Hello, I am new to the mystery shop field and have a couple questions for you more “experienced” and “successful” MS. I am still researching to find out if this is something for me. A mom of 3, with a regular part-time job. I am looking to do this on a part-time basis for some extra income. Here are my questions so far and thanks ahead of time for any insight you guys can provide! Much appreciated!

1) Is mystery shopping worth while, I cannot see how it can be when they seem to be paying $15 for a shop. Doesn’t it cost most of that in gas to get to your destination? Or are you able to be reimbursed for gas? ( I realize that you can use your mileage come tax time) but can you actually be reimbursed for gas? If so, how does this work?
2.) Is it possible to do this on a part-time basis? Or is this something that requires “full-time” hours in order to turn a profit in the end?
3.) If it is possible to make worthwhile on a part-time basis, what are some good strategies in accomplishing this?
4.) I live in PA, about 2 hours away from the closest major city. Is this better suited for those with access to bigger cities such as Philadelphia or Harrisburg for example?

Thanks for helping me with my research!

Answering one question, yes it is possible working part time, I've done it both ways, after retirement I worked
about 60% of the time, as I was driving freeways into the city. Now after 11 years, I've stopped the driving and concentrate on jobs in my town, not more than 10 miles, and find it still gives me a better lifestyle, plus going out to restaurants,and paying for y food 80%, not as much cash, but I wouldn't stop...do it and when your kids are older, you can do more.
edited to add: build a relationship with your companies don't be late, do a good reliable job, then ask for perhaps a bonus, but prove yourself first. Iwork for (what I call) Boutique companies, about 8 monthly, knowing they have jobs in my immediate location. this takes time, but is easily done. I like to be treated with respect and known as a good shopper, and the smaller companies allow me this. Many companies have a 3 month rotation, a few of my companies do not, I can do same jobs monthly. Good luck.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/21/2018 05:47PM by Irene_L.A..

Mystery shopping is worthwhile to me, and I have been doing it for about 17 years. There are some forum members who have been doing this for less time and do it for primary income, and are quite successful at it. I do it part time and it pays for groceries and vacations. When I started my stepkids were young (5, 7, 9 and 11) and it was a great way to earn pocket money and still be able to get the kids on the bus in the morning and be home in the afternoons to help with homework and cook dinner. MSCs do not reimburse for gas, but you can claim mileage deductions on your taxes. Also, I don't shop too far from home and I work for multiple companies, so I build "mini-routes" and stack different shops with different companies leading from home and back again. And though you can't get gas reimbursed, after you have been with a company for a while and have proved that you can write good reports and submit them in a timely manner, and you don't "flake" on shops, you can ask for bonuses. Sometimes it's best to not live in a major metro area. I live about 45 miles from Cleveland in a small city of about 250,000 people and I find plenty of shops. How well you can do is going to depend on many factors but it is not hard to make a decent income or even just a supplemental income. You will find out how many shoppers are in your area--competition is going to vary from area to area. Different companies shop different regions as well. Sign up with as many companies as you can and you will probably have more work than you need.

Welcome!
I've been doing this for just shy of two years, so there are folks around with a lot more experience than I have, but I think I can answer your questions reasonably well.

* Everybody has a different way of making this work for them - the vast majority of shoppers only do this part time. I work full time and do this on the side and am able to bring in over $1,000 a month to my family. However, I rarely do shops that pay less than $30 or $40. You do not get directly reimbursed for gas, but you can get bonuses for longer trips, if the company can't find somebody willing to do a job at an asking price. (We are operating in system of raw capitalism.) Finding higher paying shops is a matter of finding the right companies, being willing to drive a little sometimes, and learning the patters for when companies do and do not bonus shops. I also do video shopping - which can pay very well. (I did three shops yesterday for a total of $240.) It can take some time to establish yourself.

* This can work for folks in cities and in more rural areas. The biggest key is whether or not you are willing/able to drive to the money. I drove 90 miles for one of my shops yesterday and, overall, spent more time driving than I did combined writing up reports and doing my visits. There tend to be a lot more opportunities in cities, but there also are a lot more shoppers, keeping fees relatively low. MSC's can be desperate to fill shops in more rural areas and will often offer very large amounts of money for simple shops.

* Another strategy you might consider: There are a lot of reimbursement-only shops. Instead of striving to bring in a paycheck, you can strive to be reimbursed for expenses that you already have: Groceries, oil changes, delivery pizza, trips to the movies with kids, etc.

Though I may not get a lot of income from some of these shops, I regularly do car wash shops and oil change shops through my dealership. The $$ I save not paying for maintenance is great. Also, I save on groceries doing grocery shops.

I agree with the previous post. I've been shopping off and on for 7 years now. I also do it part time. I'm about 30 minutes from Harrisburg but find most of my shops outside of Harrisburg. I think it's because there are a lot more shoppers willing to shop there. I recently came back after my youngest started Kindergarten this year and my oldest went off to college. I work part-time and do this while they are in school so I can pay my son's tuition and help with bills. I'll give you my example so you can get an idea. The 1st month I did 32 shops over 15 days and made $831 including reimbursements. 2nd month I did 31 shops over 12 days and made $870 including reimbursements. 3rd month 43 shops over 15 days and made $1,357 including reimbursements, $1,239 not. I took Dec off and only did 3 shops for $104. This month I've got 27 shops over 12 days so far for $1,155.

So you see as I started proving myself to MSCs again I started getting higher offers and I was able to make each shop worth more. I do good work. I'm dependable and schedulers have started recommending me to others which has got me some nice paying shops with companies I didn't even know existed.

Some of those days I didn't even have to leave the house because they were phone/web shop days. It take a lot of planning and organization. I'm signed up with about 70 companies and have worked with about 30 of them since I came back. There are a lot of shops that I would love to take but can't because of distance, hours or they don't fit my lifestyle but there's enough diversity that I have more than enough work.

If you decide to jump in I'd be more than happy to help. I love talking shop and helping others get in the business. Good luck!

You might not have to drive far to make good money, Ragdollcatlover. A few days ago I drove a total of 14 miles roundrtip, worked for 3 hours, and made $87. And, the reports were done on an app on my phone after I left each location so there was no report time when I got home. I know it's hard to drive very far from home when you have minor children at home. I always liked to be pretty close to home just in case one of the kids got sick and I had to go pick them up from school. I established that pattern and stuck with it because I really don't have to travel far to make $20 to 30 an hour or more. My kids are grown now, but I realized quite awhile ago that saving wear and tear on my vehicle was important to me and I can drive the same car for a decade or more without having to spend a lot of money on repairs. My husband bought me a car last February, and I gave my 2003 Saturn to my stepson with only 78,000 miles on it. I only had to get new brakes once and new tires once, and no other repairs. And the oil changes were "free" throughout the years because of shops. So whatever works for you--it's great to have flexibility to make mystery shopping fit your needs and your schedule.

Welcome, Rag! I assume by your name that you're a cat lover--my three felines thank you for that. I have been doing this for 14 years, and now that I'm retired, I can afford to be MUCH more selective about the areas to which I will/will not drive to conduct shops. Don't overlook telephone shops as a way to supplement your income. You certainly won't get rich on them, but many telephone shops require only a few minutes' work (on the call itself), followed by a (usually) short report. You'll find what works best for you! Good luck to you!

I am a very part-time shopper, and my goal is to earn close to $200/month...I am happy with that. Plus, the reimbursements I get from the grocery shops I do puts back about $1000/yearly in my pocket, so I am also to save enough for Christmas gifts! There are others who make much more than I do, but we are all a diverse bunch!

We really don't know what you can and cannot do based on your family's needs, so please excuse the huge variety of answers - they are all valid.

When I first started shopping, I mostly did a lot of little jobs based around my kids' activities. For instance, if I needed to drop by son off at one of his activities, I would find a handful of shops in the vicinity, even if they did not pay well, and did them. Instead of spending $5 on a latte, I would make $15-$30. It wasn't much, but it was an easy net gain and would add up over time (a difference of $20 a day x 3 days a week x 4 weeks a month = $240) and make a difference in a tight family budget.

Thank you everyone so far for all of your valuable insight, I’ve definitely learned some things I did not know from this thread!

I am a rural dweller now. My suggested 15 - 25 mile shopping radius consists mostly of wide open spaces and countless four-legged critters. I love this! And, in order to access many shops, I travel to other cities. I take care of personal interests while I am there because those things are not available here. (If you do this, remember to separate your business and personal miles. Also, check with an expert about deducting gas costs and/or miles.)

Since you live in a small town, you may be or become familiar. You don't want to be known as a mystery shopper. To offset this, can you shop in other cities or perform shops at home? Are retail audits or merchandising assignments available where you live? These assignments are overt, and it will not matter if the people in your local business know who you are and what your job is/jobs are.

I am just learning about apps for mystery shops. Some simply notify me of available shops. This is handy sometimes because as I near shop locations, they appear on my phone screen. Some shops can be completed on the phone, on-site. This may save time for other shops or other interests. There are phone call and on-line shops which might work well for you if you do not want to drive to shops.

Do you want to include your kids in some shops? Some shops allow you to bring children of certain ages. Some assignments specifically exclude children and/or other adults.

How important is anything to you? Money is good. Making a profit might be better than incurring a financial loss. Gaining experiences and using skills might be worth more money or at least some money to you in future. This is one of the things you learn as you go along. Have fun!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/21/2018 08:30PM by Shop-et-al.

I live in the middle of nowhere. But I have to go to town for groceries, bank, work, etc. When I am going to town anyway, I plan mystery shops.

So, my goal is not to put km. on my car for mystery shopping.
An extra 15 or 20 on my way home from work adds up. Being reimbursed for gas, groceries, oil changes keeps money in my pocket.

I do this very part time as it is flexible to schedule around my work.

I've been doing this 4-5 month part time. I am in similar situation, rural PA, small town, 2 larger towns about 20 minutes away, work full time with kids, 1.5 hours from major city. There is limited opportunity in my town. Most of what I do is restaurant that has small fee in the larger nearby towns. The bank shops are nearly non existent here even in the larger towns. I am making about 200 per month in fees and reimbursed about 150-175 in goods/services. These are made up of one or 2 nicely bonused and many small shops. But I am getting several dinners per month out of it, oil changes, usually a movie per month and a few blah pizzas. Its fun though.
I found this suits me better than direct sales for extra income...although I still do dabble in that because its wine related and I love wine. That's also fun but that income depends on other people booking/buying.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/23/2018 01:36PM by hnov29.

I just work part-time from home now doing phone shops and it helps. Some months are busy with work while others are really slow. You have to register with a lot of companies but I mainly just work for a few. I do miss on site shops though. I don't make a lot of money but enough to help pay for groceries and things like that.

These are really good tips everyone. I started doing shops on my way to work and home so no extra miles. I usually do gas stations so they reimburse for gas. My daughter is in grad school and does web and phone shops to earn extra money. Good Luck!

I have been shopping since the early 90’s. If you have near you any type of mall, strip mall, fast restaurants, casual dine, fast oil change shops, grocery stores, movie theaters, banks, etc., then it is worthwhile. Take advantage of reimbursement for groceries, oil changes, meals, etc. I do the shops that pay a decent fee, wait for a bonus, or provide a service or product that I would need anyway. I live in suburban Philly, about an hour outside of the city, and there is enough shopping in the suburbs. I don't travel to shop or do route shopping. If I have to go anywhere out of my area, I look for shops. If I have to go into the city, I will pick up a parking shop - anything to alleviate the aggravation of the drive in. I would never drive into the city just to shop. Sadly, times have changed. I do not make anywhere near the money I made years ago. Some stores/restaurants are just not being shopped anymore and have gone the way of receipt, app and email surveys. It’s cheaper than paying the MSC and us. Maybe that will change back to us in the future.

I do this part time when I am working and full time when I am in between jobs.

Part time, I do restaurants, gas stations and banks.

When I did this full time in 2016, I worked M-F, 9am-2pm. I did shops that did not require me to purchase anything. I would schedule the higher paying bank and apartment shops and find cell phone and storage shops to use as fillers.

I live close to Washington DC, but I chose to work the suburbs. There were plenty shops available.

I would do my schedule for the week on Sundays. I maintained a great relationship with the schedulers. If you want it to work for you, you have to put the work in.

I have been shopping part time for 12 years. I shop mostly banks, a few restaurants, and grocery shops. I live close by to many banks, some areas have 3 or 4 on the same street. I average about $400 a month, and shop about 3 days a week, no nights, no week-ends, enjoy all of my shops, easy!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/23/2018 06:47PM by shopper8.

I've been shopping for almost 10 years. When I began, it was just to pick up a little extra cash. I lived in a more rural area then, but I lucked into a project auditing rural gas stations for $30-$60 each. I spent three weekends driving all over the place, but earned about $1800 that month. The MSC was almost shocked to find someone in that area willing to go out to remote locations. When that project ended, I signed up for every MSC I could find and soon discovered that there were a LOT of good paying shops in my area. I was getting $20-$25 plus full reimbursement for dinner two to three times a week, $20 a week for grocery shopping (different stores), free oil changes, free movie tickets, etc. I was earning around $200 a week just from weekends and a few after work shops during the week.
My point is, you may be surprised just how much work is available in your area. Sign up for all the MSC's you can. When checking job boards, expand the radius. If you're only looking for jobs within 25 miles, you'll miss great paying shops 30 miles away.

I live in a suburb close to a large metro area where there are many assignments I can get to in 15 minutes drive. If you live in a rural community, it would be harder to find enough higher paying assignments close to home. If you really like it, a lot of shopping companies use shoppers as editors and schedulers. Most of the them work from home. I edited for about a year from home part time while I shopped part time.