One of the easiest ways to earn real money online is to share your opinion by participating in surveys. However, not all survey sites are the same, nor do they pay the same amount. The best way to maximize your earnings is to consider a site that recruits for a variety of short surveys, longer focus groups, and panel studies.
User Interviews is one of the top and highest-paying survey and remote focus group platforms. In this User Interviews review, I’ll outline how this opportunity works, what to expect, and highlight some key pros and cons. But first:
What Is the Difference Between an Online Survey and a Focus Group?
Both surveys and focus groups involve collecting market research. Companies want to know your thoughts and opinions about certain brands, services, and experiences you’ve had. With an online survey, you may be asked a series of questions that you can read through and select a multiple-choice answer.
Focus groups are a bit different. They usually involve a more in-depth interview with the actual brand or a representative. This could be one-on-one or in a small group with others. Each focus group participant is encouraged to contribute to the conversation and share their honest thoughts and opinions.
Like surveys, you also need to qualify for focus groups, so this may require filling out screener surveys. Since focus groups tend to be longer and more involved, they reward participants much more than surveys. User Interviews primarily provides focus group opportunities (also referred to as research studies) and can pay an average of $50 or more per study.
How User Interviews Works
User Interviews is a site that provides you with research study or focus group opportunities across a wide selection of companies and brands. They are a market research company that works with several clients seeking feedback on various services and products. The best part about User Interviews is that you can do surveys and research studies solely online or via phone.
Some of the opportunities you can find on the site include:
- Online Tests and Surveys: 10 minutes to several hours ($20 to $300+)
- Online Interviews: 30 minutes to 2 hours ($20 to $300+)
- Online Diary Studies: 3 days to several weeks ($55 to $400+)
- Online Focus Groups: 1 to 3 hours ($40 to $200+)
- All Online Studies: 30 minutes to several days ($20 to $1,500+)
Below is how to sign up and start making money with User Interviews.
Step 1: Create an Account
Head to User Interviews and click the maroon button in the upper right-hand corner that says “Sign Up.” From there, you’ll be asked for your email address and phone number, or you can create an account by logging in with your LinkedIn or Facebook account. Next, you’ll receive an email verification code that you’ll need to confirm when you log in.
Step 2: Fill Out Your Profile Details
This is probably the most essential step. Brands want to know specific details about you to see if you would be a good fit for a research study. Be sure to fill out your profile details completely, including your industry, age, gender, marital status, ethnicity, and other common demographic details. User Interviews also recommends connecting your social media accounts (Facebook and LinkedIn) to increase your chances of being selected for a study.
Step 3: Look for Studies and Complete the Screener Survey
When you’re finished creating your profile, you can immediately start browsing and applying for paid research studies. On the platform, you can filter studies by study format (in-person, online, or over the phone) and study type (1-on-1 interview, focus group, multi-day study, and unmoderated task). These filters make it easy to research projects that fit your needs.
Most studies require you to answer a pre-screen survey to ensure users are the ideal participants for the study. You may not be selected each time, but it’s a good idea to keep applying for the ones you’re interested in to increase your chances of being picked. According to their website, 2,500 new studies are published each month, providing numerous opportunities for participation.
Step 4: Confirm Your Study, Participate, and Get Paid
If you’re selected for a study, be sure to confirm the time you must appear online for the interview. Once you’re approved for the study, you’ll receive guidelines and an online meeting link to use at the scheduled start time. Alternatively, if it’s an online survey, you can usually complete it right away.
With focus groups and user research platforms, ensure you participate, even if others in your group are hesitant to speak up. Since you’re getting paid, it’s important to voice your opinion and answer any questions honestly.
Once you complete your panel study, you’ll receive your reward within 10 business days. Rewards are distributed through the Tremendous platform, which offers you the option to choose from thousands of rewards, including Visa prepaid cards, electronic gift cards to popular retailers, cash via PayPal, charitable donations, and more.
User Interviews Reviews
User Interviews is a legitimate company that offers over 2,500 new survey and focus group opportunities each month. I conducted some research to see what actual users were saying about the platform, and the majority of responses were very positive.
On Reddit, there is a lot of positive feedback from users stating that they enjoyed the survey opportunities and received payment on time. On Trustpilot, User Interviews receives a 4.1-star rating out of 5 stars.
This is great news for anyone seeking to earn extra money in their free time!
Who Can Join User Interviews?
User Interviews accepts participants from the United States, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom. According to their terms of use, you must be at least 16 years old to join and have a parent’s consent. However, users aged 18 or older have a better chance of being selected for panel studies. Currently, they have a high demand for participants who are data scientists, software engineers, product managers, IT managers, and small business owners, but they also have general types of studies.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- It’s easy to sign up even if you’re not 18.
- Surveys and panel studies offer good compensation for your time.
- There are a variety of panel study types and genres to choose from.
- Rewards are issued via Tremendous, which offers thousands of payment options.
- Positive ratings on Trustpilot.
Cons:
- Pre-screening surveys are required, so you’ll need to apply before getting selected.
- Payment could take up to 10 days.
Alternatives to User Interviews
One downside to studies is that, due to your demographics, you may not be the ideal participant for current studies. To increase your chances of getting selected for opportunities, you can sign up with multiple market research platforms.
Here are some companies that recruit study participants.
Gauge Research
Gauge Research is a market research firm that recruits users for in-depth online surveys. With their surveys, you can answer questions via text, audio, or video response, with the latter two offering higher payouts. Gauge Research pays $10 for quick POV surveys and up to $500+ for deeper engagements. With this market research platform, payments are processed through Tremendous, where you can purchase gift cards and prepaid cards, make charitable donations, and more.
Mindswarms
Mindswarms is a market research firm that collects user feedback in video format. For each video survey that you complete, you’ll earn between $10 and $50! With Mindswarms, payments are distributed via PayPal within 24 hours.
Respondent
Respondent conducts market research for large companies like Adobe, IBM, Microsoft, Amazon, and Intuit. They offer a wide variety of study formats and study types. Respondent accepts users from all over the world, and the average project pays a $75 incentive. They, too, offer rewards through the Tremendous Rewards platform. Be sure to read our in-depth review of Respondent here.
Survey Junkie
With Survey Junkie, you can earn points by taking surveys, participating in focus groups, product testing gigs, and surfing the web. They accept users who are at least 18 years old from the US, Canada, Australia, and the UK. Points that you earn can be used to purchase gift cards from major retailers, cash via PayPal, a Visa gift card, or a direct bank transfer. Check out our full review of Survey Junkie.
Summary: Should You Sign Up for User Interviews?
It’s not every day that you come across a high-paying online survey site that also offers online focus groups and panel studies. User Interviews makes it easy to earn money for your thoughts and opinions from the comfort of your own home.
If you’re looking to earn extra money online, you should consider giving this site a try. Realize that this probably won’t be a consistent job, but it can be a great way to earn some extra money on the side with very little time or effort on your end.
Ultimately, the best way to determine if User Interviews is right for you is to sign up and see for yourself.
It’s free, and you can sign up here!
Originally published July 5, 2021. Content updated July 2025.
