A look back on profits from extra-cash sites in 2010

As the year comes to an end, I decided to look back on what I've made from extra-cash sites. These online money-makers are always a hot topic. I have been doing surveys and points programs for years now, and sometimes I wonder if they're really worth it. A few survey sites have made their rewards programs so paltry that I've stopped using them – who really wants to spend the equivalent of 50 hours on surveys to get some $10 as-seen-on-TV gadget?

I've drastically cut down on my survey taking (I was big into it when I was unemployed a few years ago!) but still dabble in it, so my accumulation is pretty fair considering the little effort I put into it. Toluna hasn't been sending me survey emails since April due to some glitch, so my balance was only a few months' worth of surveys. The survey site with the best cash-out program in my opinion is SurveySpot. Although they send tons of emails which I mostly just ignore, you get paid instantly via PayPal. No waiting or anything.

What I use more is the points programs like MyPoints, Swagbucks, and less frequently, InboxDollars. I've been a member of MyPoints since 2002 and all I really do is click through their emails, so the rewards I make are definitely worth it! Same with InboxDollars, it's mostly just email clicks, but accumulates slower. Swagbucks can be really profitable if you have a lot of referrals, but I don't, so most of my bucks are made through searches. Not a lot of effort either.

The LEAST amount of effort, however, is Ebates! I love love love Ebates! All you have to do is remember to click through them when you do online shopping (which I do plenty of). It's the easiest way to get some cash for nothing. I have referred a few friends for $5 bonuses as well. So it's not surprising I've made a large amount from them.

One other thing worth noting is this “exclusive” community I joined at the end of last year, called “The Mic”. The parent company, Communispace, apparently has over 350 of these communities they make for brand awareness and consumer feedback. I was originally invited through another survey site, and it's a little forum-based thing with discussions and polls. If you participate in four activities a month, you get $15 deposited in PayPal the next month. Super awesome easy money, but it's a closed community so I can't refer people :(

The results:

Survey sites

Zoompanel – nothing, and I will be quitting once I make enough to get some useless gadget

SurveySpot - $11.50 in PayPal cash

Ipsos I-say - $15 Amex card

Toluna - $20 check

Global Opinion Panels - $20 check (+ $10 in balance)

Other sites

InboxDollars - $40 check

MyPoints - $50 Target gift card

Swagbucks - $65 in Amazon gift cards

Ebates - $70.49 in PayPal cash  (+ $15.65 pending)

"The Mic" - $185 in PayPal cash