We often get asked, “How much money do Mystery Shoppers make?” The payment for mystery shopping jobs varies and depends on the amount of work involved. Generally, mystery shopping jobs (or secret shopping jobs) pay between $15 and $30. The majority pay around $20. A more complex mystery shopping survey may pay up to $50.
You are getting paid to shop, but Mystery Shopping is generally considered a hobby. It is very rare for a mystery shopper to have mystery shopping be their sole income. The pay is a bolster to your regular income. It should be viewed as pocket money, not a regular and reliable source of income.
There is no limit to how much you can earn, especially if you sign up to multiple mystery shopping companies. We at Above Benchmark actively encourage our mystery shoppers to sign up with other companies. We know this helps grow their experience and increase their awareness of customer service strategies.
Unlike other Australian mystery shopping companies, Above Benchmark never pays our mystery shoppers with a reimbursement only. Some mystery shopping companies will instruct you to purchase a specific item in a store and will only reimburse for that purchase, with no payment for your time. We always include a payment as we believe that is fair practice. We are asking you to act professionally and we will pay you for your time.
Some of our mystery shopping jobs do involve a purchase with a capped reimbursement amount. This could be a meal at a restaurant, a specific purchase at a pharmacy, or a purchase of your choice at a retail store. You are to use your money to make the purchase and we reimburse you for that purchase (up to the capped amount) along with your payment when your mystery shopping survey is processed by our Quality Control Team.
Finally, a note on mystery shopping scams. If you ever see a mystery shopping ad claiming they will pay you in gift cards, run because it’s a scam. No genuine mystery shopping company will pay in gift cards. These scams are all about collecting your personal data to sell to marketing companies. Above Benchmark pays real money, straight into your bank account, not gift cards.
So to answer the question, “How much money do mystery shoppers make?” – the answer is the sky’s the limit. It all depends on how many companies you work for and how much mystery shopping you want to do! For more information about mystery shopping please click here.
If you would like to apply to become a Mystery Shopper for Above Benchmark, click here to start your application.
