Hey there!
In between my online work, I find myself having some free time to just sit and relax and do something else. I work in social media and video editing, so when everything’s been scheduled and reviewed or I’m in the process of rendering a video, there’s not much to do anymore but wait.
Since I want to make killing time as productive as I can make it to be, I watched some videos online about making some extra cash. I wanted it to be quick and didn’t require too much work. And that’s when I came across Prolific.
Prolific (www.prolific.co) is a marketplace that connects researchers with global research participants. Basically they pay individuals like you and me to participate in various studies. These studies can come from both the academic world and in any industry.
This particular survey platform struck me the most because I remember when I did the same thing in college. As part of our undergraduate curriculum, we were required to participate in research studies conducted by graduates and post-docs.
Although it was simply to satisfy a requirement to pass a class, I enjoyed doing those studies because there are times in which we get rewarded something else on top of class grades.
And you’ve guessed it – it’s money.
We were sometimes rewarded cash for participating in those studies. I usually got $5 to $10 in cash prizes, sometimes even gift cards. The most fun one I ever participated was a guessing game that connected me with another participant across the room!
Anyway, how much money can you make from Prolific?
Well, that depends entirely on two factors.
#1: The number of studies you are eligible for and going to take.
You won’t make any money if you’re not taking any of those studies. Studies usually last from 5-10 minutes on average, 1-2 minutes for their shortest, and the longest one I’ve seen went over 45-75 minutes.
One of the biggest questions when it comes to survey sites like this is the number of surveys you’re able to get. And the answer to that lies on the demographics you are in.
I can’t say 100% what demographics they are looking for because survey sites like this rely on the requirements researchers give them. So, if you fall into the demographics that researchers are looking for, the more studies you can participate. If you don’t, don’t worry. There’s going to be another study that will suit you best.
#2: The rate of pay for each study.
Studies have various rates attached to them. And that should be taken into consideration when you decide which studies to take. Pay rates range from $5/hr to as high as $15/hr. But since each study has different completion times, the most frequent pay you’ll get for a study lasting 5 minutes may be less than $1.
Oh, by the way, the pay currency is in UK £. So, don’t be surprised if you don’t see US dollars there. Simply convert that to your local currency to see how much you’ve earned already.
And once you’ve hit £5, you can cash out to your PayPal account. That’s the only way you can receive your money as of the moment. You’ll receive your money on their next cash out days, which is Tuesday or Friday.
But when you’ve made your 4th cash out, you won’t need to wait for Tuesday or Friday because you will be eligible for instant cash outs, as long as you continue to use the same PayPal account.
By now, you should notice that this way of making extra cash isn’t life changing. You can’t prosper making money with this method. But it’s a great way to turn some of your down time into something productive and rewarding.
Just use the cash you make here as a supplement to pay off small bills here and there. Use it to buy some food. I don’t know what you wanna do with it. It’s your money!
A Personal Tip for You!
If you wanna make the best of this, here’s one tip I can share with you.
Whenever I do these studies, I don’t do them all since I don’t have all the time in the world to do them all anyway. I pick and choose which one is pay-efficient. I typically choose studies that only last within 10 minutes with a pay rate of above $7/hr. That translates to around $0.12 per minute.
There are some times when I take studies below $7/hr because the time it takes to complete them hovers around less than 5 minutes. So if you do the math, I can make more money by finishing more short studies, granted if I qualify for them.
If you want to try out Prolific, simply go to www.prolific.co and sign up as a participant. The signup is quick and simple. Once you sign up, you complete some preliminary questions and just wait for studies to come your way.