A little-known strategy you can use to reduce your food budget is to take advantage of secret shopper apps. I started secret shopping years ago, and over the years, I’ve completed hundreds of secret shops and have received thousands of dollars worth of free food.Â
The basic premise behind secret shopping is simple. Businesses want to be sure they are providing a good customer service experience to their customers. To do this, they contract with secret shopping companies to have secret shoppers go to those businesses and pose as customers. Secret shoppers then answer some questions detailing their experience.Â
The best secret shops, in my opinion, are restaurant secret shops. These shops typically involve going to a restaurant, ordering a certain amount of food, and then filling out a survey evaluating your experience. In return, you’ll get a small payment and reimbursement for your purchase. Most of the time, the reimbursement should fully cover the cost of your meal, allowing you to eat for free.
Secret shopping can be confusing if you’ve never done it before. That’s because there are a lot of different apps and websites out there, and figuring out which secret shopper apps are legit can be difficult.
Fortunately, I have a lot of experience with these secret shopper apps – I’ve used just about all of them. In this post, we’re going to go over what I think are the best secret shopper apps you can use to get free food.
Best Secret Shopper AppsÂ
If you search online, you’ll find dozens of different secret shopping companies. Some are better than others. Below are the best secret shopper apps I’ve used.
1. MarketforceÂ
Marketforce is one the larger players in the secret shopping world, with secret shops that are consistent and generally easy to complete. The restaurant secret shops they offer are primarily individual secret shops at fast-casual restaurant chains. You’ll typically earn a small payment for each shop – usually $5 to $12 – plus a reimbursement for your meal.
Here’s an example of a typical month of payments and reimbursements I had with Marketforce:Â
To sign up for Marketforce, simply visit the Marketforce website and sign up to be a secret shopper. It should only take you a few minutes. Note that there are two secret shopping options on Marketforce. You’ll want to sign up for the mystery shopper option (the other option is merchandising and theater secret shopping, which I’ve never done).Â
The restaurants on Marketforce aren’t going to be fancy, but it is a nice way to get a free lunch or dinner for yourself. Some of the secret shops are delivery shops too, which means you can get food delivered to your house for free (for delivery shops, be sure to take a picture of your food before you eat it). I live in an area that has a lot of Marketforce gigs, so I’m typically able to get 5 or more free meals each month.Â
Payouts are once per month, so you’ll receive your payments and reimbursements for each shop in the following month.
2. BestMarkÂ
BestMark is another established name in the secret shopping industry. The restaurants on BestMark are typically sit-down restaurants, with many of them high-end restaurants. In normal times, I would typically do 1 or 2 secret shops per month via BestMark.
The secret shops with BestMark are usually more involved compared to Marketforce, but still not too difficult, especially once you’ve done a few of them and know what you need to look out for.
One plus with BestMark is that they pay out reimbursements twice per month. This can be helpful since you won’t have to wait more than two weeks to get reimbursed for your meal. Since 2019, I’ve received about $2,300 of free food from BestMark. That’s a lot of free food from this one company!
3. A Closer LookÂ
A Closer Look is an excellent secret shopping platform that you can use to get free meals. They work with a lot of high-end restaurants, so it’s a great way to get free meals at good restaurants you might not otherwise visit.Â
Of all the secret shopping apps and websites, A Closer Look is probably the most involved when it comes to their shop requirements. Every shop requires you to take several photos and the surveys require you to write a narrative for each section that is 5 to 8 sentences long. Some of the shops require you to make a phone call to the restaurant and record the conversation. Even now, after years of doing secret shops, I still carefully review the directions for any shop I do on A Closer Look.
That being said, the secret shops are usually good enough to make the extra work I need to do worth it.
4. Second To NoneÂ
Second to None has quickly become one of my favorite secret shopper websites because of the wide variety of food shops they have in my area. Over the past year, in particular, I’ve been able to get a lot of food delivery secret shops. These types of shops are often my favorite because they’re easy to complete and I don’t even have to leave my house.Â
I can typically get two to six secret shops per month in my area, so it’s a nice, consistent way to get free food.
5. PrestoShopper
PrestoShopper is sort of a weird secret shopping platform. It does have a few secret shops that you complete directly on the app, but most of the shops are with different companies. Essentially, PrestoShopper acts as an aggregator for these different secret shopper companies.Â
You’ll need to individually sign up with each secret shopper company, but PrestoShopper gives you one place to see all of the different secret shops around you. Be warned, however. The PrestoShopper app is very clunky and the secret shopper companies that work with PrestoShopper also have dated clunky interfaces.
When you open the app, you’ll see a map that shows all of the available secret shops around you. If the shop makes sense, you can click it, then sign up to be a secret shopper on the respective company’s website. If you’re already signed up, you’ll be able to log in and accept the assignment.
I used to get a lot of restaurant secret shops via a few companies that were on PrestoShopper but as you can imagine, things slowed down dramatically with the onset of the pandemic. That being said, I still like to check PrestoShopper regularly to see if there are any good shops I can complete. The companies I did particularly well with were SeeLevel, Ann Michaels and Associates, and Reality Based Reports.Â
6. Field AgentÂ
Field Agent is more of an auditing app rather than a secret shopper app, but it does offer some opportunities for you to get free food or drinks. Specifically, Field Agent has gigs that are called “Buy and Try” shops. For these shops, you’ll purchase an item from a store, try the item, and answer a short survey. Field Agent will reimburse you for the shop and you’ll usually make a few bucks as well.
The best “Buy and Try” gigs are ones where you can buy beer or hard seltzer. I’ve completed a lot of shops where I was able to get cases of beer or hard seltzer for free. I don’t think there’s anything better than free beer!
Tips You Can Use With Secret Shopper Apps
Secret shopping isn’t difficult, but it can feel overwhelming if you’ve never done it before. That’s because most secret shop assignments specify that if you don’t do it correctly, you won’t get paid or reimbursed for your shop. That can be devastating if it happens, which is why it’s really important to go into each secret shop with a clear understanding of what you need to do.Â
Here are a few tips that should be universally applicable to any secret shop you complete:Â
- Read Instructions Carefully. If you’re doing a particular secret shop for the first time, be sure to carefully read the instructions so you know what you need to do. Pay careful attention to what you need to order, which employees you need to identify, and what photos you need to take. The goal is to avoid messing up on anything that you can’t fix later.
- Take Photos Immediately. Photos are something that you cannot fix later if you mess up. Most restaurant secret shops will require you to take a photo of the food before you touch it. My suggestion is to preemptively snap photos of anything you order. Even if you don’t need the photo, it’ll give you more comfort to know that you have the photo if you need it (plus, it’ll help you remember some of the great free meals you had). And don’t forget to always snap a photo of your receipt too before you throw it away.
- Identify Employees And Write Down Any Names Or Descriptions On Your Phone. A lot of restaurant secret shops will ask you to describe certain employees – usually your server, the host, and possibly the manager. While this information can be addressed later if you do forget about it, it’s usually best to quickly write down a description of relevant employees. Whenever I walk into a restaurant, I’ll jot down a general description of the host, server, and manager using an app like Evernote or Bear. That way, when I’m filling out the survey later, I can reference the information I saved.
- Use Secret Shopping Apps While You Travel. One lesser-known strategy with secret shopping apps is that you can use them while you travel. This is a great way to eat for free even when you’re in another city. Before I go on any trip, I’ll often check each of the secret shopping websites to see if there are any good secret shops I can do in the area I’ll be in. By doing this, I’ve been able to get free drinks, eat at nice restaurants, and get quick lunches for myself – even when I’m traveling.
- Check Your Secret Shopper Apps Regularly. Some secret shopping companies will send you emails letting you know that there are available shops, but most of the time, you’ll need to check on your own. As a result, if you want to get secret shops, you need to get in the habit of regularly checking your apps and websites to see if anything is available. I usually check once or twice per day. When I see shops that look interesting, I’ll schedule them immediately.Â
- If You’re A Two-Person Household, Sign Up Both People To Be Secret Shoppers. Most secret shopper apps will only let you shop a specific location once per month or once every few months. This necessarily limits how much free food you can get. If you’re a two-person household, however, you can both sign up to be secret shoppers. By doing this, you’ll effectively double the number of secret shops you can complete (and it means more free food for you).
Final ThoughtsÂ
I’ve been secret shopping for a long time now and I’m still amazed at how much free food I’m able to get most months. The average household spends over $3,000 per year on restaurants. Even completing a few secret shops per month can make a big dent in what you might otherwise spend on restaurants, leaving you with more money you can use for other things.
More Recommended Ebike/Scooters
Check out these other ebikes and scooters I've reviewed:
- Urban Arrow Ebike – Last year, I made one of the largest purchases I’ve ever made – I bought a $9,000 electric cargo bike from Urban Arrow. In my Urban Arrow review, I will discuss what it is and why I decided to buy this bike, as well as discuss how impactful a bike like this can be on your journey to financial independence.
- Troxus Explorer Step-Thru Ebike – The Troxus Explorer Step-Thru is a fat-tire ebike that I’ve had the pleasure of riding for a while now. It has amazing power, great looks, and awesome range. If you’re looking for a great fat-tire ebike that offers a lot for the price, the Troxus Explorer Step-Thru is definitely one for you to consider. Check out my Troxus Explorer Step-Thru Review.
- Hovsco HovBeta Ebike – The HovBeta is a folding ebike with great specs and a lot of interesting features, and importantly, it’s sold at a good price point. I’ve had a blast commuting with it and using it to do deliveries with DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. Check out my Hovsco HovBeta Ebike Review.
- Vanpowers Manidae Ebike – The Vanpowers Manidae is a fat tire ebike that I’ve been riding as my primary winter commuting bike and have also been using it to do food delivery with apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. After clocking in a decent number of miles with this ebike, I wanted to write a post sharing what my experience with the Vanpowers Manidae ebike has been like. Check out my Vanpowers Manidae Review.
- KBO Flip Ebike – The KBO Flip is an excellent bike. I’ve had a great time riding it and think it’s a versatile bike that can be used for a lot of purposes and can fit a variety of lifestyles. It’s worked out great for me as a general commuter bike and as a food delivery bike. Check out my KBO Flip Review.
- Hiboy P7 Commuter Ebike – The Hiboy P7 is an excellent electric commuter bike that’s offered at an affordable price point. The range and speed of this bike are both very good, so you won’t have any trouble getting anywhere you need to go with it. As a food delivery vehicle, this is also good – with how much range it offers, you’ll be able to work all day on a single charge. Check out my Hiboy P7 Commuter Electric Bike Review.
- Himiway Escape Ebike – The Himiway Escape is an interesting bike for anyone looking for a moped-style ebike. If you’re a gig economy worker, the Himiway Escape is particularly interesting and it’s possible to think of it as an investment, especially if you can opt to do deliveries with the Himiway versus using a car. It’s not cheap, but you can definitely make your money back when you compare the mileage you’ll put on your car versus using an ebike. Check out my Himiway Escape Bike Review.
- Espin Sport Ebike – The Espin Sport is a good ebike for someone who is looking for an ebike that feels and rides more like a regular bike. There are many ebikes that are really only bikes in name. In reality, they’re basically electric mopeds. The Espin Sport, by contrast, is a bike you could probably ride without the battery and you’d feel like you’re just riding a regular bike. Check out my Espin Sport Review.
- Varla Eagle One Scooter – The Varla Eagle One is an excellent scooter that can make sense for a lot of people. It can work as a primary mode of transportation. You can use it to work on gig economy apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. And it can also be a recreational vehicle if you’d prefer to use it for that. Check out my Varla Eagle One Review.
- Varla Falcon Scooter – The Varla Falcon is an excellent scooter that offers a good amount of power at a lower price point compared to more powerful scooters. It’s not exactly an entry-level scooter, nor is it a high-powered scooter. I think it fits somewhere in-between those two categories – an intermediate scooter if I had to give it a category. Check out my Varla Falcon Review.
- Hiboy S2 Scooter – The Hiboy S2 is an excellent entry-level commuter scooter that's perfect for someone looking to save some money in transportation costs and improve their commute. Check out my Hiboy S2 Review.
- Hiboy S2R Scooter – The Hiboy S2R is one of the more interesting electric scooters I’ve been able to test out. It’s not a high-powered scooter, but for an everyday transport option, it’s very useful, especially given some of the unique features that it has. Indeed, for the price, the Hiboy S2R might be the best value scooter I’ve used. Check out my Hiboy S2R Review.
- Fucare H3 Scooter – The Fucare H3 is a fun scooter and I’ve enjoyed testing it out. For a daily commuter or quick trips or errands, the Fucare H3 is probably the scooter I’ll use. It’s portable and easy to maneuver, so it’s just easier to take on the road when I need it. Check out my Fucare H3 Scooter Review.
More Recommended Investing App Bonuses
For additional investing app bonuses, be sure to check out the ones below:
- M1 Finance ($100) – This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $100 for opening an account. Check out my M1 Finance Referral Bonus – Step-By-Step Guide.
- Moomoo (15 free stocks and 1 stock of Tesla or Google) – Moomoo is a free investing app currently offering 3 different referral bonuses if you open an account using a referral link. Read my Moomoo referral bonus guide for more information.
- Webull (12 free stock shares) – Webull's current promotion gives you 12 free shares valued between $3-$3,000 each if you open an account using my referral link. Here’s a guide I wrote about how to earn your free shares using Webull.
- Robinhood (1 free stock) – Robinhood gives you a free stock valued between $2.50-$225 if you open an account using my referral link.
- Public (1 free stock) - Public gives you a free stock valued between $3-$70 if you open an account using my referral link.
- SoFi Invest ($25) – SoFi Invest is an easy brokerage account bonus that you can earn with just a few minutes of work. Use my SoFi Invest referral link, fund your SoFi Invest brokerage account with $100 and you’ll get $25 of free stock. I also have a step-by-step guide for the SoFi Invest referral bonus.
More Recommended Bank Account Bonuses
If you’re looking for more easy bank bonuses, check out the below options. These bonuses are all easy to earn and have no fees or minimum balance requirements to worry about.
- Chime ($150) - Chime is a free bank account that offers a referral bonus if you use a referral link and complete a direct deposit of $200 or more. In practice, any ACH transfer into this account triggers the bonus. This bonus is easy to earn and posts instantly, so you’ll know if you met the requirements as soon as you move money into the account. I wrote a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Chime referral bonus that I recommend you check out.
- SoFi Money ($275) – SoFi Money is a free checking account from SoFi. They’re currently offering a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi account with a referral link and deposit $10. You can also make an additional $250 as well if you complete a direct deposit. This is a good bank that is also 100% free, so you won’t have to worry about managing this account. Here’s a post I wrote with instructions on how to earn your SoFi Money bonus: SoFi Money Referral Bonus: Step By Step Guide.
- Upgrade ($150) – Upgrade is a free checking account that’s currently offering a $150 referral bonus if you open an account and complete a direct deposit. These bonus terms are easy to meet, so it’s well worth doing this bonus as soon as you can. Here’s a post I wrote with more details: Upgrade $150 Referral Bonus – Step By Step Directions.
- US Bank Business ($800) – This is a fairly easy bank bonus to earn, since there are no direct deposit requirements. In addition, you can open the Silver Business Checking account, which comes with no monthly fees. Check out how to earn this big bonus here.
- GO2Bank ($100) - GO2Bank is an easy bank bonus that I recommend people take advantage of if they have an easy way of meeting the direct deposit requirement. I like that it’s easy to open the account and that the bonus pays out quickly. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your GO2Bank $100 referral bonus.
- Current ($50) – Current is a free fintech bank that’s offering new users a $50 referral bonus after signing up for an account using a referral link. Current is an easy bonus to earn and also gives you access to three savings accounts that pay you 4% interest on up to $2,000. That means you can put away up to $6,000 earning 4% interest. That’s very good and makes Current an account I recommend to everyone. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Current Bank bonus.
- Netspend ($40 + 5% Interest Savings Account) – Netspend is a company that provides 5% interest savings accounts. If you sign up using my referral link, you’ll get a $40 signup bonus once you make your first deposit into your Netspend account of $40 or more. That means you get a 5% interest savings account and a free $40 to start! Make sure to check out my in-depth guide on how to set up these accounts.
- Digital Federal Credit Union ($20) – Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is a free, nationwide credit union that I recommend to readers for two reasons. First, DCU has a $20 referral bonus if you open a free DCU checking account with a referral link. Second, DCU has a saving account that gives you 6.17% interest on your first $1,000. Check out my in-depth post on how to set this account up.
- Novo Bank ($40) - Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. In addition to being a good bank bonus, Novo is also a good business checking account. It has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements and operates a good app and website. Indeed, it’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog. Check out my post on how to easily open a Novo account.
- Varo ($30) – Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $30 bonus to new users that open a new Varo account with a referral link. The bonus for this bank is very easy to meet, all you need to do is spend $20 within 30 days of opening your Varo account. Check out my step-by-step guide to learn how to earn this bonus.
Kevin is an attorney and the blogger behind Financial Panther, a blog about personal finance, travel hacking, and side hustling using the gig economy. He paid off $87,000 worth of student loans in just 2.5 years by choosing not to live like a big shot lawyer.
Kevin is passionate about earning money using the gig economy and you can see all the ways he makes extra income every month in his side hustle reports.
Kevin is also big on using the latest fintech apps to improve his finances. Some of Kevin's favorite fintech apps include:
- SoFi Money. A really good checking account with absolutely no fees. You'll get a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi Money account with a referral link, and an additional $250 if you complete a direct deposit.
- 5% Savings Accounts. I'm currently getting 5.25% interest on my savings through a company called Raisin. Opening a Raisin account takes minutes to complete, it's free, and all of your funds are FDIC-insured. I explain how it works, why I'm now using it to store my emergency fund and any other cash savings I have, and why I recommend everyone check it out in this review.
- US Bank Business. US Bank is currently offering new business customers a $800 signup bonus after opening a new account and meeting certain requirements.
- M1 Finance. This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $100 for opening an account.
- Personal Capital. One of best free apps you can use to monitor your portfolio and track your net worth. This is one of the apps I use to track my financial accounts.
Feel free to send Kevin a message here.
I tried Best Mark and haven’t received my reimbursement, it’s been over a month since I was supposed to get paid and my payment is still pending with no response from customer service. I would not recommend them.
One of my favorite side gigs! I’ve been doing it for several years to supplement online teaching income. Besides food, there are other fun opportunities like evaluating Disneyland (including Club 33!), Medieval Times, and even hotels with the airfare comp’d. The pandemic slowed things down quite a bit, but opportunities are coming back.
Hi, may I ask, what company can someone visit Disneyland, and places like that? That would be amazing! I would appreciate it. Thanks!
I’m not aware of who’s doing it these days. Check out volition.com for lots of good leads.
I’ve used Coyle in the past but don’t get a ton of great opportunities. I also like the Field Agent app for some easier tasks (lots of free hard seltzer at grocery stores for some reason).
I don’t get too many free meals, about two a month, but I live in a small isolated place without a lot of franchises. However, I have great luck with gas station mystery shops. I fill my tank at least once a month (not in one shop but when I add them up), plus earn a small pay.
One of the nice things in my mid-size home market is that there is little competition from other shoppers. Which means I routinely wait out the ones where you get a $9 shop fee, and they keep bumping up the shop fee. 😉 I’ve gotten as high as $25 before.