The Modest Wallet is a free digital publication delivering its readers simple personal finance solutions. We regularly partner with brands that have products and services that will help our readers. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. For more information, please read our full disclosure.
Would you like to get paid for the time you spend online? Chances are you can turn it into cash with Swagbucks. The platform offers users opportunities to earn by playing games, watching videos, shopping, and even searching online. Find out if Swagbucks is right for you by reading our comprehensive Swagbucks review.
Quick Summary: Swagbucks allows you to earn free gift cards when you shop online, watch videos, take surveys, and more. Swagbucks offers one of the best cash back rates (20%). Your points can be redeemed easily via gift cards or PayPal cash.
Pros:
- It’s completely free to join
- $10 sign up bonus available
- Earn up to 20% cash back
- Easy to use platform and mobile app
- Many ways to earn points
Cons:
- Low payouts
- Rewards process can be slow
- Spend money to make money
What is Swagbucks?
Swagbucks is one of the best sites available for people looking to earn a little extra money online. The company awards users with points for activities they complete on or through the platform, and those points (called Swagbucks) can be cashed out in the form of gift cards from Amazon, Walmart, and lots of other retailers. Users can also receive payments through PayPal.
Getting Started with Swagbucks
Earning with Swagbucks is straightforward. Simply sign up for an account using your name and email address, and you are ready to start earning points through the site. As you complete tasks on or through the website, you will earn points which you can then redeem for cash, gift cards, or donations to charitable causes of your choosing.
How Does Swagbucks Make Money?
Primarily, companies pay the platform to drive users toward their brands, to gather user feedback, or to put their product in front of a larger audience.
For example, every time you complete a survey or provide feedback on an article or video on the site, Swagbucks is likely being paid by a market research company for sourcing your opinions. If you earn rewards by shopping through the website, the company is likely getting a cut of the value of your purchase from the retailer through an affiliate partnership with the retailer you’ve chosen.
But no matter how you use the Swagbucks platform, you receive a portion of the payment Swagbucks makes from your activity, opinion, or purchase.
See Also: Rakuten Review: Is This The Best Cash Back Service Out There?
How Can You Make Money with Swagbucks?
The website offers its users a wide variety of ways to earn, so no matter your interests, a little time and effort can bring in a little extra income. Here are some of our favourite ways to earn:
Claim Their Welcome Offer
Before you start completing tasks to earn money through Swagbucks, you can claim the company’s $10 welcome offer (as of this writing, to claim the $10 bonus, you need to create an account with Swagbucks, and then make a purchase with one of Swagbucks’ affiliate retailers within 30 days of account signup).
Fill Out Paid Surveys
Swagbucks provides users access to a variety of paid surveys. The surveys are usually short and take approximately five to 10 minutes to complete. Swagbucks says that users can expect to earn between 40 and 100 Swagbucks on an average survey, but longer surveys can net you over 300 Swagbucks for your time.
Before you can start earning through surveys, you will need to qualify by answering a few demographic questions about your age, gender, family status, household income, and potentially a few more targeted, product-oriented questions. These questions are used to assess if you are part of the target market for available surveys. (Your responses are completely anonymous, so you don’t have to worry about privacy.) If you qualify, you will be forwarded to a survey. If not, you will simply be directed to your account page, where other opportunities to earn points are available.
Complete The Daily Poll
The daily poll is one of the fastest and easiest ways to secure yourself one Swagbuck each day — Just answer the daily question with a click.
Rate The Daily Crave
The Daily Crave is another easy way to earn a few points each day. All you need to do is read the article that Swagbucks has selected and give feedback on whether or not you enjoyed the piece. It should take about five minutes each day and guarantees you two or more Swagbucks.
Cash In On Special Offers
Swagbucks has a daily No Obligation Special Offer that you can take advantage of at no cost or obligation to earn a few Swagbucks. You can also earn rewards by signing up for special offers or registering with certain websites through the platform.
Enter Swag Codes
Swag Codes are codes that the company publishes on their social media accounts that can be entered on the website or in the app to earn a few quick points. If you have the Swagbucks app or browser extension installed, you’ll get notifications on where and when a new Swag Code is published.
Earn Cash Back On Your Purchases Online
If you are someone who likes to shop online, earning cash back on your purchases through Swagbucks can help. It is one of the easiest ways to get paid, and the rewards can be generous.
Depending on the offer, you can earn up to 20% of your purchase back in Swagbucks. For example, Amazon typically offers a 5% return, so you will earn five Swagbucks on every dollar you spend through the platform.
Buy Gift Cards
When you buy gift cards through Swagbucks, you earn 10% cash back in the form of Swagbucks on your purchase, so if you were already planning to purchase a gift card, this can be a very lucrative option.
Trade-In Your Old Devices
If you have any old devices or consoles laying around, you can trade them for Swagbucks in exchange for points. The return will vary depending on the device and condition — but if you aren’t using it, you may as well get something for it.
See Also: How to Legitimately Get Free Gift Cards: Fast and Easy
Watch Videos
Through the Swagbucks Watch section, you can earn up to 500 Swagbucks every day just for watching videos. This is a great idle way to earn because you don’t actually need to watch the videos to receive the points; you can simply set them up in another tab on split-screen and go about your business, occasionally checking back to queue up another video. That said, the Watch section often posts engaging content you may actually enjoy, including how-to videos, movie trailers, and news stories.
Play Games in Your Browser
Swagbucks Play offers a curated selection of games that allow you to earn points. All of the games are simple and browser-based, so nothing needs to be installed. For most games, you will earn between two and five Swagbucks per play, so if you are looking to have fun first and earn second, this is something to take advantage of.
Playing to win does have one notable drawback — many of the games require a “fee” of a few Swagbucks to play. If you win, you get those Swagbucks back along with your winnings, but there is a chance you may forfeit them in a loss. Play at your discretion.
Use the Swagbucks Search Engine
Getting in the habit of using the Swagbucks search engine is an easy way to bring in some extra rewards. (But don’t expect to rack up points spamming random inquiries). Search engine rewards are some of the most inconsistent on the site. The Swagbucks search engine seeks to filter out inauthentic search activity, so you won’t get paid if you aren’t using it organically. You can earn up to 38 Swagbucks per search, though the average is usually closer to five.
Install the Swagbucks Browser Extension or Toolbar
Installing the Swagbucks extension or toolbar (depending on your preferred browser) is a quick and easy way to passively earn even more Swagbucks while you go about your regular activities online. (You’ll get 50 Swagbucks just for installing it.)
Once you have the extension or toolbar installed, it will notify you of deals, coupons, and opportunities while you browse. If you want easy reminders to shop through Swagbucks, the Swagbucks extension or toolbar can be a great way to help you earn Swagbucks while you shop.
Is Swagbucks Legit?
Whenever you come across a site that promises to pay you — whether it’s for playing games or filling out surveys — it’s natural to be a little skeptical. but Swagbucks is legitimate. The platform launched in 2008 and has since paid out more than $348M to members for their use of the site and its services.
Swagbucks is owned by the media company Prodege, which also operates MyPoints, ShopAtHome, and InboxDollars, all of which are legitimate earning platforms. The Swagbucks website has maintained a four-star rating on Trustpilot, with more than 13,000 user reviews of the site, and it has a grade of B+ with the Better Business Bureau.
If a long history and solid track record isn’t enough to convince you, it’s worth repeating that the company doesn’t require your personal information to let you start earning points or to get paid. And Swagbucks is completely free to use, so there’s no risk.
How Much Money Can I Make with Swagbucks?
While the actual amount you can make will vary depending on the opportunities you qualify for, plus the time you are willing to put in, you can potentially earn a few dollars a day on Swagbucks. Dedicated users report earning between $5 to $10 a day.
Where is Swagbucks Available?
Swagbucks is currently available in the US and Canada, as well as Australia, France, Germany, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
Who is Swagbucks Best For?
People Looking to Make a Few Extra Dollars
Swagbucks may not offer a big enough payout to cover your bills, but you can earn a few extra dollars each day without a ton of effort. So if you’re looking for a way to use your free time to bring a little extra money in, Swagbucks is a great fit for you.
People Looking for an Idle Way to Earn
The best way to use Swagbucks is as an idle supplement to your income. There are multiple ways to maximize your Swagbucks earnings, but unless you have lots of free time or enjoy the activities, you are better off gradually accumulating Swagbucks from doing things online that you’ve already planned to do, like searching and shopping online.
See Also: How to Become a Virtual Assistant: Get Paid to Work From Home
Who Should Avoid Swagbucks?
People Looking for a Big Payout
While you can earn some spending money on Swagbucks, don’t expect to be able to quit your job.
Swagbucks Alternatives
InboxDollars
InboxDollars is set up similarly to Swagbucks, in that users can earn points for web browsing, taking surveys, or playing games.
If you are someone who uses a lot of groupons, InboxDollars might be a better option. The company has an exclusive relationship with Groupon that allows users to earn significant cash back on any Groupons purchased through the platform.
Swagbucks Review Summary: Pros and Cons
Pros
Free to Use
Using Swagbucks is completely free, even when you want to withdraw your funds. Aside from the cash back shopping offers, there is no activity on the platform that will cost you any money.
Easy Signup
Signing up for Swagbucks only takes about a minute to complete, and all you need is an email address to get started.
No Personal Information Required
Swagbucks doesn’t require any personal information when you create an account or when you request payment. All you need to get started is your name and an email address.
Earn $10 for Joining
The $10 bonus is a nice perk, and you can earn it with a purchase through one of their affiliate retailers brings you closer to redeemable rewards before you have completed any tasks on the site.
Lots of Ways to Earn
Unlike a lot of similar earning platforms, Swagbucks gives its users a wide variety of ways to earn. Whether you want to play some games, do some reading, browse the web, or shop, Swagbucks will pay you to do it.
Easy to Use On Both Web and Mobile
Swagbucks provides a solid and consistent user experience on both its web and mobile platforms, so no matter where you are, you can be earning Swagbucks.
Swagbucks
An online platform that offers cash back rewards when you answer surveys, shop online, purchase gift cards, watch videos and more.
Cons
Earning Points Takes Time
Most of the activities you can earn with using Swagbucks have fairly low payouts, so if your goal is to earn gift cards by completing daily activities, surveys, or by watching videos,it will take some time before you earn a significant payout.
Activities like buying gift cards and rewards for shopping have a higher payout, but spending is necessary to see a large return (defeating the effort put in to earn a little extra money).
You Need to Meet Withdrawal Minimums
Withdrawal minimums are common on sites like Swagbucks (as of this writing, Swagbucks’ withdrawal minimum is $25 for transfer to a PayPal account). So if you need money quickly, you may want to go another route.
Swagbucks Review Conclusion
If you want to earn a little extra spending money during the time you spend online, Swagbucks is a great way to do it — but if you are looking for significant payouts, you are better off looking elsewhere.
Download our FREE
“Side Hustle Handbook” eBook
Learn the best side hustle strategies so you can multiply your income sources and fast track your journey to financial freedom
Founder of The Modest Wallet, Ricardo is an entrepreneur and investor who enjoys working out, spending time with his family and friends, travelling and creating great content. He’s passionate about helping others achieve their financial goals.
