Pinecone Research Reviews and Features

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Pinecone Research

85 Broad Street, New York, New York  10004 US
Tel: 800.864.1224   Contact: https://members.pineconeresearch.com/#/ContactUs
Operated by: The Nielsen Company, LLC

KEY FEATURES:

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PAYMENTS OFFERED

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HOW TO PARTICIPATE

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REDEEMING REWARDS

Typically, rewards are delivered within a few business days or sometimes even immediately after completing a survey. Your first 100 points will equate to $1, which will be sent to your home address.

Pinecone Research is a trusted leader in the survey panel industry. They are owned and operated by the market research company Nielsen, whose operations are headquartered in New York.

Pinecone Research focuses on improving the quality of tomorrow’s products through collecting research via paid surveys and product testing opportunities offered to consumers.

How Pinecone Research Works

pinecone research website

Pinecone Research Sign Up

Pinecone Research is an invitation-only survey panel, where members can earn rewards for participating in online surveys and product tests. Potential new members must be invited by other members to join, or they must find a join link posted on a website. SurveyPolice currently offers Pinecone Research signup links for Americans, Canadians, and people living in the UK: » Join Pinecone Research here.

To learn more about how to sign up for Pinecone Research, including tips on joining and why there are membership restrictions in place to begin with, check out our article on how to find an invitation to join Pinecone Research, as it should help answer any questions you may have about the process.

Payment and Rewards

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Reward Types and Amounts

For each survey successfully completed, Pinecone Research awards its members a minimum of 100 points, which equals $1.00 in your local currency. For example, Americans will earn $1.00 USD per survey, Canadians typically earn $1.00 CAD per survey, while Britons earn £1 per survey completion. There are a variety of rewards options that accumulated points can be exchanged for. These include:

  • Bank Transfer - Pinecone offers cash payments issued via bank transfer. When selecting this option, you will be asked to create a 'wallet' on a third-party payment processor website. Once set up, you can request a cash payment deposited directly into your bank account. Payments are issued in $10, $5, and $3 increments (which can be in different quantities; ex. 4 x $3 = $12). Bank transfers are typically issued within 48 hours of request, but can take up to 3-5 business days.
  • Amazon e-Cards - You can choose to receive an Amazon gift card with your collected points. The e-card will be sent directly to your email account.
  • Other Gift Cards - Pinecone Research offers a variety of gift card options including Starbucks, Apple Store, Walmart gift cards, as well as many others. Gift cards may be digital or in physical format and are listed under these categories.
  • Merchandise - Pinecone Research offers an extensive merchandise catalog consisting of various small electronics, household items and more. Merchandise rewards will be mailed directly to your home.
  • Prepaid Virtual Visas – prepaid Visa cards are available for redemption, however, they may only available to US residents.
Points Value: 100 Pinecone Research points = $1.00.

Redeeming Rewards

To redeem your rewards, simply visit the Pinecone Research website and log in to your account. From there, click the "Redeem" button to access the reward site. Under the SHOP tab next to HOME tab, select the reward items you wish to redeem and once you click on an item you are interested in, click the shopping cart icon to add the item to your cart. Click the shopping cart icon on the right side of the page to complete your order.

Note that PayPal is no longer offered as a rewards option and was replaced by bank transfers.

Earn your First Check/Bank Transfer Automatically

Once you complete your first survey, which is always worth a minimum of 100 points, Pinecone Research will automatically send you a check for $1.00 to the mailing address on your profile, or will ask you to cash out via bank transfer. This is a security measure to establish your profile and account. After your first check/bank transfer (or 30 days of being an active Pinecone member, whichever comes first), you will have the option to choose the form in which you would like to receive your future rewards.

Visit Pinecone Research's website 

Survey Taking Experience

Survey Types

Interesting online surveys are e-mailed to members, and are on a variety of different topics. As a Pinecone Research member, you are part of an elite group that represents consumers and households like yours nationwide. Your opinion is important to manufacturers who count on people like you to help predict which products will be developed and which may not be suited for launch. Paid surveys opportunities usually take about 15 to 20 minutes of your time to complete and you will be notified by e-mail when one becomes available.

Product Testing Opportunities

Occasionally, Pinecone may mail out products for their members to test from home. These may be physical products, or food items that may come delivered in a cooler. A follow-up survey is usually provided as part of the product test. These opportunities are highly sought after, as you may receive free food (or a product that you might be able to keep), as well as a paid follow up survey!

Visit Pinecone Research's website 

Community Features

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Pinecone Research App

If you prefer to take surveys on the go, you can download the Pinecone Research app onto your iOS or Android mobile device. The app will allow you to view available surveys, take online surveys, view and redeem your points, view your account history and more. Just remember to first join the Pinecone Research panel itself before attempting to take surveys through the app!

Quick Customer Service

If you have a question on anything Pinecone Research-related, do not hesitate to send in an inquiry through the website. The response time is usually 1-3 business days, or even quicker depending on the workload of employees during the time of your question.

Is Pinecone Research Legit or Scam?

pinecone research legit or scam

Is Pinecone Research Legit?

Pinecone Research is legitimate and is not a scam. This survey program is over fifteen years old and has paid out millions of dollars in rewards to its members. Pinecone offers quality paid surveys and product tests to its members and is known for offering fair rewards. Operated by Nielsen, a market research leader, Pinecone Research is not a scam and is a completely legitimate website.

Eligibility: Available in select countries including USA, UK, Canada, Pinecone Research is an invitation-only panel.


Please note that PInecone Research has been targeted by a cashier's check scam. If you receive a large, unexpected check seemingly from Pinecone, DO NOT attempt to cash it!

Pinecone Research Reviews (696)

5 Star Reviews (388) 55.7
55.7
4 Star Reviews (93) 13.4
13.4
3 Star Reviews (53) 7.6
7.6
2 Star Reviews (41) 5.9
5.9
1 Star Reviews (121) 17.4
17.4

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Cream of the Crop

August 18, 2015 by Barry from United States

I've been a member of Pinecone Research for several years now. They always pay as promised, within 72 hours of cashing out. I wish they were all this good.

Pretty good!

August 14, 2015 by Jillian from United States

I've been a member for almost a year and have been pretty happy with this panel. It's not like other panels where you take a ton of surveys and only qualify for some. If they send you a paid study, you are already qualified for it. Every paid survey I've done I get $3 which is pretty good since they only take about 15 minutes to complete. There are some unpaid surveys you take but not many and they are only 5 minutes long if that. I make about $15-30 a month with them and my PayPal cash out only takes 1-2 weeks to be received.

excellent!

August 7, 2015 by Regina from United States

This is a great panel! I just cashed out for a larger Paypal amount and was paid quicker than I expected! Thanks!!

Lied, Ripped Me Off

July 19, 2015 by Patrick from United States

I USED to think this company was on the up & up until a product test for Cottonelle flushable wipes clogged my sewer line. My licensed plumber put on the invoice that these wipes absolutely clogged my line. When I contacted Pinecone to get compensated for my $102 bill, Karen Scott, their customer service agent, sent a short reply saying the matter had been turned over to the department that takes care of those things. Weeks later I contacted her again & again got a short, rude reply & was blown off. Then I suddenly quit getting surveys, I contacted Ms. Scott & she said there were no surveys available in my demographic, 28 yo white male, seriously? A month later I contacted her again, still getting no surveys, & she then informed me I had ben terminated. So, to summarize, Pinecone sends me a product test that HARMED my sewer line, I had to pay out of MY pocket to remedy the situation, Pinecone REFUSED to compensate me, did not contact the product sponsor to have them compensate me, LIED & said they had no surveys in my demographic & then cancelled my account.

Be careful of the products you try because if they cause harm they will not compensate you.

Honest About What They Do

July 1, 2015 by Jennifer from United States

Finally no stories about huge sweepstakes you can win, and all of the prizes you could get when you finally accumulate points. PineCone is a straight forward same amount of points for the earning surveys each time. You know what you are getting and how to get it. They send you surveys and there is no jumping through hoops to see if you qualify only to not get anything if you don't. I have only been with PineCone for a few years and love it. I have earned a few hundred dollars in that time and there was no jumping through hoops to get it either. They have since expanded also and you can now get merchandise instead of just money if you want also. I really do love this one and feel lucky that I was able to get in. They don't just allow everyone to join either. It is a legitimate survey site for gaining knowledge from consumers about products that are out there. You do get non compensated surveys you need to do so that they know what type of paid surveys to send you. The paid for ones get you about $3.00, or rather points now equal to that, for each one you do. Nothing is hidden from you about how this works and you do not have to do it but you only get compensated if you do of course. Well I am happy with this one and thrilled I was able to get in. Definitely the best one I have been involved with.