Opinion Outpost Review: Is it a Great Ride or a Bandit in Disguise?

Opinion Outpost
Opinion Outpost Opinion Outpost
4.4 1
Survey Frequency High
Rewards Cash, PayPal, Gift Cards, Amazon Gift Cards
Geografic North America, Europe
Minimum Age 18+
Business Name Survey Sampling International, LLC
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I was a member of Opinion Outpost almost 8 years ago, at the very beginning of my crusade to make money from home. I had been scammed a ton of times, and almost all of the survey sites, even the legit ones, made it almost impossible to make any real money.

The surveys took forever and were worth only pennies.

Opinion Outpost was different.  I could earn actual money, they sent me a check, and it didn’t take forever.  I mean, I didn’t get rich, but in the course of a year I made about $80 to go into our Christmas budget.

Then we moved, I got an actual work from home job, and I found less and less time to take surveys.

Opinion Outpost has always been one I recommended to people though.  In light of this, I recently took a look at it again when I found myself with some time on my hands, and I was surprised to see it had changed, a lot.

They have switched over to a points system, which is fine, but isn’t the only change.  The cool western theme is gone, and they offer prizes other than cash.

With all these changes, I thought is was time I looked into them again before I continue to recommend them to people.  I figure what better place to start, than at the beginning.

History

The parent company is Survey Sampling International.  They were founded in 1977 by Tom Danbury and Beverly Weiman.

They have grown over the years and now manage popular survey sites such as Survey Spot, Opinion World, Chooz, and yes, Opinion Outpost.

The company is definitely a legitimate market research firm, with 25 offices in 18 countries as of 2015.

Sign Up

I mentioned I had an old account.  It was so old it was no longer in the system, so I had to sign up like a brand-new user.

This is good, because I got to see how the whole process works after all the changes.

The process was just as easy as ever.  You just enter some information, such as your name and your email, and you are all set.  Of course, it is totally free.

Then they ask you some general demographic questions.  There are also profile surveys you can take.

These help ensure the surveys that you receive are those you are actually eligible to complete.

You can still screen out, but the more profile surveys you answer, the less likely it is to happen.

How Can I make Money on Opinion Outpost?


This site is pretty simple when it comes to ways to make money.  You can earn by taking surveys, referring friends, or winning quarterly sweepstakes.

The big question that everyone wants to know is “How much does Opinion Outpost pay?”  The answer is, it depends.

Sweepstakes

There is a drawing for 10,000 that takes place each quarter.  You can get entries in a variety of ways.

Sometimes you get an entry when you screen out of a survey.  You can also use your points towards sweepstakes entries.

One point equals one entry.

Referrals

The referral program is actually pretty good.  You earn $1 for each referral after they complete their first survey, but it is capped at $5.

Surveys

The surveys at Opinion Outpost are not the same run of the mill surveys you are used to.  Even their bot screeners are unique and interesting.

When I clicked on my first survey, I was given a screen with a cartoonish looking person that had a thought bubble.  I was prompted to type, in the thought bubble, a description of my perfect day.

I am guessing this was their bot screener, as I saw no points for this.  It is frustrating to spend so much time on a bot screener, but it was fun and interesting.  I have never seen it before.

The surveys are just as fun, with questions being asked and answers being taken in new and interesting ways.

How Many Surveys are Available

It all depends on your profile, but I average about one per day in my email.  You don’t have to wait for an email.  You can just log in to your account and see if you have surveys available.

Of the surveys I am sent, I am able to complete around two per week.  Again, this is highly variable based on your demographics and how good you are about completing your profile.

You may have better luck, or you may not.

How Much Is Each Survey Worth?

Most of the surveys take between 15 and 30 minutes and earn from 1 to 5 points.

I was offered a 3-point survey that was estimated to take 8 minutes, a 5-point survey estimated to take 3 minutes, and a 15-point survey estimated to take 20 minutes.

As a general rule points are worth $.10 each.

My biggest complaint about the surveys is that there are a ton of screener questions at the beginning of each one.

You really do spend a lot of time answering screeners, and that is frustrating because if you are not eligible for the survey, it feels like time wasted.

They do use the answers to help match you with another survey, however, which is nice.

What Can I Get with My Points

There are various rewards available, and the minimum cash out is different for each one.  The variety is not as broad as with some other survey sites, but the simplicity is sort of refreshing.

Cash

You can trade in points for cash via PayPal.  The minimum cash out is 100 points for $10.

Mileage Plus Award Miles

  • 300 miles for 105 points
  • 500 miles for 175 points
  • 1,000 miles for 350 points.

Quarterly Prize Entries

As mentioned before, these are redeemable at a rate of one entry per point.

Alawar Games Gift ID

Thirty points will get your one gift ID.

Amazon Gift Card

The minimum cash out for an Amazon gift card is 50 points for a $5 card.

iTunes Gift Card

There is a 100-point minimum for the iTunes cards, and this will get you a $10 card.

Red Cross Donation

You can donate $.50 to the Red Cross for 5 points.

Better Business Bureau

 

I was alarmed to see that Survey Sampling International has an F rating with the BBB.  They had 1 positive review and 24 negative reviews.

Reading through the negative reviews, I discovered that virtually all of them were people complaining about receiving phone calls.

This is a separate area and not related to their survey sites.

Opinion Outpost has its own BBB file as well.  It was opened in 2015 and includes 6 negative reviews and no rating.

The reviews are related mostly to accounts being closed, people being locked out, and screening out of surveys.

These are all common with survey sites.  People do not thoroughly read the policies, break the rules, and then are mad when their account is terminated.

Also, no one likes screening out of surveys, but it is the nature of the beast.  You win some, you lose some, you just have to decide if the risk is worth the potential reward.

This is a great time to mention that it is extremely important, with all survey sites, to read through the privacy policies and terms of use.  If you do not, you run the risk of not being able to claim prizes you have earned.

If you do not understand something, check out the FAQ section.  It is likely the question is answered there.

Is Opinion Outpost Legit, or is it a Scam? Is it Safe?

This survey site has been around for a while.  Even though there are some negative reviews, there are way more happy users out there.

Six complaints over thousands of users is actually not too shabby.  People have been getting paid by them for years.

I have been paid by them myself.  They are definitely a safe survey company to use.

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No one is going to get rich using Opinion Outpost.  However, it seems that you can earn a little more quickly here than with other sites.

The surveys appear to be worth more, and they have options for donations and gaming sites in addition to the standard cash of gift card options.

If you spend a little while here each week, you could potentially earn a nice little chunk of extra money to use on something fun. If you enjoy gaming, this could be a way to fund that hobby.

In this sense, this site is definitely worth it.  That said, if you need a substantial monthly income, you will not find that here.

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Are you ready to get started? 

Have you been using Opinion Outpost for a while? 

We would love to know your experience.

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