How to become a pub tester

If you (like us) dread looking at your bank account after a night out, we've got some very good news. You can actually get paid to drink beer. Where do we sign up...?

Credit: Master1305 – Shutterstock

As a student, it can feel next to impossible to do your uni work, have a part-time job and maintain a social life. But we've found a (quite frankly brilliant) job that lets you go out and make money from it.

If you look young enough to get ID'd when buying drinks, your youthful looks will come in handy. By working as an auditor, you can earn money from visiting pubs and checking that you get ID'd for alcohol. Drinks on you?

Working as a pub tester

Credit: Syda Productions – Shutterstock

A few businesses offer ID and compliance testing services in the UK and Ireland. Some of the top companies include Serve Legal and Centrebound.

Rather excitingly, they're looking for applicants to live the dream and effectively get paid to drink beer. Serve Legal offers these audits to 18–19-year-olds, while Centrebound is looking for young people aged 18–21. If you're over 21, don't worry – we run through more opportunities for you below.

As a pub tester (or 'auditor' as you'd officially be called), you would ultimately be checking that you get ID'd when ordering age-specific things like alcohol and cigarettes, or placing a bet. This will often be in pubs, but you could also be asked to test places like supermarkets, bookmakers, racecourses, cinemas, and so on.

Particularly in places with a 'Think 25' ID-ing policy (where they should ID anyone who looks younger than 25), you'd be there to make sure they're not taking risks when it comes to serving underage people.

You'd then need to write up a short report about the venue, stating whether they asked for your ID. It's a pretty easy way to make money if you ask us.

David Sharples, one of Serve Legal's Regional Managers, said:

It really is as rewarding as it sounds.

The work offered is flexible and works around what our auditors want to do, which is attractive to people who are in education or possibly even other part-time jobs.

However, some auditors do make this their full-time job, as the work is so well-paid and available.

Mystery shopping roles if you're aged 21+

While the age-related tests that involve buying alcohol are only for people aged 18–21 (depending on which company you work with), there are loads of 'audit' opportunities for people over this age.

Serve Legal might ask you to complete audits at betting shops, restaurants and supermarkets. Alternatively, Centrebound offers a whole host of opportunities, including online and telephone mystery shopping (meaning you can work from the comfort of your own home).

Get paid to drink beer

Considering Serve Legal and Centrebound are paying you to do things you'd usually pay to do (i.e. going to the pub for a pint), getting paid any money at all is a win. But you may be a little surprised at just how much you can get paid per audit...

The amount you'd actually receive per job would vary depending on factors like the type of audit, location and urgency.

Serve Legal previously told us that if you're popping into a shop for something, you might get £4 – £8. Alternatively, spending the day at home to receive a parcel and reporting on the experience can earn up to £75.

Serve Legal always makes sure auditors earn a national living wage at a minimum and that they're also reimbursed for their travel costs.

However, Giles Geddes, Managing Director at Centrebound, said:

We are different to other mystery shopping and age verification companies in that we pay a higher basic all inclusive fee instead of low audit fees with the hassle of adding expenses on top.

Typically assignments pay from £15 up to £100, with the average payment around £20.
Visits and surveys take a total of about 40 minutes to complete, so this works out way above the living wage.

We are also one of the fastest paying companies with auditors receiving payments within seven days directly into their accounts.

And, as you'd be paid per audit, the more audits you do, the more money you get. This means that it's up to you to put in the effort and go out to the pub more – tough work, we know.

How to apply

Does this sound like your cup of (Long Island Iced) tea?

To apply to be an auditor, you typically need to be:

• Aged 16–21 for age-related testing 
• Aged 20-21+ for wider compliance audits
• Dedicated and reliable
• Honest and objective
• Detail focused
• Self-motivated
• Professional
• Happy to explore your local area.

If that sounds like you, complete the application form on Serve Legal's website or Centrebound's website and keep your fingers crossed.

Fun part-time jobs for students

This isn't the only job we know of that sounds too good to be true but is, in fact, very much real.

Did you know you can also make money from walking? Or by running an alpaca farm? Or even answering surveys? You can even make money from Pokémon Go.

And, as if those weren't enough, we know of plenty more unusual jobs and careers that you never knew existed (until now).

One of the best parts of working as an auditor for Serve Legal (besides getting paid to go to the pub, of course) is that it should be quite an easy job to balance with your studies.