How Much Could You Make Mystery Shopping?
Build your mystery shopping schedule and see what your potential earnings could look like — or calculate how many shops it could take to reach your monthly goal.
Build Your Mystery Shopping Plan
What do you want to find out?
How many days per week would you mystery shop?
Many shoppers build their schedule around just 2–3 shopping days per week.
How many shops would you complete on a shopping day?
Beginners often start with 2–3. Experienced shoppers may complete 5–10 or more by building efficient routes.
What kind of shops would you focus on?
Choose the strategy that sounds most like the mystery shopping plan you'd want to build.
What sounds fun to you?
Choose as many as you'd like. These choices don't change your earnings estimate.
What Determines How Much You Can Make Mystery Shopping?
Mystery shopping doesn't have one fixed pay rate. What you can earn depends on several factors.
Where You Live
Larger markets often have more opportunities because there are more businesses and locations available to evaluate.
The Shops You Choose
Assignments can range from basic retail visits to apartments, video shops and other specialized opportunities.
How You Build Your Routes
Experienced shoppers often group nearby assignments together instead of driving out for one shop at a time.
Mystery Shopping Income Questions
How much do mystery shoppers make?
There isn't one fixed mystery shopper pay rate. Earnings vary by assignment, company, location, experience and how many shops you complete. That's why the calculator above estimates a range instead of giving everyone the same number.
How many mystery shops can you do in one day?
A beginner may start with 2–3 shops in a day. Experienced shoppers can sometimes complete 5–10 or more when assignments are located near each other and can be organized into an efficient route.
How long does a mystery shop take?
It varies by assignment, but a typical onsite visit may take around 30 minutes with another 15–20 minutes needed for the report. Driving time varies considerably.
Do reimbursements count as mystery shopping income?
We don't count them as cash earnings in this calculator. Some mystery shops reimburse required purchases or experiences in addition to paying the shopper, while other assignments may primarily provide reimbursement.
Where can I find mystery shopping jobs?
Mystery shopping assignments are offered by multiple mystery shopping companies. ShopQuest makes it easier to find opportunities by bringing shops from multiple companies into one place.
