By Tymmarah Anderson
It’s no secret COVID-19 has impacted our lives tremendously over the past month. Emotions are running high, while finances…not so much. There’s a growing list of opportunities available to make extra money during these trying times, but many of them require you to leave home more often than not. For some people, that’s just not feasible right now.
If you’re looking for some fun ways to make a couple extra bucks, the world of usability testing is full of options. You get paid for your thoughts on products, designs, and more, all from the comfort of your couch. While there are over 20 different sites or apps available, below are some of the top moneymakers (verified by me) that you can explore while self-quarantining at home:
dscout is a qualitative remote research platform used to unlock in-context user insights. This platform is used by hundreds of the world’s most innovative companies to collect “in-the-moment” data through its mobile app.
Sign-up is easy, and once you create a profile, you can “apply” to participate in mobile studies. The payouts are pretty good considering the work you have to do, and there’s no limit to how many studies you can participate in. The studies are also pretty fun and interesting!
The pool consists of over 100,000 participants so here’s a little advice when applying for studies: be as thoughtful and expressive as possible in your application responses and you’ll have a better chance of getting picked for a study.
2. Validately
Validately is a market research company that pays people to test the functionality of websites, UI, and apps. Unlike dscout, this site can be accessed using a desktop or mobile device, depending on the study. Validately offers tests daily that pay about $10 each, but can go as high as $70 for 1-on-1 moderated interviews.
Validately is probably the most consistent usability testing site, but you gotta be quick. Since the number of participants per study is limited, you’ll almost always have to click the link they email you within seconds of receiving it to beat the rush. Sign-up is also a bit tedious, but it’s absolutely worth it once you get in.
Similar to Validately, Intellizoom is another desktop + mobile platform where you can get paid to share your experiences. Studies come less frequently than Validetly, but you won’t have to rush to apply for Intellizoom studies. Payouts from Intellizoom start at $2 for quick surveys, but it takes about 3 weeks to actually get paid out. After a month of studies though, you’d be surprised how much you can actually make.
4, UserCrowd
UserCrowd is a survey site that pays people for participating in their paid tests. Studies don’t come as easy for this site, and the payouts for each are pretty small. You also can’t withdraw money until you reach $10, which can take a while. The bright side is, the test is super quick, so there’s no burnout or long lines of questioning.
5. Enroll
Enroll lets you take quick usability tests to help make the web a better place. You can help companies decide which logo is better, clarify content, or simply complete tasks. Similar to UserCrowd, this website doesn’t offer a high payout, nor that many studies. However, doing this over time will certainly rack up a little extra money to treat yourself every once in a while.
None of these can replace income lost due to layoffs or furloughs, but using all of these together will certainly make an imprint in your bank account while keeping you and everyone else around you safe. It may also be a nice change of pace from binge-watching Netflix shows (guilty!) or Youtube videos every day. Make sure to share these with those you know are struggling financially during this time because every dollar counts. And as always, stay safe!
Tymmarah Anderson is a contributing writer for the Pedestal Project, LLC.
The Pedestal Project 
Definitely trying these things. Thank you for sharing!!!
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