YouGov Review: Is YouGov Legit? Or a Scam Survey Site?

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The ultimate test for a survey site is whether or not I continue to use it after I’ve written about it.

In this YouGov review, you will find out whether YouGov passed that test. We answer the “is YouGov legit?” question, and discuss whether it’s worth adding to your roster of side gigs.

In case you want a TL;DR, the quick answer is “yes.” But I’d recommend reading this review of YouGov in full, because the full answer is rather more nuanced that a simple yes / no.

Before we start, let’s tackle a key question head on:

Why Should You Listen To Me?

We review lots of survey sites at HomeWorkingClub. Unlike many similar sites, we properly try out the survey panels. We generally wait until a successful cash-out before we publish a review.

Beware of “make money online” sites that don’t properly test out these opportunities, and are all about persuading you to sign up to all kinds of rubbish so they can earn some referral commission. There are plenty of sites like that about, but that’s not how we roll here.

Let’s move on to the basics.

What is YouGov?

YouGov is a huge and well-known market research firm. Officially, it describes itself as a “global public opinion and data company.”

As well as collecting information for corporate clients, YouGov is also heavily involved in political polling. When the newspapers report that a certainly political party has “gained three points” or that a leader’s “approval rating has slipped,” they’re often getting that information from YouGov or a similar company.

What Are YouGov Surveys?

YouGov surveys are how YouGov gathers most of its data for market research and political polling. You can sign up to YouGov’s panel and complete online surveys in your spare time, in return for rewards, in cash or gift cards.

As a member of YouGov, you contribute to polls or surveys, and are paid YouGov points for your opinion. And sometimes, when a certain political party hits the news for moving in the polls, you can know that your opinion contributed to that!

Where are YouGov Surveys Available?

YouGov has a wide global presence, and you can sign up from many countries, across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

That said, the volume of surveys available and the amount of money you earn will depend on your location. Anecdotal evidence suggests that those in the US will find more active surveys than those elsewhere.

Is YouGov Legit?

YouGov is a completely legitimate survey site. YouGov is a global market research company, established in 2000 and listed on the London Stock Exchange.

Is YouGov a Scam?

YouGov is not a scam. It’s a well established company with a global community of survey participants. However, like many high-profile survey sites, you will find some negative chatter about it online.

YouGov Review: Signing Up

Signing up to YouGov is extremely simple. You just need to confirm your country, and then provide some basic details: gender, year of birth, ZIP / postcode and email address.

As with many survey sites, you’re then given a first survey on demographics to help YouGov send you relevant surveys in the future. You just have to answer some basic questions about the make up of your family, your educational details and your career.

You start to build some initial points simply for taking part in the initial survey, and for your sign-up.

Once this process is complete, you can begin to take more surveys – but don’t be surprised if there’s not one waiting for you straight away. More on that later in this YouGov review.

Our Experience of YouGov Surveys

There are plenty of survey companies out there that give you a huge list of surveys to choose from after you sign-up. Some of them (such as SwagBucks and PrizeRebel) can prove quite worthwhile, once you learn their intricacies.

Others can prove a complete waste of time, rerouting you from survey to survey, and frustrating you with endless “screen-outs” where you don’t manage to qualify or earn anything.

YouGov is rather different to those, going for the same kind of “quality over quantity” approach as Populus Live.

If you receive an email notification from YouGov, saying that there’s a survey available – you will almost certainly be able to complete that survey and earn points. You can expect minimal screening questions, and avoid frustrating experiences of being turfed out of a survey with nothing – after answering a load of questions.

YouGov is very good at referencing the demographic information you supply at the start, and using it to match you to relevant surveys. This is a much better approach to most other surveys sites, where you’re constantly asked for information you’ve already provided – sometimes within the same survey.

But there’s a flip-side to this.

YouGov isn’t a site where you can sit for hours trying survey after survey. You can sometimes wait days between notification emails. It also seems that there are notably quiet periods of the year. Throughout November and December, for example, I received lots of YouGov surveys, but things have been much quieter in January.

What this means, in practice, is that YouGov is a gradual money-maker. It’s a site to have on your list of survey sites, and one where it’s worth grabbing the surveys as they come available. But unlike sites like SwagBucks and PrizeRebel, where you can be cashing out monthly if you put the effort in, YouGov is one where you’re more likely to hit payout two or three times each year.

More on the money stuff below, but first let’s look at the mechanics.

Using YouGov

YouGov has a pleasingly simple user interface, and not the hectic dashboard layout you see on some other sites.

What’s shown in the screenshot above is what I’d typically see on logging on. Generally, you can count on the email notifications to let you know if there’s a survey for you – so you don’t need to continually check the dashboard.

You do have the option of doing “daily questions” and additional profile questions, such as those shown below. These don’t earn you any points. It may be that completing these teaches YouGov more about you and results in more survey opportunities coming your way. But this isn’t spelled out explicitly.

When a new survey arrives, you’re taken straight to it when you click the link in the email. All the surveys take place within YouGov’s own system, and you’re NOT routed all over the place, agreeing to questionable privacy policies and giving up personal information as you go.

The YouGov Mobile App

YouGov does offer a mobile app, allowing you to take surveys on the go. The app is straightforward, and pretty much a replication of what you see when you use the website.

Surveys can be on anything, but (here in the UK, at least) sometimes lean more towards politics than those on other survey sites. You’re also sometimes given the option of slightly longer surveys, or add ons at the end, in order to earn more “points.”

So, what are these YouGov “points?” Let’s look at that next.

How To Earn From YouGov: Points and Cashouts

As with many survey sites, you earn points on YouGov that you can exchange for cash or gift cards.

How many points each survey pays out is dependent on its length. Typically a survey taking around ten minutes pays 50-100 points.

One area of this YouGov review where you’ll find a big tick is regarding the quoted survey lengths. All too often, survey sites underestimate the time a survey will take. You agree to take part for a certain reward and then it takes twice as long. In my own experience with YouGov, surveys tend to take less time than quoted, if anything.

This combination of accurate time estimates and minimal screening hassle does make earning from YouGov feel more professional and straightforward than many of the more complex survey sites.

On a less positive note, you need to earn quite a number of points before you can cash out. Here in the UK, the minimum cashout is for 5000 points. That gets you £50 cash.

Cash-out options and minimums will vary from country to country. While a direct bank transfer is all that’s currently available here in the UK, I understand that there are lower-value voucher options and gift cards in the US.

It is worth familiarising yourself with the options available where you are. With surveys usually paying 50-100 points here, that means doing 50-100 surveys before a cashout is available. Your mileage will vary, but YouGov isn’t a place to head to for quick cash!

Getting Paid

Here’s my own recent YouGov payment proof. It paid out with no issues, arriving direct to my bank account the day after I requested it.

It’s worth remembering that YouGov is a huge, multinational company. It’s not in the business of routinely scamming people. However, that doesn’t mean you won’t find some negativity online. We look at that in a moment.

YouGov Referral Program

You can add to your YouGov earnings a little by referring friends and family to the site via a referral link. You get 200 points for a referral, but only once your friend finished six complete surveys. Perhaps don’t bother referring people who don’t stick at things…

Online Feedback: Other Reviews of YouGov

Whenever we publish a survey site review, we like to look at what other people are saying, to add some balance and perspective.

The YouGov TrustPilot rating currently sits at 3.6 stars, an “Average” rating based on 1851 YouGov reviews.

This is pretty typical for a high-profile survey site. Delving into the reviews, complaints seem to focus on issues accessing the customer service team, delayed payments, and more general moaning about a lack of surveys.

In the interests of fairness, I should say that MY experience of payouts has been flawless. Also – as I always point out – survey sites are sometimes themselves targeted by bots and scammers. I have no doubt that there are people out there who would fake their location in order to get more surveys, but then wouldn’t hesitate to scream “YouGov is a scam,” when the company finds out and refuses to pay.

I just think it’s important to point out that there are two sides to this.

YouGov Reddit threads broadly conclude how this review will: YouGov is legit, but it’s not a place to earn money fast.

Conclusion: Is YouGov Worth It?

YouGov surveys are a bit of a slow-burn thing. But on the important question of whether I will continue to use the site after my YouGov review, the answer is “yes.”

It does take some time to reach cash-out, but these are pleasingly “no nonsense” surveys: You get an email when one is available. It works. It takes the time promised. You slowly build up enough points to cash out, and when that time comes, your reward arrives swiftly in cash.

YouGov isn’t a lucrative survey site. Based on my own use of it, I only expect to see £50-100 ($66-133) each year. But that’s enough to pay for a few Christmas presents with next to zero effort.

With that in mind, carrying on using the site is a bit of a no-brainer. If you want to add something straightforward to your list of side gigs, it’s well worth getting a YouGov account and completing all the surveys that land in your inbox.

While You’re Here

• Sign up to SwagBucks here to get a $5 sign-up bonus.
• Check out some of the best survey sites in this article.
• Read our paid survey tips to maximise your income