I just hit a bit of a personal milestone in my quest to earn some extra income on the side, and completed my 100th mystery shop.
All told, from 100 completed mystery shops I have been paid $1,532.33 and had to spend a total of $613.08. This gives me a total net income of $965.22 that I have earned by doing mystery shops.
Mystery shopping is by far my most lucrative method of earning some extra income, and is also my favorite for a variety of reasons. First, I can pick and choose what to do based on my wants, needs, and availability. Once a week I have to travel out of state and haven't had to pay for any of my meals for a month now, because I always manage to find fast food shops or restaurant shops to do.
Just some quick statistics, showing my mystery shops:
Total Shops: 100
Total Cost: $613.08
Gross Earnings: $1,532.33
Average Shop Time: 26 minutes
Average Shop Payment: $15.32
I first started mystery shopping about a year ago, but I took a large break where I did not complete any shops at all for 6 months due to personal restrictions. So, in effect, I have earned close to $1000 net income in 6 months, and the total time I spent in the shops was about 42 and a half hours. That comes out to a whopping average of $23.10 per hour working for myself.
I also only pick up shops that interest me or are stores that I would normally shop at anyway. If I were to pick up additional shops, or even sign up with additional companies, that potential income would rise astronomically. Completing mystery shops has all the income potential of a part-time job but without the significant commitment to a set schedule. This way I can earn some extra money, and never have to worry about having free time if the family wants to go to the movies. I make my own schedule and if I need a break for 6 months, I can just stop doing mystery shops and get right back into it when time allows.
Stay tuned for another post where I will talk in detail about some of the different mystery shop companies I have worked with in the past.
