projects work out at about $1 per minute, so the longer the study, the more you'll get, but some of the more complex studies can pay at least twice that amount. They also offer you the opportunity to refer friends to projects for a referral bonus.
Testing Time: These sites don't always have as many studies underway as the larger ones, but they still have a decent number, covering a wide range of subjects. They pay you in pounds, and you'll generally find that the rates of pay start at about 50p per minute and increase to about £1 per minute for more niche subjects. The money you earn goes into your account wallet, and once you have £18 or more in the wallet, you can cash out straight to your bank or via PayPal.
Take Part in Research: Covers a wide range of subjects, pays in £'s and offers rates of pay from about 50p to £2 a minute. They conduct similar types of studies to most other companies, but they have a larger number of diary-type studies, where you may continue providing feedback over a number of days, often online, rather than in one go. Some of these diary studies, or feedback studies, can go on for months, with some roll over into years, for studies such as where you might be given a device that connects to your tv, so they can see the type of programs you watch, or devices that plug into your car and monitor your cars data etc, and thse might pay you monthly or give you a lump sum every year, so its an ongoing way to earn some extra money!
Angelfish Opinions: Projests often focus on parenting and household topic, but you can get some more unusual ones, such as feeding back on particular tv shows, or you might apply to have a well known home goods supplier sens people to your house to look around and you give feedback on suggestions, or questions they might give you. Pays well (about the same as most of the other top 5 companies) and also offers you the opportunity to refer friends to projects, for a £10 referral bonus.

Other companies that are worth considering joining are:

Trend Market Research: A small team but steady stream of invites. Clear instructions and quick payments.
Saros Research: Often focused on healthcare. Not as frequent, but projects are well paid.
Bunnyfield: Covers everything from beer tasting to financial opinions. Reliable and consistent.
Fresh Thinkers: Great for product testers. I was paid £75 for a short session.
Swift Insight: A range of tasks is available, although infrequently, and many tend to involve testing products at home, such as food, toiletries, or washing powder, and then providing feedback via online forms. Payment is usually made via gift card.
Ragdoll Research: Ragdoll offers a wide selection of projects; however, for the majority, you won't get paid. Instead, if you participate, you'll be entered into a prize draw to win cash or gift cards, so it's a bit hit and miss as to whether you'll ever get anything for your time, but at least the studies tend to be very short.
Pinecone Research: Less frequent studies, but worth signing up for. You're awarded points for participating in studies, and those points can be exchanged for gift cards.

Influenster: If you want to get involved in sampling at home/product tests, the best program for this is Influenster. This is a smartphone app, and occasionally, you may be offered a free product in return for an honest review.
Focus4People: This market research company sends a few emails a week and offers a wide range of studies, including general household questions and a large number of medical-related studies, which tend to have higher payments due to their niche nature
Research Opinions: You'll find a wide range of topics from this company. The compensation for the studies is generally on the higher side, and there are frequently studies available to apply for, although some may be a bit niche.

Market research is an easy way to earn money in your spare time. It often fits in nicely around work commitments, studying or parenting, so it can be a good fit for pretty much anyone!

If you’ve got 30 minutes and an internet connection, it’s worth giving it a try. You’ve got opinions. Why not get paid for sharing them?

FAQ/Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need experience?

No. Most companies want everyday opinions, not expert knowledge.

How do I determine if a company is legitimate?

The companies here are trusted. Never pay to join. Real research companies don’t charge fees.

How quickly will I be paid?

It varies. Some are instant. Others take a few weeks.

What kind of questions will I be asked?

Mostly about your views, habits, or past experiences with certain products or services.

Can I do this around my job?

Yes. Most projects happen outside of regular hours, or you can arrange to do them in your lunch break in many cases!

Can I join more than one company?

Yes. It helps you find more opportunities.

Will I be taxed on my earnings?

The market research companies won't tax you, but if you earn over £1,000 from all your side hustles in a tax year, you need to report it to the HMRC.

More info: When do you need to report side hustle earnings to the HMRC?

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