Losing weight is never an easy journey. Some give up after seeing slow improvements. While others go back to their old weight after achieving their goals.   

To overcome this, some experts have suggested that the key to achieving your ideal weight (and staying there) is maintaining motivation. (1)

And while what motivates one person might differ from the next, one scientific study has shown a trend in what usually gets people to commit to their weight loss goals. 

The 2008 study published by the Journal of American Medical Association found that participants who were given financial incentives lost more than 3 times the weight of those without them. (2) 

So if you’re currently stuck in your weight-loss journey, maybe a financial incentive might be just what you need. 

Interestingly, an online platform called HealthyWage has created a way for you to do just that. It works by allowing you to place a bet on your weight loss, either as an individual or as part of a group.

If you manage to reach your weight goal, you get a cash prize. If you don’t meet your goal and lose, you forfeit the wager that you paid at the start.

When I first heard about it, I wondered whether it was really legit and if it really worked. So I looked at the program in close detail to learn more about it. 

Keep reading to find out all I’ve discovered about HealthyWage and if it’s the right weight loss program for you! 

As a bonus, we’ll also be comparing it to a close alternative called DietBet later in the review. 

Prizes up to $10,000: HealthyWage Prize Calculator

What Are Weight Wagers on HealthyWage?

HealthyWage is a platform that uses financial incentives to help you lose weight. 

You pay a ‘wager’ to begin. And in return, they pay you a cash prize at the end if you reach your goal. These prizes range between $100-$10,000. 

And if you don’t meet your goal, you will lose your wager. 

The concept centers around scientific findings that financial rewards can help increase people’s chances of success at losing weight. But also that the possibility of losing money if you don’t reach your goals is another powerful motivator. 

In addition to this, HealthyWage offers a supportive community element for your weight loss journey as well.

You can invite friends and family to follow along and they can be added to your account for free. These are people who are meant to encourage and motivate you along the way.

Alternatively you can make a wager as a group. Here you set a weightloss goal together with your friends or with other HealthyWage members. You all try to lose the weight together.

Having other people involved can give you that positive reinforcement that you need to help you stick to a weightloss plan.

So dieting in this more ‘social way’ is also more likely to be successful. And it’s much more fun too!

Let’s take a closer look at how exactly a HealthyWage wage works.

How Does HealthyWage Work?

How much can you win?	$100 to $10,000. The exact prize is calculated based on the 3 factors that you enter (see below).
Prize Factor 1: How much weight do you want to lose?	Minimum of 10% of your starting weight. You set the weightloss goal. The more you lose the bigger the prize.
Prize Factor 2:  How long will you take to complete your challenge?	6-18 months The longer you take the more months you pay for and so the higher the prize you are given.
Prize Factor 3: How much do you want to pay for the wager?	$5-$995 per month. You set the fee you want to pay each month. The more you pay, the higher the prize amount.
How do I calculate my prize amount?	You can get a prize range straight away with their: Instant Prize Calculator
Can you invite friends and family?	Yes, there is even a referral program. Every person who joins adds a sum to your prize pot.
Ease of signing up	Very easy, you just do a quick questionnaire to set your challenge.
Can you join more than 1 challenge?	Yes. You can join as many challenges as you want to maximise your winnings from 1 weightloss. Each challenge will have its own monthly wager.
Can your wager be paused?	It can only be paused if you’re pregnant/think you are pregnant or for certain medical conditions.
What is the refund policy?	Refunds aren’t available after a challenge has been placed. You can change the goals of your wager within 30 days of starting.
When do you verify your weight?	Once at the start. Once at the end.
HealthyWage Reviews	Scored an average of 4.6 stars out of 5 from 146 reviews.
HealthyWage Prizes	Prizes up to $10,000: HealthyWage

HealthyWage Review

Who Are HealthyWage?

HealthyWage was set up in 2009 by David Roddenberry and Jimmy Fleming.

They wanted to help people achieve their weightloss goals by offering cash prizes, social motivation and some gentle peer pressure.

Their system is based around research showing that even small cash rewards increased someone’s chances of success at weightloss significantly.

They also found that people are more effective at losing weight if their own money is at risk.

Since setting up they’ve been a huge success. HealthyWage have an impressive record of helping participants lose more than 2 million pounds of weight.

They’ve also paid out over $9 million in prizes in the last year alone.

They are the first company in the US to offer financial incentives and peer support as a motivation for weight loss.

They also hold an A rating from the Better Business Bureau.

Prizes up to $10,000: HealthyWage Prize Calculator

How Does HealthyWage Work?

On the HealthyWage website you can find a number of different wager options.

You are able to do any one of these or all of these at the same time:

Bet on Yourself

Here you create a bet that you will reach your personal weightloss goal. This is the most common type of wager on HealthyWage.

You start by having a play around with their instant prize calculator to see how much money you could win.

Here you enter in 3 main factors and depending on what these are you are shown a prize range that your prize would fall within.

The 3 factors are:

1. Weightloss amount.
2. Length of time to lose the weight.
3. Amount you want to pay each month as your ‘wager’.

When any of these 3 factors go up, your prize range goes up.

In order to see your exact prize amount you fill out a brief questionnaire in the next step. This gives you the prize sum which is fixed once the bet is placed and won’t change.

If you’re curious how much you could win, have a play with the instant calculator:

HealthyWage: Instant Prize Calculator

Bet as Part of a Team

Here you sign up through the team portal. After signing up you can choose to:

1. Join an existing team.
2. Create your own team.

When you bet as part of a team, all the members put their monthly wager into a pot.

Those who win the wager from the group split the pot. Those who lose forfeit the monthly wagers they have paid.

Losing weight as part of a group can be a great, if you thrive off of positive reinforcement from friends, colleagues or other HealthyWage members.

Find a team to join or set up your own team with HealthyWage Teams.

Bet Against Your Co-Workers

If you have a competitive streak you might want to bet against friends or colleagues.

Compete with your co-workers to see who will lose the most weight. Employers can set up challenges on HealthyWage specifically for their employees.

Can I Do More Than One Wage On HealthyWage?

You can only do one HealthyWage at a time. But you can sign up for other team challenges at the same time as your HealthyWage.  

Additional Things to Consider

Yo-Yo Rule

HealthyWage do have a “Yo-Yo Rule”. If you have won a prize of over $200 from a previous HealthyWage challenge then you can’t repeat the same weightloss.

You have to set your weight at or below the weight that you ended the last challenge with.

This is to encourage long term weightloss over putting on and losing weight all the time. It also stops people taking advantage of the program.

It’s great to see a platform that truly cares about their user’s health by stopping them from doing things that could be bad for them.

Lifelines

Users are also encouraged to set Lifelines. These are friends or family members who help encourage you through your challenge.

You can invite them to join you and they can sign up to for a free account with HealthyWage.

Then you can customize what parts of your challenge they’ll get notified about.

They will never see your weight as that is private.

The goal of Lifelines is to give you support with your weightloss.

They are completely optional but they are a positive way to improve your chances of success.

You can have as many Lifelines as you want and HealthyWage recommend having at least 5.

What are the Limitations of HealthyWage?

While HealthyWage seems to have worked for many people, here are some limitations that might impact whether it’s the right choice for you:

• There is no nutrition or exercise guidance in this program. So you’re left on your own to find a healthy way to lose weight or the best weightloss method for you.
• After the program is over, there is no more monetary incentive for you to keep the weight off. So you will still need to find some other way of motivating yourself to stay at your ideal weight.     
• It may not be suited for those with gambling problems as they may make weight wagers that are far out of their reach.

Prizes up to $10,000: HealthyWage Prize Calculator

HealthyWage Reviews

HealthyWage averages 4.6 stars out of 5 stars from 169 reviews across 2 independent platforms including SiteJabber and the Better Business Bureau.

Reviewers commented that:

• HealthyWage was a gamechanger. It helped people remain motivated, even on the hardest of days, thanks to the support that was available.
• It is real with no gimmicks. It offers the motivation users need to get going and to stay on track but with no bells and whistles.
• They offered great customer support. Users could contact them via email or phone if they needed customer support or had a query.

Some users noted that they did fall foul of the ‘Yo-Yo rule’ which is stated in the terms and conditions but they did not realise.

This means they attempted to start a new challenge with a higher weight than their end weight from a previous challenge.

The rule was put in place to avoid people taking advantage of the program and to stop unhealthy habits of repeating weight gain and weight loss.

Prizes up to $10,000: HealthyWage Prize Calculator

How To Start A HealthyWage

To start a HealthyWage you head over to their website where you have 3 options:

1. Calculate the prize for your own challenge.
2. Join or create a Team Challenge.
3. Create a Corporate Challenge.

Here I’ve looked at the process of setting up a personal weightloss challenge so I started by calculating my prize.

This is done using their Instant Prize Calculator where you can play around with the goals: weightloss (minimum 10% of current body weight), timeline (6-18 months) and the monthly wager you want to put down ($5-$995).

The fact that you can set the goals however you want to is one of the best features of HealthyWage. It means you can create your own personalized weightloss challenge, rather than having to join an existing challenge and meet the preset targets.

To give you a rough idea of the prize ranges, I’ve listed what the HealthyWage calculator gave me for different combinations:

See how much you could win. Prizes up to $10,000: HealthyWage Prize Calculator

After you’ve got an idea of your prize range you go to Step 2.

This is where you fill out some simple questions to finalize your exact prize amount and place your wage.

What are the Limitations of HealthyWage?

While HealthyWage seems to have worked for many people, here are some limitations that might impact whether it’s the right choice for you:

• There is no nutrition or exercise guidance in this program. So you’re left on your own to figure out a healthy way to lose weight.
• After the program is over, there is no more monetary incentive for you to keep the weight off. So you will still need to find some other way of motivating yourself to stay at your ideal weight.
• It may not be suited for those with gambling issues as they may make weight wagers that are far out of their reach.

Prize range $490-$1,009 – HealthyWage Prize Calculator

Is HealthyWage Worth Doing?

HealthyWage is worth it for anyone who feels that financial incentives will help them stay motivated enough to reach their weight loss goals.

Money can be a powerful motivator, so it might be what some people need to stay committed to losing weight. And it seems to have worked for many individuals.

I particularly liked the social aspect of the program as well. You can add “Lifelines” who are friends and family that are there to support you along the way. This can be a positive reinforcement as you complete your challenges.

You can also choose to participate in a Group Challenge where you all try to lose weight together. The winnings are then split between those who achieve the goal.

Overall, I found the feel of the whole program to be quite supportive. And I didn’t feel there was any catch to HealthyWage.

However, do bear in mind that the program does not provide any resources about how to lose weight healthily. So if you need some guidance around nutrition or exercise, it’s best to use HealthyWage alongside a program that’s designed for you by a health professional.

In summary, I think it’s a useful program if you feel a financial reward motivator is the “final push” you need to achieve your weight loss goals.

HealthyWage FAQS

Is HealthyWage a scam?

Not at all! HealthyWage is a legitimate business, the first in the United States to have offered cash weight loss incentives directly to consumers.

Is HealthyWage legitimate?

It is. With plenty of years in business and plenty of press attention, HealthyWage has an array of testimonials and also has an A rating with the Better Business Bureau.

Press attention includes coverage from Good Morning America, Fox News, NBC News, the Wall Street Journal as well as good reviews across a range of different platforms.

Does HealthyWage really pay out?

Yes it does! Payment is sent to you after completion of the challenge and after the weigh-out verification has been viewed and accepted by the company.

How does HealthyWage have money for the prizes?

HealthyWage works towards a goal of having as many members as possible winning their challenges, so it gets funding from a number of places.

This includes sponsorships by insurers, hospitals, food companies and the government. These organizations support HealthyWage because it costs less overall to have a fitter, healthier population.

They also take a 25% admin fee for running the challenges. Any lost challenges where the monthly wager is forfeited go into supporting the company. This includes making the prize payouts to winners.

What’s the catch with HealthyWage?

There is no catch with HealthyWage, the prize is fixed when you start and won’t change. Users simply need to achieve their goal in the timeframe that they allowed to win the money.

Conversely users also can’t cancel the challenge, so they don’t offer refunds after a wager has started. They do allow you to change the goalposts of the challenge if you need to within 30 days of starting.

Users can “Buy More Time” if they do not think they will manage to meet their original end date. However the extra monthly wagers paid will come out of the cash prize as this stays fixed after the challenge has started.

The challenge starts with the first verified weigh-in and will end with the verified weigh-out during the two week window leading up to the user’s end date.

Once the weigh-out has been done and it has been verified, users can cashout their winnings.

How long does it take to get paid from HealthyWage?

Once users have completed their challenge and had their weigh-out successfully verified, they can receive their money in one of two ways – PayPal or a paper check.

Paypal payments will be processed in two to five days whereas check payments will be received within one to three weeks after payout is requested.

How does HealthyWage verify your weight?

There are three ways to get your weight verified at the end of a challenge.

Users can download the mobile app after registration and follow the instructions there.

They can make a short weigh-in or weigh-out video that can be uploaded securely to the website.

They can get their final weight signed off by a health professional.

Can you cheat HealthyWage?

Cheating is very difficult on HealthyWage due to the video verification process which requires users to validate their identities and weight at both ends of the challenge.

The program has algorithms, weigh-in reviews and if completely necessary, outside investigators and law enforcement to catch any foul play.

Can you take advantage of the program to benefit financially?

A Yo-Yo rule has also been put in place for those who have previously won a prize of $200 or more in a single HealthyWage challenge.

These members can’t lose the same weight again. Their next challenge has to start at the weight that they achieved from their previous challenge.

This is both to avoid people taking advantage of the program and to avoid encouraging repeat weight gain and loss to get cash prizes.

Is HealthyWage legal?

Yes it is. Although the word bet is used to explain the concept, it isn’t gambling in the legal sense. This is because you are in control of the outcome at all times. You have to lose the weight to receive the money.

What does HealthyWage cost?

There is no set cost for HealthyWage as you set how much you want to ‘wager’ each month. This can be anywhere between $5 and $995 a month.

The more you wager the higher the cash prize at the end, but the higher the risk as well.

Users can play around with the algorithm to find the prize figure and monthly figure that they are most comfortable with.

How much weight can you lose in a month?

You set the overall weightloss you want to achieve when setting up the challenge and this will vary from person to person.

In general health guidelines state that healthy weightloss should be 1-2lbs a week (so 4-9lbs a month).

There is no mandatory monthly weigh-in although you can do optional weigh-ins on the HealthyWage app to track your progress.

Alternatives to HealthyWage

HealthyWage is the first and biggest weight wager platform, but since they were founded a few others have emerged including one called DietBet.

HealthyWage vs DietBet

If you’ve heard of Dietbet you may be wondering what exactly the difference is between HealthyWage and Dietbet?

DietBet Has Group Challenges While HealthyWage Has Both Individual and Group Challenges

DietBet works in groups. You can join groups or create your own but you can’t set your own individual challenge as of yet.

On the other hand HealthyWage offers the option of both joining and creating groups as well as customizing your own personal weightloss challenge.

It even allows you to do both. So you can set your own personal challenge and then join a group challenge as well – as long as it’s for the same weightloss.

DietBet Group Challenges Have Set Targets

The weightloss amount and timeline are set by the groups that you join in DietBet. For example a Kickstarter group would involve a 4% weightloss from the members in 1 month. So when you join you have to stick to those goals.

In HealthyWage you can either join group challenges with fixed goals or you can create a personal challenge which is customized to your own weightloss (or both). So there’s more flexibility.

Different Minimum Weightloss Thresholds

DietBet requires a 4% minimum weightloss whereas HealthyWage requires a 10% minimum weightloss.

Generally HealthyWage offers longer challenges too with greater weightloss goals.

Prizes are not Guaranteed with DietBet

The way that DietBet works is that all the members of the groups put the money into a pot.

At the end of the challenge those who have won get their monthly wager back and those who have lost forfeit the bet. So if a group of 5 people put in $30 the winners will get their $30 back and the losers will lose their $30.

Admin fees are deducted and then if there are any additional winnings these are split evenly among the winners.

Usually you do make money and this could be in the range of $5 and $30 for a $30 bet. So you could still double your money but the sums tend to be a little smaller than with HealthWage.

There is also the outside risk that if too many people win the challenge that the winners won’t get anything extra as there won’t be enough in the pot to go round. But you’ll still have achieved a great weightloss goal.

Which is Better, HealthyWage or DietBet?

In summary, DietBet is great if you want a quick challenge. There is a lower weightloss threshold, the groups are there and ready to join and there is a chance of doubling your money. It offers a fun weightloss motivation as part of a group.

HealthyWage is better if you want a bigger weightloss challenge. It allows you to customize how much and how long you want to take to lose the weight. You can also choose to pay more or less into the monthly wager.

The winnings from the personal challenges that you create don’t depend on team members. They’re guaranteed from the point that you make the bet and the sum is set.

You also have the option of joining groups if you wish to. You can do this for the same weightloss challenge. In this case the same group rules will apply and after the admin fee the winnings will be divided evenly among those who reach their goal.