Prolific or Respondent: which to choose and who each platform suits

In short: how they differ

Prolific connects academics and companies with people who answer questionnaires and take part in online experiments. Most tasks are short, there are many of them, and taking part needs no experience and no talking on camera.

Respondent specialises in paid interviews and studies that involve talking to a researcher. The best pay goes to professionals in particular fields, and participants are chosen by their profile: job title, industry and tools.

How much they pay

Prolific is one of the few platforms with a published minimum rate: researchers must pay at least £6 or $8 an hour, and £9 or $12 is recommended. The rate is calculated from the median actual completion time rather than the researcher’s estimate, so you see an honest hourly figure before you start. Some studies pay more, but the typical task is short and pays modestly.

Respondent pays much more per session, but sessions are rarer. The platform gives its own benchmarks and notes they are illustrative: a 30–90-minute online interview pays about $40–150, a 5–25-minute unmoderated task or survey $5–25, a multi-day diary study $50–200 or more in total, and a 60–120-minute in-person session $75–250 or more.

For professionals the gap is wider still. Respondent advises researchers to pay professionals at least double their hourly rate and gives US examples: a remote interview with an entry-level specialist $100, a manager $200, a director $300 and a C-level executive $600.

Who can take part

This is the decisive difference for our readers. Prolific is open only to residents of the countries on its list, 52 in its help centre, and Ukraine is not among them. What counts is where you live now, not your citizenship: a Ukrainian living in Poland or Germany can join. But you will need an ID from your country of residence, such as a residence permit or a visa with a photo, a local phone number and a home address in the same country.

Respondent publishes no separate country list and says it has participants in more than 150 countries. At the same time, the best-paid studies target professionals with particular profiles, and some require you to verify a work email on your company’s domain. The platform repeats that check every 90 days.

How participants are chosen

On Prolific, studies are shown to everyone who fits the profile, and many work on a first-come basis. Places are limited to the number the researcher set and can run out the moment you click “Take part”. So speed matters here more than your CV.

On Respondent you complete a screener of 2–20 questions, and the researcher picks participants by profile: job title, industry, company size, tools, region and languages. Screeners are unpaid, and you can be screened out at any stage. So what matters here is a detailed, honest profile that matches your screener answers.

How and when you get paid

Prolific pays only to PayPal. Money appears in your balance after the researcher approves your response, and if they stay silent for 22 days, Prolific approves it automatically. You can cash out once your approved balance reaches £6 or $6, usually once a day. Your first four cash-outs and any cash-out after changing your PayPal address come with a 72-hour wait.

Respondent does not hold a balance. Once the researcher confirms your attendance, an email from Tremendous arrives within 7–10 business days, and you choose a gift card such as a prepaid Visa or Amazon. Each incentive has 5% deducted, with a minimum of $1: $60 becomes $57. All amounts are in US dollars, and the card options depend on your country.

How much time it takes

On Prolific you work in short sessions whenever it suits you: open the studies page, do one or two short ones, close it. The platform itself says researchers launch studies during their working hours, so weekends and holidays are quieter, and if you have done a lot of studies recently you may see fewer for a while because Prolific spreads them fairly.

On Respondent the time goes elsewhere: filling in your profile, completing unpaid screeners, waiting for an invitation, agreeing a time and turning up on time. If the researcher does not show up, Respondent still requires them to pay, and your status should change to paid within 10 business days. An interview is an event in your calendar, not a task between other things.

Risks and limits

On Prolific the main risks are rejected submissions and your account being put on hold. Finishing too fast, failing attention checks, a VPN, AI-written answers or logging in from outside your country of residence can cost you the payment or your access. There is a separate article on this.

On Respondent the main risk is spending time on screeners and getting no invitation at all, plus losing part of the money to fees and card conversion. Respondent forbids taking payment outside the platform, even if a researcher offers to pay you directly.

Which suits whom

The choice depends on where you live, what you know and how much time you have.

• you live in a Prolific-listed country and want regular small earnings without talking — Prolific
• you have an uncommon profession or a senior role and are happy to do video interviews — Respondent
• you live in Ukraine — Prolific is not available, so of these two Respondent is the realistic option, with gift-card payouts in mind
• you do not have a corporate email — some professional studies on Respondent will be closed to you
• you need money in PayPal — Prolific; Respondent pays in Tremendous gift cards

Can you use both?

Yes, and for people living in a Prolific-listed country it is the most common combination. Prolific gives small but frequent income between interviews, and Respondent gives rarer but better-paid conversations. The platforms’ rules do not get in the way: the restrictions are about having a second account on the same platform, not about taking part on different ones.

The one thing to remember is that your profile and screener answers must be consistent everywhere. If you are a department head on Respondent and a student in another screener, that is a mismatch, and it lowers your chances of being selected.