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InboxDollars Review: Is It Legit or a Scam?

InboxDollars Review
WFHR EditorWFHR Editor
22 min read

Last updated: August 20, 2024

If you’ve ever wondered how to make easy money online, you might be tempted to try a survey site or two. We all know there are plenty of scammy ways to make money online. But is InboxDollars legit? You’re probably here after looking for InboxDollars reviews, and we will deliver what you’re looking for from the perspective of an actual InboxDollars member.

The short answer to the question is yes. InboxDollars is legit. It is a rewards site that pays you to do various online tasks like taking surveys, reading emails, and watching videos. The concept is simple—you get paid to do things you already do online. So, how does InboxDollars work, and what are its pros and cons? We’ve got all the details in this InboxDollars review.

What is InboxDollars?

InboxDollars Logo

InboxDollars is a widely used survey and cash incentive platform. Users can earn money by performing small activities and completing surveys. These online resources cater to those who want to make extra money in their spare time without leaving the house.

Since its launch in 2000, InboxDollars has become a leading cash rewards platform. The company has expanded greatly since then and now has millions of members worldwide. In 2005, InboxDollars bought SendEarnings and expanded into the United Kingdom with InboxPounds and Canada with DailyRewards.

Prodege, the parent company of Swagbucks, ShopAtHome, and MyPoints, purchased InboxDollars in 2019. You won’t become independently wealthy or able to quit your day job, but you can make a respectable supplementary income without leaving the house.

Daren Cotter, the current CEO of InboxDollars, started the company in 2000 in his Minnesota college dorm room. The headquarters and administrative offices remain in Minnesota, near St. Paul.

InboxDollars is a bridge between consumers and the brands that are their business partners. Many people willing to test items, provide feedback, fill out surveys, and view targeted advertising (ads) are essential for successful brands. It would be more practical for them to access their audience than to spend a lot of time and effort recruiting thousands of participants multiple times a year.

See Related: Can You Really Make Money Online Doing Surveys?

How does InboxDollars work?

Members of InboxDollars can earn rewards in a variety of ways, including by doing surveys, playing games, searching the web, and viewing emails. Watching videos and sponsored content used to earn rewards through InboxDollars, but it was removed from the site. Sad times.

When a member’s account balance hits $15, members can “cash out” their earnings from various online activities.

So you see, you can make money with InboxDollars in more ways than one, as it’s not only a survey site. These are the several methods by which you can make money using InboxDollars.

Completing Paid Surveys

Surveys Dashboard

Most survey sites you will see online are scammy, but not InboxDollars. Here, you can earn extra money online if you complete surveys. This is the primary method of making money in InboxDollars. You will earn a few extra bucks by participating in paid survey programs.

Most, if not all, surveys have unpaid screener questions. If you qualify after the screening, you will receive comprehensive questionnaires for market research.

How much you earn from a survey depends on its length and how much InboxDollars is paid by the poll’s advertiser. You may earn money with InboxDollars by taking surveys online or using the app. InboxDollars has an app for both iOS and Android devices.

How do InboxDollars surveys work?

So, how do these surveys work?

InboxDollars collaborates with numerous market research organizations that need people to express their thoughts on new services and products.

You can see a list of surveys in which you could be eligible to participate based on your profile on the survey website. The estimated time to finish the survey and potential compensation are both displayed.

What you need to know before filling out InboxDollars surveys

Not all surveys will accept you – this was easy for me to figure out. If you want to participate in a survey, you’ll probably have to answer some preliminary questions to determine if you’re qualified to take the survey.

The target audience for most products is narrowly defined. Furthermore, many respondents will rush through surveys to obtain the incentive, regardless of whether or not they have provided accurate information.

Companies may use screener questions to verify that they received consumer feedback. They want direct, dependable responses. After all, many companies can’t afford to make judgments costing hundreds of thousands of dollars without this information.

Brands require a minimum number of consumers for surveys. There could be a limit of 5,000 attendees. When you start participating in a survey, the number of participants reaches the survey’s limit before you reach the end.

You will be eligible to participate in more surveys as you complete more surveys. Finding the right surveys for you takes persistence, but it’s ultimately worth it. The more you participate, the more tailored survey opportunities our system will present you with.

I’ll fill out three surveys on certain days and get all accepted. Sometimes, I’ll qualify for one survey out of ten I want to take, but other times, I’ll try eight or more with no luck. Patience and infrequent inspection are essential. Current survey options frequently shift.

What happens if you do not qualify for a survey

InboxDollars only get paid if you do; if you get disqualified, so do they. Your previous screener responses will be deleted immediately. InboxDollars does not record, store, or distribute such data. The corporation that conducted the study or promoted the product is clueless, too.

Because they’ve decided they don’t need or want your feedback, InboxDollars will no longer be able to save your information. If alternative surveys may be a better fit, you will be shown them after you have been disqualified from the current survey.

See Related: InboxDollars vs Swagbucks: What Site is Better?

Playing Games

InboxDollars Games

InboxDollars’ Games portal is an excellent way to earn extra cash online while engaging in a pastime you enjoy. Members may play games like Solitaire and Mahjong, earn real money, and win gift cards and other prizes.

InboxDollars’ games are quite enjoyable, and they pay! I particularly like the Word Wipe and Klondike. After completing a certain level of the game, you will have progress on the Scratch & Win cards, where you can win a few cents!

Scratch and Win

InboxDollars Scratch and Win

Fill your meter by participating in various events and activities to receive Scratch & Win cards as rewards. You can win cash by scratching the card. The more levels you complete, the more money you can potentially win!

Scratch & Win points can be earned in various ways, including completing surveys, verifying PaidEmails, playing games, and more.

Shopping

Shop Page

InboxDollars’ cash-back purchasing gateway is a well-liked method of increasing earnings. Using this InboxDollars service, you can earn real cash back from online purchasing at merchants like Shopping Paradise, eBay stores like Home Depot, Macy’s, Kohl’s, and Walmart. The cash-back rates on InboxDollars are sometimes rather high, at 5% to 10%. You can look for shops and products using the InboxDollars search engine.

See Related: Easy Ways To Earn Extra Cash Online

Searching the Web

InboxDollars Search

InboxDollars’ Search feature allows you to browse the internet and gain points for Scratch and Win in return! You just have to search for anything, and you’ll get a Scratch and Win progress on your fourth search. You will have a $0.05 bonus any week where you use a search engine for at least four days!

PaidEmail

PaidEmail page

Extra cents can be claimed by completing the final item on the list, “Confirm Your First PaidEmail.” After getting your bonus, you can opt out of further correspondence if you don’t like spam. Click the “Click Here to Unsubscribe” link at the bottom of any of their Premium Emails.

Then, modify your preferences so you will no longer receive mail from them. If you’re lucky, you’ll find their PaidEmails useful. You’ll get closer to a Scratch & Win for each PaidEmail you verify.

Uploading Magic Receipts

Magic Receipts page

If you often go grocery shopping, this is a feature you’ll love most. To get cash back, add a particular grocery deal to your Shopping List, buy it at a participating retailer, and upload your receipt.

How to Use the InboxDollars Magic Receipt

It’s easy to use this feature! First, check out the Deals that the Magic Receipt Offers. Put them on your Shopping list. Next, find the item in a local store near you. Finally, upload the receipt and get your cashback!

See Related: Best Apps to Scan Receipts for Money

Referring Friends

Friend referral page of InboxDollars

Sharing your invite link for InboxDollars with friends and family will earn you $1 per qualified referral (provided your friend earns at least $7) and a 30% cut of their lifetime earnings. That is the epitome of a passive income stream.

Bingo

InboxDollars Bingo card

InboxDollars Bingo is the newest method of earning extra money. Here’s how it goes down for new members: Your Bingo Board contains tiles corresponding to various actions. When you finish that step, the square will become a different color to show you succeeded. Finish one of the Patterns on the right to earn extra money and send in your completed board.

Sweepstakes entries

InboxDollars Sweepstakes

InboxDollars Sweepstakes is a unique chance to earn Cash Back and other rewards. You can’t buy a Reward with your Cash Back, but you may get a chance to win a Prize.

In general, Sweepstakes can be split into two categories. “Limited Entry Sweepstakes” means a predetermined number of entries will be allowed until a winner is chosen randomly. “Limited Time Sweepstakes” refers to a game with no entry limit and a random drawing to decide the winner at the end of the contest period.

If you want to increase your chances of winning a Limited Time Sweepstakes, you can enter the sweepstakes more than once. Some Limited Entry Sweepstakes allow for multiple entries, while many do not. If the winner has been selected and the same Reward is still available, you may enter the Limited Entry Sweepstakes again.

A large number of sweepstakes occur regularly. A new Prize is up for grabs whenever a Sweepstakes begins again. Don’t give up if you didn’t win the first time; you might receive another chance in the next few minutes.

WinIt

InboxDollars WinIt

Fun promotional codes called “WinIt Codes” can be entered on the website to win prizes like a sweepstakes entry or cash. Promo codes for WinIt games are distributed through social media like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you want all of them, you’ll need to keep up with Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, as they aren’t constantly in the same place. WinIt codes are only valid until 11:59 p.m. Central Standard Time on the day they are posted.

You can enter your WinIt code in the box on the WinIt section of the InboxDollars website. To claim your prize, type the WinIt code into the designated field. Get out there and start looking right now!

How to sign up for InboxDollars

Sign-up Bonus

InboxDollars will lure you into signing up by offering just a few dollars of sign-up bonus. Providing your email address, creating a site password, and confirming your email earn you a few dollars.

Step 1: Signing up

InboxDollars review: landing page

Enter your email and password, and confirm your password on InboxDollars’ landing page.

Step 2: Confirm your email

Confirm Email

Go to the email account you used to sign up for InboxDollars. Once you’re there, find the email and click confirm. This will earn you an easy 5$!

Step 3: Do whatever you want

InboxDollars Homepage

Once your email is confirmed, you can freely explore InboxDollars. You’ll be brought to your dashboard. You won’t find much on the homepage, but navigating the site shouldn’t be difficult after you’ve gotten the hang of things. A few surveys will be available immediately for profile purposes, so you will earn money as soon as possible!

Similar to other survey sites, you log in, select several surveys to take, and then transfer your earnings.

How much you can earn from InboxDollars

InboxDollars members may complete paid surveys and use offers to earn rewards. However, your earnings potential is directly proportional to the amount of time you dedicate to your account in completing surveys and offers.

It’s possible to make a few bucks per day by taking online surveys, which may range between a few cents and a few dollars. However, finishing them takes time, and some are difficult to qualify. You must have at least $15 in your account before you may withdraw any money.

In short, it will never replace your day job…unless you combine it with many other survey sites…

See Related: How Much Can You Really Make With Online Surveys?

Redeeming your earnings

A potential drawback of using InboxDollars is the relatively high limit required to withdraw earnings. After you’ve earned $15, you can submit a payment request. However, once you have accumulated at least $10 in incentives, you can request any further payments you may need.

If you have earned more than $15, you can withdraw your money using your PayPal account, an eGiftCard (such as an Amazon gift card), or via prepaid debit cards (a prepaid Visa card works). At one point, InboxDollars was one of just a handful of reward companies still paying out through check. However, as of August 17, 2021, checks could no longer be used as a mode of payment.

Paypal Cash Rewards

InboxDollars Paypal cash rewards page

Fund your PayPal account instantly and spend it at any of the millions of online merchants who accept it.

The email address and name associated with your PayPal account MUST match for the account to be validated. Three ways to confirm your identity on PayPal are connecting a bank account, getting accepted for Smart Connect, or getting a PayPal Plus MasterCard.

Amazon Gift Cards

InboxDollars Amazon Rewards page

InboxDollars Amazon offers a wide variety of categories, including Books, Electronics, Music, Video, Clothes, Computers, Toys, Kitchen and housewares, Jewelry, Cosmetics, Smartphones & Services, Utilities & Hardware, Office Equipment, Photography, Pet Supplies, and many more. If you’re looking for a place to buy something online at a low price, go no further than Amazon. However, these gift cards are not redeemable at Amazon Canada.

See Related: Easy Ways to Convert Gift Cards into Cash

Pros and Cons of InboxDollars

Pros

  • InboxDollars is legit. Whatever you earn is yours.

InboxDollars is a legitimate company established by a real person with a very good reputation. You won’t have to worry about being scammed here. InboxDollars pays its members real money using the form members choose.

You can do what you like in your free time but earn money. I have too much fun playing games and forget I get extra money from them. After I complete a level, I get a Scratch and Win card. I love the anticipation of finding out the amount I’ll take home.

  • Earn Cash rewards for answering questions.

If you have an InboxDollars account and qualify for a survey, making money online is easy. Answer a few questions, and you get paid for it!

  • Get cash-backs from shopping.

This is a very nice feature for the shopper and grocery person in the family. You can shop as usual, but why choose that over shopping with cashback? There are many cashback sites in InboxDollars, so shopping is much more fun!

  • Get paid for reading emails.

InboxDollars will email you their greatest deals and pay you to read them, with more money to be made if you complete the offer. Getting paid to do what you’re doing on the internet is fast and simple. Don’t worry; they won’t bombard your inbox with messages.

Cons

  • You can make money by answering online surveys, but not much.

While most of the site’s offers only pay a few cents, surveys pay you anywhere from cents to a few dollars. You’ll be able to see how much money you stand to make from a task before you commit to doing it. Either way, it’s not a huge amount of dosh per survey.

  • Unpaid screener questions.

The survey-taking process as a whole can be tedious. You may receive surveys from InboxDollars for which you aren’t eligible. I started on three surveys, two of which I was not qualified for. The screener questions take some time, but you might not be qualified. Data collectors look for a particular type of respondents for their surveys.

  • A relatively high amount of cash is required to cash out.

Earning money online is not easy. If you want to request payment from Inboxdollars, you must reach a minimum of $15$, which takes time to obtain. Each survey provider pays a few cents, so making a dollar is time-consuming.

InboxDollars Alternatives

Aside from InboxDollars, several other paid survey sites provide incentives for performing various tasks on the Internet. A couple of the InboxDollars rivals are now owned by the same business Prodege), so you may see some similarities across the various services. However, when compared to InboxDollars, most of these sites are newer.

Survey Junkie

Survey Junkie Logo

Users of SurveyJunkie.com can earn rewards just for giving their thoughts and ideas. You can earn points for completing surveys and then use those points to buy things like Amazon gift cards or PayPal cash. We love SurveyJunkie.

Swagbucks

Swagbucks logo
Swagbucks rewards

Swagbucks is a website that offers rewards in the form of gift cards and cash for performing various online activities, such as searching the web, taking surveys, watching videos, and playing games. Again, Swagbucks is one of our favorites.

MyPoints

MyPoints Logo

MyPoints is a digital platform that offers incentives for a wide variety of online activities, including—but not limited to—purchasing goods, filling out surveys, viewing movies, and playing games. Over 20 million people have joined since it first began in 1996. It is available online and as a free mobile app. Registering for MyPoints is free of charge, and you may begin collecting points immediately.

Tada

Tada Logo

When you shop with Tada, you get cash back. When you buy something from eBay, you can get a rebate.

Many different retailers work with Tada. You can get cash back at Amazon, Target, Walmart, Macy’s, The Home Depot, eBay, Expedia, Groupon, and Best Buy.

CouponCause

CouponCause Logo

The team at CouponCause is dedicated to finding its users the best online discounts and promotional codes. To provide you with the most current discounts from the best stores around the globe, their team of Savings Experts searches the web every day. They routinely check all available promo codes to ensure that the discounts they advertise apply to your order. They’re also eager to lend a hand to charity throughout the world. Whenever you use one of their coupons at a store, they receive a commission from the store. In turn, they give a percentage of their commission to a cause they believe in. 

Verdict: Is InboxDollars a Legitimate Site?

Judge's Gavel

InboxDollars is a legitimate way to make money online. It’s not a get-rich-quick scheme, but it is an established company that has been around for many years and has proven its legitimacy. The company is owned by a major company, which means they have a good reputation.

Making money with InboxDollars is easy but requires some time commitment. If you like earning cash back on online purchases or have time to play games and complete surveys, then InboxDollars might be the perfect opportunity! We hope this InboxDollars review answered your questions and clarified things for you.

FAQs

Is InboxDollars legit?

Yes, InboxDollars is a legitimate company. You can use It without worrying about scams or fraud. It is endorsed by Prodege, a prominent market research and lead generation firm, and has an A rating with the Better Business Bureau.

Do I need to spend money to sign up?

No. It is up to you if you want to spend money on their shopping features.

What is the InboxDollars payout timeframe?

Your account will be credited with the InboxDollars rewards immediately after completing a task. However, processing payment requests typically takes three to five business days.

Can I watch videos in InboxDollars to earn money?

Unfortunately, no. This feature has been removed and is now unavailable. Other options, like playing games and answering surveys, are also easy to fulfill.

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