Last updated: February 2026 — This page is reviewed and updated whenever our process changes. If something looks off or outdated, let me know.
When you’re trying to figure out whether an app, site, or money-making tool is actually worth your time, the last thing you need is hype dressed up as a review.
That’s why I want to be completely upfront about how MoneyPantry evaluates the things it covers. What “tested” actually means here, how I research what I haven’t personally used, and what I do when something I’ve recommended stops being worth it.
No vague promises. Just exactly how this works.
A Note on Independence (Read This First)
Some of the products I review have affiliate programs, which means I may earn a small commission if you sign up through a link on this site (at no extra cost to you). This never determines which products I review, and it never determines how I evaluate them.
If I don’t like something, I say so. I’ve turned down affiliate relationships with products I wouldn’t personally recommend, and I’ve published negative reviews of products that do have affiliate programs. The commission doesn’t protect them.
One more thing worth being upfront about: I use AI tools as part of my research and writing process. I use them for research, outlining, formatting, and grammar. I do not use AI to write reviews or generate recommendations. Every review on MoneyPantry reflects my own testing, research, and editorial judgment. AI helps me work more efficiently. It doesn’t do the work.
Your trust is worth more to me than any commission. That’s not a slogan. It’s the reason this site has been around since 2013.
How MoneyPantry Works Today: The Honest Version
For a while, MoneyPantry had a small team of freelance writers helping test platforms, sign up for offers, and verify whether certain apps actually paid. Today, it’s just me again. Saeed Darabi, the founder. A traffic and income drop made running a team unsustainable, and I’d rather be honest about that than pretend otherwise.
That means I can’t claim to personally sign up for every single platform mentioned on this site. No one person could. We have over 2,000 articles published since 2013. But I personally test many of them, especially the major survey sites, gig apps, and side hustles I’ve been using and researching for nearly two decades.
And for platforms I haven’t tested directly, I have a specific research process I follow. I’ll explain it below.
This isn’t a weakness. I think it’s actually the most honest thing a personal finance site can publish. No competitor tells you this. They put up a polished “our team tests everything” front regardless of what’s actually happening behind the scenes. I’d rather you know exactly what you’re getting here.
What “Tested,” “Researched,” and “Community Verified” Actually Mean
Every review and recommendation on MoneyPantry falls into one of three tiers. I label these clearly in the articles themselves so you always know what you’re reading.
✅ Personally Tested
I signed up, used the product, and in most cases completed a real transaction or received a real payout before writing about it. That means going through the actual signup flow, navigating the platform the way a real user would, and documenting what happened (including the frustrating parts). For survey sites, that means completing surveys across multiple sessions and cashing out. For gig apps, it means actually doing the gig.
I’ve been doing this since before MoneyPantry existed. Taking surveys, doing online gigs, freelancing, flipping items locally, testing every kind of side hustle I could find back when I was broke and working two jobs. That background shapes how I look at everything, even the platforms I research rather than test directly today.
🔍 Thoroughly Researched
For platforms I haven’t personally used, I dig into:
- Real user experiences on Reddit, forums, and community threads (especially r/beermoney, r/personalfinance, and category-specific subreddits)
- Payment proof discussions and cashout verification threads
- BBB ratings and complaint patterns
- Trustpilot reviews, looking specifically for trends in negative reviews that signal real problems
- Company history, ownership changes, acquisition history, and shutdown risk signals
- Payout thresholds, withdrawal fees, and terms most people miss on first read
- How the platform’s terms have changed in the past 12 months based on user-reported changes
I combine all of that with nearly 20 years of experience in this space. Enough to recognize the patterns that separate a legitimate platform from one that’s quietly going downhill.
🔄 Community Verified
Some content, particularly in large roundup posts, is based primarily on sustained community consensus. These are platforms that readers have reported positively on over time, across multiple sources, with no significant red flags in recent user feedback. I apply my editorial judgment to everything in this tier, but I’ll tell you in the article when that’s what you’re looking at.
What We Evaluate and How
Not every product is the same, but there are five things I always look at.
Here’s what I’m actually checking for in each one:
Real-Life Value
Does it actually solve a real money problem, or does it just sound good? I’m specifically asking: is the effort-to-payout ratio honest? A platform that pays $2 an hour for surveys doesn’t get the same recommendation as one that pays $8, even if both technically “pay.”
Fees and Costs
I go beyond the advertised price. I check whether the free tier is genuinely useful or artificially limited to push upgrades, whether there are withdrawal minimums or fees that eat into earnings, whether there are inactivity fees, and whether the fee structure has quietly changed in the past 12 months. A platform that started at a $5 minimum payout and is now at $25 is a different product than what I reviewed two years ago.
Ease of Use
Can a regular person figure this out without a tutorial? Is the signup process clean, or does it rope you into things you didn’t agree to? I pay particular attention to how easy it is to actually get paid, not just how easy it is to earn.
Customer Support and Reputation
I check BBB ratings and complaint patterns, Trustpilot scores, and community feedback. I’m looking for patterns: lots of complaints about delayed payments, unresponsive support, or sudden account closures are red flags regardless of what the company’s marketing says. I also look at how the company responds to complaints. That tells me as much as the complaints themselves.
Security
For financial tools especially, I look at how personal and payment information is protected, what data the platform collects, and whether there have been any reported breaches or data-sharing practices users should know about.
What Happens When a Product Changes
Apps and platforms update their terms, cut payouts, or shut down without warning. That’s one of the real challenges of running a personal finance site, and I want to be straight with you about how I handle it.
When I find out a recommended platform has changed significantly (raised its payout minimum, changed its fee structure, slowed payments, or developed a pattern of complaints), I update the affected article, add a dated notice at the top, and, if the product no longer meets my standards, remove my recommendation.
Reader feedback is one of the most important ways I catch problems early. If you’ve had a bad experience with something I’ve recommended, tell me here.
With 2,000+ articles published since 2013, I can’t guarantee every piece of content reflects today’s reality in real time. Rate-sensitive and platform-specific content gets updated first. If you spot something outdated, please flag it. I take those reports seriously and update as quickly as I can.
Who Is Behind These Reviews
My name is Saeed Darabi. I founded MoneyPantry in 2013 after coming to the United States as a refugee with nothing and having to figure out how money actually worked from the ground up. Every standard on this page reflects what I personally wanted when I was looking for honest financial guidance and couldn’t find it.
Since 2013, MoneyPantry has reviewed and covered hundreds of apps, platforms, and money-making tools. Our work has been cited by Business Insider, the TODAY Show, Good Housekeeping, Lifehacker, and others. Not because we’re the slickest-looking site, but because this approach works.
You can read my full story on the About page.
More on How We Operate
- Our Ethics Policy — how editorial independence works in practice
- Editorial Guidelines — how we write, fact-check, and keep content current
- Advertising Disclosure — the full breakdown of how MoneyPantry makes money
- FAQ — common questions about MoneyPantry answered
- About MoneyPantry — the story behind this site and why I built it
Have a question about a specific review, or want to flag something that seems off? Reach out here. I read every message.
This page was last reviewed and updated: February 2026. MoneyPantry is operated by Money Pantry Media LLC, Florissant, MO.
