Comparison

mindswarms vs Pinecone Research

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

mindswarms

Participate in research studies and earn money by sharing your opinions through short video responses. Get paid quickly via PayPal for your insights.

Highlights
  • Participate in research studies
  • Earn money for opinions
  • Record short video responses
  • Receive PayPal payments
  • Get paid within 24 hours
Features
Read full description

Join the mindswarms community and earn money participating in research studies. It’s simple - Complete your profile, browse studies, apply, and we’ll notify you with studies right for you. Share your wisdom - Record 40-60 second videos of yourself responding to study questions. Get paid - Receive $10 to $50 (and sometimes more) per study in 24 hours via PayPal.

About

Pinecone Research

Participate in paid surveys and manage your membership conveniently through this app. View available opportunities, take surveys, track your earnings, and redeem rewards. You can also update your profile and contact customer service.

Highlights
  • View survey opportunities
  • Take surveys
  • View and redeem points
  • Survey history
  • Customer service contact
  • Update personal information
Features
Read full description

"Get the full experience of your Pinecone Research membership all through our convenient mobile app. Your one stop spot to: View available survey opportunities Take surveys View and redeem your earned points See your history of surveys taken and points redeemed Contact our Customer Service team Update your personal information like Email, Password, and Security Question Unsubscribe from the Pinecone Research panel" "About Pinecone Research: Pinecone Research is a trusted leader in voicing the opinions of consumers nationwide, which runs under the banner of NielsenIQ. Surveys are made available to panelists/consumers to get input on developing new and improved products. By taking our online surveys, consumer opinions directly influence tomorrow's products today, and allow for consumers to be rewarded with points which can be redeemed as merchandise, gift cards, or cash."

Screenshots

mindswarms4 screens
Pinecone Research4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: mindswarms at 68% against Pinecone Research's 12%. mindswarms also leads on rating (4.0 vs 2.0). Pinecone Research's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.1). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

mindswarms holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 2.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 379 and 144 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of mindswarms's written reviews are positive against 12% of Pinecone Research's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

mindswarms ships an update every 2 months, Pinecone Research every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 18, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
mindswarms versus Pinecone Research: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParametermindswarmsPinecone Research
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (379 ratings) — better2.0 (144 ratings)
Positive reviews67.5% of reviews — better11.7% of reviews
Number of ratings379 — better144
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 5 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.113.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size37 MB18 MB
Age rating9+4+
DeveloperMindSwarms, Inc.Market Once Holdings.com, LLC

Customer experience

mindswarms

All ratings352 ratings
Positive78.1%
Neutral4.5%
Negative17.3%
Written reviews120 reviews
Positive67.5%
Neutral7.5%
Negative25.0%

Pinecone Research

All ratings144 ratings
Positive23.6%
Neutral2.8%
Negative73.6%
Written reviews94 reviews
Positive11.7%
Neutral2.1%
Negative86.2%

User reviews

mindswarms

From 379 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 💰 Good pay for surveys
  • ⚡ Fast payment
  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 🤑 Legitimate earnings

Room to improve

  • 🕰️ Rare survey opportunities
  • 🤔 Inconsistent experiences
  • 🤷‍♂️ Lack of communication
  • 🤬 Payment issues

Pinecone Research

From 144 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 💰 Guaranteed payout per survey (historically)
  • ⏱️ Quick surveys (historically)
  • ✅ Legit survey site (historically)

Room to improve

  • ❌ Frequent disqualification from surveys
  • ❌ Surveys not loading or closing prematurely
  • ❌ Loss of points or rewards
  • ❌ Difficulty logging in or account access issues
  • ❌ Poor customer service response

Bugs and requests

mindswarms

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • App freezing/crashing
  • Issues with video uploads

Requested features

3 requests
  • More frequent survey opportunities
  • Push notifications for new surveys
  • Better customer support

Pinecone Research

Reported bugs

16 issues
  • Surveys not loading, closing, or giving errors at the end
  • Login issues, password reset not working
  • App crashing or freezing
  • Points not being credited after completing surveys
  • Redemption page errors
Show 11 more
  • App not working in certain regions (e.g., US)
  • Sign-up button missing
  • Inability to update demographics
  • Link from email not working
  • Website pages turning white
  • 2-Step verification phone number already in use error
  • App not refreshing after survey completion
  • Incompatibility with certain browsers
  • Survey questions not rendering correctly
  • App not loading on mobile devices
  • Rewards page down for extended periods

Requested features

9 requests
  • Improve app/website stability and performance
  • Fix survey loading and closing issues
  • Restore previous payout methods (e.g., PayPal)
  • Increase survey availability and qualification rates
  • Improve customer service responsiveness and effectiveness
Show 4 more
  • Provide clearer information on point values and redemption
  • Offer more product testing opportunities
  • Ensure app compatibility across devices and regions
  • Revert to older, more functional version of the app/site

In-app purchases

None

mindswarms

No in-app purchases

None

Pinecone Research

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is mindswarms free?
mindswarms is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Pinecone Research free?
Pinecone Research is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, mindswarms or Pinecone Research?
mindswarms is rated higher. mindswarms averages 4.0 out of 5 from 379 ratings, while Pinecone Research averages 2.0 from 144 ratings.
Do mindswarms or Pinecone Research have ads?
Neither mindswarms nor Pinecone Research shows ads.
Which is updated more often, mindswarms or Pinecone Research?
mindswarms ships an update every 2 months, and Pinecone Research every 5 weeks. Most recently, mindswarms was updated on September 18, 2026 and Pinecone Research on September 23, 2026.

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