Updated October 6, 2026
How much can you make on Prolific? I’ve been doing studies since January 2023, and I’ve made £577.30 plus $45.18, about $810 in total, from 513 paid studies. I downloaded my full Prolific study history and broke down every study: what it paid, how long it took, and what I made per hour and per month.
Prolific isn’t a full-time income, but it’s one of the easiest ways I’ve found to make extra money online.
Quick answer: I’ve made about $810 from 513 paid studies, which works out to about $13 an hour while working on studies. My typical study paid under $1, but my best months were over $90.
Table of Contents
How Much Can You Make on Prolific? The Short Answer
- Total earned: about $810 (£577.30 + $45.18) from 513 paid studies
- Per study: median $0.86, average $1.47
- Per hour: about $13 while working on studies
- Best month: $94.92 (January 2026)
- Highest-paying study: £20.20 plus a £5 bonus, over $30
- Bonuses: at least 49 studies paid a bonus, adding up to £45.90 (about $60)
How to Download Your Prolific Study History
Everything in this post comes from my own data. Prolific lets you download your full submission history as a CSV file, with every study’s reward, bonus, start time, completion time and status. You can find it in the Submissions tab of your account account, and it’s the easiest way to see exactly what you’ve earned.
The CSV adds up to slightly less than my dashboard total, because some researchers pay bonuses later and those don’t always show up in the file. My headline total comes from my dashboard. The breakdowns below come from the CSV. Want to see your own hourly rate? Upload your CSV to my Prolific hourly rate calculator.
My Prolific Earnings by Month
My best months were:
| Month | Earned | Studies |
|---|---|---|
| January 2026 | $94.92 | 56 |
| April 2023 | $94.26 | 69 |
| September 2025 | $90.37 | 38 |
The big gap in the middle is real. From December 2023 to May 2025, I didn’t do any studies. I was busy with college, and from December 2024 I was focused on Outlier AI, which paid about $29 an hour. When I came back to Prolific in 2025, studies were still there.
There are also quiet stretches every summer. Universities post a big share of Prolific studies, so there are far fewer during summer break.
My Prolific Earnings by Year
| Year | Paid studies | Earned | Time in studies | Per hour |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 262 | $383.46 | 27h 42m | $13.85 |
| 2025 | 162 | $240.76 | 19h 59m | $12.05 |
| 2026 | 89 | $140.47 | 10h 17m | $13.65 |
| Total | 513 | $764.69 | 57h 58m | $13.19 |
Totals are from my CSV and converted from GBP to USD at 1.3243.
The most surprising number here is the time. All 513 studies took me less than 58 hours of actual study time.
How Much Prolific Pays Per Study
Most studies are short and pay under $1. Here’s how my 495 approved studies broke down:
- $0.50 or less: 159 studies
- $0.51 to $1: 125 studies
- $1.01 to $2: 124 studies
- $2.01 to $5: 63 studies
- Over $5: 24 studies
My median study paid $0.86, and my average was $1.47. A few bigger studies pull the average up.
The studies were short, too. My median study took about 4.5 minutes, and 273 of my studies took 5 minutes or less.
The amount depends on the researcher. Each researcher decides how much to pay, so two studies of the same length can pay very different amounts.
How Much Prolific Pays Per Hour
Based on my CSV, I made $13.19 an hour while working on studies. That doesn’t count time spent waiting for studies or getting screened out, so in real life it’s closer to $12 an hour.
That’s partly because I’m picky. I usually skip any study that pays under $10 an hour, and I never take one under $8 an hour. I sort my studies by reward per hour so the best-paying ones are always at the top.
Prolific requires researchers to pay at least $8 an hour and recommends at least $12 an hour, so my $12 average is right in line with what Prolific suggests.
If you’re not seeing many studies, here are my 10 tips to get more studies on Prolific.
My Highest-Paying Studies on Prolific
1. Hardware reverse engineering: £20.20 + £5 bonus
The most I’ve ever made from one study was a study on hardware reverse engineering. It paid £20.20 plus a £5.00 bonus, over $30 in total, and took me about 74 minutes.
2. Age Guessing Game: £14 + £1 bonus
This one was different. You chat with four partners for 10 minutes each, guessing each other’s ages. Sometimes you’re the one guessing, and sometimes you’re trying to trick your partner. It paid £14 for about an hour, plus £1 for each round you win.
I won one round, so I got a £1 bonus, paid a day or two after the study:
3. The Academic Experiences Study: £12
A survey about my experiences with math, reading and writing, plus some wellbeing questions and a short skills task. It paid £12 and took me about 89 minutes.
Best and worst hourly rates
- Best: a usability test paid £5.53 for about 7 minutes, over $60 an hour.
- Worst: a “safety communication” study paid £0.88 and took me 31 minutes, about $2 an hour.
The worst ones usually happen when a study takes much longer than its estimate. If a study is dragging way past its listed time, that’s a risk you take.
Do You Get Bonuses on Prolific?
Yes, sometimes. Some researchers pay a bonus on top of the regular reward, for example for good performance or for completing an extra task.
At least 49 of my studies paid a bonus. Together my bonuses add up to £45.90, about $60. Some researchers pay bonuses a day or two after the study, like the Age Guessing Game. Here’s a recent one, where the bonus matched the reward:
Don’t count on bonuses, but they’re a nice extra when they show up.
What Happens When You Get Screened Out?
You still get paid. I’ve been screened out of 18 studies, and every one paid me a small amount for my time, usually £0.10 to £0.50. It’s not much, but it’s better than nothing.
Returns, Timeouts and Rejections
Not every study I start gets finished:
- 117 returned. Usually I got busy in real life. Returning a study doesn’t hurt you, so it’s better than rushing it.
- 6 timed out. This happens when you don’t finish before the time limit.
- 1 rejection in 513 studies, most likely a failed attention check back in 2023.
Which Prolific Studies Pay the Most?
From my experience, these pay more than regular surveys:
- Webcam and microphone studies, like interviews
- Studies that ask you to download software
- Follow-up studies. The second part of a study often pays more than the first, because researchers want you to come back.
- Long surveys, simply because they take more time
- Games and interactive studies, like the Age Guessing Game
For example, the interview study above pays $10 for 25 minutes, over $23 an hour, and it needs a camera and microphone. They’re worth it if you’re comfortable with them.
How Much Could You Make in a Day?
I don’t use Prolific on a schedule anymore. I jump on whenever I want some extra money and feel like doing a few studies.
Right now I have 40 studies available. If I completed all of them today, I could make over £100 (about $130).
To fill the gaps between Prolific studies, I also do studies on CloudResearch Connect. They’re shorter and pay less per study, but they add up. See my full breakdown of how much you can make on CloudResearch Connect.
If you want even more platforms here’s how much I earn on Usercrowd, Qmee and Crowdtap.
My Verdict: How Much Can You Make on Prolific?
From my 513 paid studies, here’s what to expect:
- Per study: usually under $1. My median was $0.86.
- Per hour: about $12 to $13.
- Per month: $90+ in my best months, doing studies whenever I had free time.
- Total: about $810 from less than 58 hours of study time.
The more often you check, the more studies you’ll catch, since they fill up fast. Expect Prolific to add up to extra money, a few dollars at a time.
Want to earn more from studies? Join a second platform. I also use CloudResearch Connect, and its studies don’t fill up as fast. Using both means you’ll almost always have something to do. Here’s my CloudResearch Connect review.
If you want to maximize your earnings, join a third: Crowdtap and a fourth: Usercrowd platform.
New to Prolific? Start with my honest Prolific review. If you’re paid in pounds, here’s how to convert GBP to USD in PayPal.
FAQ
How much does Prolific pay per hour?
I average about $13 an hour based on time spent in studies, or about $12 counting time spent waiting for studies. I skip studies that pay under $8 an hour.
How much does Prolific pay per study?
My median study paid $0.86 and my average was $1.47. My highest was over $30.
Does Prolific pay bonuses?
Sometimes. At least 49 of my studies paid a bonus, adding up to about $60.
Can you make a living on Prolific?
No. It’s a side hustle for extra money, not a full-time income.
Why does Prolific pay in pounds?
Prolific is based in the UK, and many studies pay in GBP. Some pay in USD. I’ve earned in both.
How much can you make on Prolific per month?
My best months were over $90. It depends on how often you check and how many studies are available.
Does Prolific pay if you get screened out?
Yes. All 18 of my screen-outs paid a small amount.
This article is for informational purposes only. Earnings vary by person, location and study availability, so your results may differ.
