TL;DR: Universities and companies pay people to take part in research: short academic studies on Prolific, and longer interviews, focus groups and surveys through recruiting platforms such as Respondent. Joining is free, and no legitimate platform charges you to take part. Prolific studies must pay at least 8 dollars an hour, and Respondent says most of its sessions pay 50 to 250 dollars. Both are invitation-based, so studies come irregularly: treat this as a side income for spare hours, not a wage.
Researchers need real people. A psychology department testing how people make decisions, a bank checking whether customers understand a new app screen, a software company asking accountants how they close the month: all of them pay participants for their time and honest answers.
That work reaches the public through a handful of platforms. This guide explains the two main kinds of paid research, how Prolific and Respondent work and what they pay according to their own pages, how to get invited more often, how to avoid the scams that copy this niche, and how it compares with the other side incomes on this site.
Two Kinds of Paid Research
Academic and online studies are short tasks set by researchers, often at universities: questionnaires, decision games, reaction-time tests and writing tasks. Most take a few minutes to half an hour and pay a small, fixed amount.
Company research pays for longer conversations. A product team books a 30 or 60 minute video interview, a focus group with several participants, a diary study over a week or an unmoderated usability test. These pay far more per session, but each study wants a specific kind of person, so you qualify for fewer of them.
If you have already read our guide to getting paid to test websites, company research is its better-paid cousin: fewer, longer sessions, and more about your opinions and habits than about finding what is broken.
Prolific: Short Studies for Real Money
Prolific is the best-known platform for academic research. Its participant page says it always pays "real money, no gift cards or cashback", and that a new task is published every two minutes.
Joining: new participants join a waitlist and are invited when there are enough studies for their profile. Prolific says verifying your identity and completing a short practice task then takes about 15 minutes.
Pay: Prolific's researcher help pages set a minimum reward of 6 pounds or 8 dollars per hour and recommend that researchers pay at least 9 pounds or 12 dollars per hour. The hourly figure is worked out from how long a study actually takes participants, and if a study's average falls below the minimum, Prolific asks the researcher to pay participants the difference.
Getting paid: earnings stay pending until the researcher approves your submission, which can take up to 22 days. Once your approved balance reaches 6 dollars or 6 pounds, you can cash out to PayPal, and Prolific says the money arrives within 24 hours. Your first few cash outs have a waiting period between them; after that you can cash out once a day. Between the waitlist and approvals, expect your first payment weeks after you sign up, not days.
The work itself is simple but rewards care. Many studies include attention checks, and a researcher can reject a submission that fails them or is clearly rushed. Read the instructions, answer honestly and finish what you start.
Respondent: Interviews and Focus Groups
Respondent recruits participants for company research: focus groups, one-on-one interviews, online surveys, diary studies and unmoderated usability tests, remote and in person. Its participant page lists an average payout of 75 dollars and says most sessions pay 50 to 250 dollars depending on length and seniority, with focus groups and in-person studies paying the most, an average of 150 to 250 dollars per session. Senior roles in business-to-business studies, it says, regularly pay 400 dollars or more.
Respondent pays through Tremendous after your session, and says most participants are paid within a few days. Its page is clear that participants never pay anything: "you'll never be asked to pay to participate".
The catch is selection. Each study is looking for a particular profile, such as "people who manage payroll at companies with 50 to 200 staff" or "parents who bought a car in the last year", and you apply by answering a screener. Many applications do not lead to a session, so expect weeks with nothing and the odd well-paid hour.
User Interviews, now part of UserTesting, works in a similar way: companies post studies, participants apply through a screener, and each study sets its own incentive.
What You Can Realistically Earn
The two kinds of research pay in different ways, so it helps to put numbers on both.
Short studies: at Prolific's 8 dollar minimum, five hours a month of studies comes to about 40 dollars; at its recommended 12 dollars an hour, about 60 dollars. The real limit is availability, not your time: studies that fit your profile appear irregularly and the popular ones fill up.
Interviews and focus groups: using Respondent's own figures, two sessions a month at its 75 dollar average would add 150 dollars. Some months you will land none. Professionals with in-demand roles, such as finance, IT, healthcare or anyone who buys software for a company, tend to qualify for more and better-paid studies.
To see what a mix of both is worth over a year after tax, put your hours and an hourly rate into our side income calculator.
How to Get Invited to More Studies
- Complete your profile. Both kinds of platform match studies to the details you give. Every profile question you skip can filter you out of studies you would qualify for.
- Answer screeners honestly. Exaggerating to qualify is the fastest way to lose an account. Researchers check answers against your profile and during the session, and a participant who does not fit wastes the study.
- Check in often. Short studies with limited places go to the people who see them first, so it pays to keep the dashboard open while you do other things.
- Be reliable. Turn up on time for booked sessions, test your camera and microphone beforehand and finish studies you start. A researcher who has to replace a no-show is unlikely to book you again.
- Join more than one platform. Academic studies and company research recruit different people, so using one of each fills more of the gaps.
Red Flags: Fake Studies and Focus Groups
"Get paid for your opinion" attracts scammers. Walk away if a so-called study:
- asks you to pay a fee, buy a starter kit or pay for "training" before you can take part;
- asks for your bank login, card number or a copy of your ID by email or chat, outside the platform;
- promises hundreds of dollars for a few minutes of easy questions;
- sends you a cheque or payment and asks you to send part of it back.
Legitimate platforms pay you after the session, through their own payment system, and take nothing from you. If an invitation arrives by email, open the platform yourself and check that the study is listed there.
Taxes and Records
Study payments are income. Keep a simple record of what each platform paid and when, because in many countries it counts towards your taxable income, and platforms may have to report what they paid you (Prolific's help centre, for example, explains the EU's DAC7 reporting rules). Check the rules where you live, and set some of each payment aside so the tax bill is not a surprise.
How Paid Research Compares
Research studies sit between the smallest side incomes and real freelance work. They pay better per hour than rewards programs and survey apps, need no skills or equipment beyond a computer, a phone and a quiet room, and carry no risk to your own money. But you do not control how much work there is, and the income never grows the way a skill-based side income can.
If you enjoy the interviews, notice what researchers ask about: those conversations are a good sign of which skills companies pay for. Our comparison of ways to earn shows how soon each option can pay and whether any of your own money is at risk.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Prolific legit?
Yes. Prolific is a research platform used by universities and companies, it pays in real money through PayPal, and its rules require studies to pay at least 6 pounds or 8 dollars per hour.
How much can you earn from paid research studies?
Short academic studies pay by the hour, at least 8 dollars an hour on Prolific. Company interviews and focus groups pay per session: Respondent lists a 75 dollar average and says most sessions pay 50 to 250 dollars. How much you earn depends mostly on how many studies you qualify for.
Why do I not get invited to studies?
Each study wants a particular kind of participant, so an incomplete profile or a common profile means fewer invitations. Complete every profile question, answer screeners honestly, check the dashboard often and join more than one platform.
Do I have to pay to join a research platform?
No. Legitimate platforms such as Prolific and Respondent are free to join and pay you after each study. Anyone asking for a fee to take part in research is running a scam.
How do you get paid for research studies?
It depends on the platform. Prolific pays to PayPal once your approved balance reaches 6 dollars or 6 pounds, and Respondent pays through Tremendous after your session, usually within a few days.
