Chances are you’re carrying a mobile device in your pocket most of the time. If this describes you, it’s time to put that phone to good use! Nowadays, there are dozens of money making apps that can help bring in some extra cash in your spare time or assist you in saving up for a big purchase.
If you’re financially motivated and ready to turn mindless scrolling into cash flow, let’s look at all the apps for making money and see which ones suit you best.
Best Money Making Apps
1. Acorns
This company has been around for quite a while, so you may already know about this app, but it’s one of our favorites! Acorns rounds up your spare change from everyday transactions and invests it into a portfolio of stocks and bonds. A few cents here and there may not seem like much, but over time it can add up to a significant amount of savings!
Investment options:
- Bitcoin ETF
- IRA with traditional and Roth options
- Investment accounts for kids (UTMA/UGMA)
Highlights:
- Earn rewards
- Get personalized recommendations
- Improve your financial literacy
- Backed by investors like CNBC, Dwayne Johnson, and Ashton Kutcher
- Highly secure data encryption (bank-level)
- No hidden fees
How to get started
Download the app, create an account, and link to your bank. Choose between a personal plan for $3/month or family plan for $5/month. Acorns also offers other options once you get comfortable with the platform like their own checking account with a debit card.
2. Rakuten
Formerly known as Ebates, Rakuten can be downloaded as an app or installed as a browser extension for maximum cash back while online shopping. Earn anywhere from 1% to 40% cashback on purchases made through Rakuten. With over 2,500 retail partners, there’s plenty of options you can choose from. Even just making routine purchases at your typical stores like WalMart and Target can help you earn money!
Highlights:
- Track all your shopping through Rakuten via app or desktop browser
- Choose from over 2,500 retailers
- Free to use with no hidden costs
- Cash back rewards through a mailed check or PayPal
- Earn extra money through referring friends and family
- Enjoy promotions like double cash back or special deals
How to get started
Join by downloading the app or the browser extension. It takes less than a minute to create an account. Start shopping via the app, extension, or right on Rakuten.com. Get paid via check or PayPal when you’re ready to cash out!
3. Arrived Homes
Okay, we cheated a little bit with this one because it’s not technically an app, but it’s too good not to share. The potential to make money online with this platform is very impressive.
Arrived is a place where you can buy shares of rental properties and earn income completely hands off. Traditional real estate investing is complex and risky. With Arrived, you can easily invest in real estate for as little as $100. We’re not kidding.
Highlights
- Invest as much or as little as you want starting at just $100 minimum
- Properties are completely managed by the Arrived team.
- No operational responsibility
- Rental tenants are vetted
- No liability for investors
- Earn passive income
- Start quickly with no complicated startup process
How to get started
Joining Arrived Homes is as simple as signing up, browsing homes, and buying shares. View your properties and transactions anytime through an intuitive and easy to use interface. Keep checking back often as shares go fast once a home is available.
4. OfferUp
OfferUp claims to be the largest mobile marketplace for local buyers and sellers, so more than likely a ton of people in your area use the app as well. If you have things around the house that you don’t want or need anymore, listing it on OfferUp is a quick and easy way to make cash from an app with little effort.
List your item in less than 30 seconds and have the ability to message buyers directly. If you play your cards right, you can also find some success buying items for cheap and flipping them for a profit.
Highlights
- Easier and more user-friendly than options like eBay or Facebook Marketplace
- Set up a listing in less than a minute
- Millions of people are on the app
- Build a good seller reputation
- Reach thousands or more local buyers instantly
How to get started
Download OfferUp on your mobile device and start browsing items, or simply hit “post” to start a listing! It’s really that simple.
5. UpWork
Do you have a unique skill set that could get you a job? If so, signing up to be a freelancer on the platform UpWork could be a lucrative opportunity. Once you’ve been approved, the app gives you access to a continuously updated list of project opportunities from long-term partnerships to one-time gigs.
Wondering what you could do to make money by signing up?
- Graphic design
- Web development
- Software engineering
- Writing
- Proofreading
- Digital marketing
- IT
- Cold calling
- Research
- Data entry
The options really are endless. If you don’t feel like you’ve developed a skill enough yet, take a few online courses and start applying for jobs to put your new abilities to work.
Highlights
- View new jobs at anytime on the mobile app
- Connect with people hiring instantly
- Manage everything within UpWork, no need to leave the platform to start working
- Get notifications on your phone when someone invites you to apply for a job
How to get started
Submit an application. Once you’ve been accepted, you can start submitting proposals right away and earn money quickly!
6. Robinhood
If you have the itch to invest in the stock market but aren’t sure where to start, Robinhood is a great app to get you more comfortable with investing. There are no status requirements or minimum balances needed to invest, making trading a lot more accessible to the average person.
Their main feature (and the one that made them popular) is commission-free trades, meaning it doesn’t cost a dime to buy or sell stocks. You can even try your luck with fractional shares — buying small pieces of stocks that may have a really high price per share (like Amazon).
Highlights
- Simple to use, no experience required
- Learn more about trading in the app
- Invest in crypto like Bitcoin, Dogecoin, Ethereum, and more
- Get access to IPOs
- No commissions when buying or selling
- Get a free stock when signing up for the first time
How to get started
Download the app on your mobile device and create an account. You’ll link your bank account and be ready to trade!
7. Foap
If you’re an aspiring photographer or simply have a knack for taking great photos and videos, you can turn your pictures into money with Foap. The premise is simple — upload your pics and videos to the app and brands or agencies can find them. Once someone buys a piece of your work, you’ll get a 50% cut of the sale price.
Not bad right? Make a hobby profitable and earn some side cash doing what you love. Another option is to submit media to Missions for a chance to win hundreds of dollars.
Highlights
- Make money taking pictures and videos
- Make a big cut of the profit
- Help brands and agencies have another option other than stock photos
- Simple user interface
- Earn up to $5 per photo
- Earn $30 – $500 for Foap Missions
How to get started
Sign up for a free account by creating a login via the app. Once you’re into your personal feed, you can instantly start uploading pictures or submit them to Missions.
8. Google Opinion Rewards
Who wouldn’t want to make money from an app by sharing their opinions? Google Opinion Rewards has made it a breeze to answer short consumer surveys in exchange for payment ranging from 10 cents to a dollar.
This is the perfect app to open up while you’re in line at the grocery store or waiting for your morning coffee. It might seem like a small amount, but it can definitely add up over time and pay for a night out once in a while.
Highlights
- Take surveys from a well known tech company
- Get paid to give your opinion
- Cash out via PayPal with as little as $2 in rewards
How to get started
After downloading the app, use your Google account to sign in. Check back daily to see what new surveys are available to you. You’ll have more chances by turning on location tracking.
9. ibotta
With ibotta, you can earn cash back every time you go shopping either in-store or online. Check the app before heading to the grocery store, a retailer, or restaurant and see where the best deals are at. Save with some of the biggest brands without the hassle of clipping coupons or searching endlessly for promo codes.
The platform has given over $1 billion back to its users, so it’s legit!
Highlights
- Find deals quickly
- Automatically get credited by uploading your receipt to the app
- Easily redeem current offers
- Earn more by referring friends with a unique referral code
How to get started
After creating an account, you can start searching for offers and add them before you shop. Head to the store and spend the amount you normally would. Redeem offers by uploading your receipt and get cash back.
10. Swagbucks
Swagbucks is the ultimate app for making cash in your spare time. There are tons of ways to earn gift cards and cash like taking paid surveys, uploading grocery receipts, shopping at select retail stores, watching videos, and playing games.
You’ll earn special in-app currency called Swagbucks which can be redeemed for prizes and cash once you accrue enough.
Highlights
- Loved by millions of users
- Plenty of different ways to earn money
- Get a welcome bonus for signing up
- You can earn without having to spend any money
How to get started
Join Swagbucks online or download the app. Once your account is set up, you can immediately start participating in activities like surveys and games to earn points.
11. Survey Junkie
Take surveys and get paid, how is that for effortless income? Survey Junkie wants people like you to share your opinion in order to help brands deliver better products. You can also participate in focus groups for behavior research.
Wondering how they can afford to pay you? Companies pay partners like Survey Junkie for valuable market research data. This data is used to help improve product and service offerings, so brands will pay a premium for it.
Highlights
- Earn virtual points through surveys and trade them in for gift cards or cash
- Answers are totally anonymous
- Easy to use
How to get started
Download the mobile app. After creating your login details, you’ll build your profile and the platform will match you to the surveys you qualify for.
12. Coupert
As both an app and browser extension, Coupert is the shopping buddy you didn’t know you needed. It automatically searches through dozens of coupon codes at checkout to see if there’s a promo code that can save you money on your purchase.
Additionally, you can earn cash back and Coupert Gold (their own point system that can be traded for money back) on all purchases.
Highlights
- Get the mobile app and the browser extension for max savings and rewards
- Super easy to use with very little work on your end
- Efficient way to try promo codes without having to do a deep search
How to get started
Simply create an account after installation and browse stores you want to shop at in the app. The browser extension will do all the work for you, so no need to open it up every time you’re online.
13. Dosh
Every little bit adds up when it comes to using Dosh. This app helps you snatch cash back at thousands of stores, restaurants, and hotels. All you have to do is download the app, link your cards, and start shopping. Dosh will deposit money back into your wallet without any additional steps. You can cash out once you hit $25.
Highlights
- Earn money spending like normal
- Get cash back with brands like Walmart, instacart, Disney+, Dunkin, and more
- Earn each time you fill up your gas tank
- Highest level encryption (used for banks)
- No stored card or bank info on the app
- Dosh will never sell your data to third party marketers
How to get started
Download the mobile app and create an account. Link your bank and credit cards and start shopping to earn cash! Get friends and family to join with your link for referral bonuses.
14. M1
This is the personal finance app of all personal finance apps. M1 is a smart integrated platform that allows users to invest, borrow, bank, and get credit. The list of features is a mile long, but M1 offers insane perks like a 1% APY checking account (33x the national average checking APY), low interest loans, and much more.
Highlights
- Fractional shares available when investing
- Commision-free trading
- Powerful automation & customization features
- Low interest loans
- High APY checking account
- 1-year free trial, then the plus version is $125/year
How to get started
Create an account via the app or on a desktop computer. You’ll answer some questions and then reach your personal dashboard. From there you can switch between the invest, spend, borrow, research, and transfers tabs in the navigation.
15. Turo
It seems like everything these days has skyrocketed in price — rent, gas, and food are all on the rise. If you’re looking for a way to offset some of those costs with a little side hustle, you should consider Turo. In short, you can rent your car or another family car that maybe isn’t used as much to make income.
List a single car or create a plan to build a portfolio of vehicles that can bring in a full-time income! The platform provides $750,000 in liability insurance, so you have added protection in case there’s a mishap.
Highlights
- 14 million users worldwide
- Marketing and advertising support in the app
- Easy to use and update your listings
- Message guests right from the app
- 24/7 support and roadside assistance for your guests
How to get started
Determine what vehicle you’re going to rent out, create an account, and Turo will help you with the rest.
16. Mobee
If you thought secret shopping wasn’t around anymore, Mobee will be a pleasant surprise. The premise is simple. Find “Missions” near you that include answering specific questions while shopping or eating in exchange for points. You can unlock achievements and level-up the more Missions you complete. Once you earn enough points, you can redeem them for prizes and gift cards.
Highlights
- Very user-friendly
- Unlock achievements for even more points
- Get cool gift cards from places like Amazon and Target
- Give valuable feedback to businesses
How to get started
Download the app, search for nearby local Missions, and start answering the questions as you shop or eat.
17. Decluttr
Almost everyone has used phones, DVDs, gaming consoles, or other devices around they would rather sell for cash than stare at for one more day. Decluttr has made it easy to sell your tech items for top dollar.
They offer a free instant evaluation using their database. Download the app to use as a barcode scanner to see if the item is worth selling. Once you complete the order, Decluttr will send a shipping label by mail so you can ship your items for free.
Highlights
- Get rid of old items you no longer want
- Easily earn cash by decluttering your place
- Ship items for free
- Instant value the items you want to sell
How to get started
Search for your item or scan the barcode with the app, place an order, and ship it free. Get a payment the following day after the shipment is received by Decluttr via direct deposit or PayPal.
18. StepBet
Want to work on improving your fitness while also having the chance to compete and win money? StepBet is a fitness game that motivates users to move through cash prizes. You’ll get personalized step goals calculated by the app and then have the chance to place a bet and join a game. Keep up with your step goals and split the pot with other competitors at the end of the game (typically 6 weeks).
Highlights
- Fun way to connect with others and stay active
- Get motivated by a chance to win cash
- Be intentional about your health
How to get started
After downloading the app, select a game and get your step goals, get moving, and win money!
19. AirBnB
If you’re looking for a lucrative side hustle and have some extra space for guests, the AirBnB app is the way to go. After all, you might as well capitalize on that spare bedroom!
The platform provides liability and damage protection through aircover, their own coverage program. You’ll need to prepare your space to host guests, so ensure it’s comfy, clean, and has all the amenities needed to land you a stellar review.
Highlights
- Get up and running quickly
- AirBnB walks you through everything
- Become a SuperHost once you’ve gained a reputation
How to get started
Sign up for an account, upload pictures and some other pertinent info and start scheduling guests.
How we chose these money-making apps
Our favorite apps were selected based on factors like features offered, user experience, cash earning potential, user reviews, and reputation. Some apps are great for earning a few bucks here and there in your spare time while others can be scaled into full on businesses. We’ll let you decide what’s best for you and your lifestyle.
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