We reviewed over 60 different apps to determine the very few that can add money to your bank account.
- Updated August 15, 2024
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What are the highest-paying apps available today?
To find out, we’ve tested the most popular money-making apps. Our goal was to discover which ones are legit and worth your time, ranking them based on their earning potential, ease of use, user ratings, and company reputation.
Our top picks are:
| App | Best For |
| Arrived | Passive Income |
| Branded Surveys | Surveys |
| DoorDash | Gig Economy |
| Facebook Marketplace | Selling |
| Freecash | Playing Games |
| Ibotta | In-Store Cashback |
| Rakuten | Online Cashback |
| Swagbucks | Daily Earning |
| Fiverr | Freelancing |
Note: The reviews and ratings below were collected on August 15, 2024. We update this data periodically throughout the year to keep it current.
Table of Contents
Side Cash Apps
To create this list of the best side cash apps, we tested the top survey apps, best cash-back apps and gaming apps that pay.
#1. Branded Surveys
| Our rating: | 4.2/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.5/5 with 7,276 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.3/5 with 7,175 reviews |
| Availability: | United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom |
Branded Surveys is a highly-reputable survey platform that’s been around since 2012 and has paid out more than $38 million to its users.
What makes Branded Surveys stand out is its large inventory of available surveys, which generally take 5 to 15 minutes each and can pay up to $5.
The downside to Branded Surveys in our testing was the high disqualification rate. You may not qualify for all surveys available on the platform, or you may get kicked out after answering a few questions because you don’t fit the demographic.
Minimum withdrawal: You can cash out once you’ve earned $5, with available options including PayPal, bank account transfer or gift cards (including Amazon).
#2. Swagbucks
| Our rating: | 4.8/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.4/5 with 120,199 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.2/5 with 166,436 reviews |
| Availability: | United States, Canada, most of Central America, South America, Europe and Asia |
| Learn more: | Swagbucks review |
Swagbucks is a reader and personal favorite for good reason: while you can take surveys, there are also several other simple tasks you can do to make money, such as watching videos, playing games and getting cash-back for shopping online.
While Swagbucks is a solid survey platform, its wide variety of tasks and generous $10 sign-up bonus make it one of our favorite overall money making apps.
Minimum withdrawal: There’s technically no minimum to cash out, but most reward options start at $3 (including PayPal cash and select gift cards).
#3. Survey Junkie
| Our rating: | 4.2/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.5/5 with 76,174 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.3/5 with 96,585 reviews |
| Availability: | United States, Canada and Australia |
| Learn more: | Survey Junkie review |
Survey Junkie is a top market research company with over 10 million members, high user ratings, an “Excellent” Trustpilot score, and a low $5 cash-out minimum.
It stands out for its large inventory of surveys, allowing for flexible earning opportunities.
Although there’s no sign-up bonus, new users can complete high-value tasks like profile surveys and watching a video to quickly reach the $5 minimum payout.
Minimum withdrawal: 500 points gets you a $5 transfer to your PayPal account, or you can redeem these reward points for gift cards.
#4. Rakuten
| Our rating: | 4.5/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.8/5 with 359,592 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 3.6/5 with 71,600 reviews |
| Availability: | United States, France, Germany, Spain, Ukraine and the United Kingdom |
| Learn more: | Rakuten review |
Rakuten is a top-rated app that offers up to 40% cash-back at more than 3,500 partnered merchants. Simply search for the retailer in the app, click the link, and shop as usual.
For in-store purchases, link your card and activate cash-back offers before checking out.
Sign up using this link for a $10 bonus on a qualifying purchase of $25 or more.
Minimum withdrawal: $5, but note that payments are not available on-demand. Your cash-back will be paid automatically every three months via your choice of PayPal, paper check or American Express rewards points.
#5. Freecash
| Our rating: | 4.2/5 |
| iOS rating: | N/A (Mobile website available) |
| Google Play rating | 4.2/5 with 85,526 reviews |
| Availability: | U.S., Canada, and the U.K. |
| Learn more: | Freecash Review |
Freecash is a comprehensive rewards platform that offers various opportunities but primarily specializes in games.
There are free and paid games where you can earn Freecash Coins, which can be exchanged for cash.
According to the website, the most active users reported an average daily earning of $19.52.
One downside is that the game selection is limited initially, but more options become available as you play and progress.
Game options right now include Monopoly Go and Family Island.
While there is only an Android app, there are both iOS and Android games you can access after signing up via their website.
Minimum withdrawal: $5. Options include PayPal, cryptocurrency, and gift cards.
#6. Mistplay
| Our rating: | 4.0/5 |
| iOS rating: | Android app only |
| Google Play rating: | 4.6/5 with 601,555 reviews |
| Availability: | United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Korea, Italy and Spain |
Branded as “the loyalty program for gamers,” Mistplay is a free gaming app that rewards you with points for playing games on your Android smartphone (an iOS version is in development).
Sometimes, you must provide Mistplay with feedback on the game itself. In other cases, you’re required to reach certain in-game milestones (like leveling up).
Your points can be redeemed for gift cards to major retailers like Amazon, Starbucks and the Nintendo store.
Minimum withdrawal: 1,500 points, which is roughly equal to $5 in value.
#7. Upside
| Our rating: | 4.3/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.8/5 with 547,456 reviews |
| Google Play rating | 4.6/5 with 367,369 reviews |
| Availability: | United States only |
| Learn more: | Upside review |
Upside is a cash-back app focused on gas purchases. In our testing, we found gas stations that offered up to 35 cents per gallon (though 25 cents and lower is more common).
The app offers cash-back at select grocers and restaurants, but availability varies by zip code.
Minimum withdrawal: You can withdraw at any time for a $1 fee. Once your balance reaches $10, you can withdraw for free.
#8. Fetch Rewards
| Our rating: | 4.1/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.8/5 with 5.34 million reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.6/5 with 1 million reviews |
| Availability: | United States only |
| Learn more: | Fetch Rewards review |
Unlike many receipt scanning apps, Fetch Rewards works at any store. There are no barcodes to scan or coupons to clip, and you don’t have to buy specific products to earn points.
The big downside to Fetch is that each receipt only pays a few cents. However, you’ll get bonus points for buying sponsored items, and these are often common household products that you may be buying anyway.
Minimum withdrawal: 3,000 points gets you a $3 gift card.
#9. Rakuten Insight
| Our rating: | 4.5/5 |
| iOS rating: | 2.1/5 with 30 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 3.7/5 with 481 reviews |
| Availability: | United States, France, United Kingdom and most of Asia |
| Learn more: | Rakuten Insight review |
Rakuten Insight is a paid survey app from the company behind Rakuten, the most well-known cash-back shopping portal in the United States.
We earned $9.62 per hour during our testing period, making this one of the best-paying survey apps we’ve reviewed.
The downside to Rakuten Insight is that the number of available surveys is limited compared to bigger platforms like Survey Junkie.
Still, the above-average pay makes this a great option when you’re thinking about giving paid surveys a shot.
Minimum withdrawal: $5 to cash-out via PayPal.
#10. Nielsen Computer and Mobile Panel
| Our rating: | 3.8/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.0/5 with 450 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 3.9/5 with 11,786 reviews |
| Availability: | United States only |
| Learn more: | Nielsen Computer and Mobile Panel review |
Nielsen, a renowned research company known for TV viewership ratings, also analyzes smartphone usage with their Nielsen Computer and Mobile Panel app.
This app runs in the background, anonymously collecting data on phone usage and activity types, such as browsing or watching videos.
Users are entered into a $10,000 monthly sweepstakes and can earn up to $50 per year in gift cards or PayPal cash if the app remains installed for 12 months.
#11. SurveyMonkey Rewards
| Our rating: | 4.5/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.7/5 with 18,361 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.5/5 with 10,590 reviews |
| Availability: | United States only |
| Learn more: | SurveyMonkey Rewards review |
SurveyMonkey, which is widely used by numerous businesses for gathering customer feedback, also offers a lesser-known rewards app.
In our testing, we earned an impressive $13.56 per hour (significantly above the survey app average).
The platform’s surveys are typically brief, taking just 2-3 minutes to finish. However, survey availability is limited; we received only nine opportunities during a month-long test.
Despite this, we reached the $5 cash-out minimum with minimal time and effort.
Minimum withdrawal: You must earn a minimum of $5 to redeem rewards. Amazon gift cards or a contribution to charity are the only redemption options.
#12. KashKick
| Our rating: | 3.5/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.3/5 with 3,067 reviews |
| Google Play rating | 3.9/5 with 5,255 reviews |
| Availability: | United States only |
| Learn more: | KashKick Review |
KashKick functions similarly to other reward apps like Swagbucks in that offers a range of different ways to earn money.
When we tested the platform, we found that taking surveys on KashKick only pays about $1 per hour on average, so it’s not worth your time.
However, KashKick does provide some unique money-making offers that are worth checking out.
For example, we found an offer allowing users to earn $300 from KashKick for buying a $100 annual LifeLock subscription (which can be canceled after the first year). In other words, you can net an easy profit of $200.
KashKick also offers games. We found that KashKick games provide higher payouts than on competing platforms (such as Mistplay), but they usually require that you reach the designated milestones faster in order to earn (e.g., 7 days instead of 14 days).
While that aggressive timeline may not work for everyone, KashKick’s games could be worthwhile if you have the time to commit.
Minimum withdrawal: $10 minimum via PayPal.
#13. InboxDollars
| Our rating: | 4.2/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.5/5 with 202,558 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.2/5 with 157,000 reviews |
| Availability: | United States only |
| Learn more: | InboxDollars Review |
InboxDollars is a popular money making app that lets you earn through surveys as well as a variety of other tasks. It’s owned and operated by the same company that runs Swagbucks, but there are some key differences between the two (including that it’s one of the few sites where you can get paid to read e-mail).
InboxDollars also rewards you in real money (not points) for the activities you complete. The downside? There’s a $15 minimum to cash out, though the $5 sign-up bonus can help you reach that milestone.
Minimum withdrawal: $15 to cash out.
#14. Ibotta
| Our rating: | 4.5/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.8/5 with 1.8 million reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.5/5 with 685,444 reviews |
| Availability: | United States only |
| Learn more: | Ibotta review |
Ibotta is widely recognized as one of the best cash-back apps for groceries, but has expanded into local retail and online cash-back.
It works like this: you use the app to scan the barcode of the product you purchased at the store, and then you upload a photo of your receipt. Often, you’ll have to watch a 15-second video clip to have the money posted to your account.
Both my wife and I use the app, often stacking one of the many apps that are similar to Ibotta to double-dip on rewards. We’ve found the 30 seconds it takes to always be time well spent.
You can earn a $5 welcome bonus by signing up with our link and making a $15 purchase through the app.
Minimum withdrawal: $20 in cash transferred to Venmo or PayPal.
Gig & Sharing Economy Apps
The gig and sharing economy has opened up dozens of legit earning opportunities that you can leverage with your smartphone, including on-demand delivery jobs, odd jobs and more.
#15. DoorDash
| Our rating: | 4.0/5 |
| iOS Rating: | 4.7/5 with 2.44 million reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.3/5 with 368,106 reviews |
| Availability: | United States, Canada, Australia and Japan |
| Learn more: | DoorDash delivery driver review |
DoorDash allows you to earn extra money by delivering restaurant take-out orders. You’ll need a car, bicycle or scooter, a driver’s license, and valid insurance to become a Dasher.
With DoorDash, you have the flexibility to schedule your shifts ahead of time or use DashNow, a feature only available during peak hours where no pre-scheduling is required.
That means you’ll have less scheduling flexibility than with UberEats (see below), but it also means you’ll usually have a more consistent flow of orders (because there are fewer drivers working at any given moment).
#16. Instacart
| Our rating: | 4.0/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.8/5 with 1.17 million reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.3/5 with 156,060 reviews |
| Availability: | United States and Canada |
Instacart lets you earn money by shopping for and/or delivering groceries. Full-service Instacart shoppers both shop for and deliver items, but if you don’t have access to a car, you can be an in-store shopper only.
Similar to many gig economy apps, a big perk of working with Instacart is that you can set your own schedule. That said, peak times, such as weekends, often pay the most per hour.
Instacart shoppers get paid per order based on the time it takes to complete the order, as well as the distance (if delivering). Delivery drivers also get tips from customers.
#17. Fiverr
| Our rating: | 4.8/5 |
| iOS rating | 4.9/5 with 513,106 reviews |
| Google Play rating | 4.5/5 with 335,317 reviews |
| Countries Available | Worldwide |
| Learn more: | How to make money on Fiverr |
Fiverr is a freelance marketplace known for its wide variety of tasks offered.
What’s unique about Fiverr is that you’re the one designing the gig and posting it for others to buy. As such, you can create jobs you can fulfill entirely from your smartphone.
This could include video editing, proofreading and photo editing — among many others.
#18. Uber
| Our rating: | 4.1/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.5/5 with 615,315 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.6/5 with 4.22 million reviews |
| Availability: | Worldwide |
Uber gives you two ways to make money with a single app: ride-sharing as a driver or delivering takeout food orders with UberEats. And with over 100 million active monthly customers in 900+ cities, there’s plenty of demand to keep you busy.
Being a driver with Uber is the most famous side hustle in the world for a reason: Uber freelancers can earn solid money (earnings vary based on factors like location and demand), and you can work literally whenever or wherever you want, with no need to set a schedule. Just open the app, make yourself available and then accept the gigs that are sent your way.
UberEats is similar to DoorDash (mentioned above) in that you can earn money by delivering food orders from local restaurants using your car, scooter or bike — or even on foot in some cities.
Plus, whether you drive people or deliver food, you have the ability to request instant payout for a small fee — meaning you can get paid the same day you work instead of waiting around for a deposit to hit your bank account.
#19. Rover
| Our rating: | 4.4/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.9/5 with 456,791 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.7/5 with 34,821 reviews |
| Availability: | United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and Sweden |
Rover is a pioneer in the pet care industry when it comes to pet sitting, dog walking, doggy daycare and boarding. The app allows you to connect with local pet owners in need of these services. Rover advertises that walkers can get paid up to $20 per hour.
It’s ideal for those living in a more urban area, where they can often take out multiple dogs and travel short distances. For those not living in a city, boarding can help maximize your earnings.
#20. Turo
| Our rating: | 4.5/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.8/5 with 243,533 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.9/5 with 394,970 reviews |
| Availability: | United States, Canada and the United Kingdom |
| Learn more: | How much you can make on Turo |
Turo is a car sharing app that allows you to earn money by renting your vehicle.
The app works similarly to Airbnb in that you can list your car for rent and set your own price. Once a renter is found, they’ll contact you to arrange a time to pick up the car.
Alternatively, many Turo hosts use remote lock technology, giving renters access to the car without meeting in person. Theoretically, you can earn passively, as the app handles the entire transaction.
#21. Neighbor
| Our rating: | 4.4/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.7/5 with 6,400 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.5/5 with 3,070 reviews |
| Availability | United States only |
| Learn more: | Neighbor review |
Neighbor is an app that allows you to get paid for renting unused space in your home. This could be an extra garage spot, driveway space, shed, attic or basement.
While there is some work involved upfront — such as listing your space and connecting with clients — once the storage is set up, there’s very little work required on your part.
Investing Apps
When we think of money making apps, it’s all about turning minimal time, effort and resources into cash — all through your smartphone.
A select few investment apps fall into this category, in that you can earn money without investing a lot of time or cash. This may include being paid a sign-up bonus, getting free shares of stock, or having the ability to automatically invest your spare change.
#22. Arrived
| Our rating: | 4.5/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.4/5 with 126 reviews |
| Google Play rating | N/A |
| Availability: | United States only |
| Learn more: | Arrived review |
Arrived, backed by Jeff Bezos, provides a platform for investing in single-family rental and vacation homes, with a minimum investment of $100.
Unlike traditional methods, Arrived manages the properties, allowing investors to earn quarterly dividends from net income without the usual landlord hassles. The platform specializes exclusively in single-family homes, employing a systematic approach to select properties in lucrative markets aimed at optimizing rental income and asset appreciation.
Although relatively new with a limited track record, Arrived’s innovative model, lower entry barrier, and passive income potential make it an intriguing option for those looking to diversify their investment portfolios in real estate.
#23. Acorns
| Our rating: | 4.1/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.7/5 with 902,973 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.7/5 with 318,509 reviews |
| Availability: | United States only |
| Learn more: | NerdWallet’s Acorns review |
Acorns is a mobile app that automates investing through:
- Spare change investing. Acorns’ Round Ups feature sets aside the difference from your purchases (e.g., 80 cents from a $17.20 expense) and invests it into a mutual fund, helping you save and build an investment portfolio gradually.
- Acorns Earn. Partnering with hundreds of retailers, Acorns allows you to earn money when shopping at specific stores (up to 10% of the purchase amount) and adds it to your investment account.
By using Acorns Earn and investing spare change, you can build a substantial portfolio for retirement or generate side income.
#24. Public
| Our rating: | 4.3/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.7/5 with 70,866 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.1/5 with 47,307 reviews |
| Availability: | United States only |
| Learn more: | Public review |
What stands out about Public is its simplicity: the app offers a very clean and user-friendly experience, and forgoes more advanced features, like options and futures trading, that aren’t necessary for beginning investors.
Miscellaneous Money Making Apps
From taking pictures of products at local retailers to achieving fitness goals, these apps don’t fit into one of the categories above but are still great for making extra money.
#25. TikTok (Shop)
| Our rating: | 4.8/5 |
| iOS rating: | Reviews are for the main TikTok app only, not TikTok Shop. |
| Google Play rating | Reviews are for the main TikTok app only, not TikTok Shop. |
| Availability: | Worldwide. |
The best-selling author in late 2023 was 24-year-old Keila Shaheen. Her self-published book The Shadow Work Journal outsold every other title on Amazon.
Her secret? TikTok Shop.
TikTok Shop is a new opportunity for creators to earn money by either launching products directly on TikTok or by promoting other products as an affiliate.
Then, you create content around those products, ideally taking advantage of TikTok’s algorithm (which is more favorable to new creators regardless of follower count).
A strong network of affiliates is how videos of The Shadow Work Journal have now been viewed over 1 billion times.
See our article on how to make money on TikTok for tips if you want to give it a try.
#26. Amazon (Influencer Program)
| Our rating: | 4.8/5 |
| iOS rating: | Reviews are for Amazon’s shopping app only |
| Google Play rating | Reviews are for Amazon’s shopping app only |
| Availability: | Worldwide |
The Amazon Influencer program allows everyday people to make money by creating short product review videos.
While you’re free to promote your videos via social media to increase your earnings, what’s unique about this opportunity is that videos can be featured directly within Amazon listings. You then earn a commission whenever viewers watch your videos and make a purchase.
This is great news in that you don’t need a large social following to get started or do well.
#27. Foap
| Our rating: | 3.9/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.5/5 with 21,650 reviews |
| Google Play rating | 2.8/5 with 36,941 reviews |
| Availability: | Worldwide |
Foap is a mobile app that allows you to make money by selling pictures you take with your phone. What’s nice is that one photo can sell multiple times, which allows you to generate a source of passive income.
The best way to earn is through “missions,” in which Foap teams up with a specific brand to show how everyday people use their product.
Minimum withdrawal: There’s no minimum, but Foap pays you once per month via PayPal.
See also: Here are some more ways to get paid to take pictures with your phone.
#28. Bookscouter
| Our rating: | 4.1/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.4/5 with 1,072 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.5/5 with 2,682 reviews |
| Availability: | Worldwide |
A popular free app among book lovers, Bookscouter allows you to sell used books.
How it works is that you enter or scan a book’s ISBN number and Bookscouter provides a list of companies looking to purchase that title (along with how much they’re willing to pay).
Those who earn the most know where to find used books for cheap (garage sales, library book sales, etc.), and use the app on the spot to find the ones that will fetch the highest profit margins.
#29. Field Agent
| Our rating: | 4.0/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.7/5 with 11,914 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 3.3/5 with 9,047 reviews |
| Availability: | United States, Canada and the United Kingdom |
Field Agent is an app that allows you to make money by completing random local tasks, like taking pictures of products (to make sure they’re properly displayed) and completing mystery shopping missions to evaluate stores’ customer service. In that sense, it’s a form of mystery shopping (which can be a legit side hustle).
This free app is best suited for those in urban areas, as you’re only paid on a per-task basis. Since you have to factor time and cost of travel into your net earnings, you’ll make more if you live near a high concentration of participating businesses.
Minimum withdrawal: $10 via PayPal.
#30. Facebook and Other Selling Apps
Selling your stuff is one of the best ways to make money fast. Apps such as Facebook Marketplace (located in the Facebook app), Craigslist, and OfferUp are great for selling items locally.
eBay is best suited for selling items outside of your local area. While you have to ship the item, you can typically sell it for a higher price (as your group of potential buyers is greatly enhanced). This makes eBay ideal for collectibles and items that are in high demand (like iPhones).
Not sure what to sell? We did the research to find the best things to sell online.
#31. Evidation
| Our rating: | 4.0/5 |
| iOS rating: | 4.6/5 with 24,911 reviews |
| Google Play rating: | 4.2/5 with 20,411 reviews |
| Availability: | United States only |
Evidation (formerly called Achievement) is a combination of a survey app and a fitness app. It works by syncing with other fitness apps you have on your phone, including:
- Apple Health
- Fitbit
- MapMyFitness
- MyFitnessPal
- And over a dozen others.
In addition to earning rewards via healthy activities — e.g., hitting 10,000 steps in one day — you can earn rewards for answering health-related surveys.
Minimum withdrawal: You’ll need a minimum of 10,000 points to cash out, which gives you a $10 gift card to popular retailers.
Pro tip: Turn this into a passive income app by syncing it with an app like Apple Health, which tracks your activity and steps in the background.
Money Making Apps That Aren’t Worth Your Time
We found plenty of apps that didn’t make the cut. Here are some of the most popular, along with why they’re worth skipping. The links below will take you to our full review of each app, where you can learn more.
- ATM App. While it has an interesting premise — users can choose to match with brands and then get paid for interacting with them, in a form of “brand dating” — we found the earning potential to be very low.
- Capital One Shopping. We highly recommend this app based on our experience, as it has provided us with some of the most rewarding shopping credits. However, it doesn’t serve as a direct source of income since the rewards are given in the form of gift cards only. For a more detailed insight, check out our Capital One Shopping Review.
- Honeygain. This app does legitimately pay you for sharing your internet connection. However, the pay rate is so low it’s not worth the hassle of installing it.
- LifePoints. We found LifePoints to have an extremely high disqualification rate combined with a limited inventory of surveys. So while it’s a legit site that will pay you for your time, there are better options.
- Lucktastic. This popular sweepstakes app was shut down in March 2022.
- OnMyWay. The app promises to pay you cash for safe driving, but you have to refer 250 users to unlock cash rewards.
- Sweatcoin. You can only earn money by referring friends to Sweatcoin — not by walking, as advertised.
- Testerup: The company makes bold claims about how much you can earn, but when we tested the app, our earnings came out to less than $1 per hour. Plus, you have to reach $70 in order to cash-out.
- Zogo. This free app pays you for completing lessons about basic personal finance topics. We made an average of $6.07 per hour in our testing, but our earning rate declined quickly the more we used the app.
Money Making Apps FAQ
Do money making apps really work?
Yes, money making apps work. However, it’s important to have realistic expectations. In most cases, your earning potential will be relatively limited. It’s best to view these apps as tools you can use to make extra cash in your spare time, since most were not designed to generate anything close to a full-time income.
At the same time, there are some money making apps that can generate a substantial amount of money when used consistently. One example is the cash-back shopping category. If you’re reading this, you probably shop online. And if you’re not using a cash-back app like Swagbucks or Rakuten, you’re effectively paying more than you have to for everything you purchase. Depending on how much you spend online over the course of a year, apps like these may realistically save you hundreds of dollars.
And then there are gig economy apps like DoorDash and Uber, which are fantastic options when you’re looking for a part-time job or a side hustle. This category of money making apps obviously requires real work, but it offers unmatched flexibility and pay that typically ranges from $15 to $25 when tips are factored in.
What are the best apps for making money fast?
Selling apps, such as Facebook Marketplace and eBay, are your best bets for making money fast. Beyond selling, DoorDash and Uber are also good options. These two apps enable you to make decent money on a per-hour basis, as well as to cash-out your earnings daily (for a small fee). These are among the highest and fastest-paying paying apps you’ll find.
Are money making apps safe?
Money making apps are generally safe, but there are some things to keep in mind before downloading them.
First, understand that virtually all money making apps collect some form of user data. This may include basic information like your demographics (age, location, etc.), but it may also include more personal data like your internet browsing habits.
If you’re concerned about data collection, make sure to read the app’s privacy policy. Of course, privacy policies are often written in legalese, so it’s a good idea to refer to the company’s FAQ or knowledge base to see if they provide clear and easy-to-understand details about what data is collected and how it is (or isn’t) used.
Another concern many people have is the safety of their financial information, such as bank login credentials or account details. Often, in order to get paid by a money making app, you’re required to provide a routing and checking number or link your bank account through a third-party provider like Plaid. Services like Plaid are generally considered secure, and we think you should be comfortable using them.
On the other hand, we’re not fans of manually providing our bank account details, because it’s not always clear how strong a given app’s security practices are. In cases like this, we recommend setting up a free online checking account that you use specifically for money making apps.
How do you avoid scams?
When you’re evaluating money-making apps, pay close attention to user reviews — and specifically the ones on the Google Play Store and iOS App Store. Unlike some other user review sites, companies can’t edit or delete reviews that appear on the official app stores. So if an app is a scam, chances are you’ll see that quickly based on user feedback.
Sort by negative reviews, and read through three to five to see the common complaints. If a lot of users have trouble withdrawing money or not getting responses from customer support, it’s best to avoid the app.
You can also search r/BeerMoney, a popular subreddit where people talk about their experiences with different apps.
How do apps that give you money make money themselves?
There are a number of different business models and app monetization strategies used by these companies to generate revenue.
– Online survey companies sell the data they collect to third parties seeking to improve their products and services.
– Many gig economy apps take a percentage of revenue from each transaction.
– Cash-back shopping apps like Rakuten are among the highest paying apps for a reason: they earn a solid commission for sending you to retailers’ sites, which they then share with you.
Apps that give you money are always getting something in return — whether that’s your data, your feedback, your business or something else. Keep that in mind when picking which ones to use and make sure you’re comfortable with the tradeoff.
Best Money Making Apps: Final Thoughts
Our top priority when compiling this list was to make sure every app we included was both legitimate and worthwhile. There are many other apps out there, and while some of them work for some people, others just collect your data and waste your time without providing any real chance to cash-out your earnings.
Depending on your situation, they may or may not be worth looking into. But this list is the cream of the crop.
If you’re looking just for surveys, Branded Surveys is a great starting point.
Our favorite all around rewards app is Swagbucks, thanks to the wide range of ways you can earn.
If you’re looking for a dedicated cash-back app, Rakuten is an ideal choice.
For the entrepreneurial minded, consider running a business you can operate 100% from your phone, such as getting started with the Amazon Influencer program or making money with TikTok Shop.
These types of opportunities can turn into lucrative side hustles, but they can take some time to get up and running.
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R.J. Weiss, founder of The Ways To Wealth, has been a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ since 2010. Holding a B.A. in finance and having completed the CFP® certification curriculum at The American College, R.J. combines formal education with a deep commitment to providing unbiased financial insights. Recognized as a trusted authority in the financial realm, his expertise is highlighted in major publications like Business Insider, New York Times, and Forbes.
2 Comments
ColeN says:
This is one great list. I’ve been in this niche quite a long time and one thing I’ve learned is that there are so many opportunities out there, just have to choose one (or a few) and stick to it.
When it comes to apps, think that you’ll have to research a bit, then go to PlayStore/AppStore, search for relevant apps, back to google and search what people says about an app.
KM Miller says:
I make about $10 per month with both HoneyGain and Pawns App. There are another 4 or 5 desktop apps that work in the same way and are profitable like ProxyRack and EarnApp. Pretty good list though.