Want to make some extra money in your spare time? You can use a platform like Toluna Group for their surveys and market research. In our Toluna review, we will cover off on the site and if it is a viable way to earn money online.
With more than nine million survey takers, Toluna claims to be ‘the world's largest social voting community', and with good reason: Toluna is a worldwide survey community and survey technology provider managed by the Toluna Group, a renowned organization that specializes in conducting market research over the internet.
For people looking to get paid to take surveys, Toluna is a viable option.
With a strong subscriber base and an attractive portfolio of clients, Toluna is easily one of the world's most popular survey sites.
Its robust variety of surveys, which participants claim to be the ‘most interesting’ among paid survey companies, have garnered Toluna lots of praise, but sadly for survey takers, the company is also one of the lowest paying.
In this Toluna review, we give you the lowdown on whether Toluna is worth it, the pros and cons, how much Toluna pays, and how it compares to other paid survey sites.
The short answer: it may be worth it, with grounded expectations and lots of free time!
Table of Contents
What is Toluna?
Toluna is a paid survey community managed by Toluna Group, a market research company that uses technology to collect market insights for companies of various sizes.
The company has 16 offices in Europe, Asia Pacific, and North America, and works with some of the world’s leading market-research agencies.
A number of esteemed businesses rely on Toluna for market research (e.g. Time Magazine, the Financial Times, Advertising Age).
Toluna Group uses an automated consumer insights platform called TolunaInsights, which allows its clients to access managed services and create customized digital consumer insights programs through engineered services.
TolunaInsights was developed as a complement to Toluna's automated research platform called QuickSurveys – a survey platform that allows clients to tap into millions of survey-takers (or Toluna Influencers).
By signing up for Toluna.com, users can become Toluna Influencers themselves and answer surveys submitted by Toluna Group's clients.
Apart from paid surveys, Toluna Influencers get access to a variety of paid online activities that include participating in polls, topics, and ‘battles' every day (more on this later).
With enough time and elbow grease, Toluna Influencers may take home various gifts and rewards while making an extra buck on the side.
How Does Toluna Work?
Like other paid survey websites, Toluna rewards its subscribers points in exchange for participating in a wide range of online activities.
Points may be exchanged with items from famous stores or directly through cash.
Much like other survey sites, joining Toluna is completely free.
Though focusing primarily on surveys, there are a variety of ways to make money on the site.
The Surveys
Two types of surveys are available in Toluna: long surveys which last around 10 to 20 minutes to complete, and short ‘profile surveys' that take a least a minute or two.
Profile surveys allow Toluna's system to learn more about you so it can send you surveys more relevant to your demographic.
If, for example, you indicate in one of the profile surveys that you have a laptop, Toluna will be more likely to send you surveys about laptop preferences and experience.
The longer surveys are available in several categories, which include automotive, lifestyle, food, and business The website has a user-friendly “survey center” page which displays all of the available categories.
After clicking on a category, Toluna shows you a slew of surveys related to the category along with the number of points you could earn and the estimate completion time. Most of these surveys will take you to a third-party site.
Apart from the surveys listed on the survey center, you'll also receive survey invites via email. Collectively, you'll receive around 7 to 10 surveys per day, but there are opportunities to answer even longer surveys.
While other survey sites will mostly send you surveys that you aren't interested in, Toluna offers you the freedom to choose what you deem most relevant, and this the Toluna’s unique selling point.
When answering countless surveys, believe us when we say that boredom can be an obstacle that prevents most survey takers from earning more.
More relevant and interesting surveys assure a more pleasurable experience, and this is why Toluna can be a great option.
When you like what you’re doing, it doesn’t feel like work.
Toluna Success Rate
As with most paid survey sites, users aren’t guaranteed to qualify for each survey. This happens when the user’s demographic isn’t aligned with the target market the survey is designed for, or when the survey has been already filled up.
For survey takers, this is a common pain point. Answering surveys only to discover halfway that they aren’t qualified for them is a waste of time and nerves.
In our experience, Toluna offers a 25% to 35% success rate – this is higher than the rate of most paid survey sites we tested.
Do note that this rate doesn't include profile surveys, which aren't a good way to generate points as you'll only get to answer a few of them.
In most cases, uses were noted about disqualifications quickly, without having to waste time answering surveys they weren't eligible for. Other times, users reported having to spend a few minutes answering questions before being disqualified.
Just like other paid survey sites, Toluna offers a consolation prize for disqualified users. Each disqualification enters you into a monthly sweepstake.
To be eligible for more surveys, Toluna recommends completing as many profile surveys as you can.
How to Sign Up for Toluna
Unlike other survey sites that are only available in limited locations, Toluna offers membership to 49 countries.
Do note that the number of surveys you receive per day depend on your location. In less-targeted areas, you might only receive one survey per day.
Signing up for Toluna is a straightforward process. You can use your Facebook profile to sign up or manually fill up their registration form.
After registration, you will be asked to verify your account with your email address. Adding your mobile number is optional, but if you choose to do so, Toluna can notify you about new surveys.
How Can I Make Money with Toluna?
Apart from long surveys, there are a variety of ways subscribers can earn from Toluna.
1. Sign up
Toluna rewards new users with 500 points just for signing up.
2. Complete profile surveys
Answering profile surveys will reward you with 100 points each. You'll find the ‘Profile Surveys' option under the surveys tab at the top of the screen. Each profile consists of 14 surveys each.
3. Participate in polls
Taking part in polls will usually offer you a points reward of 15 points per poll, and they take just seconds to complete.
Do note that some polls do not offer rewards, so be sure to check the points value right next to the ‘Vote!' button before participating.
4. Post your own content
Posting in the Toluna community may earn you points, but this isn't guaranteed. Not all user-generated content is rewarded with points, and Toluna values the quality of your post over the quantity (the more upvotes you get the better).
If your post gets selected, you may win up to 1,000 points per post.
5. Participate in a contest
Toluna launches seasonal contests that encourage users to post in the Toluna community. The Toluna Valentine's Day 2019 contest asked users to post their Valentine's Day plans, and eligible participants each received 1000 points.
The winners were rewarded with dinner for two.
6. Test products
Users can register for a product and try their luck in being selected to test it. Product testers can keep the product they test!
7. Refer a friend
Each friend you refer to Toluna earns you 500 points, and you can refer 10 each month.
How Does Toluna Pay You
While survey sites like InboxDollars and CashCrate pay dollars for each survey, Toluna rewards with points.
It's difficult to state how much money you'll actually be making with Toluna, as how much you earn depends on how much work you do.
According to Toluna reviews, surveys are the best way to make money with Toluna. Most surveys in the site will pay around 1,000 to 2,000 points, and a few others will pay significantly lower or higher (up to 20,000 points).
To get $1, you need to rack up around 3,000 points. You can only cash out once you've earned 60,000 points (or around $20 in rewards).
Do note that it can take up to 8 weeks for your rewards to arrive. This is a far longer wait time compared to other survey sites we reviewed.
You can exchange your points in several ways:
1. Rewards
Toluna offers a variety of gift cards while also giving you the option to cash out via physical check or PayPal. The cheapest gift card costs around 30,000 points.
2. Gifties
Gifties are raffle tickets you can buy to win a wide variety of rewards (e.g. a brand new Playstation 4, Yankee Candle Gift Card, Christmas Cookie Cutters).
3. Sweepstakes
You can exchange your points for a chance to join the monthly sweepstakes where you can win a variety of expensive items like a brand new LED TV.
Pros and Cons of Toluna
We scoured Toluna reviews to see how the general public weighs the platform's pros and cons. we found a balance of both positives and negatives.
Here's what most people say about Toluna.
Pros of Toluna
- Toluna is a reputable company that partners with big industry names – an indication of a legitimate, scam-free website.
- It's absolutely free to join and all features are free to use.
- Surveys are interesting, and you get the freedom to choose what you want to answer.
- A large selection of attractive rewards awaits hardworking survey takers.
- A modern and user-friendly interface.
- You can answer surveys and earn money on the go with the Toluna iPhone or Android app.
- While disqualifications still happen, users get a consolation prize: an entry into the monthly sweepstakes.
Cons of Toluna
- While Toluna has one of the highest survey qualifying rates, the disqualifications may still be frustrating for users who aren't familiar with paid survey sites.
- The minimum cashout of $30 is steep and hard to reach, and you need to work very hard to earn a substantial amount of points for gift cards. This is one of the biggest complaints among Toluna reviews.
- Some of the longer surveys take some time to complete. Others will have you pressing buttons for thirty minutes, yet the accompanying points are not much.
- Some Toluna reviews complain about the long wait times for cash payments or rewards.
Is Toluna Legit or a Scam?
Upon further investigation and after reading reviews, we've come to the conclusion that Toluna is a legitimate business.
Toluna has a good track record of paying its clients and issuing rewards (though long wait times are to be expected).
As of 2020, Toluna has an A+ rating in the Better Business Bureau with only 31 customer complaints since its BBB file was opened in 1996. It also has a 3.8 rating on Trustpilot with more than 2,100 Toluna reviews.
There are a lot more favorable Toluna reviews compared to criticisms, with long wait times for rewards and disqualification rates the most common issues.
Toluna’s great track record is also due to its exemplary customer service: it’s easy to get in touch with Toluna through its website, and most of the Toluna reviews in Trustpilot were acknowledged by the company.
See Related: Best Sites Like Swagbucks
The Verdict
Toluna is definitely worth the work it takes to earn points, that is, if you're unmoved by the long wait for rewards, the tedious work it takes to rack up points, and the disqualifications.
While most of these are common issues in most survey sites, Toluna also has one more glaring Achilles' heel: the pay just doesn't seem to compare with other legitimate survey sites like Survey Junkie or Pinecone Research.
Regardless, Toluna is a legitimate way to make a little bit of cash on the side.
The interesting surveys promise a less boring survey answering experience, and the multiple ways to earn money and various rewards are all motivations to keep earning.
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