Getting paid to shop sounds too good to be true, right?!
Believe it or not, many companies offer flexible and remote job opportunities where you can get paid to shop! From grocery shopping to clothes shopping and mystery shopping, there are a variety of gigs available.
Ready to get started?
Here are 17 different ways to get paid to shop for others, both online and in-person!
Get Paid to Shop at Grocery Stores
Do you have a knack for picking out the freshest produce? Do you enjoy being out and about? If so, you can make extra money shopping for groceries (and, in some cases, delivering them too). One thing you’ll want to consider with these options is the extra gas and oil changes that will be needed, as well as the wear and tear on your tires.
1. Amazon Grocery Shopper
One of the nice things about the Amazon Grocery Shopper program is you’ll be working as an employee, not an independent contractor. In this paid shopping role, you’ll shop at Whole Foods for customers and prepare their orders for delivery. You can work full- or part-time hours, have a flexible schedule, earn a competitive weekly wage, and in some cases, you’ll get benefits too.
2. Care.com
Care.com is an online marketplace known for helping families find childcare, but they also offer other caretaking positions, such as grocery helpers. Depending on your location, the average grocery helper through Care.com earns an average of $25.08 per hour.
As a grocery helper, you also have the opportunity to branch out into other related services (and earn even more money). Popular positions include personal assistants and errand runners. To start searching for jobs, all you need to do is create a free online account at Care.com, upload a photo, and create a profile. Once this is all set up, you’re ready to get going and apply.
3. DoorDash
While known as the mobile app for delivering restaurant food, DoorDash also allows users to order everyday items from local stores like Target, Kohl’s, and Dick’s Sporting Goods, as well as grocery stores, convenience stores, and pharmacies. To get started as a Dasher, download the shopper app to your iOS or Android device and complete the application. After they review your criminal history and driving record and approve your application, you can start picking up shopping and delivery gigs on your own schedule.
To get a real picture of what it’s like working for DoorDash, check out our honest review from a real-life driver.
4. Favor
The delivery service site Favor seeks team members who are passionate about quality customer service. Favor delivery drivers (better known as “runners”) consider themselves more than delivery drivers, they’re also personal assistants. At Favor, you never know what kind of stuff you might deliver. From groceries to tacos or maybe even dry cleaning, as a runner, each day will be different.
Favor runners keep 100% of the tips they earn, and they earn a base pay of $2 to $14 based on a variety of factors like distance, time, and effort. To work at Favor, you’ll need an iPhone or Android device, a clean driving record, and of course, reliable transportation.
5. Instacart Shopper
As a shopper for Instacart, you choose to work as either a full-service shopper (1099 contractor) or an in-store shopper (W-2 employee). A full-service shopper does the shopping and then delivers the groceries straight to the customer’s door. In-store employees are part-time and don’t require transportation as they stick to just shopping. Instacart offers flexible hours, competitive pay, and the chance to help make someone’s life a little bit easier.
Curious about Instacart? Check out our full review of the grocery shopping opportunity here.
6. Shipt Shopper
Shipt is a grocery delivery service that the Target Corporation owns. And you guessed it, Shipt hires grocery shoppers to shop and deliver groceries. According to their website, Shipt shoppers earn base pay and tips and are paid weekly. If you have a reliable vehicle, a smartphone, and a strong understanding of what qualifies as great produce, then becoming a Shipt shopper may be your calling.
7. TaskRabbit
With TaskRabbit, you can find on-demand gigs for cleaning, furniture assembly, and of course, shopping. Personal shoppers and helpers who are part of the TaskRabbit family are known as “taskers.” If you want to become a tasker, go online to register, attend an info session, and then get started. Taskers set their own rates, and they vary based on the task, location, and other factors.
Do you love picking out clothes for other people? Have a passion for fashion? If so, there are many ways to work from home and get paid to shop for clothing, jewelry, accessories, and shoes.
Please note, these companies are known for hiring virtual stylists, but may not be hiring at this time. If there is a company that you’re interested in working for, bookmark their site and check back periodically, or set up job alerts if they offer them.
8. Amazon Personal Shopper
Yes, Amazon offers personal shopping services too! In this position, you’ll handpick clothing items for customers based on their personal preferences. Customers can preview items before they ship, and then they can send back any items they don’t want to purchase. According to this job posting I found on LinkedIn, you must live in AL, AZ, AR, DE, FL, GA, IN, IA, KS, KY, LA, ME, MD, MI, MS, MO, NE, NJ, NM, NC, ND, OH, OK, PA, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WV, WI, or WY to apply. Amazon stylists who work full-time earn an average salary of $39,190.
8. Chico’s Virtual Stylist
In this commission-based role, you’ll provide in-home styling services for Chico’s, Soma, and White House Black Market. For this sales position, you’ll need a high school diploma, two years of customer service experience, and excellent communication skills. I dug around for reviews and the income potential for this role, but I could not find any information, so be sure to do your due diligence if you decide to apply.
9. Dia&Co
Remote stylist positions for Dia&Co are in high demand and not always available. But if you keep an eye out and continue to check their website, occasional part-time remote stylist positions pop up. Stylists for Dia&Co curate fashion boxes for clients based on their personal preferences, budget, and lifestyle. Based on past research from FlexJobs, it looks like you need to live in NYC, Dallas, Atlanta, or Indianapolis for this work from home position (I’m guessing for on-site training).
10. Hanna Anderson
Hanna Anderson is a well-known Oregon brand for babies and kids, and they occasionally hire remote personal shoppers to help customers via phone, email, digital shopping chat, and text. In this role, you provide customer support and merchandise suggestions based on the customers’ preferences. These roles are open to applicants with 4 years of retail or styling experience, and the pay is $20 per hour.
11. Stitch Fix
Don’t quote me on this, but I think Stitch Fix was one of the first, if not the first, clothing subscription box services. Remote stylists for Stitch Fix hand-select five pieces of clothing/shoes/accessories/jewelry for their clients; they now offer styling services for women, men, and children. Stitch Fix hires in all US states except AK, CA, CO, CT, HI, IL, ME, MA, MT, NV, NJ, NY, OR, PA, RI, VT, and WA. These positions are part-time roles with flexible work hours.
12. Short Story
Short Story is a subscription box service for women 5′ 4″ and under. They hire part-time personal stylists from CA (excluding San Francisco and West Hollywood), WA (excluding Seattle, SeaTac, Bellingham, Burien, Everett, King County unincorporated, Renton, and Tukwila), NV, TX, OH, GA, FL, NC, and SC. For these positions, you’ll need 1 year of styling or similar experience. The starting pay rate is $15 to $17.50 per hour based on your location.
Related Content: A HUGE List of Home-Based Business Ideas for Fashion Lovers
Get Paid to Shop as a Reseller
13. Reselling Thrifted Finds
With platforms like Poshmark, eBay, Mercari, and Facebook Marketplace, reselling thrifted treasures has become an extremely popular way to make money from home.
I’ve used Craigslist, Poshmark, and Facebook to sell my old stuff, and it’s very easy and a great way to make a little extra money. But once you run out of your own inventory, you’ll need to source items from flea markets, garage sales, thrift stores, and discount stores. While this is easy, you’ll need to be very organized in tracking your inventory, how much you paid for an item, how much you sell an item for, plus keeping track of fees and other expenses.
My friends Melissa and Rob do this full-time, earning six figures a year as resellers. If you’re interested in all the details that go into a full-time reselling business, check out their free workshop, How to Find Hidden Deals + Flip Them for Profits.
Do you have a creative flair? Do you have a bachelor’s degree in interior design, art history, architecture, or the like? Then see how you can work from home shopping for furniture and interior decor.
14. Havenly
Havenly is a remote interior design firm that hires remote home stylists and interior designers from the US. In these roles, you’ll work as an independent contractor earning project-based pay, commission, and bonuses based on your performance. To apply, you’ll need prior customer service experience, be comfortable creating 1D mood boards, and use Photoshop or Canva.
Related Content: The Best Home Decor Direct Sales Businesses
Get Paid to Be a Mystery Shopper
Many retailers, restaurants, and businesses hire mystery shoppers to evaluate the quality of their establishments. While there are many reputable market research companies that hire mystery shoppers, it’s important to be aware of scams that often take place in this industry. Mystery shopping opportunities that seem too good to be true often are. And you’ll need to watch out for scam companies impersonating reputable companies!
According to the Federal Trade Commission, the main way to avoid a scam is to remember that no company should charge you money to serve as a mystery shopper. Before you sign up, do plenty of research using review sites, and ask lots of questions.
If you’re looking for legitimate mystery shopping companies, check out the following:
15. BestMark
BestMark uses independent contractors for mystery shopping, intercept interviews, and compliance audits. To apply for assignments, you must be at least 18 years old with excellent communication skills. With these gigs, you earn rewards like free meals, products, and extra cash.
BestMark has been in business since 1986 and has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau.
16. IntelliShop
IntelliShop hires independent contractors for mystery shopping trips. To become a mystery shopper, register for an account, answer some preliminary questions, and wait for invites to gigs. For each assignment you successfully complete, you earn a stipend via PayPal.
IntelliShop has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau.
Start Your Own Personal Concierge Business
17. Become a Personal Concierge
As you can see, there’s a real need for personal assistants and helpers to conduct a wide variety of shopping tasks. The truth is, most people need help with everyday tasks that they don’t have time to carry out. If becoming your own boss is appealing, consider starting your own personal concierge business to assist individuals with their overflow of chores and errands. Working from home will give you the flexibility to take on plenty of different tasks and earn money shopping for others.
So Many Great Ways to Work From Home and Get Paid to Shop!
There are many ways to earn money from home, but who knew shopping was one of them?! If you have a passion for customer service, choosing the perfect products, and helping others, then becoming a paid shopper may be your dream work-from-home career.
While this post covered shopping for other people, if you’re interested in making money while you shop, check out this post with a bunch of ways to make money while you’re shopping using cashback apps and programs like Shopkick, Ibotta, Rakuten (formerly Ebates), Capital One Shopping, and Fetch Rewards.
