ProductTube Review: Make $20-50+/hr in Your Spare Time

ProductTube says you can earn “hundreds of dollars each month” making short videos about everyday products.

But does it deliver?

ProductTube is a legit app that pays you — in Amazon gift cards — to share your opinions about your online and in-person shopping experiences.

It probably won’t fund your retirement, but you can earn some extra money with relatively little effort. Our independent app tester, Joddie Taylor, earned over $100 in two months, very part-time.

In this review, we’ll share:

How ProductTube works
How much you can realistically expect to make
Alternatives to consider

Ready? Let’s do it!

What is ProductTube?

ProductTube is an app that pays shoppers for making short videos about products they buy and use. The videos are used for market research to help product developers (ProductTube’s clients) improve their products.

ProductTube launched in 2015 under the parent company Motions Research.

Is ProductTube Still Active?

ProductTube has been ghosting us on social media for a few years, but as of press time, the app is still active.

Is ProductTube Legit?

Despite their limited social media presence, ProductTube is a legitimate app.

Our app tester backed this up: “I’ve personally participated in several projects and received all my payouts within two business days.” Joddie shared.

How to Make Money with ProductTube

Accessing projects on ProductTube is straightforward. You can either apply or qualify for projects, each listing the amount you will be paid.

Apply to Projects

You can apply to as many or as few projects as you want. “Applying” has a lower entry barrier than “qualifying.” Once you click “apply,” the app will show you a straightforward project.

For instance:

Step 1: Create a shopping list on the app or upload it to the app.
Step 2: When you go shopping, tell us how many items you got that were not on the list, what drove your decision to deviate from the list, etc.

ProductTube is good about sending out daily project notification emails. Joddie said she receives 1 to 4 emails per day.

Qualify for Projects

In addition to applying, a weekly survey on the app can qualify you as a candidate for 3-5 shopping experiences that week.

For instance, if you answered that you had an infant at home and that you were planning on purchasing baby food that week, you might find yourself standing in the infant formula aisle of your local supermarket recording a video and answering questions on the location of the products, your thoughts on the color of the packaging, etc.

Hit Your Deadlines

Once you accept a project, note the deadline. If you don’t complete the project in time, your reward will appear as “$0.” (As seen in the screenshot below!)

Getting Paid

ProductTube has relatively quick payments (no dreaded “NET60” here).

It takes two business days to receive your Amazon gift card, which you can then apply directly to your Amazon account.

The minimum amount for redemption is $5, and you can select how much you want to cash out.

(For instance, if you had $50 and only wanted $25, you can do that too.)

How Much Can You Make on ProductTube?

“Between $15 and $50 a month is a reasonable expectation,” Joddie explained. “I take a low-key approach. If you’re feeling more ambitious and applying/qualifying for several projects each week, $100-$200 may be realistic.”

She shared this screenshot, showing her earning $110 in around 6 weeks on the app:

How to Maximize Your ProductTube Earnings

Although ProductTube does send email notifications for new assignments, make a habit of checking the app every day. Refresh your home screen to see if new projects show up. 

What projects should you apply for?

Joddie’s advice: “Target projects that pay more than $15. They do take more time but pay significantly more.”

How Does ProductTube Make Money?

ProductTube is a market research company. Brands, products, and stores pay them to gather customer experience feedback, and they pass along some of that income to you.

What We Like About ProductTube

User-Friendly App

The app is intuitive to use—no steep learning curve.

When you’re recording a video with your phone, you can still refer to instructions by clicking on the instructions tab in the bottom left-hand corner. “That way you don’t have to try to memorize questions or read them from another device,” Joddie explained.

Effective Hourly Rates are Pretty Strong

If you’re in the United States, depending on your state, one project can net you more than your state’s hourly minimum wage.

“I live in Utah,” Joddie noted, “where the minimum wage is $7.25. So earning $10.00 or more for a project that takes a few minutes feels like a win.”

No Extra Spending Required

You don’t have to spend any additional money to complete a project.

Joddie explained, “In all of the projects I’ve completed, I was either going to shop for items anyway. In some cases, such as a recent ‘Salty Snacks’ project, I didn’t want to purchase any of the brands featured in the assignment. The app will usually ask, ‘Will you buy this product today? Why or why not?’”

You Don’t Have to Be on Camera

Are you camera shy? Most projects don’t require you to show your face on camera.

Low Minimum to Cash Out

It’s nice to be able to cash out at just $5, which for most people will be after their first approved project.

What We Dislike About ProductTube

They Only Pay via Amazon Gift Cards

This makes the app a non-starter if you don’t shop on Amazon.

Some Projects Take Longer Than 10 Minutes

In theory, in-store projects take about 10 minutes or less.

In practice? Well, our app tester found she had to restart her video projects due to loud conversations from other customers or being in the way of store employees.

In both cases, completing the tasks took her over 20 minutes. ProjectTube doesn’t allow you to pause or stop the recording once you begin the project.

Transportation Required

If you don’t have a car and live in an area with limited public transportation, participating in some projects may be impossible.

Keep Your Privacy in Mind

For phone screen shares and video recordings, remember that ProductTube and its clients see what you see. 

On your phone, close all other apps and turn off notifications. “The first time I completed a project, a couple of notifications for different apps popped up,” Joddie explained. “So now I put my phone on Do Not Disturb.”

In-store, keep your phone’s camera pointing towards aisles, products, etc. The focus should be on the products, display cases, signs, etc., not you.

Also, consider visiting when it’s not a busy time of day so you can film relatively quickly … and it’s less awkward.

If you purchase while completing a project, the instructions always say, “Please stop recording before you checkout.” That way, there’s no chance of your credit card information being recorded.

Your Submission Can Be Rejected

Be aware that your submission can be rejected. “I tested the audio,” Joddie said, “but when I sent it in, ProductTube said they couldn’t hear it, so I had to redo the video recording.”

That project paid $40, so it was more time-intensive. In having to do it twice, it took almost an hour. “But that was still $40 for an hour’s work,” Joddie said.

Is ProductTube Worth It?

ProductTube is a low effort and relatively simple way to rack up Amazon gift cards. 

How much you can earn depends on the types of projects you qualify for and how often you use the app.

Who is ProductTube Best For?

ProductTube is best for people who:

Love shopping on Amazon
Want a low-key/low-stress way to earn extra income.
Are Amazon Associates or Amazon Influencers who want an easy way to help pay for products they would be reviewing anyway.
Are comfortable downloading apps on their phones and submitting details about their lives (age, number of children, etc.), shopping habits, and shopping plans.
Have extra time to complete projects, ranging from a few minutes to a couple of hours per week.

ProductTube Alternatives

Although ProductTube pays reasonably well, it certainly isn’t the only way to get paid to share your opinion about products and shopping experiences.

Here are a few alternatives to consider.

Dscout

The popular and well-rated dscout app connects you with “engaging research missions.” Through those, you can get paid to share your feedback on a product or service.

Typical studies pay anywhere from $2 to $100, paid out via PayPal. The biggest complaints from users are that the often in-depth screener surveys are unpaid.

Field Agent

Field Agent presents a list of tasks you can do based on your location.

Most of these gigs involve evaluating product displays or checking on inventory. They typically pay $3-10 apiece, depending on complexity and the time involved.

No purchase is necessary, unless specified in the task, in which case Field Agent will reimburse you.

For more, check out my full Field Agent review.

Mindswarms

Mindswarms is a unique video consumer research platform. They’ll pay you $50 via PayPal to answer 10 questions about a product or service.

These studies normally take around 10 minutes and can be recorded via your webcam or smartphone, but competition to get selected can be fierce.

To create your account you’ll need to record a 60-second video about one of your passions. Or you can do this through the Mindswarms app on iOS or Android.

Amazon Influencer Program

This ProductTube alternative is a bit different from the others, but is a simple and fun way to get paid for Amazon reviews.

The Amazon Influencer Program is an offshoot of the Associates program designed for content creators with a following on social media.

Once your Influencer account is approved, you’ll be able to upload short product review videos.

In turn, Amazon displays those on the relevant product pages, and rewards you a commission when someone makes a purchase after watching your video.

I made over $1200 with this in my first 10 months, with very little effort! 

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