iPoll Review – Is It a Legit App or a Scam?

When you take a look at a typical survey panel, it seems to be little short of a money rain. The formula seems simple enough: you take surveys, they pay you for it. For you, it should be easy, fun and rewarding. They, on the other hand, get to collect loads of information and data for their clients. It seems like a fair trade, doesn’t it?

But we now know better than to believe everything they say. Some of those panels are downright scam. Others are legit, but they don’t deliver on all or any of their promises. So, which group does iPoll belong to? Read on to find out! 

Company Overview

For what it’s worth, the panel is run by Dynata LLC. It’s a huge, global market research company that was previously known as Survey Sampling International LLC. Of course, the ownership doesn’t necessarily imply that it’s a good panel. But it brings us a few steps closer to believing that it’s a legit one.

The site is very scarce with information – they only state the most general stuff in quite abstract terms, without getting into details. It’s a common problem with most survey sites, but that doesn’t make it any less frustrating. When someone expects you to give them your trust and personal information, they could at least bother to explain what you’re in for.

How Can I Make Money With iPoll?

First, you will need to register with the platform. Note that it will be possible on mobile only. Either search for the app in Google Play or App Store, or head over to their website and find the links to the stores.

The signup process is pretty standard. You provide your name and email address, they send you a verification email. Next, you confirm your account, log in, and there’s a profile questionnaire waiting for you.

When you fill it out with your relevant demographic information, you may hope to receive surveys that are a good match with you as a consumer. Or are they?

In most cases, unfortunately, having a complete profile won’t guarantee you anything. Surveys will keep asking dull and repetitive demographic questions over and over before letting you proceed. In other words, getting into a survey doesn’t mean that you will get to complete it.

Anyhow, there are two basic ways of making money with iPoll:

• Surveys. The topics may be about your shopping habits, political stances or affiliations, electronics, etc.
• Missions. This word promises much fun, and I guess it also delivers – at least if you’re a shopaholic. The gist is that you will get various shopping assignments. For example, they may ask you to go to Target or another store near you, grab a few photos of certain products, and then take a poll about your experience. These won’t happen very often. The frequency really depends on your location. But if you ever get invited, take notice of the time frame and make sure you hit the store as soon as possible.

Earning Potential

Here’s where it gets tricky, mostly because there aren’t any rules carved in stone. In fact, it’s almost impossible to determine an exact rate per survey or hour.

People claim they make anywhere from $0.50 and $2 per survey, depending on its duration. It’s far from enough to get anyone rich, of course. But it’s a pretty standard amount of compensation.

Missions, on the other hand, tend to pay more – up to $15. But they also take more time to complete, and they are comparatively rare. Most people don’t even mention them in the reviews, whereas some testify to getting as little as one mission every few months.

But low and incostant pay rates aren’t the greatest problem. Even if you manage to meet the relatively high payout threshold of $25, it doesn’t mean you will get your earnings. I’ve read reviews from furious users claiming that their accounts got terminated before they got their money. Others said that they had been waiting for months to no avail.

In case you have better luck than those users did, here’s what you can hope for. You can either get paid via PayPal, or redeem your money for various gift cards from Amazon, Walmart, and other retailers. It appears that the gift card payment method is way more efficient. In other words, you won’t have to wait for ages or indefinitely before you get those.

User Reviews – Is There Anything to Worry About?

Almost every survey panel has loads of good and bad reviews. But when the bad ones are twice as numerous as the good, it means there’s more than one reason to worry.

For example, take a look at iPoll’s rating on SurveyPolice. The 1-star reviews are by far the most numerous, which is why the average grade is just slightly over 1 star. Since SurveyPolice is an independent site and forum, I am more likely to believe them than, say, reviews on Google Play.

So, to answer the above question: yes, it seems there is much to worry about. Judging by the reviews, the most problematic points are sudden account suspensions and heavy delays with payments. What makes it worse is that many accounts got shut down just when the users finally hit the threshold and were about to cash out. And that does ring an alarm or two.

What We Liked About iPoll

• You can choose between PayPal and gift cards. Naturally, PayPal is a real treat, but I wouldn’t discard Amazon gift cards either. Or any other major retailer like Walmart or Target.
• Taking surveys is not the only way to make money here. This is important for two reasons. Firstly, many people like doing shopping missions, even when they come without an incentive. Secondly, those missions pay better than surveys.
• They are heavily – in fact, exclusively – focused on mobile. Kudos for that one! I can’t fathom why it’s such a rare occurrence, but it is. Most paid survey sites just don’t happen to realize that times have changed and most of us are glued to our smartphones all the time. Why is it so hard to meet mobile users’ needs?
• They are available in 32 countries. Accepting people from US, Canada, Australia, Argentina, Spain, Germany, India and many more countries seems nice. Even a couple of African countries are on the list.

What We Didn’t Like (or Disliked) About iPoll

• You managed to make some money? Chances are you’ll have to beg for it! Many people report having to wait for months to get their hands on their earnings. And when they tried to contact customer service, surprise! Nobody answered.
• Even the process of approving your surveys seems to take too long. They probably could have automated it in some way, so that it doesn’t depend on the number of available… Operators? Graders? Whatever is the name for those people who take a pencil and write good and bad marks on your replies.
• The cashout threshold is rather high. You have to make $25 before being able to cash out. In itself, it doesn’t sound like a whole lot of money. But if you get disqualified 20 times a day, it could take ages before you manage to earn that much. (Did I just use “much” and “$25” in the same sentence? Boy, do these things kick our standards down.) If it’s any consolation, the threshold used to be even higher, at $50.
• The bad user reviews outweigh the good. Experience has taught us not to take any reviews without a grain of salt. Still, we’re in a game where aggregation matters rather than individual experience, right? Well, aggregation doesn’t speak well about iPoll.
• You will get kicked out of surveys way too often. Judging by many user reviews, this will happen when you’re already halfway through a survey. It’s like they are trying to collect as much info as they can without paying a dime in return. Who doesn’t like free work? Oh yes – the workers might have an objection or two.

Final Thoughts – Should You Join?

The above pros and cons might have left you undecided. Simply, there are more complaints than I personally can afford to ignore. But there are also accounts of people who are happy with the app.

It all boils down to this. The panel is almost certainly legit, but there have been too many (and too grave) issues with their payout system. It just seems that the team behind this project is not quite up to the task. Since there are many survey panels that are free of these issues, I suggest you skip this one and look for a panel or five that suit you.

That being said, if you’re willing to try this one nevertheless, I won’t discourage you. There’s nothing to lose except for some of your time. So, if you’re a survey addict or just want to test the app for yourself, be my guest! I sincerely hope you will prove me wrong.