Companies are constantly trying to figure out what consumers want. So, what if you could get paid to tell them your opinions? That’s the idea behind survey sites. The “best survey sites” are ones that are legit, easy to use, and clear about how you're getting paid and when. They're also very popular with stay-at-home moms, students, and folks in debt, and people who are just looking to get paid from home.

I mean, survey sites can be a great way to side hustle when you need extra cash, and since springtime is just around the corner…we figured it was time to put together an anthology. 

There are plenty of survey sites out there, so we tested the most popular ones and came up with our favorites: for both earning extra cash with surveys, and cash back sites to maximize where you're already shopping.

There’s plenty of variety here, so we’re sure you’ll find one that fits your needs and the level of effort you'd like to put in. 

Best Survey Sites

Inbox Dollars

• Get an instant $5 bonus just for signing up! Click here to get your bonus with my link. 
• Easy to sign up and easy to earn.
• Mixed customer reviews so do your own research.

VIP Voice

• Research arm for many legit retailers who want customer data and consumer opinions.
• Double opt-in survey form so it's a bit more “legit” than some others.
• Currently offering a 25,000 point bonus if you complete 5 surveys in 30 days.

Survey Junkie

• Survey Junkie is a newer survey site, but still a great source for making some extra cash!
• It's a well designed, easy-to-navigate site that offers both your usual survey opportunities as well as focus groups.
• By completing surveys you earn points, and 1000 points can be exchanged for $10.00 – redeemable to your Paypal account or in gift cards.
• The great thing about Survey Junkie is that their surveys tend to range between 50-450 points per survey, meaning you don't have to complete as many to get paid!

One Opinion

• This is probably the easiest survey site to get started with. Within minutes of sign up we were already making money!
• Upon entering in our demographic data we were immediately matched with a survey for $2.50, which isn’t chump change in the online survey world.
• They offer both gift cards and Paypal as payout options, and you can collect once you’ve amassed 25,000 OneOpinion credits ($25).

Within a week we had received a reasonable amount of surveys that were all over $1, meaning it didn’t feel like we were toiling away for just a few cents.

Our #1 Survey Site – Swagbucks

Swagbucks is a site where you can complete tasks (surveys, videos, and games) to earn the titular Swagbucks (abbreviated SB) which you can then redeem for gift cards. Signing up is super easy. All you need is your email and a password, or you can sign up with your Facebook account. Below are all the ways to optimize your Swagbucks earnings.

Shop Online

• One of the easiest ways to earn SB is by shopping online. You’ll have a cash back amount listed on popular stores such as Walmart, Sephora, and JCPenney. There are also a TON of offers for travel sites, so you could earn major rewards just for planning your next vacation.

• Another cool way to earn SB is by redeeming Groupon or Living Social offers. Swagbucks will let you know if there are any available offers in your area, and you’ll get points when you purchase. Savings everywhere!

Watch Videos

Did you ever wish you could get paid to watch videos online? Well, it's your lucky day. Swagbucks will aggregate playlists of videos and you can earn points just for watching.

Take Surveys

Survey sites are extremely popular and for good reason. Getting paid to give your opinion sounds great doesn’t it? And Swagbucks even takes into account that you won’t qualify for every survey. Even if you don’t qualify you’ll still get 1 SB or “Swagbuck” for your time.

Surveys also usually have higher point values since they take a longer time to complete. This can be a great place to start out if you want to quickly earn one of the lower value gift cards!

Install the SwagButton

And finally, download the SwagButton. It’s an extension that shows you SB offers on participating sites. That way you won’t miss out on points just because you didn’t go through the SwagBucks portal! Super simple, super easy.

Honorable Survey Site Mentions: 

• S'more app – a new app that will pay you money to run ads on your phone lock screen. They give you points for doing this and you can earn extra points by taking surveys. Not sure if this is worth it, but if you're really trying to hustle it could be worth investigating. 
• My Survey – Hourly “rate” answering surveys from this site is pretty low, but you can rack up points for Paypal payments, gift cards and more. 
• I-Say – Is the survey site of one of the largest research firms in the world, so there's lots of opportunities. I dislike their interface so that's why it is only an honorable mention, but it still could be a good way to earn extra cash. 

Our Favorite Cash Back Programs

Really, there's only one I use all of the time and that is Ebates. I use the Ebates chrome extension for all of my online shopping and it alerts me to cash back offers when I'm on the websites. Then, I get paid out four times a year. These big chunks of change go directly into my f*ck off fund. 

Leveraging cash back opportunities like this in tandem with my automatic savings apps is how I was able to save up $1k in 45 days for an emergency fund. So yeah, definitely check out Ebates. 

Our #1 Cash Back Site – Ebates

• The way Ebates works is that it gives you a percentage cash back when you shop through their referral links, which is great for the holidays, birthdays, or any other time that you are doing a lot of shopping online.
• I made $98.16 in cash back this past Black Friday, on top of the 1-5% cash back I get from my credit card rewards program. Yesssssssss.
• The only downside to Ebates is that they only pay out 4 times a year – February 15th, May 15th, August 15th, and November 15^th. If you’re looking to make money quick, (like, this spring) it’s probably not ideal, but for those of you that buy almost everything online there’s really no reason not to take advantage of Ebates, especially while you do your seasonal shopping.
• The chrome extension makes getting cash back super easy. 
• After signing up you’ll want to make sure to add your address so Ebates can send you your rebate check! (They also payout via Paypal, which I like = super easy.)

How to Optimize Your Spending with Ebates

In-Store Rebates

Ebates recently started offering In-Store rebate opportunities as well. All you have to do is have your debit or credit card linked to your profile, and then you will get cash back when a qualifying purchase is made.

Download the Ebates Extension

Much like other money-saving tools like Honey or Swagbucks, Ebates has an internet extension! The Ebates extension is great because it sits right on your toolbar and allows you to view your account. You can see what cash back you have pending, as well as new stores offering rebates. It will also apply coupons for you at checkout so you save even more upfront!

Ebates works differently than a lot of online points-based services. Every 3 months you’ll receive either a paper check by mail or a deposit to your linked paypal account. All you need to do is reach over $5.01 in cash back and you’ll get paid!

Why We Like Ebates

• It's REAL CASH BACK from stuff you'd already shop for. There's a reason it's one of the most popular platforms out there – they offer good opportunities for cash back and they make payout simple by offering to do it via check or email every quarter.
• You can track your money in real time, so there's no “did I make anything?” uncertainty like with other cash back websites.
• It's also entirely free to use and they don't take out any fees for you to use it.

Honorable Mention Cash Back Sites:

• Honey – Honey is another chrome extension that automatically searches for Promo codes when you're checking out online. If you use a code they find you get “Honey Gold” which is a certain number of points per dollar you spend. You can then redeem for gift cards from Amazon, Sephora, and NORDSTROM, which is v. exciting. Get $5 (500 honey gold) with your first qualifying purchase. 
• Drop – If you're a heavy mobile shopper (I'm more of a desktop girl, myself) Drop functions very similarly to Ebates, but it is all done on your mobile phone via an app. So, if you're part of the large percentage of online shoppers doing it all on your phone while you're in front of Netflix each night, this may be the cash back app you've been dreaming of. 
• MyPoints – This site is very similar to Swagbucks in that it offers points for both survey completions and cash back for shopping at partner retailers. The points per dollar is a bit higher than you'll find anywhere else and you get a $5 bonus when you take 5 surveys. Click here to claim your $5 bonus. 

The TL:DR

• I get a lot of comments about surveys on my site and social channels. They're controversial because survey sites aren't a “get rick quick” scheme.
• It's a very low payout for the time involved (think: under $10 an hour usually).
  
• BUT if you have a lot of time and are looking for a low effort way to make extra money for debt repayment, I still think this is a good option – especially if you want to be able to hustle from home.
  
• There's also $35 in bonus/sign up offers in this post alone so be sure to take advantage.