Realistic Earning Expectations

Okay, I realize this has probably been asked at least in different formats a million times. I know it's not really possible to make a full time living off mystery shopping. But is a decent part time wage within reach? I'm thinking maybe $10,000-$12,000 a year. Please don't think I'm trying to be obnoxious. I have done just a couple of shops and the pay for the amount of work you put in is a little low. Does it get better with experience, or should I look elsewhere for extra money? Thanks for any input.

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If your location is good you can easily earn $10,000 or more shopping part time. Most of it depends on population and the number of other shoppers. I live 30 miles from Fort Worth which puts me at the edge of a heavily populated area. My first full year (2010) I grossed $8144. That's increased each year and this year I'll gross a little over $17,000. Don't underestimate this. Some of our full timers are doing well.

Mary Davis Nowell. Based close to Fort Worth. Shopping Interstate 20 east and west, Interstate 35 north and south.

Thanks! I would love to do this full time, but alas I live in an area that's pretty rural. The closest real city is Atlanta, and that's a two hour hike. That would eat up both time and gas money. There are other, smaller cities closer by, so I'm hoping to get a good start there. I really enjoy this forum. Everyone seems so friendly and helpful.

I do most of my work in towns 30,000 or less population, with a large part of it being what I consider rural. Your area may be much better than you expect. There are fewer shoppers in the boonies so the more rural you get the better the pay for whatever is available. Many rural jobs "bonus up" to nice fees as they linger on the boards longer. Watch what happens in your area. Follow the shops and determine the top going rate before someone grabs them. No need to do at $8 shop that will normally advance to $20. Okay, so you misjudge and miss out part of the time. You still win.

Mary Davis Nowell. Based close to Fort Worth. Shopping Interstate 20 east and west, Interstate 35 north and south.

I gather there are a lot of shoppers in Atlanta, but at the same time it is a quite spread out town. You sound like a perfect candidate for using Jobslinger.com (the free version) to register with companies that have posted jobs at your location as well as the small towns around you. Your key to success will be putting together routes through some of the small cities around you, but that will take some time to get organized and registered with enough companies that you have a selection of shops to work with. Most of the jobs you see on Jobslinger will have already been taken, but your goal at this point is not so much to fill your dance card with shops as getting registered with companies for future dance cards.

You might also want to consider part-time merchandising to round out your schedule. Most merchandising companies let you pick your own schedule, though you are still an employee. The companies I work for pay between $11-$14 per hour. I hear there are some that pay even more, but that is probably based on experience. The work is pretty easy, usually, and there is some mileage pay too with most companies--usually after you drive 25 miles from home or if you are driving from store to store, you get paid drive time and a mileage fee. It works out nicely if I want to do a few shops before or after the merchandising job or pick up a fast food lunch shop on my break.

Thanks for the responses. How would I go about finding merchandising jobs? I actually did some merchandising work for a big retail store. But I'm sure the actual merchandising companies would be able to pay more in the range you quoted, which would be nice.
Thanks again! Everyone is so nice and helpful here. It's great!

Advantage Sales and Marketing, Acosta, Crossmark and more. I have never looked because I found merchandising years ago throuh NARMS, but I think others have mentioned a merchandising section on this website. Your previous experience is a bonus.

Welcome, Howardae. There is a Merchandising Assignments and Companies section down near the bottom of the forum list. You might find more merchandising companies and ideas there.

My brother in law does merchandising but when it gets busy , your bombarded with everything! Need to be very organized.

Or you can just live somewhere that has both, like Portland

I love doing both merchandising and mystery shopping. I usually can do a few of each per day, and then on weeks where I don't get much shops I can usually find some merchandising gigs to get me through. Plus I like the physical activity.

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