Taking paid surveys is an easy way to earn a little extra cash in your free time. Whether you’re a college student or a full-time working parent, companies want your opinion on a variety of topics and pay you for your time.
LifePoints can be a great option as you can take multiple surveys each day and get cash out when your balance is only $5.
I’ve been taking online surveys for 20 years myself, I’ll share my thoughts in this LifePoints review.
Table of Contents
- What is LifePoints?
- Earning LifePoints
- Online Surveys
- What Happens If You Don’t Qualify for a LifePoints Survey?
- Focus Surveys
- Quick Polls
- Contests and Giveaways
- How Much are LifePoints Worth?
- Redeeming LifePoints
- Customer Support
- Is LifePoints Legitimate?
- Pros and Cons of LifePoints
- Alternatives to LifePoints
- Summary
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What is LifePoints?
LifePoints is an online survey site with one of the largest communities. Lightspeed Research Limited is the parent company of LifePoints and has been conducting market research for various brands since 1946. Today, LifePoints has over five million members across 70 countries.
If you’re a long-time survey taker, you might realize that your old platform (like MySurvey and Global Test Market) is now part of the LifePoints panel.
Most LifePoints surveys take up to 20 minutes to complete. Many of these surveys are to learn your opinion on specific brands, shopping habits, and upcoming purchases. You receive points that you can redeem for gift cards, PayPal cash, and charity donations.
You do not need any special skills or training to qualify for LifePoints surveys. LifePoints matches you with surveys that fit your hobbies, shopping habits, and household profile.
Who Can Join?
You only need to be 14 years old to join LifePoints in most countries. It’s free to join and you get 10 LifePoints as a signup bonus.
Surveys are available in over 70 countries across the Americas, Europe, and Asia.
The signup process only takes you a few minutes. You start by entering your name and email address. The next step is opening the confirmation email to submit your personal details.
There is also a general profile survey you take so LifePoints can start matching your interests with relevant survey topics. This initial survey is similar to other survey platforms and you earn your second 10 LifePoints before attempting your first online survey.
Does LifePoints Have a Mobile App?
No, LifePoints doesn’t have a mobile app. There are similar sounding apps in the App Store and Google Play Store but they are not part of the survey site we’re covering in this LifePoints review.
Instead, LifePoints only uses these web browsers:
- Google Chrome
- Safari 5.x and later
- Internet Explorer 11
- Microsoft Edge
- Firefox 5.x and later
- Opera 12 and later
But that doesn’t mean you can’t access it from your phone — LifePoints is mobile-optimized. Your survey experience is similar whether you use your phone, tablet, or laptop. You won’t have to worry about not seeing the full question or find the “Next” button to progress to follow-up questions if your phone screen is small.
Not having to maintain a mobile app for a variety of operating systems helps keep LifePoints operating expenses low.
When you desire using a mobile app for surveys, you might try these top survey sites.
Earning LifePoints
The only consistent way to earn LifePoints is by taking online surveys. Loyal members can qualify for in-depth surveys that can take longer but award more points.
Unlike some survey sites that offer micro-tasks, you won’t have the chance to earn points by shopping online, watching videos, or playing games.
If you are looking for task type websites to earn money check out this list.
Online Surveys
You will like LifePoints if you enjoy taking online surveys. It’s possible to complete several surveys each day. It’s not uncommon to see at least five survey invites on your LifePoints dashboard daily.
Most survey payouts are between 50 and 150 points and have an estimated completion time of 20 minutes or less. You can see the total payout and estimated completion time but won’t know the survey topic until you attempt the survey.
Some surveys take up to 60 minutes to complete but pay as much as 500 points. These longer surveys can be worth trying if you have the time as you can earn enough to receive weekly payment.
As a quick reference, 100 LifePoints are worth $1 approximately. You won’t get rich taking surveys but LifePoints pay is competitive with most online survey panels.
Many survey topics are for consumer brands and services that you might use (or avoid) regularly.
You might share your opinion on these topics:
- Your favorite and least favorite grocery stores
- Rating Amazon’s various services (i.e., Prime, Audible, online store)
- Product designs and marketing descriptions for unreleased items
- Your cell phone plan
- Your recent and upcoming purchases
- Upcoming travel plans
- Streaming services
Nearly every LifePoints survey focuses on your shopping habits and brand preferences. Various brands want to know what customers like and dislike about their products. Online surveys are one of the most effective ways to gauge consumer opinions.
Some surveys may ask about your alcohol, tobacco, or medication usage. These surveys are less common on LifePoints but can have higher payouts as fewer people qualify for them.
LifePoints sends almost-daily reminders about open surveys. Sometimes, you will see a notice for a unique survey that pays more.
What Happens If You Don’t Qualify for a LifePoints Survey?
One downside of LifePoints surveys is that you have to pass several screener questions to see if you qualify for the full survey. This qualification process is typical for most survey sites that let you take several daily surveys.
The screening process is usually up to five questions including your age, occupation, and shopping habits. For instance, you probably won’t qualify for a survey about Android phones if you use Apple devices exclusively.
You get two LifePoints for attempting the survey as a consolation prize. You may have to attempt several surveys before qualifying for the full survey.
Admittedly the screener process is annoying, but LifePoints isn’t as irritating as some. Others may ask several minutes of questions before telling you that you don’t qualify.
Focus Surveys
You have the opportunity to participate in in-depth “focus surveys” that award extra points.
For example, you can earn an extra 250 points if you let LifePoints use your webcam to record your face reaction while watching a tv commercial. You watch a 30-second clip two times and earn 250 points for one minute of work.
These are some of the other ways you might receive an invite to earn extra LifePoints:
- Online focus groups
- Phone surveys
- SMS text message surveys
- Mobile device usage
- Webcam surveys
- Online bulletin boards
- In-home product testing
- Food and wine tasting
You usually receive invitations to these surveys after completing a standard survey. LifePoints will ask if you want to take a follow-up survey in the future. If so, they will describe in which manner you take the follow-up survey. For example, someone might call you.
In other instances, LifePoints will email you special survey invites. These surveys can be easier to qualify for instead of randomly attempting ones on the LifePoints dashboard.
One interesting opportunity to earn recurring points can be downloading mobile apps that track how you use your mobile device. You might receive an invite to download an app that logs the ads you see on Facebook. It’s possible to earn 50 points per week by selling your data.
These advanced surveys make it easier to reach the $5 payment redemption minimum. You will need to fit a specific audience and be comfortable sharing more personal details than usual.
Quick Polls
Periodically, you will see invitations for one-question “quick polls”. These polls are fun and ask your question on random topics like your favorite ice cream flavor. You only earn one point but you’re closer to redeeming points for gift cards or cash.
Contests and Giveaways
LifePoints runs several contests that are fun and give you the chance to win points. You will find the latest giveaways in the “Community” section of the LifePoints panel.
The contest activities and total prize vary. It’s worth checking them out to see if you want to participate. There are deadlines for each contest so checking LifePoints regularly ensures you don’t miss your chance to participate.
One easy contest is liking and sharing a Facebook post to get potentially $30 of LifePoints. Another common giveaway is guessing a country’s flag.
Other contests require a little more skill. For instance, you may have to post a selfie on Instagram or correctly guess the score of the Champion’s League final.
How Much are LifePoints Worth?
Each LifePoint is worth slightly less than 1 cent each. Most survey points have a similar worth. You can request payment when you have a $5 balance. However, your points can be worth more for digital gift cards than cash.
A $5 gift card costs 550 points yet a $5 PayPal cash payment takes 600 points.
You can save you points to redeem for gift cards and PayPal rewards with a higher face value of $10, $15, or $20. You can get a slight redemption discount for gift cards that make your points slightly more valuable. For example, 550 points are worth a $5 gift card, and 1,080 points are worth a $10 gift card – you save 20 points.
Most survey sites use a tiered pricing system for gift cards and cash in addition to LifePoints. The varying values are frustrating but LifePoints low $5 minimum payment is lower than many survey sites.
As a side note, your LifePoints expire three years from the date you earn them. Expiring points isn’t a problem if you take surveys often and redeem them for the $5 awards.
Redeeming LifePoints
You have four payment options for redeeming your LifePoints once your balance reaches $5.
It can take up to ten days to receive your digital gift card or PayPal cash payments. But most electronic redemptions arrive several days sooner–my PayPal payment took five days.
Digital Gift Cards
Using your points for digital gift cards is the most valuable redemption option. Specifically, Amazon gift cards are your best option. You can get a $5 Amazon card for 550 points (and sometimes for a few points less). If earning Amazon gift cards is your goal, here are 21 ways to earn free Amazon gift cards.
Most gift cards require a minimum $10 balance or 1,080 points.
Some of the other brands with digital gift cards include:
- Applebee’s
- App Store and iTunes
- CVS
- Barnes & Noble
- Bloomin’ Brands (Outback Steakhouse, Bonefish Grill, etc.)
- Domino’s Pizza
- Google Play
- GameStop
- Lowe’s Home Improvement
- Starbucks
The largest digital gift cards are worth $100. One of them is for Amazon Prime once you have 10,700 points. Prime membership can be a valuable reward if you prefer to pay with points.
Physical Gift Cards
There are a handful of physical gift cards that LifePoints will mail you. However, the options are slim and you need a $25 balance.
PayPal
You can also redeem your LifePoints for cash using PayPal. Cash redemptions start at 600 points for a $5 payment. You need 50 more points for PayPal than Amazon gift cards.
While your points have a slightly higher redemption value if you choose to hold them for $10 or higher payments, PayPal redemption remains the same. You need 1,200 points for a $10 payment so you might consider getting the $5 PayPal redemption to get paid sooner.
PayPal payments are sent to the email address you use to join LifePoints. You can link multiple email addresses to PayPal in case you use a separate email only for taking surveys.
Many other survey sites offer PayPal payments but LifePoints has one of the lowest redemption minimums. Some may require a balance as high as $25 to request cash payment.
Charity Donations
You can also donate to select charities once you earn 550 points for a $5 donation. Special Olympics is one donation option. So far, LifePoints members have donated more than $6,000 to Special Olympics.
Customer Support
If you use LifePoints consistently, you’re likely to eventually have trouble taking a survey or receiving the correct number of points. Some survey sites have terrible customer service options.
The LifePoints customer service team isn’t perfect but they are responsive. You can send an email or start a live chat session. There are email and live chat buttons on the bottom of most LifePoints pages.
If you need to dispute a specific survey, you can click that survey event in the “Rewards” section of your account. Then, you can describe the problem that you’re having.
There’s also an online help section you might visit first to see if there’s a quick fix to your problem as live chat isn’t available 24/7.
Is LifePoints Legitimate?
Yes, LifePoints is a legit way to make money taking online surveys. One of the oldest market research firms provides surveys to LifePoints. You can also take multiple surveys each day although you most likely won’t qualify for all of them.
LifePoints has a TrustPilot Score of 4.6 out of 5 stars. This score is competitive with most legit survey sites.
LifePoints Scams
There are some survey scams to watch out for as you may come across LifePoints impostors.
You will see the latest scams on the LifePoints websites.
For starters, LifePoints won’t ask you to perform work in these positions:
- Mystery shopper
- Customer services evaluator
- Customer service rep
- Survey agent
LifePoints will never ask you to send money to others or ask for your bank details. You won’t submit your Social Security number or other sensitive personal information either.
Pros and Cons of LifePoints
Pros
- Free to join
- Can answer multiple surveys each day
- Most surveys take 20 minutes or less
- $5 minimum payment balance for gift cards and cash
- Mobile-friendly
Cons
- Only earn points by taking surveys
- Won’t qualify for every survey (but you get 2 points per attempt)
- Cash redemptions require more points than gift cards
- Don’t know the survey topic until you qualify
Alternatives to LifePoints
LifePoints is a good option for taking surveys but you may appreciate these alternatives as well. You may decide to join multiple platforms to take more surveys each day.
Swagbucks
If you like taking surveys but want a variety of ways to earn points and avoid “survey fatigue,” try Swagbucks. You earn points by taking multiple daily surveys, shopping online, signup up for product offers, and watching videos. Amazon gift card redemptions start at $3 but you need at least $25 to get a cash payment from PayPal.
Read our Swagbucks review to learn more.
SurveyJunkie
SurveyJunkie is another top-notch platform if you only want to take surveys. The experience is similar to SurveyJunkie but you might have an easier time qualifying for their surveys. It’s important to note that your redemption minimum is $10 versus $5 for LifePoints.
Read our SurveyJunkie review to learn more.
Pinecone Research
Pinecone Research pays more per survey than most survey sites. For instance, you can earn $3 per survey and you know the survey topic before you start. Unlike LifePoints, you must wait for survey invitations and may only take one or two surveys a month.
It’s possible to earn more with Pinecone Research per survey because it’s competitive to join. You must apply using an exclusive link like this one. Also, only so many panelists can belong at a time and you may go on a waitlist.
Read our deeper review on Pinecone Research for more details.
Daily Goodie Box
Not many places mail product samples these days. Daily Goodie Box is a free way to test products when you leave an online review of your sample box. New boxes ship regularly and you can submit requests for boxes that match your interests.
You don’t receive payment but get to keep the samples and try unreleased food, health, and beauty products.
Summary
LifePoints is a legit way to earn cash or gift cards by taking several surveys each day. The $5 payment threshold is easier to reach than most survey sites and you can take multiple surveys each day. They don’t have a mobile app but the website is mobile friendly so you can still use it from your phone.
B says
After taking many surveys and successfully gaining gift cards Lifepoints decided to terminate my account for “violation of user agreement”. I did nothing to prompt this and their customer service is horrible. They will not tell me what happened or what I supposedly did to cause this.
Mary says
Like the comment below, I too got a random email saying I violated the terms of service on my account and they stole like $20 from me. They refused to even prove I did anything. Since changing from Mysurvey to LifePoints they’ve been awful about broken links, prequalifying surveys that don’t give you any points after wasting way too much time filling out pages of info. Garbage site and a scam now IMO.