Zap Surveys
Zap Surveys Review
Zap Surveys is a popular survey app downloaded more than a million times. By answering surveys, you’ll eventually be able to cash out in the form of PayPal, Amazon gift cards or prepaid Visa cards. However, there’s a big catch – the redemption threshold is really high. Read our review to find out if Zap Surveys is worth signing up for.
Is Zap Surveys legit?
Yes, Zap Surveys is run by inBrain.ai which is a legit US business. You can come across inBrain in two different ways as a survey-taker:
- By signing up for their panel app Zap Surveys (available on web, iOS and Android)
- By taking surveys through a 3rd party publisher using the inBrain offer wall
inBrain specialises in connecting mobile apps with market research companies. An example of a mobile app integrated with inBrain is instaGC. Zap’s technology enables mobile app owners to integrate an offerwall displaying surveys offering their native reward currency. In this way, publishers can monetize their traffic by offering surveys, while users can earn rewards. This is very similar to what other companies such as Pollfish and TapResearch offer. The US market research company Dynata acquired inBrain in 2021.
What can I earn?
Zap Surveys usually offer a sign-up bonus, however, the amount can vary. At the time of writing this review, they offer a $3 bonus for registering AND taking your first survey. Once you’ve completed the first survey, the payment is reduced to a much lower level – usually in the range of $0.10 – $0.50.
Some examples of survey opportunities:
- 17 minutes survey – 49 cents
- 12 minutes survey – 35 cents
- 18 minutes survey – 47 cents
- 4 minutes survey – 10 cents
The reward level for surveys is surprisingly low compared to many similar sites.
In addition to taking surveys, you can also earn extra bonuses by logging into the app on a daily basis, and making sure to stay active. By referring friends, you’ll earn 10% of their earnings (not counting the join bonus).
Excellent user experience
We really like the fresh look & feel of this mobile app. The interface is easy and intuitive to navigate. Small bonuses here are there make the app entertaining. You’re kept well-informed of your status and earnings. In terms of user experience, this is probably one of the best survey sites we have tested.
Are my data safe?
Zap Surveys is owned by a serious market research provider, which we can only assume will do its best to follow local laws and regulations. As such, you’ll be asked to give your explicit consent to share your data both when it comes to your profile information, survey answers and passively tracked data such as your location/GeoIP.
Here is a list of data points automatically shared through the mobile app:
- Location
- Personal info: Email address, User IDs, Race and ethnicity, Political or religious beliefs, Sexual orientation and Other info
- Financial info
- App activity
- App info and performance
- Device or other IDs
Not very transparent
Unfortunately, Zap Surveys is not very transparent. There is very little information about reward levels, and at the time of testing the links to their Blog and FAQ pages were not working. They make a big number out of the $3 join bonus, but they don’t say anything about the $25 cashout limit until you’ve registered. This is bordering on misleading marketing.
Too high cash-out limit
While we’re really happy with the join bonus of $3 and the intuitive interface, we’re equally disappointed with the record-high redemption level of $25. Especially when compared with the low survey rewards which usually amount to less than $0.50. Based on our earnings during a period of 8 weeks, we had to take as many as 48 surveys to reach the redemption threshold of $25. An average of 10 minutes spent per survey, equals 8 hours of survey time in total. And we’re not even counting all the time wasted on unsuccessful survey attempts when screened out. At this level, you’ll be lucky if your hourly pay will be more than $3.
What can prevent me from cashing out?
A common complaint about Dynata (the parent company of Zap Surveys), is that they’re too quick to kick people out before being able to cash out. Since Dynata is a legit market research company, it’s understandable that they need to exercise caution and crack down on dishonest and fraudulent survey takers. At the same time, the decisions to freeze and suspend accounts are automatically done by algorithms, which are not always correct. Our recommendation is to fill out surveys using your real identity and submit honest answers from the beginning. In this way, you avoid getting caught by so-called “trap questions”. Also, make sure that your PayPal account lines up perfectly with your Zap Surveys account to avoid any payment issues.
