Mystery shopping comes with its own language. This glossary covers key terms every shopper needs to know, from basic ideas to field jargon. We add new terms often, so check back soon. Use the search box below to find what you need fast.
68 terms shown
No terms found matching your search. Try a different keyword.
1
1099-NECBeginner
A 1099-NEC is the IRS tax form that reports non-staff pay. You get one when you earn $600 or more from a single mystery shopping firm in one year.
Read the full guide →A
Age Verification Shop
An age check shop is a rule-check job that tests whether workers ask for ID before selling age-locked products. These include tobacco, alcohol, lottery tickets, and vaping gear.
Apartment Shop
An apartment shop is a mystery shopping job where you pose as a future tenant. You rate leasing offices and property tours for skill, look, and Fair Housing rules.
Approved
Approved is a shop status showing your report passed review and is now in line for payment based on the firm’s pay schedule.
Assigned
Assigned is a shop status meaning you have agreed to finish a set mystery shopping job and must complete it by the deadline.
Audio Shop
An audio shop is a mystery shopping job that needs you to record the sound of your visit. You use a hidden device so the firm can review it for training and rule checks.
Automotive Shop
An auto shop is a mystery shopping job rating car lots, service centers, or parts stores, from quick check-ups to full test drive setups.
B
Bank Shop
A bank shop is a mystery shopping job rating banks and credit unions for service, product know-how, wait times, and rule-keeping.
Bonused ShopBeginner
A bonused shop is a job with extra pay added above the base fee, most often for hard-to-fill spots, far-off areas, or close deadlines.
Read the full guide →C
Cancel
Canceling means letting your scheduler know you can’t finish an assigned shop before its deadline, which hurts far less than flaking.
Read the full guide →Certification
Mystery shopping certification means finishing training courses and passing tests that prove your skills and polish, such as MSPA Silver and Gold levels.
Check Deposit ScamBeginner
A check deposit scam is a fraud scheme where someone sends you a fake check. They tell you to deposit it, keep a cut, and wire the rest elsewhere.
Read the full guide →ClientBeginner
The client is the business that hired the mystery shopping firm to rate their spots. Client names are private and must never be shared in public.
Read the full guide →D
Deactivation
Being cut off for good from a firm’s active list, blocking all future jobs due to too much flaking, rule breaks, or low-grade reports.
Read the full guide →E
Editor
An editor is the mystery shopping firm’s staff member who checks your reports for accuracy, completeness, and rule-following before clearing payment.
Read the full guide →Extension
An extension is extra time given by a scheduler to finish a shop past its first deadline. Good reasons include sudden store closings or crises.
F
FlakeBeginner
A flake is a shopper who fails to finish an assigned shop without giving notice. This badly hurts their standing and risks their account.
Read the full guide →Flat Fee
A flat fee is one payment that covers both your shop pay and any required buys. There’s no split payback, so you need to budget well.
G
GeoVerify
GeoVerify is a phone app that checks your GPS spot and timestamp to prove you were at the right place during your shop window.
Read the full guide →H
Hero
A hero mark is a plus earned by taking urgent last-minute shops that need fast turnaround, often bringing bonus pay and better ties with schedulers.
Hotel Shop
A hotel shop is a mystery shopping job rating lodging services like check-in, room quality, perks, and staff dealings during your stay.
Hybrid Shop
A hybrid shop is a job that blends many touchpoints to rate the full buyer journey across channels like phone, in-person, and email.
I
IC Pro
IC Pro is a vetting program through JobSlinger that sets shoppers up as proven ICs with checked W-9 info and background screening.
In-Person ShopBeginner
An in-person shop is a mystery shopping job where you go to a real store or office to rate service, tidiness, and worker skills.
Read the full guide →Independent Contractor Agreement (ICA)Beginner
An IC agreement is the legal form you sign stating that you work for yourself and handle your own taxes, gear, and business costs.
Read the full guide →J
Job BoardBeginner
A job board is the online list of open mystery shopping jobs that you browse to self-assign or apply for within each firm’s shopper portal.
Read the full guide →JobSlingerBeginner
JobSlinger is a free tool that searches open shops across hundreds of SASSIE-based mystery shopping firms at once in one handy spot.
Read the full guide →K
KPIs (Key Performance Indicators)
KPIs are the set metrics a mystery shop tracks, such as greeting speed, product know-how scores, tidiness ratings, and upsell checks.
L
Legitimate MSC Indicators
Real mystery shopping firms never charge shoppers to work and never send surprise checks. They also never ask for wire transfers or gift card buys, and they have provable business records.
M
Merchandising
Merchandising means product spot checks, display setup, or shelf stocking work that some mystery shopping firms offer as extra ways to earn alongside standard shops.
MSPA (Mystery Shopping Providers Association)Beginner
MSPA is the global trade group for mystery shopping firms that sets field standards, offers shopper certifications, but does not hire shoppers on its own.
Read the full guide →Mystery Shopping Company (MSC)Beginner
A mystery shopping firm is a business that works with brands to run secret reviews, hiring ICs to do shops and turn in checked reports.
Read the full guide →N
NarrativeBeginner
A narrative is the written account in your shop report telling your visit from start to finish. Use time order, neutral words, and clear details.
Read the full guide →O
Objective Questions
Objective questions in shop reports need hard facts like yes/no answers, pick-one choices, or exact counts based on what you saw — not your views.
P
Payment ScheduleBeginner
A payment schedule spells out when a mystery shopping firm sends pay for done shops, most often 30 to 45 days after report approval.
Read the full guide →Pending
Pending is a shop status meaning your report has been sent in but waits for editor review. It most often stays this way for one to five work days.
Phone ShopBeginner
A phone shop is a mystery shopping job that rates service over the phone only. You check reps, wait times, and how well they solve your issue.
Read the full guide →Proof of Visit
Proof of visit is evidence showing you did a mystery shop at the right spot and time, such as receipts, photos, timestamps, or GPS checks.
Prophet
Prophet is a mystery shopping software platform used by some firms. It needs its own sign-up apart from SASSIE to reach their job boards and report systems.
Q
QSR Shop
A QSR shop is a fast food review that focuses on drive-thru timing, order accuracy, staff speed, and tidiness at quick-serve spots.
R
Receipt Upload
Receipt upload means sending clear photos or scans of your buy receipts as proof of visit. These must show date, time, spot, and items bought.
ReimbursementBeginner
A payback is money returned to you for required buys made during jobs. You pay first and get paid back after report approval — it is not profit.
Read the full guide →Rejected
Rejected is a shop status meaning your report was not accepted. Causes include rule breaks, missing needs, or low quality, and it most often leads to no payment.
Required PurchaseBeginner
A required purchase is any item or service you must buy as part of your mystery shopping setup. You get paid back up to set limits in your guidelines.
Read the full guide →Restaurant ShopBeginner
A dining shop is a mystery shopping job rating restaurants for food quality, service speed, tidiness, and brand standard upkeep.
Read the full guide →Revealed Shop
A revealed shop is a job where you must tell staff you’re a mystery shopper, allowing close rule-checks of back-of-house areas.
Revision Requested
Revision requested is a shop status meaning editors need more info or fixes before they can clear your report, most often due within 24-48 hours.
Route
Routing is a plan where you knock out many mystery shopping jobs in the same area during one trip to boost your hourly earnings.
S
SASSIEBeginner
SASSIE is the most widely used mystery shopping software, running job boards and report systems for over 150 firms across the field.
Read the full guide →Scenario
A scenario is the exact role, backstory, and setup you must play during a mystery shopping job as laid out in your shop guidelines.
Schedule C
Schedule C is the IRS form for filing self-employment income and business costs, used by mystery shoppers to report net profit and claim write-offs.
SchedulerBeginner
A scheduler is the mystery shopping firm rep who hands out shops, answers questions, grants extra time, and manages shopper contact.
Read the full guide →Self-Assign
Self-assign systems let you grab open shops from job boards with no scheduler sign-off on a first-come-first-served basis.
Self-Employment Tax
Self-employment tax is the 15.3% tax on net mystery shopping earnings over $400 per year, covering Social Security and Medicare.
Self-Purchase
A self-purchase is any item you buy beyond the required purchase that won’t be paid back, coming fully out of your own pocket.
Shop FeeBeginner
A shop fee is the pay you earn for doing a mystery shopping job, standing for your real earnings apart from any purchase paybacks.
Read the full guide →Shop GuidelinesBeginner
Shop guidelines are step-by-step rules telling you what to do, say, watch for, and report during a mystery shop. You must follow them to get paid.
Read the full guide →Shop LogBeginner
A shop log is your online dashboard showing all current, past, and pending jobs with due dates, payment status, and report links.
Read the full guide →Shop RotationBeginner
Shop rotation is the wait time before you can go back to rate the same spot again. It’s most often 30 to 90 days based on the client.
Read the full guide →Shop Window
A shop window is the date range during which you must finish a job, from the first allowed start date to the final deadline.
Shopper Portal
A shopper portal is the website or mobile app where you manage your account and view jobs. You also send in reports and track pay status with each firm.
Shopper Rating
A shopper rating is the number score editors give based on your report quality. It most often runs from 1 to 10 and shapes which jobs you get first.
Shopmetrics
Shopmetrics is another mystery shopping software platform used by some firms, needing its own sign-up apart from SASSIE.
Suggestive Selling
Suggestive selling is when workers offer certain extra items rather than vague prompts, which many mystery shops grade as a key metric.
T
Target Employee
A target worker is the exact staff member you must rate, often named by role or look in your shop guidelines.
TimestampsBeginner
Timestamps are exact notes of when key events took place during your shop, used to track service speed and prove your visit is real.
Read the full guide →U
Unrevealed ShopBeginner
An unrevealed shop is the standard mystery shopping format where your role as a reviewer stays fully secret during the whole visit.
Read the full guide →Upselling
Upselling is when workers suggest a bigger size, top-tier version, or pricier pick over what you first asked for.
V
Video Shop
A video shop is a mystery shopping job that needs hidden camera gear to record your full visit on film for close review.
W
W-9Beginner
A W-9 is the IRS tax form mystery shopping firms collect from US-based shoppers before sending pay, listing your Social Security Number or Tax ID.
Read the full guide →Web Shop
A web shop is a mystery shopping job rating online buyer journeys like site ease, chat support, checkout flow, and shipping.
Ready to start mystery shopping? Check out our guide to the Best Mystery Shopping Companies to find real jobs and begin earning today.