Did you know high-end brands and companies pay people to test their products at home?
Yes, that’s a real thing, and you can become a product tester just by following a few simple and effective steps.
Product testing has become a solid and efficient marketing technique in the last few years. It allows a company to have its products tested and reviewed before officially pushing it to the market.
It’s an easy and simple gig.
You will first have to identify your niche, figure out what you’re really good at and then get in touch with brands. You can pitch yourself and tell them how you can bring them a new wave of the revenue stream by giving live feedback to your audience.
This way, the company will get in touch with a new brand new target market, and you will get paid to test products at home for some extra money.
But how do you get in touch with companies and brands that will pay you to test their products?
How do you find websites that will send free products your way to let you review them?
Well, there are different ways through which you can become a paid reviewer.
But first, we would like to bring a few websites to your attention where you can sign up and get paid to review products.
Why become a product tester in the first place?
Companies that are going to launch new products invest a lot in research and development. Bigger companies even have dedicated R&D labs for this. Smaller companies may not have dedicated departments for research.
Still, they do need it done to improve the quality of their products.
This helps them make sure that whatever they’re developing has the potential to succeed once it is officially launched in the market.
One of the most efficient ways to do this is to send your products as the first phase of your launch and get the honest opinions of the users.
This helps the companies understand what the consumers like about their products, what they don’t like, and how they can improve their production.
This way, not only the company gets to better their services, but you also get paid to review products and maybe even keep them later on. We have to say, it is a win-win situation for everyone.
The company gets honest feedback, you get paid, and maybe even get to keep the product. You will have a say in the product’s performance and get to shape how the next batch goes.
Getting paid by testing products!
In order to find product tester jobs from home, you will have to register with a few websites that offer this kind of side gig.
Every website will ask you to fill out a form mentioning your demographics to find suitable products for you to review according to the area you live in.
Your earning will completely depend on the kind of products you choose to review and how many programs you join.
The more programs you become a part of, your chances of getting different paid gigs will absolutely increase.
Let’s take a look at some websites where you can sign up and start your career as an authentic product reviewer.
1. Homescan – www.homescan.com
Nielsen is quite popular for polling American viewers about their watching habits and runs various sub-brands, including the Homescan program. This is apart from the Computer and Mobile Panel that pays users for letting Nielsen track their data usage.
The signup is free at Homescan, and you will receive access to its mobile application along with a handheld scanner. What you will have to do is every time you shop, you will scan the barcode with the scanner and earn points.
You can also participate in various surveys to increase your points, which will automatically enter you in their monthly, weekly, and quarterly sweepstakes.
The bad part is that Homescan doesn’t pay in cash, but you can use the points to get free merchandise and gift cards.
For US Panelists only, they have updated the Homescan website with their new name – National Consumer Panel. US Panelists will log in as usual. Everything is the same, only the name changed.
2. Vindale Research – www.vindale.com
Vindale Research is possibly the biggest platform on the internet that pays users to take surveys. But, it also provides paid gigs to users for testing products. You will have to sign up as a product tester on the website. Once done, we are not sure how the process takes place and how you get products at your doorstep to test.
However, we know that Vindale Research pays up to $50 for taking a survey on their website. It is one of the highest-paid online gigs that will allow you to earn added money while working from home. It also adds $1 to your account once you have signed up, and you can take out the money from your account through a cheque or PayPal.
You can visit the website right away and see how this entire money-making technique works.
However, as of November 1, 2021, Vindale has ceased operations.
You are no longer able to earn or redeem rewards. Registration is also now closed.
But if you want to keep earning, you can discover even more rewards with their partner, Opinion Outpost.
3. Toluna – us.toluna.com
Toluna is probably one of the most used and popular websites for paid product reviews.
Toluna product testing is easy and simple. You will have to sign up and fill out what kind of products you’re interested in reviewing. You get to keep all the products you get, and in turn, all you have to do is fill out a form and let the website know how you feel about the product and what your experience was like.
All the testers are chosen randomly based on the number of applications they receive.
Typically, Toluna has more than 500 samples for a single product. So it will depend on your niche and demographics what kind of a product you will get.
4. Pinecone Research – members.pineconeresearch.com
A lot of websites offer products for reviews before they have launched in the market. These tests are crucial for a brand’s marketing technique, and it gives them real-time feedback from the users before the product is officially launched.
Pinecone Research is one of those websites that offer products that aren’t available for the general public as of yet. You will get points in turn for filling surveys about the products that the company sends your way. Later on, you can redeem these points for merchandise, gift cards, and cash.
Although the process of signing up with them is pretty straightforward, and everything is written down, the panel positions are quite limited. If your demographics don’t match what the brand is looking for, you will receive an email that there is no position opening at the time.
The company will keep your information saved for the next few weeks if there is a spot available, but you will have to reapply if it doesn’t.
5. American Consumer Opinion – www.acop.com
American Consumer Opinion, abbreviated as ACOP, is by far one of the most interesting websites we found to become a work from home product tester. It’s a platform that will pay you for taking surveys and reviewing products. You can provide your opinions to grow the economy, on advertising campaigns and what sort of new products companies should come up with.
The registration process is very easy. You can easily sign up with your Google or Facebook account. Once you become a member of the panel, you will participate in various surveys throughout the year. The surveys are very easy, and it will take less than 10-minutes for you to fill them out.
Every survey you complete will give you points that can later be cashed out through PayPal. If you like, you can also donate these points to various charities or participate in different sweepstakes to win cash and various other prizes.
The website gets in touch with you every Monday to get a screener done. This way, it will know what sort of surveys the brand should send your way.
6. Johnson and Johnson Friends & Neighbors – jjfriendsandneighbors.com
Johnson and Johnson is one of the biggest tycoons in the world, with a stellar product testing panel. It owns various brands like Neutrogena, Aveeno, Clean, Clear, and Roc, along with several other brands you may use daily in your home.
It also runs the JJ Friends & Neighbors program that allows you to become a product tester for free and get to keep these products later on, even before they are launched. This might mean that you will get different makeup products along with fragrances which can definitely interest our younger lot.
There are also several other opportunities that you can avail of, including joining support groups, filling out surveys, being a part of various discussion forums and panels. It is open for everyone, and if you’re eligible, JJ Friends & Neighbors will get in touch with you.
And if you reside in the NYC area, you may even be eligible to become a part of the company’s dedicated sensory panels. Although the site is pretty skeptical about payment details, we found gift cards to be very common.
7. UserTesting.com – www.usertesting.com
If you happen to be really good at noticing small details when visiting websites, you may be eligible to sign up with UserTesting.com. You can get started by signing up, down the software, and visiting various applications websites to answer a few simple questions.
The number of websites you can test will depend on your demographics. For instance, if Facebook is trying to test a new feature with an old-age man in Alaska and you’re a woman living in New York, you’re not going to see that test on your dashboard.
You will also have to put conscious effort into describing everything you like and don’t like about the website. The test usually takes 10-minutes to complete, and you will be able to earn $10 per survey that can later be cashed out through PayPal.
8. SheSpeaks – www.shespeaks.com
SheSpeaks is another incredible platform that will send your free products to try and then causally review them on their website. You can also review the products that you’re already using and upload your feedback on the website.
To get started, you will have to sign up for a free account. You don’t really get paid in cash for taking surveys. However, SheSpeaks runs regular cash giveaways and prizes for the most authentic and genuine reviews.
You can also win free products and gift cards through these giveaways.
9. NetGalley – www.netgalley.com
If you love reading and you would like to receive free eBooks, then get yourself registered on NetGalley right away. This site gives you the opportunity to request advanced reader copies of books from the authors and publishers in exchange for your honest review and feedback on the website.
If the publisher accepts, you will have to read the book and provide it with your honest, unbiased review. You can share your thoughts through its feedback form on the website, social media, and your blog in case you have one.
The website doesn’t pay in cash, but it is free to join. Plus, you get to keep all the books you receive.
10. Influenster – www.influenster.com
Once you sign up at Influenster, you will be able to review a wide range of products, including beverages, pet care, snack, and even baby essentials. You can also complete different surveys to get a chance to receive VoxBox that includes a supply of full-sized products that you can use at home.
After you have used the products, the brand asks for your honest opinion on the website. Just know that not every reviewer is going to receive a VoxBox for free, but if you do, this would be a great way to get household essentials for free.
11. HomeSchool.com – www.homeschool.com
HomeSchool.com is a very popular homeschooling website for families. However, most people don’t know that it also pays you to test and review various products. As a product reviewer, you are expected to review various homeschooling resources such as books, reports, curriculum, and other printables. While it’s not exactly clear what criteria you need to meet in order to participate in their program, you can simply register by going to their website and signing up for their email list. It’s a very straightforward process. So if you are interested in getting paid reading stuff, try HomeSchool.com.
FAQs about paid product testing
Answering some of the common FAQs about paid product testing below
What does it mean by product testing?
In simple and concise form, product testing means testing a product to provide feedback regarding its performance. The kind of tests you will have to do with a product will vary from product to product. Still, it usually involves testing its ease of use, features, and your experience while using the product everything you liked and didn’t like about it. You can provide the company feedback by filling out a form or writing a report.
How do I become a product tester?
If you’re wondering how can you become a product tester, don’t worry. It isn’t that difficult. All you have to do is choose a few websites that you would like to sign up with. In most cases, you will have to provide some personal information and fill out surveys to help understand the company about its product.
How do I get paid to test products?
We are sure you must be wondering that will you get paid to test these products. As we have mentioned earlier, most bigger companies have dedicated R&D labs associated with researching the product and improving its performance.
Some high-end brands look for users who can review their products after conducting thorough tests. You must have an Amazon product tester. They sign up with the brand’s affiliate marketing programs and then get paid to test the products.
But keep in mind, not every company pays for this. Some companies will give you gift cards to vouchers that you can redeem. You will have to construct thorough research to find out websites that do pay. We have mentioned several websites that pay you in cash for product reviews. You can absolutely sign up with them right away.
Final Thoughts
Becoming a product reviewer is a great way to push some extra income into your bank account.
It is no rocket science.
You will get paid to share your opinion, and what’s better than that? Becoming a product tester or a reviewer might be a little difficult in the beginning.
Still, everything becomes easy once you get the hang of it, which you will do by sharing your honest opinion. All you have to do is keep trying and push your way, be as authentic as you can be, and you will succeed.
We hope this article has provided you with all the information you need to become a product tester.
It took us some time to gather all this information before we disseminated it. Just keep in mind, you will get products according to your demographics and the niche you choose for yourself. It will take some time, but you will get there.
Sign up with the websites we shared above and get started on your product reviewing career right away!
