Verified on Oct 10, 2026
You visit a business and report on it. ACE says its shops pay $10 to $50. You often buy first and wait to be paid back. Most sign-ups are free.
A mystery shopper visits a real store or restaurant and rates the visit. You act like a normal customer. Then you write a report about what happened.
Companies call each visit a “shop.” A shop is one paid task. You take an assignment, follow its rules, and report back.
Some shops ask you to buy something. You buy it like a normal customer would. Then you send in a report with receipts, times, and staff details.
Four companies run these shops: ACE Mystery Shopping, Secret Shopper, Market Force, and BestMark. A fifth company, Coyle Hospitality, runs shops for hotels, resorts, and travel businesses.
Not every shop is in person. Secret Shopper says shoppers evaluate businesses in person, on the phone, or online. Coyle says phone-based evaluations are almost always available. That is why this page calls the work part remote.
Learn this first: a shop fee is money you keep. A reimbursement pays you back for something you bought. They are not the same thing.
No company we read gives one simple rate. The figures below are what each company’s own pages say, checked on Oct 10, 2026.
ACE says its pay ranges between $10 and $50 per shop.
Secret Shopper’s FAQ says client payments range from $15 for basic shops. Secret Shopper calls these client payments. The FAQ does not say what the shopper keeps. A blog post on Secret Shopper’s own site mentions an $8 fee as a small example. We do not know which figure is current.
BestMark does not post a rate card on the pages we read. Its blog says pay generally falls between $7 and $20 for people just starting out. That is a general line in an undated post. Another BestMark post mentions an $8 deal to order a fast-food meal. The blog also says some jobs pay only a reimbursement on required purchases, with no flat fee.
On the public pages we read, Market Force gives no shop fee. Some of its shops let you ask for a fee with a “Make an Offer” button. Its payment details sit on a Contractor Payment Invoice inside the shopper portal. We did not log in.
Coyle has no price list on the pages we read. Its guide to the industry says retail and fast-food shops often pay fees of $5 to $15 plus reimbursements. It says shops paying $100 or more are often in sectors that include hospitality. Those are general lines about the industry, not Coyle’s prices. Coyle says each fee is shown in the opportunity post, and posts are often open for bid. You find open jobs after you log in. We did not log in.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), a government agency that protects consumers, describes the normal pattern. Shoppers “typically pay for the product or service themselves and then get reimbursed”. You spend your own money first.
Companies handle this in different ways. ACE says you are always reimbursed for required purchases. Secret Shopper sometimes pays a purchase back on its own. Other times it builds the cost into the shop payment. BestMark says a shop can bring a reimbursement, a cash payment, or both.
Limits apply. Secret Shopper’s terms say purchases over the stated reimbursement limit are your cost. Some costs are not paid back at all. Secret Shopper lists taxes, tips, transportation, parking, and mobile-data charges. BestMark’s blog lists gas to the store and a tip.
Pay does not land right after a shop. Each company has its own schedule.
Pay for a shop done early in a month can come late. At Market Force or Coyle, it can wait until the end of the next month. We read no page that gives a time from your first shop to your first pay. We checked on Oct 10, 2026.
A 1099 is a tax form for pay that is not from an employer. ACE, Secret Shopper, and Coyle call shoppers independent contractors. Each company sets its own line for sending one:
This is information, not tax advice. Ask a tax preparer how it applies to you.
This fits you if you notice small details and remember them well. You will need exact times, names, and quotes for your report.
It fits you if you can spend your own money first and wait to get it back. That is how most shops work.
It fits you if you have a smartphone, computer, or tablet. Secret Shopper requires one of these to send in a report. BestMark says you can work in any modern browser on a computer, tablet, or smart phone. ACE and Market Force offer phone apps. Their pages do not say you must use one. For Market Force PayPal pay, you need a phone number that gets text messages.
It also fits people living outside the US, with limits that depend on the company:
On the pages we read, we found no BestMark or ACE page about shops anywhere else (checked Oct 10, 2026).
It fits you if you want occasional work, not a steady weekly schedule.
Skip this if fronting the money for a purchase would strain your budget. Shoppers typically pay first and get reimbursed later. Coyle’s guide tells shoppers to have a card that can accept charges of several hundred dollars.
Skip this if you need steady, predictable pay. Shops do not come on a fixed schedule.
Skip this if you are under 18. Secret Shopper sets 18 as its minimum age to register. BestMark sets the same minimum. Those are the only two that state an age. On the pages we read, ACE, Market Force, and Coyle state none (checked Oct 10, 2026). GigSpot is the site ACE shoppers sign up through. Its terms say the platform is not for minors below the age to make a binding contract. They give no number.
Skip this if you dislike writing detailed reports. Companies want specific notes, not a quick summary.
Skip this if you need your money fast. Pay moves in monthly batches, not right after a shop.
Skip Market Force if you will not give your Social Security or Social Insurance number. These are tax ID numbers for the US and Canada. Its page says a Level 1 shop will not pay out until you submit one. A Level 1 shop is a test shop. The page does not say if every new shopper starts at Level 1.
Before you pay anyone: Some scammers pose as mystery shopping companies. They may ask for money up front, or send a fake check and ask you to wire part of it back. Real companies do neither.
Day 1. Pick one or two companies and sign up. Sign-up is free at the ones with a stated policy.
Day 2. Look at open shops in your area. Read the fee, the reimbursement, and any limit. Skip any shop that asks you to spend past its limit.
Day 3. If Market Force gave you a Level 1 shop, submit your address and SSN or SIN. That moves you to Level 2.
Day 4. Accept a shop. Read every instruction before you go.
Day 5. Do the shop. Buy what is asked, and keep your receipt.
Day 6. Write your report while the visit is still fresh in your mind.
Day 7. Submit your report before the deadline. Then mark the pay date for that company. ACE processes by the 15th of the next month. Secret Shopper mails checks on the 20th. Coyle pays in the last week of the next month.
Four companies say sign-up is free (step 3). On the ACE pages we read, nothing is said about a fee (checked Oct 10, 2026). The cost is the money you front for a purchase, plus costs that are not paid back.
You need one device to send in reports. Secret Shopper states this directly. Secret Shopper and BestMark say any one of a phone, computer, or tablet will do. Coyle’s guide lists a PC and a cell phone.
Coyle’s guide to getting shop jobs lists “must have tools.” This is Coyle’s general advice to shoppers:
On the pages we read, no rule says all five companies ask for these (checked Oct 10, 2026). Secret Shopper does list transportation and parking as costs you carry.
Shop fees are small. ACE’s own range tops out at $50 a shop. Other general lines run lower: $7 to $20 for beginners at BestMark, and $5 to $15 in Coyle’s guide. One shop will not replace a paycheck.
Work does not come on a set schedule. You take a shop when one opens near you. Some weeks there may be none at all.
You front the money. You buy the item or the meal, then wait to be paid back. BestMark says reimbursement can take a few weeks to 3 months. If cash is tight, that wait is a real cost.
Some costs you never get back. Secret Shopper does not reimburse taxes, tips, transportation, parking, or mobile-data charges. BestMark lists gas, card costs, and a tip.
A fee can be cut. Secret Shopper’s terms say a fee can be reduced or denied if an assignment or report is incomplete. Reports take real work. The shopping is the quick part. You write down times, names, and what staff said and did.
Some jobs pay only a reimbursement, with no fee for your time.
Market Force adds an extra hurdle. It says a Level 1 shop pays nothing until you reach Level 2. Miss the 90-day window and you forfeit that assignment’s fee and reimbursement. Its page does not say if every new shopper starts at Level 1.
Mystery shopping also draws scammers. The FTC warns plainly: “Honest companies pay you, not charge you, to work for them”. If a company asks you for money to start, that is a warning sign.
The FTC also warns about a fake check trick. A scammer sends you a check, then asks you to wire part of the money back. The FTC’s advice is direct: “Never deposit checks into your bank account and send money back”.
Market Force states plainly that it “does not pay shoppers in advance of a shop”. It also says “Legitimate mystery shopping firms never ask for money from a shopper”. Coyle’s own page warns that “Scammers are sending fake emails, checks and other communications”.
If anyone asks you to pay first, or to wire money back after depositing a check, stop and walk away.
Do I get paid before I shop? Usually not. Most shops work the other way. You buy what is asked, then get paid back later.
Is a shop fee the same as a reimbursement? No. A fee is money you keep. A reimbursement pays you back for a purchase. BestMark keeps the two separate. ACE says required purchases are always reimbursed.
Do I need to be 18? Secret Shopper and BestMark both say yes. On the pages we read, ACE, Market Force, and Coyle state no age (checked Oct 10, 2026). GigSpot’s terms for ACE sign-up say you must be old enough to make a contract. They give no number.
Will I get a 1099 tax form? Maybe. ACE sends one over $599, and BestMark over $600. Market Force sends one to US shoppers at $2,000 or more. Secret Shopper says it may issue one and gives no amount. Ask a tax preparer how this applies to you.
Can a company ask me to pay to sign up? No. The FTC says “Honest companies pay you, not charge you, to work for them”. Secret Shopper, BestMark, Market Force, and Coyle all say sign-up is free.
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