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Vindale Research Review: A Paid Survey Website Where Cash Is King

Paid survey websites are incredibly popular, because they’re free to join, and they let you make money online each month with very little effort. Each one seems to have its own unique features, whether it’s the payment threshold, the referral program, or the payment details. Vindale Research is no exception. In this Vindale Research review, I’ll cover the basics, and let you know how they compare to another popular online market research company.

Vindale Research: Key Features

  • Sign up bonus
  • Four ways to earn
  • Online survey payments as high as $50
  • Earn cash, not points
  • Generous $5 referral bonus

What Is Vindale Research?

Vindale Research is a paid survey website and market research panel that rewards users for completing surveys and fulfilling offers. You can also earn money from Vindale Research when you refer friends and they become active users. The company has been around since 2005 and is available to members in the United States, the UK, Canada, and Australia. They provide market research insight to major brands, including Disney, Amazon, and Netflix.

Getting Started with Vindale Research

Opening an account with Vindale is easy, and free. When you arrive at the website homepage, you can watch an introductory video, or select “Get Started” to sign up. Vindale will ask you to provide your email address and a password. They will then send you a confirmation email for validation purposes.

There is a profile page you will need to complete. Here, Vindale will ask you a series of questions to get to know you a little better. This helps them filter the right surveys to you, so it’s important that you offer as much detail as possible. You do get a $1 bonus when you sign up.

How to Get Paid with Vindale Research

There are four ways you can earn money with Vindale Research.

  1. The first is by taking surveys. It is a survey site, after all. Surveys cover a wide range of topics, and unlike most paid survey sites, you can earn as much as $50, although the average payout is much lower. You can find new surveys on the website or in your email inbox. I like that Vindale Research lets you know in advance how much the survey is worth, assuming that you qualify for it.
  2. In addition to surveys, you can earn rewards by watching video ads. The pay isn’t great, but the videos are short and require little to no effort.
  3. You can multiply your earnings when you refer your friends. Vindale will send you $5 for every friend who signs up and uses the platform.
  4. Last, but not least, you can make money with Vindale by opting into Reward Mail. Vindale will send promotional offers to your email inbox. All you need to do is open them up and read them, and you’ll earn money. There is no obligation to buy the products that are being promoted.

Vindale Research Rewards

Vindale Research is unique amongst paid survey sites in that there is only one choice for rewards; PayPal cash. There is no gift card or merchandise option. That’s not necessarily a bad thing – cash payments are king, are they not? But other survey sites offer gift cards and merchandise, so if you want different choices, you may be less inclined to use Vindale Research.

The Vindale surveys and referral program offer higher payments than you’ll find on other survey sites, but at $50, the payment threshold is also high. Some other sites will payout as little as $5. When you do request a payout, it takes a few days for the funds to show up in your PayPal account.

How Does Vindale Research Make Money?

Vindale Research partners with several popular consumer brands who want to learn more about their target customers as well as get their feedback. These companies pay Vindale Research for the data collected, which helps them as they bring new products and services to market. Vindale would also earn advertising dollars for promoting products and services on behalf of the brands they represent.

Is Vindale Research Safe?

Vindale uses the same levels of SSL encryption that your bank uses for its internet banking platforms, so you can rest assured knowing that your information is safe. They don’t store your credit card or other payment account information, and the personal information you provide to Vindale is optional. For more information, you can access a Fraud Awareness Guide on their website.

Vindale Research vs. Ipsos i-Say

Several other market research companies offer paid survey opportunities, including one that we recently reviewed, Ipsos i-Say. Like Vindale, Ipsos is a reputable market research company. Regarding rewards flexibility, I-Say gets the edge over Vindale; you can redeem points for cash, gift cards, merchandise, prepaid Visas, and more. They also have a mobile app, whereas Vindale does not.

Vindale, on the other hand, offers a $5 referral bonus (vs. $1 for i-Say) and a simplified rewards system (no points, just cash). With Vindale, however, it will take longer to redeem your cash rewards. The minimum payout is $50. With i-Say, you can redeem points for an Amazon gift card as soon as you earn $5.

Vindale Research Pros and Cons

Vindale Research has several advantages, but the drawbacks mean that it won’t appeal to everyone. We came up with the following list of Vindale’s pros and cons.

Pros

  • $1 Sign up bonus
  • Generous $5 referral bonus
  • Survey payments as high as $50
  • Get paid in cash, no confusing points system

Cons

  • Hard to qualify for surveys
  • No gift card option (if you like gift cards)
  • High minimum payout of $50
  • No mobile app makes it hard to earn-on-the-go

Final Thoughts on Vindale Research

Vindale Research appears middle of the pack on our list of the best survey sites. We like the generous referral code and the fact that they pay you with cash, straight up. On the downside, the payout threshold is relatively high, and the lack of a mobile app makes it difficult to complete surveys on the go. It would be nice to see a Vindale app in the future.

Other survey sites offer more flexibility: Survey Junkie and Swagbucks come to mind. With that in mind, we recommend opening an account with multiple survey sites. That’s the best way to increase your earnings. So, you can join Vindale Research, along with the other survey companies I’ve mentioned in this article.

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