That's how I started.

I concentrate on gross income. I won't do a restaurant shop unless there is money well above the estimated meal reimbursement. If you don't it is charity shopping. Unless you are very cautious, by the time you order what you want add a tip etc. you end up out of pocket. I don't want a meal, I do this for money. I will never do purchase and return tasks, retailers track people that return goods and make blacklists.
I do long routes, have a definite per day and per job minimum and will dump any company that messes with me on pay or reimbursement. My best year was 2014 when I booked well over $30,000 with fees and mileage etc. from over 300 jobs, the most I have ever done is 7 in one day.

Inappropriate post removed. – Admin

What is your definition of 'well above?'

I said what I meant.

About 70 last year. When compensation was better, I was doing 200-300 shops a year. I'll be lucky to do 30 this year.

I did just over 200. I do have a full time job so mystery shopping is just a way to earn some extra money.

You must keep score for the IRS, but I am an independent contractor and if the shops are not fun and mutually beneficial, I ain't gonna do it! The cost of doing BUSINESS vs. the enjoyment and challenge of assuming a different demographic and becoming believable is entertaining to me, but I will not do it for free.

Will Rogers got famous talking "plain talk" I did not get detected as a mystery shopper because I was not the first person to say "howdy". as "howdy" may not be appropriate.

I wonder how many people do shops adjusting to the demographic then get "scrambled brains" especially in the middle of the night when you are really tired trying to translate "plain folk" into "editor's grammar" when you are trying to quote the employee... I am off subject.

The answer to "how many shops?" is, None of your business how many shops I do. I leave the "desperate" shops for the "desperate" and the "cheating and lying" shops that are "easy" and promises you "hero citations" for the novices that do not know any better. My sympathy goes out to the seniors and college students that struggle at the end of the month.

If you would like a licence to use any verbal means of getting out of tricky situations or you just want to baffle and impress friends, relatives, clerks and servers without scraping the BS off your shoes it takes practice, "BS" and "P.H.D." none of which are college related.

Do I take Mystery shopping seriously..Yes, If I can not give value I ain't gonna do it.
Grammar may not like that statement but she is a nice old lady and she will get over it.