In my quest for new and interesting survey sites, I came across Opinium Research Panel. This Opinium review looks at whether it’s a decent money earning opportunity.
Unlike a lot of other survey sites, you receive Opinium surveys by invitation only. As such, you don’t waste time clicking from survey to survey trying to find one you’re eligible for.
When conducting my research into Opinium surveys, I found the existing reviews to be a mixed bag. Most negative reviews mention incredibly slow cheque payments. However, there are a variety of other payment methods which give you other options. On the positive side, people comment how quickly you can reach the cash out total, and that the surveys are easy to complete, and on interesting topics.
What is the Opinium Research Panel?
Opinium Research Panel is a UK-based online survey site. Opinium is a market research company that was established in 2007, and is often involved in political polls.
You must be over 18 and a UK resident to join Opinium. (If you are based elsewhere, you’ll find some of our top recommended survey sites here).
What Can you Earn from Opinium Surveys?
The surveys on Opinium tend to reward an average of 50 pence each for about five to seven minutes of work You can cash out once you have reached £25.
You receive Opinium surveys direct to your inbox. The website states you will typically receive four or more a month. As well as online survey invitations, you can also be invited to focus group research activities. Surveys sent to you take into account the demographic information you provide in the sign up process. This means you are less likely to be screened out of the surveys on Opinium than is often the case on other survey websites.
How do You Sign Up?
To sign up for Opinium Research you first have to input some basic demographic details.
Once you have filled out all the required information you select “Register.” You then receive an email in your inbox to verify your account. Once you click through from the email you confirm your registration. Then you access the login page and log in for the first time. It only takes a minute or two.
Opinium Surveys Review: What’s on Offer?
The homepage for Opinium Research Panel is easy to navigate. The “My Surveys” tab tells you if there are any current surveys available. In the FAQ section it clearly states that surveys are sent to you via email, so don’t be surprised if there are no surveys showing as available when you first log on.
I received my first survey in my inbox within a few hours of signing up. It was a 15-minute survey, and paid 75 pence.
Opinium surveys tend to be between 10 and 12 questions long. They generally take around five minutes to complete, for which a 50 pence reward seems fairly acceptable. If they are longer you are sometimes rewarded with more money as an incentive. When you receive an email survey invitation it’s important to act quickly – the surveys are usually only available for 48-72 hours.
One thing I like about completing Opinium surveys is that you almost always get to actually complete the survey and earn the reward. One massive downside to survey panels is being “screened out.” With Opinion Research Panel, it’s a welcome change not to end up in an endless loop of screenouts. (Editor’s Note: We’ve seen this phenomenon recently on other sites such as Vindale Research).
Throughout the three months I’ve spent testing Opinium, I’ve received surveys on a wide variety of topics. Many have been political, and some have been about sport, family or shopping habits.
I’ve also received a few invites to research projects. These pay a little more for your time. As an example, I am part of a market research project on coffee advertising in supermarkets, the reward for which is £1.50.
On the whole, I have found the surveys interesting and always look forward to receiving an Opinium email in my inbox. On average I’ve received a survey invitation roughly every other day, and have been able to complete about 80% of them without being screened out. That is a massive plus for me. I don’t feel I might be about to waste my time when I start to fill out a survey, which is the case with many other survey panels I have tried.
Other Ways to Earn on Opinium
Communities
As well as completing surveys, you may earn the opportunity to take part in ‘Pop-Up Communities.’ I was accepted onto this community and will receive £30 in Amazon vouchers upon completion.
“Refer a Friend” Scheme
The refer a friend scheme for Opinium will NOT make you big money, but every little bit gets you towards your reward payout.
It’s a simple process. All you need to do is select the “more” tab and find “refer a friend.” You simply input your friend’s name and email address and Opinium sends a referral link to them via email. Once your friend has completed the registration, you receive 50 pence for the sign-up.
This is a smaller incentive than some survey sites offer. SwagBucks, for example, offers a referral reward around five times bigger. You also don’t get a link you can share on social media. Even so, referring a few friends is still a way to push you towards your payout goal.
Redeeming your Rewards
Once you have reached the £25 threshold, you receive an email survey asking how you would like to receive your reward.
These emails are sent weekly so you shouldn’t have to wait long for the email once you have reached the threshold. You can also claim your reward by accessing the “Claim your Reward” tab on the website.
You can opt to receive payment via cheque, bank transfer or Amazon voucher. Or, if you are feeling charitable, you can give all or part of your reward as a donation. Payment is said to take 15-20 days, though at busy periods it can take up to 28 days. If you want to be paid by cheque it may take longer, and other Opinium reviews suggest that could well be the case.
Despite the long lead-times mentioned, I found the process to claim my reward very quick and simple. On the email confirmation you receive from Opinium, they state that it may take up to two weeks to receive an Amazon voucher code. However, I received mine within three working days. I chose to claim my £25 in Amazon vouchers, and they were easy to redeem onto my Amazon account.
I reached my £25 balance in just over three months of doing surveys on the site. If you extrapolate this, it suggests that joining Opinium Research Panel could add to your survey income to the tune of around £100 per year.
Opinium Research Panel Privacy
With all survey sites, it is important to know that the details you are entering are safe, so I had a delve into Opinium Research Panel’s Privacy Policy.
On the FAQs section of the website there are various reassurances around privacy, such as the fact that “Your Opinium Panel profile information is NEVER sold or distributed to any company.” The company is registered with the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and bound by the Data Protection Act.
All in all, I didn’t feel there was anything to concern me here. There’s always an inherent element of volunteering personal information and opinions when you take surveys, but Opinium’s privacy policy appears solid.
Conclusion
My experience with Opinium Research Panel suggests that it’s a nice little earner. A huge positive is that you are not inundated with email invitations that prove to be fruitless.
In just over three months I reached the £25 payment threshold and successfully received my £25 Amazon voucher. It may have taken a while, but the fact that the redemption total is lower than the likes of PopulusLive and YouGov is a positive.
Some of the online reviews I have read for this site have been very negative, with comments that you don’t receive your money. This did not mirror my own experience. Overall, I enjoyed using Opinium. The surveys are always interesting, and this is one of those survey sites I’m likely to keep using now my review is complete. Survey sites will never make you millions, but this does seem to be one that’s worth your time.
Opinium Research Panel Pros and Cons
The Good
- Short surveys with reasonable rewards.
- Interesting survey topics.
- Email inbox not spammed with fruitless invitations.
- A low percentage of “screen outs.”
- Plenty of payment options.
Cons
- Fairly high payment redemption threshold.
- Only a few different ways to earn rewards.
- For UK residents only.
- Some payout methods are slow.
Other Recommended Survey Sites
- SwagBucks is a busy and comprehensive platform with lots of options.
- Prolific is a reader favourite with interesting academic surveys.
- PrizeRebel is worth a look if you like the idea of something with a low payment threshold.
Hannah is a stay at home mum to three children under seven. She loves finding ways to earn money from home and sharing reviews of the opportunities she has tested.
Still waiting for a reward of £25 promised at the end of February.
I have been a long time user of Opinium, I claim every £250, >> 40p short of my third £250, they give you an option to claim your £25 or roll it over, I roll over and over until I reach my goal, ok reaching £250 takes approx a year, the quicker you complete a survey the more they send, do not wait a day before completing it, stop what you are doing as soon as it arrives and do it, you are then seen as a solid reply and they send you more than the average Joe, yes you go banana’s at getting survey requests, but you also go banana’s when £250 arrives, downside …… It can take 2 weeks from claim to money in your bank, they are legit, no fear giving details, never had a problem.
Thanks for sharing Les 🙂
That’s true but I prefer cash that can be spent elsewhere when I am broke, which is most of the time.
Thanks for this review Ben. I’d never heard of them. Shame they don’t offer payment by Paypal. I don’t like giving out bank details nor getting Amazon vouchers. I suppose I’d have to try payment by cheque if I gave them a try.
I find I always have a use for Amazon vouchers! Almost as good as cash in our house 🙂