Wonolo Review – Scam or Legit? Truth Exposed!

Are you looking for a Wonolo review? But you may wonder if it is a scam.

App-based jobs are among the best ways to make money fast.

After all, with apps like DoorDash and Uber Eats, as well as companies like TaskRabbit, it’s easier than ever to take on a side job and make some extra cash.

Even gig employment can prove difficult if the sign-up process is too long or the job isn’t a particularly good fit for your location.

In such cases, it’s better to work with local companies that can pay you the same day.

Wonolo makes it easy for you to find a well-paying job with local companies near you that are looking for employees as soon as tomorrow.

As a disclaimer, I’m not affiliated with Wonolo. It means I’m not paid to write this review. So you can rest assured that you will get an honest and unbiased review from me.

At the end of this review, I’ll also tell you the best alternative to Wonolo that has enabled me to make a full-time passive income online.

What Is Wonolo?

The name Wonolo is an acronym for Work Now Locally, and its main function is to help people find jobs in their immediate area.

As an on-demand job board, the recruitment platform facilitates connections between companies and individuals (for the perfect match).

In 2013, AJ Brustein and Yong Kim founded Wonolo. Although the company is headquartered in San Francisco, California, its services are available in other cities as well.

  • San Francisco Bay Area
  • Los Angeles Area
  • New York
  • New Jersey
  • Chicago
  • Columbus, Ohio
  • Philadelphia
  • Tampa
  • Dallas
  • Nashville
  • Phoenix

Earlier we noted that Wonolo serves as a bridge between Wonoloers and claimants. To help you understand, I will now describe the following concepts.

People who work on the Wonolo platform are called “Wonoloers” (mostly for part-time jobs). 

Working on Wonolo is for students and people who are in between jobs. It’s fine if you prefer to work for Wonolo instead of looking for regular employment (in whatever capacity you are looking). In fact, I know a few people who make their living solely from Wonolo.

As you can imagine, the clients are the companies and individuals who hire Wonoloers to fill their orders.

Some of their major events or other urgent needs may require a call for help. For example, during peak ordering times, those working in merchandising may need additional staff.

Sometimes staff members responsible for important daily tasks are also missing. These are just a few examples of when companies (requestors) ask Wonoloers for help (through Wonolo, of course).

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Is Wonolo a Scam or Legit?

I can confidently confirm that Wonolo isn’t a scam. I’ve seen a few complaints here and there (which I’ll get to below), but there aren’t many claims (or evidence) that it’s a scam or that they’re victimizing anyone.

How Does Wonolo Work?

Wonolo makes it easier to find a job (especially if you live near the major cities in your area). Okay, let’s start with what they need.

General Requirements

Remember, as a Wonoloer, you do not have to go through the same rigorous screening process as traditional job applications. However, if you want to apply for a job at Wonolo, you should meet the following requirements:

  1. Smartphone with Wonolo app – Since you will be using the Wonolo app on your mobile device to search for work opportunities, this is an absolute must. If you have an Android smartphone, you can download the app from the Google Play Store, and if you have an iPhone, you can download it from the App Store. Of course, you’ll also need a constant Internet connection so you can check your email and use the Wonolo app.
  2. Pass the background check – you must have some form of identification. If there are any problems verifying your identity, you may be asked for additional documentation.
  3. You must live in the U.S. – Because your physical presence is required for all Wonolo tasks, you must be a legal resident of the United States. Wonolo’s services are offered in all major cities in the country. Also, a US phone number is required for account verification.
  4. Legally authorized to work in the U.S. – This is another criterion for working in the United States, but I don’t think you’ll have any trouble meeting it.
  5. At least 18 years old – In the United States, the minimum age for hiring is 18. (The requirements for minors are governed by the Fair Labor Standards Acts). If you are not old enough to work in any capacity in your home country, you must be at least 18 years old to work at Wonolo.

Wonolo Application

Wonolo makes it REALLY easy to apply because they don’t require a resume. No one will even bother to interview you. That’s right, you heard correctly. 

Detailed instructions for submitting an application to Wonolo can be found below.

  1. Wonolo is a free app for Android and iOS devices. You can do this in both the Google Play Market (Android) and the Apple App Store (iOS).
  2. Open the app and sign in.
  3. After signing up, you will have to go through some sort of onboarding process. They need time to verify your identification and background, so you need to wait for this time (for approval).
  4. After the verification, you will have full access to the Wonolo portal, where you can search all open positions.
  5. You can now start searching for suitable job openings.
  6. If you are interested and qualified for a particular job posting, you can accept it by clicking on the “Accept” button
  7. Please be patient until you officially hear whether or not you have been hired for the job you recently applied for.
  8. After you receive the green light, you will show up for your shift/task on the date and time indicated.
  9. After you complete the task, the requester will leave you an evaluation. Remember, an excellent profile (and more accepted jobs in the future) is the result of high ratings (especially sustained good grades).
  10. Get paid through Stripe.
  11. Leave a rating and feedback for the company you worked for.

Notable details to keep in mind:

  • Wonolo tasks require your actual presence (and showing up on time), which should go without saying (but I’ll say it anyway, lol). So it’s usually better to look for work near your current location.
  • If you are hired as an independent contractor, you are not considered an employee of the company. You are a Wonoloer in name only; you will not work for the company.

You are not an employee, agent, or representative of the Company because you are only doing contract work for the client. If you want to avoid misunderstandings about your salary, benefits and expected tasks, you should consider the above points.

  • Contrary to what was said in the previous paragraph, you are not obliged to limit your employment to Wonolo. You are free to sign up with any number of other platforms, recruitment agencies or apps like Shiftgig. Since you also represent Wonolo when you use their platform, they will not limit your freedom of choice, but they do want you to do a good job as a Wonoloer.
  • Make sure you are qualified for the job and understand it well before accepting an open request. Substandard performance on your part may result in a breach of contract and, as a result, non-payment. You may be required to pay for the cost of repairs. In addition, a poor reputation may result in you having to settle for a career with fewer or no employment opportunities.

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What Kind Of Jobs Are On Wonolo?

You may be wondering what exactly you will do for Wonolo if you are interested in earning some extra money.

In short, the following sectors represent the majority of Wonolo’s business:

  • Warehouse operations.
  • General labor.
  • Delivery driving jobs.
  • Food production.
  • Event staffing.
  • Washing and cleaning gigs.
  • Administrative work.
  • Merchandising and retail.

As you can see, there’s nothing unusual about this… just hard work for a fair wage.

You can use Wonolo to apply for jobs in any field, not just those that seem interesting to you.

We’ll also discuss the straightforward app design that eliminates the need for resumes and tedious in-person interviews.

How Much Money Can You Make?

Your earning potential at Wonolo depends primarily on the number of jobs available in your area and your availability. In my opinion, an hourly wage between $10 and $15 is not bad at all for the work you do.

However, as I mentioned earlier, this depends on the employment situation. Also, I found that in every city where the app is available, there were a sufficient number of jobs available during my testing. So if you live in a city where Wonolo is available, you have a good chance of making money with it.

If you do not, no employment will be available. That’s the nature of things with apps like this. Your exact location will be crucial. I’ll go into more detail about which cities this is available in below.

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How Do You Get Paid?

You will be compensated in U.S. dollars at a predetermined rate for each task you complete. There is an hourly rate for each task, and your final compensation is based on the number of hours spent on each project.

As mentioned earlier, it takes between one and five business days (occasionally longer) for your pay to appear in your Wonolo account. The money earned can be withdrawn to a bank account or debit card as soon as it is credited to your account.

There is no minimum amount that must be earned before the money can be transferred to your bank account. If your Wonolo account has a positive balance, you can make a purchase at any time.

I like that there is no minimum amount required for withdrawal and that a simple payment system is used. An added bonus is that direct bank transfer is one of the most straightforward payment options.

Wonolo App

In case you are wondering, the Wonolo app is just the program that Wonolo uses to offer its services.

The Wonolo app can currently only be downloaded on mobile devices (and not desktop computers), so owning a smartphone is a prerequisite for signing up for the service.

Canceling Shifts

If you are currently employed by Wonolo but need to resign from an accepted position, you may (technically) do so at any time. However, this is not recommended, and you risk being penalised by Wonolo (or your client) if you give less than 12 hours notice.

You see, even if you have many positive reviews, Wonolo can lower your star rating for just one cancellation. Yes, the cancellation policy is strictly enforced. If you do it often enough, you may be removed from the service.

Cancelling a job after you have accepted it is generally a bad idea (and will be approved). Avoid cancellations at all costs when signing up with Wonolo; this is one of their rules.

In this way, they ensure that Wonolo’s services continue to be excellent for their clientele. Maintaining a positive reputation with customers is important to Wonolo because it could affect the company’s ability to win new business. They are probably strict about this because while there are legitimate reasons for canceling previous commitments, there will always be others who abuse this.

However, it is important to note that companies (applicants) are free to cancel accepted orders at any time. These are the provisions of Wonolo for some reason (if I had to guess, it’s probably because the requesters pay the costs).

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Requestor-Wonoloer Relationship

From what I have found out, both Wonolo employees (the so-called “Wonoloers”) and their customers seem to have had only excellent experiences with Wonolo (applicants). Wonolo companies often rehire former employees. This trend started some time ago (of course, only those with good performance).

Wonolo is a platform where companies and freelancers can come together for short-term projects; if things go well, the two parties can decide to work together again in the future. Those who submit a request have the option of offering permanent employment to Wonoloers. Temporary employment is legal at Wonolo.

So, as you can see, Wonolo can be a useful meeting place for companies and potential workers. Therefore, I think it is important to do a good job for Wonolo customers.

Can You Get Support?

The functionality of Wonolo is well described. Accordingly, you can find out a lot about the app on the website. The app also contains most of the relevant data. You can get help by clicking on the “Help” tab.

You can reach them via the contact form integrated in the app if you have any problems with your account or if you want to dispute or verify your winnings. Wonolo’s support staff can also be reached via email at [email protected].

In general, Wonolo provides good support to its members by offering easy access to its helpdesk.

Wonolo Benefits

Flexible Work Schedule

Wonolo is a mobile app that allows users to find and accept work as they please. If something comes up after you accept a job, you can always quit and find another job.

Handle Multiple Jobs

Thanks to the flexibility of the platform’s settings model, it’s possible to handle multiple tasks at once. Don’t miss any of these tasks if you want to maximize your earning potential.

Learn New Skills

Badges can be earned proactively by attending in-house training and seminars, as mentioned earlier. You can improve your chances of finding a job through the Wonolo app or elsewhere by following these steps.

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Wonolo Reviews and Complaints

Fortunately, I was able to find several enthusiastic testimonials about Wonolo. There is so much that it is almost too much. It’s clear that the vast majority of Wonoloers are satisfied with the platform for finding temporary work; I even found reviews from long-time employees.

Of course, I also found some negative feedback about Wonolo. In my opinion, this is to be expected, as there will always be dissatisfied workers in any company. Most of the criticism of Wonolo is related to the following points:

  • Low pay
  • Delayed payment
  • Poor customer support

I think the solution to the problem of low pay is as simple as refusing jobs that are not worth your while.

You will have the opportunity to evaluate the working conditions before you accept them, and if you find that they are not satisfactory, you can always continue shopping around. The data also shows that Wonolo’s clients pay at least the state minimum wage, so it’s not too bad there (for temp work).

But that also means that you can get different mileage depending on your specific goals. Of course, a handyman who is unemployed and used to an hourly wage of $30 or $40 will be unhappy with his pay.

Regarding late payments, I agree that this is a major problem. Moreover, I expect that Wonolo will improve this aspect of its business soon. For now, if you want to join Wonolo, I would advise you to do so with the knowledge that you may encounter such difficulties. It’s not common, but it does happen.

The negative comments about Wonolo’s customer service are discouraging. Phone support is not currently offered (at the time of writing), so email is your only option for contacting Wonolo (via the Help Centre). Again, be prepared for an email to take longer than a phone call.

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What I Like About Wonolo

  • Great concept – It’s great that with the Wonolo platform you can set your own hours and work where you want.
  • Easy to get started – No CV or interview is required.
  • A wide range of industries – Wonolo employees can choose from a number of different job options.
  • Availability of job opportunities – Hundreds of companies (including Coca-Cola, Papa John’s Pizza, and UNIQLO) currently use Wonolo. We have officially entered the gig economy, and more and more companies are signing up on the platform because it’s profitable for them.
  • Free to sign up – It’s free to sign up and use the Wonolo platform to search for and apply to jobs.
  • Flexible working hours – Wonolo is a great platform for students and people who work part-time.
  • Reliable payment system – Wonolo works with Stripe, an established payment processor.
  • The app is easy to use – The Wonolo app is designed to be simple and straightforward to use.

What I Don’t Like About Wonolo

  • Pay is not that high – Remember that Wonolo’s customers (who are also your customers) are not your typical bosses. Because Wonolo is a marketplace for short-term, on-call work, salaries tend to be low, especially for positions that require little experience or training.
  • Customer support issues – Wonolo’s website claims that there are about 300,000 customers at the time of writing. If the customer support department consists of a small staff, that’s a huge number. Still, I find it funny that Wonolo’s staffing problems have occurred. If that’s the case (and I have no idea if it is), I hope they just hire some Wonoloers to help with customer service (to improve their service).
  • Work is not guaranteed – It is hard to predict if there will always be openings if you want to work on Wonolo because of the competition from other Wonoloers. As I mentioned earlier, where you live can also affect the likelihood of finding a job. For this reason, Wonolo is still a viable option, provided you do not mind the lack of a guaranteed supply of jobs.
  • Last-minute terminations by customers are allowed – for the sake of honesty, I must say that I find this really unfair. After all, employees face significant consequences if they quit their jobs. To avoid a Wonoloer wasting their time, I would like Wonolo to consider imposing costs (cancellation fees) on clients who cancel orders.
  • Reports of payment problems – I do not believe that Wonolo has dishonest intentions towards its users. However, they are probably bugs or other app malfunctions. 

Nonetheless, I am keeping my fingers crossed that they have responsive customer service to address issues and assure workers that they will receive their pay on time. I also hope that the technical problems with the system can be fixed so that there are fewer payment problems.

Is There Any Commission And Fees?

Unlike Uber, which retains 25% of each partner’s fare as a fee. The client must pay for the platform’s services.

Clients (companies or people hiring independent contractors through Wonoloer) must pay a 45% service fee. Once you give the order the green light, the fee is due. They require money up front for each transaction that uses their services. Accurate billing and contact information is required.

An example of a direct referral fee looks like this:

  1. You post a job a $100
  2. In the event that a gig ends well, the worker will receive $100.
  3. Your total bill is $145 ($100 to the service provider plus a $45 Wonolo service fee).

Wonolo FAQs

1. Are You An Independent Contractor?

“Some jobs on the Wonolo app are for employees and others are for independent contractors,” the app’s website says. A Wonoloer can apply for jobs posted by companies seeking employees or by companies seeking freelancers.

Most jobs are likely to be independent contracts, so it’s important to know that.

3. How Do Taxes Work?

Wonolo promises to provide all employees with the required tax documentation (i.e., a 1099- MISC and/or a Form W-2) by the end of January following the year in which you worked. This is in accordance with the requirements of IRS.

4. Is There A Wonolo Referral Code?

Invite a friend to Wonolo, and if they do well on their first task, you will both receive $25.

To invite a friend to Wonolo, just follow these steps:

  1. Navigate to the menu bar in the Wonolo app.
  2. Select Invite Friends.
  3. Give the person signing up your Wonolo referral code.
  4. Make sure your friend uses this code when signing up.

5. Does Wonolo Hire Felons?

Just so you know, another company is hiring, not Wonolo.

It is up to the discretion of the company to decide whether or not to do a background check before making a final hiring decision.

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Wonolo Review: Final Verdict

Indeed, wonolo is a legitimate boon to the gig economy. They allow workers to set their own schedules, which is good news.

Even though most people think of temporary jobs as part-time, with Wonolo you can find a full-time position if you want to (there are already people doing this).

Will Wonolo work for you? Only you know the answer to this conundrum.

The flexibility of Wonolo is one of its main advantages. So if you want to make money while working on your own terms, it might be worth checking out the offer.

I’ve also weighed the pros and cons of joining the Wonolo network. So, if you’re willing to look into the pros and cons of the platform, then you should definitely use it.

The availability of work is the main obstacle you face. Wonoloers may find it difficult to apply for jobs in their area, depending on the state of the economy and the number of other Wonoloers in the area.

Websites that pay you to conduct surveys or other tasks online are another way to earn extra money online. Services like Survey Junkie and Inbox Dollars will pay you for simple online activities like taking surveys or surfing the web.

It should be clear that if you use these websites, you will still have to work. If you only need a small extra amount, they are an easy way to make money online.

If you are thinking on a larger scale, starting an online business might be the way to go.

Maybe you are a single parent or a student. Maybe you have health problems that prevent you from working regularly, or you simply loathe your current position and are looking for a way out.

However, if you want to succeed despite the many drawbacks, you need to have a clear idea of how to get started and where to find resources.

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Best Alternative of Wonolo to Make Passive Income

If you want to make a stable and secure stream of passive income, I would suggest you start an affiliate marketing business online.

Affiliate Marketing is perfect for anyone who is new to online business. 

In fact, of all the online business models I’ve tried, affiliate marketing is the easiest and most rewarding so far.  

In affiliate marketing, you can actually run your business almost with zero cost and achieve a steady and sustainable passive income to pay for your bills. You don’t need any initial capital and can even do it as a side hustle.

And if you really want to learn affiliate marketing and build a business from scratch, I’d recommend you to get started with the most reputable platform for affiliate marketing: Wealthy Affiliate.

Wealthy Affiliate is an all-in-one platform for building your affiliate marketing business from scratch. It offers you a free account (including a free website) with comprehensive training on SEO (free traffic methods), which enables you to get started with affiliate marketing right away without paying a penny.

But How Much Can You Earn with Wealthy Affiliate?

A 21-year old student from Wealthy Affiliate was able to earn $7,395 in just 1 week, which means he made more than $1k a day…all while using free traffic methods.

Wonolo Review

Wealthy Affiliate has existed for 15 years and there are many success stories in the past decade.

To give you more examples, here are some of the other inspiring success stories of Wealthy Affiliate members.

Where to Join Wealthy Affiliate?

Wealthy Affiliate has a very simple pricing scheme. It has free and premium membership.

If you want to feel about Wealthy Affiliate, you can sign up for the free starter membership here (no credit card required). You can select to be a free member with no time limit.

And as a starter member, you can get instant access to the community, live chat, over 500 training modules, 2 classrooms, networking, commenting, 1 free website, access to the keyword tool.

You can enjoy all these values without paying a penny. 

So I strongly recommend you to register a free account and see it yourself.

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