Vindale Research is a super popular online market research platform that pays users to fill out surveys and complete basic tasks.

Like other survey sites, this is advertised as a fast, easy way to earn a few bucks in your spare time. Vindale Research has users all over the world, and offers multiple ways to earn. 

But is it legit, or is this just another get-rich-quick scam?

I was curious, so I looked into Vindale Research to find out more. This post will run you through everything you need to know about the mega-popular market research site, including how to get started, how much you could earn, and if it’s really worth your time in 2023.

What is Vindale Research?

Vindale Research is a market research website. Like other sites out there, the goal is to provide consumer data and information to major brands and retailers. To do that, the site pays regular people (like you) to answer surveys and complete simple tasks. 

Founded in 2006 in New York, Vindale Research has since expanded into the Canadian, British, and Australian markets. They’re now owned by a well-established umbrella company, Reimagine Holdings Group. 

It’s important to note that survey sites are not reliable sources of income. Vindale Research does pay its users, but you aren’t going to get rich or support your family just by answering survey questions. This is just a fun way to kill some time and earn a little extra spending money!

Is it legit?

When it comes to market research, some sites are much more established than others. There are plenty of scams out there advertising hundreds of dollars a month just for answering surveys — in reality, those sites will charge you hidden fees and sell your data without permission. 

I’m happy to say that Vindale Research is not one of those sites. This is a legitimate, well-established and reputable market research company. 

There are no fees to sign up, and you have to give the site explicit permission to pass your information on to their partner companies. You will actually make money using Vindale Research (there’s just no guarantee that it will be a lot of money). 

So, yes — Vindale Research is legit, and safe to use. 

How does it work?

To get started with Vindale Research, you’ll have to go online and make your account. This process is pretty quick, and totally free. 

At this point you might be asked to provide some basic information, including your age, gender, shopping preferences, etc. This is standard for survey sites; it’s how the site determines which surveys you’re eligible to take. 

Once your account is all set up, you’re ready to start earning. Vindale Research offers multiple ways to earn — I’ll go over each of them briefly below. 

1. Participate in paid studies

Vindale Research, unlike some other market research sites, refers to their surveys as “studies”. It sounds a little more formal, but the concept is basically the same. This is the main way users earn money on the site. 

If you’re eligible for a certain survey, you can fill it out, and get paid in cash for the amount of effort you put in. For example, a 35-minute survey that requires a lot of information might pay out $10, while a quick 5-minute survey might pay out $1. 

The questions are all based on your experience and opinions as a consumer, so there isn’t much real work involved. 

2. Access other survey sites

Vindale Research is also partnered with several other popular survey sites, and makes it easy for you to access surveys through those platforms. Just browse through their deals, and click the link of a site that sounds good to you. From there, you’ll be taken to another platform. 

Vindale does take a commission when you sign up for other sites through their links. But it also gives you an opportunity to earn points and cash on other platforms, through a variety of different tasks like watching videos or reading emails. 

3. Participate in the paid referral program

Vindale’s referral program is a better opportunity than the referral programs of a lot of other survey sites I’ve reviewed. 

If you sign up, you’ll get a personalized link to Vindale Research. Every time someone signs up using your link, you’ll earn $5! It’s the easiest way to earn through the site. 

Unfortunately for the influencers out there, this only applies to 1 referral at a time. So, you can’t post the link on your social media page and just let the cash flow in — but you can make enough for your next meal out by signing up all your friends. 

4. Find reward codes

One of the fun ways Vindale Research lets you earn is by posting reward codes across their social media accounts and blog. It’s sort of like an online Easter egg hunt!

Every time you find a code, you can enter it into the rewards section in your profile and get paid automatically. The exact amount varies for each code (which sort of adds to the excitement). 

5. Find open job opportunities

This isn’t exactly a way to earn through the platform, but it is a really cool feature that’s unique to Vindale Rewards. 

When you log in to your account, you can access the Job Center to browse for open jobs in your area. You won’t earn cash through the site, but you can find your next job or part-time gig. It’s a great service VIndale provides for their users. 

Getting paid

Now that you know about the features of Vindale Research, let’s talk about the most important part: how do you get paid?

Whenever you complete a task on the platform, you’ll get cash credits on your account. I really like this feature of Vindale Research — other survey sites pay you in points, which you then have to convert to dollars. Getting paid cash directly is much simpler. 

Once you reach $50 in your account, you can “cash out” and receive your money via PayPal or check. It should transfer immediately as soon as you decide to cash out. 

How much can you earn?

So, how much money can you actually make with Vindale Research?

Like any other survey site, this isn’t something you should see as a super profitable side hustle. It’s a fun way to earn some cash, but it isn’t going to pay the bills. 

That said, some users do fairly well with Vindale. Each survey pays anywhere between $0.25 and $50 — so if you qualify for a few higher-paying surveys, you could easily fund your morning coffees or a few drinks out with friends. 

The important thing to remember is that it’s free to sign up. If you give it a shot and feel like you’re not earning enough to make the site worth your time, you won’t have lost any money. 

Vindale Research pros and cons 

As much as there is to love about this market research, it isn’t perfect. 

To help you decide whether or not Vindale Research is right for you, here are some of the main pros and cons that users have reported. 

Pros

1. Direct payments in cash

The feature that I like most about Vindale is that they pay directly in PayPal cash. There is no confusing points system or option to buy rewards with your prize money. Exactly what you earn for each task is exactly what you’ll get paid. 

Not a PayPal user? You can get your earnings sent to you in a traditional check, too. 

2. High per-survey payments

Other sites offer a lot of different ways to earn, but pay out very little for each. 

With Vindale Research, it’s the other way around. Paid studies are the main way to earn money, and each study pays out far better than some other sites. It’s easy to make $5, $10, or even $15 with a single survey. 

3. High payment for referral program

On top of high per-survey payments, you’ll also earn $5 every time you refer a friend to Vindale. That’s a lot better than most other referral programs for market research sites! 

4. Browse for job openings in the Job Center

Vindale’s Job Center is a feature that’s totally unique to this platform. It’s cool that they recognize the site is not a profitable replacement for a full-time job; instead of encouraging you to spend all your time completing surveys, they also offer postings in your area to help you secure a job. 

They do earn commissions on these postings, but there is no cost to you. 

Cons

1. High threshold to cash out

Before you can cash out with Vindale Research, you have to earn at least $50 on the platform. That’s a pretty high initial payment threshold compared to other sites. 

Depending on the amount of surveys you qualify for and the amount of time you dedicate to the site, it could take quite a while to reach that first payment. 

2. Cash credits can expire

If you give up on Vindale Research before you reach that $50 threshold, your credits won’t stay forever. After a certain amount of time, they can expire. 

In other words, you have to stick around for awhile if you want the site to really be worth your time. 

3. A lot of promotional emails

Vindale Research is partnered with tons of companies. Once you sign up for the site, you can expect to receive a lot of spam and promotional emails from them. This isn’t necessarily a deal-breaker, but it is pretty annoying. 

My suggestion is to make an alternative email account and use it to sign up for Vindale. That way, you won’t have to deal with a flood of spam in your primary inbox.

Who is Vindale Research for?

Anyone can sign up for Vindale Research. (That is, anyone in the US, Canada, Australia, or the UK). However, not every user is going to have the same experience. 

I would highly recommend Vindale to anyone who is looking to fill some boring stretches of time in their day. If you’re sitting in a waiting room or on a long bus ride, or if you have some downtime in the evenings, you can fill that time and make a few easy bucks by answering survey questions. 

It’s also great for someone who spends a lot of time online — you can check your profile regularly to make sure you never miss a survey opportunity. 

That said, Vindale Research is not ideal for someone who’s trying to supplement their income with an online job. For that, you might want to look into freelancing or another opportunity. Market research is all about easy cash in small amounts. 

The bottom line: is Vindale Research worth it?

We’ve established that Vindale Research is legitimate, safe, and easy to use. You don’t have to spend anything, and you will actually earn money if you dedicate just a little time and effort to the site. 

I say it’s definitely worth it, at least to give it a try. This site offers fair payment for surveys and is much more straightforward than other market research sites I’ve reviewed. You’re not going to get rich, but for something as easy as taking surveys, you can earn a decent amount of cash. 

It’s free to sign up, so why not give it a try? Vindale Research just might be the perfect way to kill some time and earn a little money.