Another Monday means another review. I am nearing the end of these things though because I only have 5 more left including this one today.

So today is another article writing site but this one is quite strict in how they operate. If you’re a person who doesn’t mind getting paid up front for articles that you have no attachment to then this might be for you. If you would rather choose the subjects you prefer to write on then you’re probably better off writing on Triond or Expertscolumn.

What it is: Textbroker is a site where users get paid to write articles that will then be posted on other sites. If I were to sum it up I would say it’s somewhat of a ghostwriter site because the user relinquishes ownership to their articles to the client that requests the article.

Who can join: Textbroker is open to US residents 18 or older. For those who live outside the US, there is a UK based Textbroker site that allows anyone who can write fluent British English to apply regardless of the country they live in (It’s also my understanding that US residents who are temporarily living abroad can apply on the US site).
What you need to apply: To apply for a Textbroker account you will need a valid e-mail address, a Paypal account and you will need to submit a writing sample (less than 150 words). The writing sample is needed to determine what level (1-5) you will be categorized under (Just so you know the real levels on Textbroker are levels 2-4. People who fall at level 1 are rejected and not eligible for an account and Textbroker only classifies professional writers as level 5 writers).

Cost to sign up: There is no cost to sign up to Textbroker (Unless you consider about an hour of your time to write up that sample to be an expense).

How much you can make: The minimum payout on Textbroker is $10. Textbroker determines how users get paid by their levels. Level 2 writers get paid $1.20/100 words, level 3 writers get paid $1.60/100 words and level 4 writers get paid $2.70/100 words. Each article request is ranked by level (though to be completely honest there are more level 4 articles than anything so you wouldn’t put yourself in a good position to be a level 2 or 3 writer).

Most articles are 250-700 words so in most instances all it would take is 2-3 articles to reach the payout. I should also note that the levels are important because level 2 writers can only write on level 2 articles while level 4 writers can write on level 2, 3 and 4 articles (but only be paid at the level rate of the article). Once reaching the $10 minimum, users can request a payout but the payout will only be initiated after midnight (Pacific Time) on Thursdays (Meaning Friday requests are processed the following Thursday).

Ways to get the payout faster: There is no referral program with Textbroker so the only 2 ways to make the payout faster is to write more articles and increase or maintain your level ranking. It doesn’t take very long for articles to get approved after they have been submitted (in my experience it takes anywhere from 15 minutes to 3 hours) and the process is easier as long as you follow the client instructions for the article (clients can request revisions before approving the article so you have to follow their instructions exactly as they ask. It’s less of a headache that way).

Every submitted and approved article Is then evaluated by Textbroker staff (this can take anywhere from a week to a month to happen) and their evaluations dictate your level ranking so you want to try to write the best article you can write even if the client is happy with the less than perfect article.

If you think Textbroker is for you then sign up here.

Textbroker (US Site)
Textbroker (UK Site)

Update (6/16/2012): I am adding 4 new Textbroker sites targeted towards European countries. To sign up you must be able to read and write the language in which the site is presented in (German, French, Spanish or Dutch).

Textbroker (Germany Site)
Textbroker (Spain Site)
Textbroker (France Site) (Those signed up through the German site can use their same logins here and registration is also open to French-speaking residents outside of Europe including Canada).
Textbroker (Netherlands Site)