How to Get Free Stuff on Amazon in Exchange for Reviews

If you love trying new products and leaving thoughtful, honest reviews, become an Amazon reviewer with Amazon Vine. Through the invite-only program, you get free products from Amazon sellers to test and review. Your reviews help other users know what’s worth buying or what to skip. Below, we break down how to get invited to join Amazon Vine, the best practices for reviewing products, and other ways to get free things in exchange for reviews.

Can you get free stuff from Amazon to review?

Yes, you can receive free products from Amazon to review through the Amazon Vine program. The program is invite-only, but you can increase your chances of being invited by reviewing products you’ve already purchased. Write reviews that are helpful and honest. If you’re not invited, consider alternative programs.

Section 1 of 6:

How do you join Amazon Vine?

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Amazon Vine is invitation-only, meaning you can’t apply. Vine Voices—the name for their program members—are selected by Amazon to become reviewers because of their high-quality reviews, influence, or both. There’s no official criteria or timeline for receiving an invitation to Amazon Vine.^{[1]
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- Amazon Vine members aren’t paid, but they receive free products in exchange for honest reviews.
- If you want to be invited, your best bet is to review products you purchase through Amazon and wait to get selected.

Section 2 of 6:

Getting Invited to Amazon Vine

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Create an Amazon account. If you want to receive an invitation to Amazon Vine, you need an Amazon account. Use one account to order products and leave reviews in order to build a presence and a reputation as a trusted reviewer.
- Signing up for Amazon Prime isn’t necessary to become a Vine Voice, but it may be worth it if you order from Amazon regularly. With a Prime membership, you get free shipping on eligible items.
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Leave honest, helpful reviews for products you buy. If you want to receive free products from Amazon, you’re probably already a shopper on the site. Go through past purchases and leave helpful reviews that honestly assess the quality and value of the product. Start leaving reviews for all future purchases, too.^{[2]
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- To make your review as helpful as possible, be specific about what you liked and disliked about the product. Be honest—an overly positive or negative review isn’t usually the most accurate or helpful.
- Include pictures or videos of the product. This will make your review stand out, which helps you get noticed by Amazon for the Vine program.
- Follow Amazon’s guidelines to make sure your reviews aren’t removed.
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Be patient. It might take months or even years before you’re invited to join Amazon Vine. Even if you’re tempted to give up, keep reviewing. Your feedback will help other customers make informed purchases—and honest reviews can bring much-needed exposure to new sellers.
- Not every reviewer will be invited to join Amazon Vine, but there are alternative ways to get free products to review on sites outside of Amazon.

Section 3 of 6:

Reviewing Free Amazon Products

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Select items you want to review. Check the Vine Voice web page frequently to request products you actually want to test and review.^{[3]
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Research source} If you’re not a gamer, but you request a video game, you may have a hard time providing a helpful review. If you love makeup, however, select makeup products that you know you’ll be able to fairly evaluate.
- Adhere to program guidelines for how many items (and what maximum product value) you can request to receive each day.
- You must pay taxes on the free products you receive through Amazon Vine. Amazon sends Vine participants a 1099-NEC form which you can use to report the proper “income” (estimated total product value) you received from the program that year when filing your taxes.
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Test and use products before reviewing. To provide the most accurate review, use the products thoroughly and test out all their features or applications. Inspect them to see if they resemble the seller images on Amazon. Check that they’re functional and have all the features the seller promises.^{[4]
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- Ask yourself: if you were considering buying this product, what would you want to know about? For example, if you’re testing a pair of shoes, are they true-to-size, comfortable, and durable? Are they the right color and material that you ordered?
- Take notes as you test or use the product so it’s easier to remember everything you want to say about it.
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Write an honest, thoughtful review. Don’t give a product five stars just because you received it for free. Be honest about its positive and negative aspects. Additionally, be thoughtful about the information you include—you want other shoppers to find your reviews helpful. Stay focused on the product and keep your review as concise as possible.^{[5]
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- Sellers may try to contact you if they suspect you’re a Vine Voice to bribe you or otherwise sway your review. This is against Amazon’s Community Guidelines on compensated reviews.^{[6]
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  Research source} Ignore them or report them to Amazon Vine’s support.
People want to know what a product looks like in real life, not just in the seller’s photos. Take high-quality, well-lit pictures or videos of the product from multiple angles. Show the product in action, if relevant. Adding this media will make your review more helpful and trustworthy.^{[7]
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Disclose that you got the product for free. The FTC requires reviewers to clearly state that they received a product for free, so shoppers are aware of how this may influence your review.^{[8]
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Trustworthy Source

Federal Trade Commission
Independent U.S. government agency focused on consumer protection

Go to source} Include a line at the top of your review stating that you received the product for free through the Amazon Vine program.
- For example, write “I received this product for free through Amazon Vine in exchange for an honest review.”
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Give your review a short, relevant title. When shoppers are scrolling through a product’s review, help yours stand out with a brief, on-topic title. Instead of relying on all-caps or exclamation points to get attention, highlight your key takeaways about the product. Again, keep it short.
- For example, if you’re reviewing a spatula that was flimsy but otherwise fine, you might title your review: “Flimsy but satisfactory for casual cooks.”
- Don’t put a generic title like “I love this!” or “This product sucks!” Be specific about what your review discusses. Focus on why you gave the product the review and rating you did.
The Amazon Vine program gives you about one month from receiving a product to leave your review. You’re expected to leave a review whether or not you liked the product. If you miss the review deadline, you may be kicked out of the program.^{[9]
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Wait six months to sell or dispose of products. While you might be tempted to flip the free products you receive for quick cash after you leave a review, this is against the terms of the program. You must keep the products you receive for a minimum of six months. After that, you can sell, donate, or dispose of them.^{[10]
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- Because of this waiting period, Amazon Vine isn’t the best way to make fast money as a reseller. You also have to pay taxes on the products you receive.

Section 4 of 6:

Dealing With Broken or Bad Products

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Flag broken products to Amazon Vine support. If you receive an Amazon Vine product that arrives broken, it’s hard to fairly review it. Contact Amazon Vine’s support or Amazon support to see if you can either get the product replaced or have it removed from your expected reviews.^{[11]
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- If you think it wasn’t broken in transit, but is in some way not functional, leave an honest review describing the product’s problems.
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Review bad products honestly and fairly. Chances are, you won’t love everything you receive from Amazon Vine. You’re not expected to—but you are expected to leave an honest review to help other shoppers. Follow the same process you would to review a good product. Find pros and cons, and be specific about why you found the product unsatisfactory.
- If sellers try to get you to change your review by contacting you, report them to Amazon.
- Sellers cannot remove Amazon Vine reviews. Only Amazon can do that.

Section 5 of 6:

Are Amazon Vine products really free?

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Amazon Vine products are free, but taxed. You don’t pay anything for the products you review or the shipping, and you don’t pay to be invited to or take part in the program. However, Amazon sends out a 1099-NEC form with the estimated total value of all the products you received during the tax year, which you report when you file taxes.^{[12]
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Internal Revenue Service
U.S. government agency in charge of managing the Federal Tax Code

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- Consult a tax professional if you’re unsure how to report your Amazon Vine “income” on your taxes.
- When deciding if Amazon Vine is worth it for you, take into account the cost of taxes as well as the time it takes to review the free products.

Section 6 of 6:

Other Ways to Get Free Products to Review

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Sign up or apply for programs that offer free products to review. Amazon isn’t the only place to get free products in exchange for your honest reviews. Other companies and websites accept applications to become one of their product testers. Below are a few of the most popular ones:
- Influenster: Influenster is an app that occasionally offers users VoxBoxes, or boxes of free products, in exchange for honest reviews.^{[13]
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  Research source} Anyone can sign up.
- L’Oreal Consumer Testing: Personal care brand L’Oreal allows anyone over 18 to register to join their consumer research panel. As a panel member, you may qualify to receive free products to review and provide honest feedback on.^{[14]
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- Home Tester Club: Consumers in eligible countries, including the USA, UK, and Canada, can register for a Home Tester Club account and fill out surveys for the chance to get free products to review.
- BzzAgent: BzzAgent is open to applications for “Agents” that are potentially selected to receive and review free products. Your engagement and influence factor into which and how many campaigns (free products) you’re selected for.^{[15]
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- The Beauty & Style Collective: The Beauty & Style Collective is affiliated with magazines such as InStyle and Brides. Register to join the collective and fill out surveys about your opinions on beauty and style topics. You’re then entered into sweepstakes to earn gift cards.^{[16]
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- McCormick Consumer Testing: McCormick & Company, Inc. runs a consumer testing program in Hunt Valley, Maryland and remotely. They pay consumers who meet demographic requirements to sample foods, snacks, and beverages, either in-person or at home.^{[17]
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- Don’t fall for scams—thoroughly ensure a program is legitimate before you give them your information. Use a P.O. Box to receive free items, if you can.
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Reach out to brands if you have a following. If you have an engaged social media following (at least 800 followers, and ideally a few thousand), reach out to brands asking to be added to their PR lists, says social media & digital marketing consultant Candace Gasper.^{[18]
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Expert Source

Candace Gasper
Social Media & Digital Marketing Consultant

Expert Interview} They may send you free stuff!^{[19]
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Nurse Shannan
Product Reviewer

Expert Interview}
- You’re not obligated to review free items unless there’s a brand deal or sponsorship contract.

Community Q&A

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I've liked a few other reviewers' reviews and found them helpful, and have occasionally upvoted those reviews. Is that really an issue?

Community Answer

That's fine, but only if you don't also review that item. If you also review the same item, voting on others' reviews can look suspicious.

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Is it a good idea to buy something online when the buyer wants a deposit?

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I would say that it depends what the deposit is for. If you want a personalized item made to order, then I would say that a deposit is justified. This way the seller is assured to receive some payment if you then decide you don't want the item anymore. Other than that, be careful and wary of sellers asking for deposits.

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What happens after my account is wiped? Should I create a new account or just keep the same one and work on building reviews from scratch?

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When your account is wiped you can't do any reviews anymore, but you can still order and use your Prime benefits.

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Warnings

Read Amazon’s Community Guidelines before you begin reviewing to make sure you’re not violating their policies.

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Avoid groups that promise discounted Amazon products in exchange for reviews—these aren’t free, and violate Amazon’s Guidelines on compensated reviews.

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Paid reviewer jobs violate Amazon’s community guidelines, and can be scams. If you want to make money by reviewing Amazon products, your best bet is to create video or blog reviews and monetize them to earn ad revenue.

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Make sure to disclose that you received a free product in exchange for your honest review, so you’re not violating FTC guidelines.

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Review products within 30 days of receiving them. Make sure your reviews are helpful. If you miss deadlines or receive negative feedback from other shoppers on your reviews, you may be removed from Amazon Vine.

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