iWriter Review: Earn Money Writing In Your Spare Time

Written by Jason Michaels Last Updated: May 8, 2024

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. We may receive a commission when you click on them, but this is at no extra cost to you. Read our privacy policy for more information.

In a recent post about making money online, I reviewed the content mill Textbroker. Textbroker is only one of dozens of different content mills that you can use to earn money online.

Another choice that’s popular is the website iWriter. I’m going to break down how much you can make, how it works and how much time you need to spend to make money with this full iWriter review.

iWriter is a longstanding content mill with very minimal requirements. Because of this, it’s a choice you may want to consider if you’re looking to add another money-making egg to your basket.

If you research iWriter, you’ll find a lot of information – some good, some bad. In this iWriter review, I’ll be covering every aspect of using the website. You can learn about earning potentials, the possible downsides, and I’ll offer some tips on how to make the best of the website. If you’re curious about using iWriter, read on to learn more.

Direct Link to Site

Table of Contents

What Is iWriter?

iWriter is a content mill website that hires writers (experienced or not) to create content. They provide this content – mostly articles and blog posts – to their clients. According to the iWriter main page, there are over 735,000 writers on the site. Additionally, they state that over 5.5 million articles have been written to date. The site was founded by Brad Callen, the Internet marketer behind Bryxen Software.

Who Is Eligible To Write For iWriter?

Pretty much anyone with a PayPal account is eligible to write for iWriter. You don’t have to be a native English speaker or U.S. resident to use the website. Clients from all over the world buy content here, so there is work available for non-native English speakers. Users need to be 18 years or older, according to the Content Provider Agreement page.

You are not required to have any previous writing experience to write for iWriter. You don’t have to pass any tests or submit a writing sample. In my opinion, this is one of the plus sides to using the platform. It’s a viable option for people who want or need to start earning money quickly. There’s no guesswork when it comes to eligibility.

How Do You Sign Up For iWriter?

Signing up for iWriter is another extremely easy process and one reason I do like this site. You go to the iWriter signup page and submit your name, e-mail address, a username, and a password. You then check the “agree to terms and conditions” box and click “Write Content Now”. That’s honestly all that there is to it. You can start writing and earning once you’ve completed these steps.

I suggest signing up using the same e-mail address that you use for PayPal. Once you’ve signed up, you’ll have an empty profile that you can fill out. You can choose a profile photo or avatar and fill out a short bio about yourself.

If you have any writing experience or credentials, make sure to mention them in your bio. Even if you don’t, feel free to add in topics that you like – sports, music, construction, and so on. Clients can view this info, so it doesn’t hurt to make yourself stand out a bit.

Under your bio, you’ll see a list of topics with the phrase “Notify me when projects in these categories are added to iWriter:” above it. You can select topics you’re interested in writing about, and you’ll get an e-mail when projects are added in the category. While this part and filling out your bio aren’t necessary to start working, it’s good to complete them if you want to maximize the work available to you.

How Do You Make Money On iWriter?

To earn money on iWriter, you write content for clients. To fully understand how you earn money on iWriter, watching this instructional video is essential. However, I’ve highlighted some important parts from the video below:

Sign-up. Once this is done, click the “Write Content” link at the top of your iWriter dashboard.
You’ll be taken to a page that shows all of the available projects on iWriter. Some projects are marked for ‘Elite’ and ‘Premium’ writers only. These are writers who have written a certain amount of articles and received a certain amount of ratings.
As a new writer, you can accept projects for ‘Standard’ writers.
Clients are called Requesters on iWriter. Look at the reviews of each Requester; you can do so by looking at the star rating next to their Requester name.
You can also see the number of Approvals and Rejections a Requester has along with their percentage right. For example, some may have an Approval Rate of 90% while others may have lower rates.
Click the gray plus sign next to projects you are interested in working on. If it’s available for you to work on, there will be a green button that says “Write Article”.
Next to the “Write Article” button, there is a “Special Instructions” button. Always view the Special Instructions! They will tell you what keywords, tone, and other requirements a Requester has.
Once you click “Write Article”, you’ll have three hours to write a 500-word article. For 150 to 300-word articles, you’ll have two hours to complete them. For 1,000-word articles, you’ll have five hours to complete it.
Once you complete an article, the Requester has 72 hours to approve or reject it.

Actual Earnings

Now that we’ve covered the video highlights, let’s discuss actual earnings. This is how much you can earn per article:

‘Standard’ writers earn $1.62 for a 300-word article, $2.43 for a 500-word article and $4.05 for 700-word article.
‘Elite’ writers have a 4.6-star or higher approval rating; they can earn $8.10 for a 500-word article.
‘Premium’ writers have a 4.0-star or higher approval rating; they can earn $4.05 for a 500-word article.

Let’s say that as a Standard writer, you can write four 500-word articles per hour. That means you’ll earn $9.72/hour assuming your articles are approved. It may take awhile to work up to a writing speed that equates to a good hourly wage – that’s normal.

I suggest setting a small goal at first, like completing three 300-word articles in an hour. This is a low hourly wage of $4.86/hour, but it allows you get some practice under your belt without rushing.

How Do You Get Paid On iWriter?

The iWriter FAQ states the following:

Writers get paid via Paypal payments. Payment are sent in 1 of 4 time periods. Weekly, Every 2 weeks, Every month on the 5th, Every month on the 25th. You must include a valid Paypal email to get paid. Weekly payments are sent every Tueday. Bi-weekly payments are sent every other Wednesday. Monthly is sent either on the 5th or 25th depending on which is selected. Payments will be sent to your Paypal account within a 24 hour time period from each of the dates previously mentioned. The exact time of day that the payment is sent may vary due to Paypal’s payment scheduler.

Additionally, you must have a minimum of $20 earned before your payment will be transferred to PayPal. You can select when you want to get paid by following these steps:

Log into iWriter and click on your name where it says “Welcome back, name” at the top of the page. This will take you to the Edit Profile page.
On this page, scroll down to “Edit Payment Info” on the left-hand side of the page. This is also where you’ll list your PayPal e-mail address to receive payments.
Under “Payment method” select from one of the four options. They are titled ‘Every Tuesday’, ‘Every other Wednesday’, ‘Every month on the 5th’, or ‘Every month on the 25th’.
Scroll to the bottom of the page. Click “Update Profile” to save your preferences.

Naturally, the fastest way to get money is to set your minimum payout to $20 and to select the ‘Every Tuesday’ option. You can opt for less frequent payment if you don’t plan to use the site often enough to earn $20 per week.

iWriter Feedback From Users

If you’ve looked into iWriter prior to reading this post, you may notice that iWriter feedback is quite mixed. Some people love the site and swear by it, but others have expressed pretty significant dissatisfaction. I think it’s important to look at the good and bad opinions, so I’ve summarized some of what I’ve read. Here’s what other former and current iWriter users have to say:

On LetterPile.com, author Kari has an iWriter review that covers all aspects of the site. As far as the good aspects go, Kari likes that you can begin writing immediately, she’s never seen iWriter miss a payment, and Requesters have the ability to tip you.

I also like that A) you can begin writing immediately and that B) iWriter payments are very consistent. I’ve not used the site recently and wasn’t aware of the tipping feature, but I think it’s excellent for writers.

As for the bad, she mentions that you can only start out writing basic articles – the lower paying Standard articles. She also notes the Requester’s ability to reject articles without any solid reason, and I agree that this is very problematic.

I cover how to avoid this in the tips section below. She mentions that Requester’s ability to leave reviews is a bad thing if it’s abused by the requesters. I’ve never experienced this, but I can certainly see it being an issue if a Requester leaves unwarranted bad feedback.

Lastly, she notes two things for the ‘ugly’ side of the site. While Requesters can leave you amazing feedback, they may only rate you three stars. This is a common and frustrating issue with content mill websites.

Some clients leave three-star ratings on work they truly love, and they don’t understand how this can hurt a writer’s ability to succeed. Kari also notes that she has had work rejected, but the Requester still used it anyways. I haven’t experienced this problem, and I strongly suggest reporting it if you do.

Full Time Job From Home features another iWriter review written more recently in summer of 2016. As far as the good and bad aspects go, it echoes the sentiments from most other iWriter reviews that I’ve read.

The author mentions that there’s a high level of competition at iWriter; the projects that are available are snatched up quickly. This makes it difficult, if not impossible, to rely on as a source of full-time income. The author also mentions the overall low pay, which is, unfortunately, common for content mills. Additionally, rejections are cited as another downside to the site.

However, this author says that overall iWriter is not a scam, and I must say I agree with is. It’s not the best paying-website out there, but it’s a legitimate way to earn money from home. It’s not going to make you rich by any means, but it’s an opportunity for spare money or part-time income. If that’s what you’re looking for, then iWriter may be worth a shot.

Tips For Making The Most Of iWriter

Lastly, I’d like to provide some tips for making the most of iWriter. There are a few different strategies you can use to maximize your earnings and reduce your chance of running into rejections and bad ratings. Keep this information in mind:

Choose to write for Requesters with a high acceptance rating. When I used iWriter, I stuck with Requesters who had acceptance rates of 80% or above. I never received a rejection. The only downside is that this can lead to less work availability. However, it’s worth it if climbing the ranks to earn more money is important to you.
Leave positive feedback for Requesters you like, and let them know you’d like to write for them. A simple sentence like “(Name) is a great Requester to work for. Prompt approval and enjoyable topics. I’d love to write more for (Name).” is perfect. It’s complimentary and lets the Requester know you’re open to working for them directly – this can lead to more money per article.
Choose articles with keywords that don’t require excessive research. This means something different for everyone. For example, I’d pick a topic like “make money online” versus a topic like “business litigation in the UK”. The second topic would require a lot of research since I know next to nothing about it. That means less money per hour is earned.
Don’t hesitate to contact iWriter support if you want or need to. If you have questions or concerns, getting an answer ASAP will get you back on the writing path ASAP. You can also check out the iWriter FAQ section for quick answers to common questions.
Read the iWriter blog in your spare time, especially the Writer Course posts. These posts cover topics like “An Introduction To Professional Writing” and “Writing The Perfect First Paragraph”. If you’re new to writing, you will likely find these posts very helpful. The better you understand content writing, the more money you’re likely to earn.

The Final iWriter Verdict

So, what’s my overall opinion on iWriter? I think that as long as you aren’t looking to build a flourish writing career, it’s a fine option. It’s an easy way to make as much as you’d like; perhaps $20 here and there or $200 a week. Just be aware of the downsides that some users report, and keep the tips listed above in mind. If you do this, you can make money online at iWriter with ease.

If this iWriter review was helpful, you’ll enjoy some of the other money making site reviews on Frugal For Less. A few examples include:

Making money online is easier than you may think – just use these resources to take the plunge! I hope you enjoyed my full iWriter review. If you have anything you’d like to add or have any questions, feel free to leave them down below. Thanks for reading and happy writing!