At-a-Glance Comparison

Get a look at the differences between PointClub and Nielsen Pulse with this overview of their features and benefits.

PointClubNielsen Pulse
PointClub
  • Receive hundreds of paid surveys in your account dashboard
  • 5,000 point bonus for completing your profile
  • Get automatically matched to third party paid surveys for extra income
  • Earn points for product testing, testing free samples, and more
  • Choose from an extensive array of gift cards for rewards
Nielsen Pulse
  • Run by Nielsen, a global market research company with over 100 years in the business
  • Earning is passive — once set up, points accumulate automatically every day
  • One-time setup bonuses available for connecting devices and streaming platforms
  • Available on Android and iOS; connected TV devices can also be registered
  • Rewards come in the form of brand vouchers and gift cards
  • No joining fee, and you'll never be asked for credit card information
  • Participation helps inform how media companies and brands understand consumer behavior
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse Yes
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse Yes
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
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Rating Comparison

Which is better, PointClub or Nielsen Pulse? See how their expert and user ratings compare.

PointClubNielsen Pulse
PointClub
[4.65/5]
Nielsen Pulse
[4/5]
PointClub
[5/5]
Nielsen Pulse
[3/5]
PointClub
[4.25/5]
Nielsen Pulse
[4/5]
PointClub
[3/5]

Read 23 Reviews

Nielsen Pulse
[/5]

Read 0 Reviews

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Rewards Comparison

Compare PointClub rewards and Nielsen Pulse rewards to see how their redemption options stack up.

PointClubNielsen Pulse
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse Yes
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse Yes
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
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Opportunities Comparison

Compare how you can earn money with PointClub and Nielsen Pulse and find your next side hustle.

PointClubNielsen Pulse
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse Yes
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub Yes Nielsen Pulse No
PointClub No Nielsen Pulse No
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Service & Snafus

Learn about customer service and potential issues with PointClub and Nielsen Pulse before you sign up.

PointClubNielsen Pulse
PointClub Nielsen Pulse

Nielsen Pulse offers email-based support for US panelists at uspulsesupport@nielsen.com. The website also includes a Contact Us page with the same email address. There's no live chat or phone support listed.

The terms also allow panel members to contact Nielsen directly to request account deletion if they choose to leave.

Given that Nielsen is a large, established company, their support infrastructure should be reasonably reliable — though response times are not published, and the absence of live chat may be frustrating for users with urgent account issues.

PointClub

PointClub certainly has a lot of surveys for you to take, but you may want to stay away from the "paid trial offers" if you want to stick to paid market research. While you will get paid for signing up for various offers, you may be required to pay for trial periods, which can get a bit tricky. If you do not cancel your trial within a particular time frame, you are charged for the amount of the service or product and may not receive enough compensation to make up the difference.

Nielsen Pulse

The biggest sticking point for many users will be the privacy trade-off. The app requires you to grant location permissions, notifications, and install a research VPN on your device. Nielsen uses this access to track your device usage, web activity, streaming behaviour, and purchases. The terms explicitly state that this can include sensitive personal information such as race and ethnicity.

You also won't know if you qualify until after you complete the eligibility survey. Those who don't qualify are put on a waitlist, with no guarantee of ever being admitted to the panel.

Membership is household-wide by agreement. When you sign up, you're agreeing on behalf of all household members whose devices the app is installed on — and you're required to inform them and get their consent before doing so.

People employed by TV networks, cable or satellite providers, digital media platforms, or other media companies are not eligible to join. You also must keep your panel membership confidential and are not permitted to publicly identify yourself as a participant — including in app store reviews.

Points expire after 12 months and have no cash value. If you leave the panel for any reason, any unredeemed points are forfeited. Nielsen can also modify or discontinue the rewards program at any time.

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Final Verdict

See our closing thoughts to help you decide if PointClub or Nielsen Pulse is better for you.

PointClubNielsen Pulse
PointClub

PointClub is certainly a survey program on the rise. The earning opportunities here are outstanding. Once your profile is complete, you'll receive potentially hundreds of paid surveys from various companies. Best of all, they will be right in your account dashboard so you won't have to wait for email invites. Though you may not qualify for every survey you are presented, you are likely to qualify for future surveys as PointClub matches your profile with the surveys that are currently available.

In addition, you can also earn by watching videos, playing games, and even listening to Internet radio. PointClub is rapidly expanding. The potential here is through the roof and is certainly worth your time.

Nielsen Pulse

Nielsen Pulse is one of the more straightforward passive earnings programs out there. You install the app, go through a brief setup, and points accumulate on their own. There's no survey grind, no daily check-ins, and no tasks to complete. For the right person, it genuinely is close to set-it-and-forget-it income.

The catch, of course, is that what you're trading for those rewards is fairly deep access to your device activity. The research VPN in particular is something that gives users pause, and rightfully so. Nielsen has a long track record and a legitimate reason for collecting this data, but you should go in with clear expectations about what you're sharing.

If you're comfortable with the data sharing arrangement and you pass the eligibility survey, Nielsen Pulse is worth a spot on your phone. It's a credible program from a credible company, and passive rewards without any active effort are hard to beat.

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