Why TAPS Investigations Are Always Free — And Always Will Be
Charging people who are frightened in their own homes has never made sense to us. Here's where that principle came from, how we sustain the work, and what it means for you.
When Grant Wilson and I founded TAPS in 1990, we made one rule that was non-negotiable: we would never charge a client. Not for the investigation, not for travel, not for the report. Nothing. Thirty-five years and thousands of cases later, that rule has never changed, and it never will.
I want to explain why — not just because people ask, but because the reason matters to how we do the work.
Where the Rule Came From
I was a plumber when we started. Grant was too. We weren't academics or television personalities — we were tradespeople who'd had personal paranormal experiences and wanted to understand them. The people who called us were our neighbors: families in their own homes, scared, often embarrassed to admit they were scared, and with no idea who to trust.
The moment you charge someone in that situation, you change the dynamic. They become a customer, not a person in need. They feel obligated to validate your work. They're less likely to give you access to the full truth of what they've experienced because they don't want to seem like they wasted your time. Worst of all, bad actors enter the market — and there's no shortage of people who will take money from a frightened family and deliver theater instead of answers.
“The moment you charge someone who is frightened, you stop being someone who is trying to help them.”
Why Charging Doesn't Work
Here's the practical problem with paid paranormal investigation: you can't guarantee findings. We go in with a debunking-first methodology. In the majority of our cases, we find a rational explanation — a mechanical issue, an environmental factor, a carbon monoxide problem that needs a contractor, not a ghost hunter. A family that paid for an investigation and got told their furnace was faulty might feel cheated. That pressure, consciously or not, pushes investigators toward delivering the answer the client wants rather than the answer that's true.
We don't want that pressure. We want to tell you what we found, not what you paid to hear.
How TAPS Sustains the Work
TAPS is a non-profit organization. The work is sustained through our team members' own resources, through the Ghost Hunters television series and related projects, through speaking engagements, and through the generosity of people who believe in the mission. Our equipment is owned by team members. Travel is covered by team members. We operate lean on purpose.
The TAPS Family network — vetted independent teams we've trained and certified worldwide — operates on the same model. None of them charge their clients either. That's a condition of membership. If a team charges, they're not in the Family.
A Word About Other Investigators
There are legitimate investigators out there who charge — historians, academic researchers, consultants who help property owners understand what they have. That work is different from what we do. What concerns me is the growing number of people who charge vulnerable families specifically because those families are scared and desperate for answers.
If someone asks you for money to investigate your home, ask them what happens if they find nothing. Ask them for references. Ask them who trained them. Ask them how they handle cases where the explanation is rational. The answers will tell you a great deal.
We will never ask you for money. If you have something happening in your home and you want it investigated properly, submit a case request. It costs nothing. It always will.