DISCLAIMER: I am not an expert about side hustles so I’m not recommending Appen one way or the other. I’m just telling you about my own experience. Do plenty of homework first, and then make a decision about which side hustles to trust.
As a freelancer or someone changing careers, you may start looking for new opportunities or side hustles to bring in extra cash. I am very careful about the opportunities that I will try so I did a lot of research before giving Appen a try. A couple of helpful articles I used to decide are below:
Appen Work from Home: The Inside Scoop and Why I Left by Suchot, The Curious Frugal
Appen Micro Tasks – The Definitive Guide by John Ananth, Earn Online Guys
Both articles were helpful in helping me decide if I wanted to try Appen as a source of side income, and I decided to register and give it a go. The registration process was fairly easy, but it’s a little like hurry-up-and-wait. Once you’re registered with Appen, you will also need a Payoneer account to receive payments online from the Appen system. You will also sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) which will tell you what you can and cannot talk about concerning the work. I found that the registration process wasn’t entirely intuitive as some instructions and emails could have been more informative, but I managed to figure out the entire process without having to reach out to anyone.
There are multiple types of projects available on Appen including simple HITs (human intelligence tasks) that are easy online tasks that don’t usually require too much effort so they only pay a few cents. Other projects are more in-depth and offer to pay more. Larger projects often require an application, a test, and a practice process. If you have plenty of time, then you can give this a try, but please remember that the testing and practice process often do NOT pay you anything. There is nothing wrong with this because you aren’t producing anything for the project at this point, but you do need to decide how much time you are willing to devote to this process when you aren’t certain how much you will make when/if you finally work on the project.
After a few months of doing some simple HITs, I decided to take a deeper dive on a bigger project so I went through a quick application procedure, and I was approved after a basic test. This test meant that I now needed to study the documentation involved with the project to understand how everything worked. The test was “open book,” but because the project involved skills I had never used, I found that it would take a long time to find the answers to questions. When The Curious Frugal tells you to study the material, study the material! I found that I was taking so much time to study the material and pass the open book test that I had to make a decision. Was I going to devote this much time to a project when I wasn’t certain the financial reward would pay out?
I ultimately decided to give up on Appen, and multiple things played into that decision. First, if I’m going to devote that much time learning and preparing for a job, I’d rather be back in the workplace. Second, I found a lot of people who said, even if you made it through the entire testing process, you might not get regular work. Therefore, you’ve devoted a lot of time and effort to learning something without a financial payout. I found projects where I qualified, but then no work would be available. Third, I’m working on another online platform that pays out frequently even if in small amounts, and I don’t have to study and take tests to accomplish the tasks. Finally, the time devoted to tasks on Appen was taking away from the time I needed to be writing.
I don’t have a negative view of Appen. I believe it’s a matter of ‘you get out what you put into it.’ I just decided that I didn’t want to put in that kind of time and effort when I couldn’t guarantee a payout. It’s the decision that works for me. On the other hand, if you look at The Curious Frugal and others, they have had better results on projects. I chose a different platform which I’ll write about in the future, and I decided to devote time to writing instead of Appen. It just made sense for me.
If you are looking for extra sources of income, I highly recommend taking the time to look around for recommendations online. Look for people who have actually worked on the platforms they are writing about. That’s why I appreciate The Curious Frugal. You can also look on YouTube for content creators who will actually go try an online platform and give you an honest review of what works and what doesn’t. Two of my favorites are Kimberly Mitchell and Alston Godbolt. Plus, check review sites to see what others have to say about a platform before you try the work. Research has saved me from multiple headaches and potentially fraudulent offers. When looking for that elusive side hustle, be sure to do your homework and research before committing to anything, and make sure it will be best use of your time.
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Inspirational Verse for the Day:
Look, I am about to do something new; even now it is coming. Do you not see it? Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness, rivers in the desert. (Isaiah 43:19, CSB)
All Things Subject to Change 