On Prolific, you get paid via PayPal via Hyperwallet. Just follow these steps to get set up, and then cash out!
Adding your PayPal details
- Click on your initials in the upper right-hand corner
- Go to your 'Account' page. Here you'll see 'Payment Methods', and underneath, 'PayPal account'
- On the right-hand side, click 'Set' and a box will pop up
- Enter your Prolific password
- Add your PayPal details and log in (Don't worry, we can't access your PayPal account)
- Click link and complete
How do I cash out?
Once you've earned a total of £6.00 or $6.00 across both your approved earnings, you'll be able to cash out from your Prolific account.
Step 1 - Balance Hub
Head to your balance hub by clicking on the ‘Balance' tab in the top-right hand corner of the screen.
Your balance hub will show a breakdown of your approved balances in GBP and USD, as well as any earnings that are waiting for approval.
You will see two balances in your approved earnings; one per currency. You will also see an estimated total balance. Your estimated balance is the total of your GBP and USD balances.
If you have a US address, your estimated balance will be displayed in USD. For addresses in any other country, your estimated balance will be displayed in GBP. The balance hub display currency is set automatically and can’t be changed.
Your estimated total balance figure is based on market exchange rates. We display the estimated total balance to make it easier to keep an eye on your overall earnings. Your actual balances are displayed in the currency they were earned in. These are the amounts you cash out to PayPal. Any currency conversion will be managed in PayPal.
Step 2 - cashing out
To cash out, hit the cashout button. You will be asked to confirm your cashout. Once you select ‘confirm’, both balances will be cashed out at the same time.
Any currency conversation will be managed directly in PayPal. If you wish, you can set up your PayPal account to receive multiple currencies before cashing out (see the FAQ below).
Step three - cashout processing
You will see a notification that your cashout is processing, explaining that your balance will take a few moments to update while this happens. You can close this pop-up as we will let you know when your cashout has finished processing.
Once you see the ‘cashout successful’ notification, you’ll see that the funds have been deducted from your approved earning balances. At this point, we have sent your payment to PayPal. Please note that this can take up to 24 hours, but is usually much quicker.
How often can I cash out?
You can cash out once every 24 hours, resetting at midnight UTC. If you've recently added or changed your cashout email address, you can only cash out once every 72 hours for the first 4 cash outs.
Payments will be made to your account 'instantly'. Please note that they may take up to 24 hours to arrive, but are usually much faster!
Top tips
For US residents, your PayPal account must be US based. This is to comply with tax rules.
For non-US residents, your PayPal country needs to match either:
- Your current country of residence or
- Your country of birth
We can only allow one PayPal account to be linked to one Prolific account at any time:
- If you add a PayPal account to your Prolific account that's already linked to another account, or
- Someone tries to link your PayPal to their account
both accounts will be placed on hold and you'll need to get in touch with us.
FAQs
Why was my cash out unsuccessful?
You’ll see an alert if you try to cash out when your balance is under the £6/$6 minimum, or you try to cash out for a second time within the 24 or 72 hour period (see ‘how often can I cash out?’ above). If you see an error message and the above restrictions aren't applicable, please get in touch.
How do I know if I've reached the minimum cashout amount
As you will now start earning across two currency balances, we no longer have a specific minimum cashout amount per currency. Instead, we look at the combined, estimated total across your two balances.
As long as this estimated total balance is £6/$6 or above you’ll be able to cash out, regardless of how much you have earned in each currency. For example, if you have $4 and £3.50, or you can cash out! You can also cash out if you have the minimum in only one currency, such as $6 and £0 or $0 and £6.
If you don’t have the minimum cash-out amount of £6/$6 across both balances, you won’t be able to cash out as the cash out button will be greyed out.
Each cashout will process your approved balances across both currencies. For example, if you have $8 and £3 approved, these will both be sent across to PayPal when you cash out. You can still cash out even if you only have an approved balance in one currency, such as $8 and £0, or $0 and £8.
Do I need to configure my PayPal account to receive payments?
How you receive your payments into PayPal will depend on how your PayPal account is set up. Please make sure that your PayPal settings are set up to allow you to receive payments in the way you’d prefer before cashing out.
PayPal personal accounts
PayPal have guidance on how to set up your account to be able to receive multiple currencies in their Help Centre: How do I manage my currencies with PayPal?
If you’ve set up your PayPal account to receive both USD and GBP payments, each cashout from Prolific will go straight into the relevant currency wallet within your PayPal account.
If you have not set up your PayPal account to receive both USD and GBP payments, PayPal will ask you to accept the payment before it will appear in your PayPal account. You’ll need to follow the instructions in the email from PayPal to claim the cashout. At this stage, you can choose whether to accept the payment in the currency it was sent in or to convert the payment into the currency of your PayPal wallet.
For example, if your PayPal account is set up to receive GBP payments and we send you a cashout of £4 and $10, the £4 will go straight into your GBP PayPal wallet and you will receive an email from PayPal asking you to accept the $10 transfer.
If you do not accept the payment within 30 days, it will be returned to Prolific. We will add this back onto your Prolific account within a further 5 days.
PayPal premier or business accounts
PayPal have guidance on how to set up your account to be able to automatically receive multiple currencies in their Help Centre: What are Payment Receiving Preferences and how can I set them?
If you’ve set up your PayPal account to receive both USD and GBP payments, each cashout from Prolific will either go straight into the relevant currency wallet within your PayPal account or will be automatically converted to your chosen currency. This depends on how you’ve chosen to accept transactions in different currencies.
If you have not set up your PayPal account to receive both USD and GBP payments, PayPal will ask you how you wish to accept the payment. You’ll need to follow the instructions in the email from PayPal to claim the cashout.
What is Hyperwallet?
Hyperwallet, a PayPal service, is a payment processor. This means that when you cash out on Prolific, Hyperwallet will be the ones delivering your money straight into your PayPal account.
We utilize Hyperwallet payment services to deliver payments to you. Such payment services are subject to the Hyperwallet Terms of Service and the Hyperwallet Privacy Policy.
Need further help?
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