Frequently Asked Questions
Are you new to mystery shopping or looking for clarification? You’ve come to the right place!
Becoming a mystery shopper is a fun and flexible way to earn some extra cash. Mystery shoppers are independent contractors paid to evaluate businesses in person, on the phone, or online and evaluate their customer service, cleanliness, and other aspects of their operations.
- Independent contractors are not employees of Secret Shopper®
- An independent contractor is a self-employed individual who shops on behalf of Secret Shopper® to evaluate and assess various aspects of the customer experience for Secret Shopper® clients.
- Previous experience is not required.
- We are looking for reliable, detail-oriented Shoppers with exceptional written communication skills.
- All reports, some requiring images as proof of shop, are submitted online. Access to a mobile device, computer, or tablet is required.
- All assignments are due by noon Central Time the day after your assigned shop date unless the instructions state otherwise.
- The minimum age to register is eighteen years old.
- You are not applying to be an employee of the company. There is no employee-employer relationship.
- You are an independent contractor with the choice to accept or reject individual shopping assignments on a case-by-case basis.
- Secret Shopper® does not and has never charged anyone to become a Shopper.
- Some shops do require Shoppers to make a purchase during the shop. Payment for each shop is clearly listed with the shop assignment, and purchases are either reimbursed or already calculated into the shop payment.
- If you were charged any amount for registering as a Shopper, please check your financial statement for the correct name of the company.
- Demand for Shoppers changes regularly. After being accepted as a Shopper, you will have access to all the shops available in your area.
- If your area does not have any available shops, it may be because you do not meet certain demographic requirements, they were taken by other Shoppers, or no shops exist in your area at this time.
- Clients are added regularly, so you will want to check the site often for new shops.
- Most of the Shoppers with whom we contract, do mystery shopping part-time while working on other projects (including performing shops for other mystery shopping companies).
- We do require that you do not accept a mystery shopping assignment for a company where you or a family member are currently working or have previously worked.
- For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.
- We do not share your personal information with anyone, except as described in our Privacy Statement. The sections of our website that send sensitive personal information are encrypted using the latest and most secure encryption techniques.
- This can be verified by the "https" at the beginning of our web page address as well as the closed lock icon in the URL line of your browser.
- Your Shopper ID and password also prevent other people from accessing your information. It is important that you protect your information by not sharing your ID or password with anyone else.
- Please do not send us your full SSN to request a lost password, etc. We need only the last 4 digits of your SSN for verification purposes.
- Each shopping assignment has different client payments.
- Client payments range from $15 for basic shops and into the hundreds for more extensive shops.
- For some shops, such as a restaurant, the client payment may be to pay you for the cost of a meal for two.
- The client payment information for each unique situation is explained before you agree to do the shop.
Domestic Shoppers (US, CA, PRI)
- ACH (Direct Deposit) is deposited using a staggered date based on Shopper status for shops done the previous month.
- If the staggered date lands on a weekend or holiday, ACH will be deposited on the first business day after that date.
- Checks are mailed out on the 20th of every month for the previous month’s shops.
- If the 20th lands on a weekend or holiday, checks will be mailed the first business day after that date.
- The checks are valid for 60 days and should be cashed within this period.
International shoppers (Outside US, CA, PRI)
- Client payment is sent securely via PayPal. Client payments for approved shops are sent on the 20th of the month following the month the shop was completed. For example, a shop done in June would be paid on July 20th.
- NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure that your PayPal email address is correct in our system.
- If you have a Shopper ID and password and it doesn't work, please check to be certain you are using the Shopper login page.
- Please visit the Login Help page if your problem persists.
- Reset your Password - Go to your login page and press the reset password button to have your Shopper ID and a password reset emailed to you.