The Nielsen Home Scan Consumer Panel is accepting new applicants in many locations.
If you are accepted as a panel member with Nielsen Home Scan, you will be sent a small hand-held scanner and will scan all the bar codes of everything you purchase. Once a week, you’ll transmit this information to Nielsen and you’ll earn points that can be redeemed for a variety of items from the Nielsen Gift Catalog.
The Nielsen Home Scan Consumer Panel is a “mini-USA” that represents all types of Americans. Manufacturers and retailers will look at the information you send to them to decide what products to make and sell to consumers all across the country.
Some of you have signed up in the past for this and really enjoyed it. Others of you have tried it and found it was too tedious and time-consuming. If you’re interested in hearing about others’ experiences in this program, check out the comments on this post.
(Note: The links in this post are my referral links. Read my disclosure policy here.)
Wow. I’m glad I read the reviews. I don’t have time to waste to get nothing. Thanks guys!!
Can I ask, does the Nielsen panel ask you to record purchases you make which you consume “out of the home”? Like a can of soda or a chocolate bar you buy in a store and eat/drink it there or in the car? Thanks if anyone can answer.
Yes, they do. After you pick the store and enter the info it asks for, then it say something about being consumed at home or prior to getting home.
I did this for almost a year last year. We had a $0 Christmas budget b/c of our adoption process so I did EVERYTHING I could to earn freebies – this was the WORST ‘free’ program of them all – it took forever – it was super tedious (not hard, just tedious) – we had to return our scanner twice (they paid for it – but still – we had to pack it up and send it back). At the end of nearly a year we got a pack of a kid’s card game & some toys for the bath – probably $5 or $6 worth of stuff I could have bought out of the $1 bin at target. I hate to be a debbie downer – but this is not worth the time IMHO
I was with this company for almost a year. and trust me its not worth your time and energy. I was uploading my info and was getting nowhere, I then started adding in my parents info on products they purchased, since they live with us it was ok. But I never came close to anything, I dont even think there was enough points to earn a pencil, lol. Plus when I sent the stuff back they kept harassing me about them not getting it, when I know they did because when I sent it back I sent it with a signature required. And I explained to them I sent it, they signed for it and to stop harassing me, thats when they started sending me emails about contacting an attorney to get there equipment back. I sent them more letters about that I already sent it to them with the tracking number and proof of delivery, well that wasnt good enough for them, they actually sent my account to a collection agency and now my credit is hurt from them, and I had proof and everything that they got there stuff back. About a month into the collection agency harassing me now, the NCP company contacted the collection agency telling them that they found the equipment and it was with them. But they never contacted me to apologize or anything and when the collection company contacted me all they said was they resolved the issue, however my credit report still has them on there. If I could sue I would, but its just not worth my time or energy, its over and I want to move on. But I just thought I would warn everyone about this company, I know everyones experience will differ but I just wanted everyone to know mine. Thanks for listening, Happy Holidays everybody
I’ve been a member of this for several years and have no complaints either. Just scan the barcodes of the items you purchase (some stores you have to enter a purchase price, others you don’t), enter if you’ve used a coupon or not and if it was a sale price or not. Like someone else said, you also earn points by doing some surveys. It’s so nice to pick from their catalog gifts for Christmas or birthdays. Last year, we ordered our daughter a play kitchen that was in their gift catalog. Prior to that we ordered her the cutest Corolle baby doll. My mom is a member and ordered from their gift catalog a jogging stroller as a baby gift for us.
I’ve been scanning for almost 2 years now. It’s a little time consuming if you have to enter prices. I’ve found there is one store I frequent that I don’t have to enter prices for and inevitably, that’s the only trip I scan. And when they say they want you to transmit once a week, they mean it. They’ll start calling like a freaking bill collector and sending notifications. I really should send it back because in all the time I’ve been doing it, I’ve only accumulated 23,000 points. If I cash in now, the best thing I qualify for is a $25 iTunes gift card.
I have been a scanner for a couple of years now. It is not at all hard. My scanner came in the mail with very easy to understand instructions. You just scan your barcodes and the scanner is linked to your router. It is automatically downloaded by the Neilsen people once a week. I rack up points by scanning and also doing surveys. I almost have enough points for a new awesome vacuum (or is it vaccum? lol) cleaner, and it will be FREE, all it took was a few minutes to scan 🙂 It is definately worth it!
I have been a panelist for many years and I don’t have any complaints. Granted, it can be tedious to scan but the points are awarded for transmitting, not scanning. So, if I make a big trip to a store that requires prices entered when scanning then I might skip it. The downside is that producers don’t get my info. I shop mostly at Kroger and prices are not required when scanning so I don’t find scanning to be that difficult, I simply scan the barcode when I am putting it away. I have NEVER been harassed or even mistreated by Neilson. Yes, they send threats to “kick me out of the program” if I go 3 weeks without transmitting but if I am supposed to transmit weekly and I am not upholding my part of the deal then I hardly feel this qualifies as harassment. As for points and rewards, yes it can take time to build up points but the rewards are good quality. You earn points for transmitting each week and the points awarded for transmissions increase every 6 months you remain in the program. For example, I currently earn almost 3 times as many points per transmission as I did when I began the program. You can also complete surveys to earn bonus points. I find the program is as easy or difficult as I make it and when I set high expectations, I am bound to be let down.
I am on my third year and it has been more than worth it to me as I just “cashed in” for five Christmas presents. I use a ton of coupons and this has actually helped me to ensure items were rung up correctly and coupons entered. It takes as much time as it takes you to put away your groceries. I usually forget to scan other purchases, Old Navy etc. You receive points for taking short surveys and for staying with hem, which most people give in quickly. Well worth it and easy once it becomes part of your routine. I shop at Publix and Kroger for the most part and their prices are already loaded. Anywhere else I shop is for lesser items and entering prices is not a big deal, but I could see how a large grocery trip would be tedious. Like most things you get what you put into it and it works for us.
Thi is a horrible program! time consuming, hard, and they require alot. No thanks! Take my advice and dont do it! I wished I would have listened when people told me that! Trust me! It’s not worth it at all!
ITA, Jen. I’m glad some people can make this work for them and they are happy with the rewards, but I’ve met many, many more online who find it a a chore, a burden, and yet one more thing to be a time-suck and distraction from things that really can help their families, budgets or earning goals. I felt nothing but relief when I sent my equipment back.
I do it and I love it. But I don’t use a lot of coupons so I do understand. I have been doing it for 3 months. You don’t have to do all the shopping trips that you do in a week, you only get paid for it onces a week. Then you do surveys and other stuff, I am almost ready to buy stuff. I enjoy it and I have the time. I come home from shopping, scan the items and I am done.
I think they accept applicants a lot because people are always ending their membership! 😉
I just sent back my equipment today.
The pros: easy way to earn stuff, helps market study, can be fun for kids old enough to do it (you sometimes have to input info so they’d have to ask you)
The cons: must transmit every week (this was hard for me to remember, I may have kept doing it if the changed it to monthly), my scanner REGULARLY wouldn’t transmit, tedious and time consuming for not enough rewards points fast enough, you’re supposed to scan ALL purchases and a lot will ask for a price and ALL items you must input if it was on sale and if you used a coupon and if so the value.
Let me know if you have any questions before you sign up. Hope that helps!
I will add that the process seems to have changed since that prior post. My scanner base is plugged into my router and automatically uploads the data once a week. I just have to scan in the barcodes, which can be a pain with things from the meat department and produce. There is a reference card with barcodes for items like these, plus take-out, prescriptions, gasoline, etc. Not all stores require you to put in the prices, but some do and that takes some time.
I signed up for this a couple of months ago and just sent back all my equipment yesterday. It was NOT AT ALL worth the time and effort it took to participate. I have a family of 6 and use many coupons and it required a couple of hours of my time each week to enter in each and every purchase (including price, coupon amount PER ITEM, etc.). And what was my reward for all of this work? I figured if I earned the max amount of points for a year I could, at the end of the year, purchase something worth maybe $20.00. Just my 2 cents, but I was pretty disappointed with it all.
Amy, I SO agree with you.
This is A DEFINITE TIME WASTER and not a reputable company to work for.
I too looked into it after wasting gas for a 20 mile trip just to go pick up the stupid scanner and after I was able to figure and add points, at the end of a year, I would qualify for a CALCULATOR. A calculator. Um, I think I’d rather spend the $2 and add the time I would waste by doing this awful time-waster. So glad I didn’t waste any more time than I already did.
Ditto here! I was a member for several months and the rewards are minuscule. It was going to take me a year to earn something like 10,000 points to redeem a $10 wallet. You have to scan ALL your purchases, enter prices, enter if you used coupons, etc. It is a lot of work. Not worth my time, although it was fun using the scanner at first.
I did neilsen for two years. When I left I earned a $20 pedometer. It was not worth the time and effort I put into entering all my purchases. The one time I DID win the sweepstakes – I never got my prize. They simply never sent it never returned any of the contact I made.
I think this company is great if you get a lot out of the idea that you are being a part of something bigger (shopping trends) but I think the idea that you can really earn something out of this is bogus. YES it is possible.. but the amount of time you have to spend (YEARS) for decent prizes is not a good return on your time.
Thanks. That worked.
I can’t get the link to work to read other people’s testimonies… I’d like to. Maybe I’m the only one having this problem?
Here you go: https://moneysavingmom.com/2009/06/neilson-homescan-consumer-panel-earn-rewards-for-scanning-your-purchases.html