Different strokes for different folks. You do you, and I do me. Mystery shop for money only? Wonderful. As for me, I mystery shop for value. Yes, I like money, but money is only one form of value. Goods and services can sometimes be more valuable than the almighty dollar. As I noted on another thread regarding 10 foot pole shops, one man's junk is another mans treasure. I noticed that for some, 10 foot pole shops were also shops that others did not mind doing at all. Anyway, I'm not mad at anyone. Shop to your own liking.

I shop for value, and not money only. I am aware that value can be a relative and fluid term. Isn't that great! As I was saying, goods and services have value that can be equated to money. For example, I need tires for my car. I get a shop offer that reimburses me for the cost of tires. Do I turn down the shop because it's reimbursement only? Absolutely according to the shop for money only ideology. But I shop for value. The set of tires has as much value as the dollar (true story by the way). How about this. You have seen this offer often. You get $5 and reimbursement for an oil change. Do you take the job? Some people have said they can't see doing any shop for $5. I will and I do. I need an oil change. The choice is do the shop, or stick to the shop for money only policy and pay $49.99 out of pocket for the oil change. Shop for money only? What about those Texas Roadhouse shops that offer reimbursement only? Ummmm.... tempting huh?

So, are you shopping for money only, or for value?

Almost every shopper does reimbursement only shops for goods and services that they would otherwise pay for. This is not a new idea. I haven't paid for an oil change since 2005, for instance. The value of that item/service is untaxed income. So, groceries, hair care, pet services/food, dry cleaning, lunches, food delivery, hotel stays, gasoline.... you name it; we do it.

I shop for cash. Will I take a $5 oil change shop? No. I will wait until it is bonused.

Zero fee food shops? I have food at home. I can always find a bonused burger shop or a hoagie shop.

If I have to write a report, that takes time. My time is valuable.

Shopping for money often is the best value. Should I spend an hour or two on a dining shop while taking notes and ordering from the shop requirements, or should I spend an hour or two on cash shops and then go dining at the restaurant of my choice with no note-taking and no menu limitations? Value is in the eye of the beholder. (And I don't think anyone would turn their nose up at a set of new tires.)

Cash has value for me. Fee + reimbursement shops do, too. Every time I make $40 eating tacos, it means I spent less money at the grocery store. I'm a strong believer in generating cash-in-my-pocket-legally-untaxed; those reimbursements are not taxable income! That's a HUGE value.

I do not shop for life-style; I can't afford it.



Meanwhile, the rising price of gas is killing me...and gas station shops/audits' reimbursements don't cover even one gallon of gas....not enough gas to make it to the next station on my wide-flung route!

You cannot put a price tag on inspiration, fact-finding, and maintaining various skills. I love some shops because while I am there, I get inspiration for all kinds of things from the purely aesthetic to an overwhelming need to find out how things [many of which I never heard of before] work. Sometimes, I can find out how much something costs at two or more stores. Often, they are the same price at the same time or will be the same when the loss leaders change and the brand goes on sale at a different store. I have not found shops for hair, nails, facials, and other frou-frou things. I would not want to shop those services. Those are times when I relax and use my ears more than my eyes (if I can stay awake) because my glasses are off and I can't see anything anyway. Now that work and mileage and therefore oil change schedules have changed, I can consider oil change shops again. Make yourselves happy, or be practical, or whatever...

@walesmaven "Almost every shopper does reimbursement only shops for goods and services that they would otherwise pay for."

Exactly. Then that shopper cannot say they shop for cash only. We all shop for cash, but as you stated, most every shopper will do reimbursement only shops for goods and services they would otherwise pay for. However, there seems to be a contingent who subscribe to the notion of "cash only," and others who contradict that stated ideology by saying they shop for cash only...... but..... I will do or have done this for reimbursement. I'm suggesting that they don't really shop for cash only, but for value. Anyway, to each his own. Value can be relative and measured in various ways. I provided a couple of examples how goods and services absolutely equate to cash value.

edit=varies to various

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/14/2021 11:02PM by 1forum1.

Very true! I did a no fee food shop two days in a row. I had a training class near the MSC's client. I took advantage of the opportunity. It's not my norm.

I did another reimbursement only shop. I don't remember the details, but I was very excited about it.

Great example @HonnyBrown...... I would probably never do a reimbursement only shop of that type, but in the situation you described, you got to eat, so why not take advantage. Sometimes situations and timing create a value that otherwise is not normally there.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/14/2021 11:52PM by 1forum1.

I have only done one charity shop (reimbursement only). I accidentally self-assigned it. And since I don't flake, I completed it. Never again.

Shopping is work. One should get paid for it. Just as I would not go to a business meeting off-the-clock if I was an employee, I won't shop without fees either. Besides, IMO the restaurants (and other venues) for which there are reibursement-only assignments are not the type of place that I would ever patronize myself. Inevitably, they are chains with menus driven by off-sight committees (ick), offering programmed atmosphere (ick), and cookie-cutter service (ick). I'll take a local dive anyway, especially ones with unique menus, anyday.

I do both. Anything to reduce my overall expenses and/or increase income with an acceptable pay rate considering my time. I also factor in lifestyle too.

@Rousseau wrote:

I have only done one charity shop (reimbursement only). I accidentally self-assigned it. And since I don't flake, I completed it. Never again.

Shopping is work. One should get paid for it. Just as I would not go to a business meeting off-the-clock if I was an employee, I won't shop without fees either. Besides, IMO the restaurants (and other venues) for which there are reibursement-only assignments are not the type of place that I would ever patronize myself. Inevitably, they are chains with menus driven by off-sight committees (ick), offering programmed atmosphere (ick), and cookie-cutter service (ick). I'll take a local dive anyway, especially ones with unique menus, anyday.

I don't recall having ever completed one of those charity shops. Mystery shopping is a job, and I expect both a reasonable fee for my time, capital investment, and experence, as well as full reimbursement for any purchase the client requires of me to complete the shop. There is always something productive I could do with my time instead of working for free or ridiculous pay. Shouldn't mystery shoppers make at least minimum wage?

They fed you and then they paid you back for the amount of money you spent at their establishment. How does that sum compare to the minimum wage where you live, how much did that contribute to your health or well-being, and how much did it contribute to your food and entertainment budget for that day? For example, was the food safe in terms of age and temperature, and was there background or live entertainment that you enjoyed while on site? \

@Shop-et-al wrote:

They fed you and then they paid you back for the amount of money you spent at their establishment. How does that sum compare to the minimum wage where you live, how much did that contribute to your health or well-being, and how much did it contribute to your food and entertainment budget for that day? For example, was the food safe in terms of age and temperature, and was there background or live entertainment that you enjoyed while on site? \

A reimbursed meal and no fee is no income whatsoever. If an employee, earning minimum wage was to attend an hour long meal and then spend an hour writing a report, the employee would receive a paycheck doe $30. If the employee paid out-of-pocket for the meal then she/he would be fully reimbursed for the full cost of the meal plus reimbursement POV miles to the restaurant as it would not have been the employee's regular work place. . The employee would end the day with $30 in the bank more than before the meal. The employee would have made minimum wage.

The MS contractor doing a charity shop would have the meal reimbursed, but not the POV miles, would be out two hours of her/his time and would have not earned a cent. $0 is significantly less than minimum wage. But its less than $0 as the contractor is out two hours of her/his life without compensation.

I'm an occasional shopper these days, but when I was doing this for a living, whether I would shop just for reimbursement depended on multiple factors. Take, for instance, an oil change shop. I would try to do them for cash plus reimbursement, but if I'm coming due for one, I'm familiar with the report requirements, and it's convenient, then I'd consider it for just the reimbursement.

With that said, however, I would try to be careful. Some MSCs would limit bonus amounts if you had done a particular shop for a small or no bonus recently.

Also, if I was going to be doing a route, I would consider an easy fast food shop just for reimbursement if I knew I'd be buying lunch while running around.

It makes me crazy when the MSC advertises the shop as "have a meal on us." Like they are assuming they are giving us something and we are doing no work in return.

From what I've read, MSCs can be as cheap with schedulers and editors as they are with shoppers.

But the shopper did not pay for food for one (or, if there were leftovers that they could take home) or more meals. Thus, the shopper's food expenditure was reduced. The shopper did not spend time then creating and cleaning up after meal preparation, and they did not need to pay someone to cook or clean for them then. Did the shopper travel far or at great expense to get this food? If so, the shopper can deduct mileage and improve their tax liability against fees they may pick up with other gigs. Additionally, the shopper has gained or maintained transferable mystery shopping skills which they may ply for higher fees and/or greater mileage deductions in future. BTW, did the shopper pick up rewards points by using their credit card to pay for the meal or the fuel? Better yet, did they need an upgraded for themselves for the location? If so, they got free money equivalent and a tax deduction for fuel and clothing in addition to free food.

Please stop whinging about reimbursement only as being a charity gig. It is far from that. It can be an absolute weapon in a clever taxpayer's quiver.

@Rousseau wrote:

A reimbursed meal and no fee is no income whatsoever. If an employee, earning minimum wage was to attend an hour long meal and then spend an hour writing a report, the employee would receive a paycheck doe $30.

Federal minimum wage is still only $7.25/hour, not $15.

Do I wish all jobs paid a fee in addition to reimbursement? Absolutely. But can I afford to buy a $30 meal at a steakhouse on my own? No. The report takes me 5 minutes. It's completely worth it to me.

A mileage deduction on my taxes does not put gas in my car today. The leftover meal does not buy the laptop or or pay for the electricity and internet to do the report.

@Shop-et-al wrote:

But the shopper did not pay for food for one (or, if there were leftovers that they could take home) or more meals.

I have a regular 9-5 job, MSing is a cash side-hustle and life-style enhancement thing for me. I will take a no-fee hotel job if it is going to snag me a decent amount of both hotel and credit card points. If I don't feel like cooking dinner and there's a low-fee or no- fee food job with a quick report, I'll do it. I'm super-picky about which jobs I will do but in a different way from most of you. I won't do reveal gas stations nor will I do a job that requires I tie up the time of a commission-based employee.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/17/2021 03:23PM by callinectes.

If it works for you @Shop-et-al, then that is all that matters.
If I go to Chopped Leaf, for example, I get reimbursed my meal (no guest) plus $2.00 (Which I may limit my tip to). It takes an hour of my time (including report). If I made my own meal at home, the groceries would be less than $5. 1/3 of minimum wage. Maybe even less, as I take leftovers for lunch
My time is better spent doing almost anything else. Still I do it if I am right there at meal time and I feel like it.
The more expensive restaurant mshop near me, can reimburse us for 2 meals if we are careful. A lot more to observe and report and really not worth it as it takes up mine and Hubby's time. And generally means 100 km on our vehicle, as we are not both in town together when those shops occur.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/16/2021 06:14PM by prince.

Everyone has their own bottom line. I, like Shop-et-al, am really annoyed by those that call a reimbursement shop a charity gig. Personally where I live the minimum wage is close to $15 an hour but it is not a living wage here unless you share your house with several other earners. There are very, very few shops with bonuses higher than $5 in regular times and now in covid I have seen them go up to $15 or $20 but these are generally last minute shops needing to be done in the next few days. And amazingly enough in covid I have even gotten offers for routes!!! The routes proposed in Southern California promise a $5 or $10 per shop with usually one shop actually in So Cal but not nearby my house and the rest scattered in smaller towns 250 + miles north of here with each shop 30 or 40 miles apart. These are charity shops. Reimbursement for something I need or want or enjoy are pretty much the only shops I consider worth while where I live.
Charity shops are the regular shops where I would spend two hours of my time to do a shop for $7 which after taxes would net me around $4. Yes, because I look at a penny saved being a penny earned that philosophy has put me in a higher tax bracket.

@sestrahelena wrote:

From what I've read, MSCs can be as cheap with schedulers and editors as they are with shoppers.

I guess I got lost. This comment is totally in the wrong thread. Sorry.

You are not dependent up on gigs. You have a substantial job. But still, point well taken. Some people need the money immediately, cannot spend any money for the foreseeable future if ever, or have other factors that are unique to them.

@HonnyBrown wrote:

A mileage deduction on my taxes does not put gas in my car today. The leftover meal does not buy the laptop or or pay for the electricity and internet to do the report.

@Shop-et-al wrote:

But the shopper did not pay for food for one (or, if there were leftovers that they could take home) or more meals.

Goods and services have value. I was hoping the examples and explanation that I used when I initiated this thread would provoke some thought. Well, anyway, some have still referred to reimbursement shops as free work or charity. It's not called charity. It's called compensation.

Many years ago, I was offered a job. I turned the job down. Later that night, I got a call from the owner of the company who had seen my resume and heard how well I did in the interview. Long story short, he asked why I didn't accept the job offer. In my mind, the salary was about $5000 less than what I expected. I had never worked for that little amount of money. I told the owner the salary is too low. I just can't work for that amount. No more cash was offered.

However, he reminded me of the total compensation package that of course included health care. But beyond that, a new car was included (for as long as I worked for the company). The car was for work and personal use. All insurance and maintenance is paid for. All gas is paid for. They matched 401k contributions 100%. I contribute $4000 and they match it with $4000. A per diem was included. There were other sales associated perks and bonuses. I knew I could get a another job that would pay me the salary/cash I had in mind. However, I had to have my own reliable transportation and proof of insurance. The expenses were covered for travel, but there was no per diem. Big difference. Lastly, there was no matching 401k.

The next day I called and accepted the offer I had originally turned down. Upon further review, the cash/salary that was $5000 more, was less in value and compensation than the job that paid $5000 less. Sometimes reimbursement shops offer as good or better compensation than fee only shops. As with all shops, you take more than just the money factor into consideration before acceptance.

edit: comprehension to compensation

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/17/2021 06:31AM by 1forum1.

I'll do a shop for the item that's being offered with no to little fee if it's something that I want. I've done a meal at a chain steakhouse, drive-in fast food shops, and hotels (usually the chain offers dinner and breakfast). I'm familiar with the reports so they don't take too long. I get fed twice at the hotel, accumulate reward points for future stays, and get a little cash back on my credit card. Plus, I really enjoy doing these types of shops and we can get away for a night or two for a very low cost. Of course I'll never turn down a bonus and, at times, all of these shops have been bonused as well.

1forum1, that was a great example!

I absolutely do reimbursement only shops but only for those things that I want and need and are of value. Let me stress, that whatever your personal feelings are on the matter, I don’t disagree with you. It’s really up to each person and their personal situation, preferences, needs, wants and desires.

MS has always been a side hustle for me. I have a regular, full time shop from which I will get a pension when I retire in 2 years. I've been doing MS as a side hustle since it was all sent via SNAIL MAIL and fax. I totally get it why someone who was counting on this as their income would not do these kinds of shops.

I view reimbursement shops as barter. I’m OK with that. However, reimbursement or reimbursement + small fee has to be valuable to me and also worth the value of what I'm receiving. For example, I simply would not do a $15 breakfast shop where the form is 70 questions with pictures and timings. For me to do reimbursement only, the value of goods and services is upwards of $45, depending on what it is.

These are examples of reimbursement shops that are of value to me and I’m talking about all these in the past tense because all of these were in the “before times.” Stupid virus.

I used to do a local coffee chain wherein you got 1 pound of coffee of your choosing. It was my favorite coffee chain and I could GOOD coffee beans. The shop took 10 minutes in the store and about 15-20 minutes tops to write the narrative because I was so used to them. I would grab a bunch of those when they were available as there are a number of those stores right close in my area. I would then have enough of the expensive coffee beans I love so much for the next 6 months. Totally worth it to me.

Movie Night shops. The shops I would do, I would get two movie tickets, a ridiculous amount for concessions & parking and would have a free night of movies for a fairly simple shop. Plus, I got points on my movie reward accounts. I got to chose the movies and these were movies I'd go to see anyway. The form was very simple with very easy timings that took less than 30 minutes to complete.

Dinner for 2 at an expensive Steak House that I wouldn't otherwise spend the money on that included valet parking.

Dinner at a 2 or 3 star Michelin restaurant that would normally cost $200 or more per person.

Visits to a fancier hotel that includes valet, dinner in a restaurant, room service breakfast, late night room service snacks, spa treatments, club level access, etc.

Theme park. Entry for me and a friend to a theme park, plus parking and food. The job consists of to 5-6 quick reveal & reward shops. Once you get the flow of them, they are very easy. Get those out of the way in the first couple of hours and then bam, free day at the amusement park that would normally cost upwards of $100.

I used to do three or four beauty product shops at very fancy specialty places. I'd go into downtown San Francisco and get to spend $75-$100 on a facial cream, perfume, lotion or makeup item. Those were narrative shops which are very easy for me. Oh, and I’d be SURE to grab a parking lot shop when I did the shops in downtown.

A free hair coloring at a fancy salon (one of those places that has locations in big cities around the world) that would normally cost upwards of $120 and that was a few years ago. I’m sure they are more now.

Someone also mentioned oil change shops. I have to get it done anyway, why not do a fairly quick form in exchange?

Two tickets to a ball game with fantastic seats, parking, and concessions.

So there are valuable to me goods and services that I would purchase anyway, e.g. movies, ball games, coffee and oil changes. There are also luxury items, e.g. spas, fancy dinners, fancy salons, and fancy hotel stays that I wouldn’t normally spend my money on but that I get to experience this way.

Like I say, there is no right or wrong way to look at this. To each his or her own.