10 Unique Ways To Make Extra Money on Your Smartphone
Whether you need extra cash to pay off debt, meet savings goals or cover holiday purchases, you don’t have to look any further than your smartphone. Not only can you use your device to find jobs and invest, but several apps reward you for your time, opinion, skills — and even your shopping trips. While some options require leaving the house, most don’t.
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Here are 10 unique ways you can use your phone to start earning money today.
Earn Cash for Everyday Shopping
When shopping on your phone, consider using apps that can give you both promo codes and cash back on your purchases through participating retailers. Rakuten and RetailMeNot are two popular choices that can send your rewards via PayPal.
You can also use receipt scanning apps, including Ibotta and Fetch, which reward points for in-store purchases. While you can usually submit any receipt, these apps offer bonuses for buying specific items. Redemption options often include merchandise, cash, gift cards and sweepstakes entries.
Sell Unwanted Household Items
Using apps to sell unwanted items will both free up clutter and give you extra cash. You can post listings through popular apps such as Amazon Seller, eBay, Poshmark, OfferUp and Craigslist. The Facebook app’s Marketplace feature is an option for selling within your community.
Store apps may also have trade-in programs that you might consider if you’d rather not sell to an individual. For example, Amazon lets you trade in several types of electronic devices for a gift card and even offers purchase discounts with some items. Plus, there are specialized trade-in apps, including BooksRun for books and EcoATM for phones and tablets.
Sign Up for Gig Work Apps
If you don’t mind doing part-time work for cash, you can try various gig work apps, with several requiring no experience. Many of these apps involve working in the community, but some let you do tasks from home. Here are some popular choices:
TaskRabbit and Thumbtack for professional labor tasks
Fiverr and Upwork for remote freelance gigs
Uber Eats and Doordash for food deliveries
Uber and Lyft for ride-sharing services
Amazon Flex for package delivery
Rover for dog-walking services
Gigwalk and Field Agent for mystery shopping
Care.com for caregiving services
When using these apps, be sure to track expenses, including mileage. You’ll also need to plan for any self-employment taxes.
Earn While Playing Fun Games
If you already enjoy playing games on your phone, getting paid for it can be very appealing. Cash’em All, Bingo Cash, Money Well, Bubble Cash and AppStation are some of the many game apps that can pay out money.
Often, you’ll get rewards for winning tournaments or testing game features. While some apps pay cash, others offer gift cards. Just check for any fees and location restrictions before you start playing.
Offer Your Feedback
Several apps will pay you cash or gift cards for your feedback through surveys or usability tests. Swagbucks, SurveyJunkie and InboxDollars are popular choices for answering polls and surveys, while UserTesting specializes in app and website testing.
One catch is that you’ll need to qualify for each survey or usability test. This can be difficult if you sign up too late or don’t fit the profile the company is looking for. You’ll also often have to answer pre-qualifying questions, which take up time and usually don’t pay.
Use Investment Apps
If you’re willing to accept some risk and wait for a return, using investment apps can be a good way to make extra money. You’ll need to deposit some cash and either choose investments yourself or let the app select them based on your criteria.
Some top investment apps for beginners include Robinhood, Acorns, Ally Invest, Webull and Betterment. Fees and minimum investment amounts may apply. Be sure to learn the basics of investing before getting started.
Take Photos for Cash
With some basic phone photography skills, you could take pictures to sell through apps for creative platforms. When you list photos, you can often set the prices and receive a cash commission or royalty when someone buys them. There may be several licensing options as well.
Foap, Shutterstock Contributor, Dreamtime and Alarmy are a few apps to check out. Be sure to check each service’s quality requirements, submission process, potential earnings and any restrictions on the types of photos you can sell.
Teach Others Via Video Chat
Teaching lessons using your phone can be a good choice if you have an education background, speak a second language or are very knowledgeable in a specific subject. While traditional tutoring companies often require using a computer, you can work independently and offer sessions through video chat apps, such as Skype and Zoom.
You’ll be able to set your own prices, and teaching with your phone should come with few expenses. Just be prepared to research the market, find creative ways to advertise your services and take time to build your customer base.
Earn Through Social Media
You could potentially make money using your smartphone to handle social media tasks for companies and individuals. This may be an especially good fit if you have a marketing background and are already an active social media user.
Another option is to seek company sponsorships or promote products through your social media. This can include posting videos of yourself trying out products or sharing affiliate links to purchase them. You could then earn commissions along with additional perks. Amazon, HelloFresh, Sephora and Target are some companies offering such opportunities.
Watch Videos
Watching commercials, trailers and other videos on your phone can bring in some extra cash, although it’s often a low amount. You can download MyPoints, SwagBucks or KashKick to get points for watching particular content.
For more flexibility, consider participating in the Nielsen Computer and Mobile Panel and downloading the Nielsen app. That way, you could earn rewards for sharing your mobile video viewing and other activities.
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