Apps You Can Actually Make Money On

Usually, you have to pay for apps on your Android or iOS devices. Did you know there are apps out there which reverse the trend? They actually pay you to use them! Genuinely, you can pocket yourself real cash just by downloading these apps and performing a few mundane tasks.

Money Making Apps

15 Android Apps Actually Worth Paying For. Free apps are cool, but a few bucks can get you so much more. If you are looking to buy in the Google Play store, here are the best paid Android apps to. Seated – Seated is a cash back app for dining out, where you can earn up to 30% cash back on your meal. When I looked, it was mostly fancier, higher-end restaurants, so this one might not actually be a huge money saver unless you were going to eat there already! Givling is a trivia app available for iPhone and Android that offers cash rewards and helps people with student debt repay their loans. There are two ways to win money through Givling.

If you’re interested, here are five of the best money-making apps out there on Google Play or iTunes.

#1 SWAGBUCKS

Most of us spend time on the web, so why not get paid for doing the stuff you just normally do anyway? That’s where Swagbucks comes in. Once you sign up, all you have to do is see what’s available, and perform the tasks you’re asked. You may be asked to watch certain videos, play free online games or use specific search engines instead of your usual ones. Each task comes with a related amount of ‘swag points’, which are awarded to your account once you have completed the task. You’re then able to swap these points for cash or shopping vouchers.

#2 FULL TILT POKER

If you fancy yourself as a bit of a card sharp, then you can download the new version of Full Tilt Poker’s mobile app and concentrate upon expanding your poker roll. You don’t have to be a poker demon to make money by playing poker. You just need to learn the basics, adopt a winning strategy and stick to it. There are plenty of tutorials on the web that will help you do just that. Full Tilt’s latest version of their mobile app has incorporated several new features that helps bring a true, poker-playing experience to your mobile app. You can find info about the new app here.

#3 FIELD AGENT

This probably sounds more glamorous than it actually is. Once you’ve signed up to become a Field Agent, your iPhone becomes your contact point. You can scan the local area for a mission and, if you choose to accept it, you’re sent out into the field. It might be a small market research task, or to check out the prices in your local store, or snap pics of products or even write a quick review. Once the task is complete, you’re able to claim the cash, which is paid to you via your PayPal account. You need to act fast when searching for tasks as they’re usually snapped up within seconds.

#4 QUIDCO

It’s the ultimate dream for retail addicts – getting paid to walk into a shop! Quidco have been around for a few years, and are a cash-back provider. Once you sign up and register your credit card with the Quidco site, every time you use that credit card in an affiliated site both online and on the high street, you receive a specified amount of cash-back, usually between 5 and 10 percent of what you have spent. A few retailers will also pay you a small amount just to pop into their store and have a look around. The Quidco app on your mobile will automatically work out where you are and credit your account accordingly.

#5 WIKETS

Nothing to do with cricket. The world has undergone a social media revolution over the past couple of years, and Wikets are riding upon the back of this. Companies are seeking sneaky ways to boost their profile on Facebook, and with Wikets, you can give them a helping hand. Every time you recommend a product or business on your Facebook page via the Wiket App, you are awarded points. Once you’ve accumulated enough points, you can exchange them for shopping vouchers.

I’m not always a huge fan of the “gig economy,” but if there’s one thing that I do kind of appreciate that’s come out of it, it’s the rise of all these apps that will help you make money. It’s true that these kinds of apps won’t substantially increase your salary, so if you’re looking for the big bucks, these are probably not the droids you’re looking for; however, it’s nice to be able to make a buck here or there by accomplishing simple tasks or even just shopping smarter. Who doesn't like the idea of being able to spring for a fancy coffee every now and again thanks to something that only took them five minutes to do?

What exactly is wrong with the gig economy? Personally, I think it’s far too easy for the proverbial big fish to take advantage of the little guy. As Jia Tolentino observed in The New Yorker back in March, the gig economy often seems to “[celebrate] working yourself to death” — it frames ignoring your own health and physical and emotional needs as a mark of your commitment, something to which we should all aspire. And that feels… weird to me. I also think the gig economy has a tendency to devalue the work that many people —particularly creatives — do by encouraging us to charge the lowest possible amount for our work. That’s also weird, not to mention unsustainable.

But $5 for a few minutes of your time? That’s fair. And that’s what the various money-making apps out there let you do: You spend a couple of minutes doing A Thing, and then you get a little extra cash for it in return. No, you won’t get rich quick using these apps; they will, however, put some extra beer money in your wallet — or coffee money, or Eff Off fund money, or whatever you could use an extra $20 every now and again for. That’s the part of the gig economy I like— the fact that, if you’ve got access to a smartphone, you can find clever and creative ways to give yourself a little financial wiggle room.

Whether you’d prefer to get your extra monies by saving while shopping or by completing some easy tasks, there’s — you guessed it — an app for that. Here are 10 to start. Have fun, kids!

If you’ve ever used the Chrome extension Honey, free cash back app Dosh is kind similar: Once you’ve downloaded it, you connect your credit and debit cards to it (securely, of course); then every time you use those cards, the app will automatically search to see if there’s a coupon or offer available. Dosh will then convert the coupon or offer into cash, which it deposits into your Dosh Wallet. From there, you can transfer the money to your bank account or PayPal account, or you can donate it to charity. It’s good for pretty much any kind of shopping you might do, but travel is particularly recommended.

Download Dosh for iOS and Android.

Here’s one for the Instagram enthusiasts in the crowd: Foap lets you upload your photos to the app’s marketplace and sell them (well, the license to use them) for $10 a pop. $5 of that goes to Foap, and $5 of it goes to you — each and every time your photo sells. So, if your photo gets purchased 10 times, that’s $50 in your pocket. Your photos do have to be OK'd by Foap’s developers in order to make it into the marketplace, and you’ll need a PayPal account to actually access your payouts — but if you’re someone with an eye for photography, Foap can be a fun way to put a little extra cash in your pocket.

Download Foap for iOS and Android.

Simple, straightforward, and easy to use, InboxDollars asks you to perform certain tasks and gives you money in return. It essentially facilitates consumer research: Brands pay InboxDollars for user input; InboxDollars recruits users to provide that input; those users are assigned tasks to complete; the brands get the input they want; and then the users get paid for their time. Reading emails is the task InboxDollars is most well-known for (and from whence its name comes), but you can also do things like take surveys and watch videos.

As Survey Chris notes, the payout minimum for InboxDollars is a little high in comparison to other similar services; you have to complete $30 worth of tasks before you’re able to get your first check. Apparently you get $5 just for signing up, though, which knocks the bar down to $25 for your first check — and what’s more, Survey Chris writes, “For the high payout minimum, I was still able to cash out pretty quickly.”

Download InboxDollars for iOS and Android.

Not going to lie: I’ve had a Vanguard account for years, and I’m still terrified of investing. Like many Millennials, though — particularly those of us who entered adulthood right as the recession began — my fear largely has to do with moving around large sums of money and feeling like that’s the only way to invest. It’s not, though — which is where Acorns comes in.

An investing app aimed at Millennials who may not have a ton of working capital available (hi there, student loans, stagnant wages, and rising costs of living), Acorns operates on what it calls “round-ups,” which it tracks by keeping an eye on your bank account (yes, 256-bit encryption is part of the deal — safety first!). The system is perhaps best explained by example: Let’s say you buy a $3.72 cup of coffee on your way to work. Acorns will round that transaction up to $4 and invest the 28 cent difference for you. So basically, you’re investing what you’d probably consider to be spare change — and it can really make a difference in the long run.

Acorns isn’t perfect, of course; it doesn’t handle retirement funds, and as Policy Genius points out, depending on how many transactions you’ve made that result in money invested, the $1 monthly fee for using it can actually be kind of high for what you’re getting out of it. But it doesn’t require thousands upfront in order to get going, and it demystifies investing for folks who may not be super familiar with the whole thing. Plus, the app has partnered with a number of companies to give you up to 10 percent cash back when you use a linked payment method at them. Check out more pros and cons of Acorns at Nerdwallet.

Download Acorns for iOS and Android.

Got some books — actual, physical books — you’re looking to re-home? BookScouter helps you resell them for the best possible price. Just load your book’s ISBN into the app (something you can accomplish either with the aid of your phone’s camera or by typing in the code manually), and the app will compare real-time price quotes for you, ensuring that you’ll get the most bang for your book buck. From there, all you need to do is select where you want to sell the book and complete the transaction on the seller’s site; then you can package and ship the book for free with a shipping label that will be provided for you. You can collect your money either via check or through PayPal.

Honestly, I wish I’d known about BookScouter the last time I moved; I scaled down my book collection, and while I was happy to give some old favorites I now have digital duplicates for to friends I knew would enjoy them, getting a couple extra bucks for a few of them would have been nice. Oh, and college students? This is undoubtedly one of the best ways to resell your old textbooks. You’ll probably get a better price than your university bookstore will give you.

Download BookScouter for iOS and Android.

Similar to Slidejoy, Fronto Lock Screen is an Android-only app (sorry, iOS users) that puts ads on your lock screen. These ads might be products, articles, or surveys; the type of ad varies, which helps keeps things interesting. If you swipe left on the ad and follow the link, you’ll be paid in Fronto points — according to Forbes, 2,5000 points equals roughly $1 — which you can then deposit as cash into your PayPal account, trade for Amazon gift cards, or use to get deals on purchases.

Download Fronto for Android.

Some of the best money-making apps out there are the task-based ones — and honestly, I suspect it’s because they kind of let you 'gamify' the whole thing. If you choose to become a Field Agent, for example, you can browse jobs available in your area, and once you find a fit, you can snap it up for yourself. Once you’ve accepted a job, you have two hours to complete it, after which you’ll submit your work for verification. One you’ve been approved, you’ll get paid securely through PayPal. The average job will earn you somewhere between $2 and $12.

Because I’m kind of a weirdo and I like to turn everything Ido into a story, I look at these kinds of tasks as secret missions. Performing an “egg audit” at a local store is much more exciting if you pretend you’re James Bond while you’re doing it.

Download Field Agent for iOS and Android.

Another task-based app, Rewardable pays anywhere between a couple of bucks up to $20 for completing “micro jobs” like recording a wait time at a restaurant or counting the number of products on a shelf at a store. You get access to higher-paying jobs the more tasks you complete; sometimes bonuses are also available for social interactions (think sharing a product with a buddy or something like that). You’ll get paid for your completed tasks via PayPal.

Download Rewardable for iOS and Android.

Think of Ibotta as couponing for the digital age: First,before you actually head out on your shopping trip, browse the cash back rebates available in the app and add whichever ones you’re planning on using; then, shop to your heart’s content; and after you’ve completed your shopping trip, either submit your receipt or just link your loyalty card. Voila! Instant cash back. You can cash out your savings through PayPal or Venmo, or you can convert them into a gift card. Technically this one doesn’t make money for you in the sense that it doesn’t generate cash you didn’t already have — but it does save you a ton if you use it right, and hey, that’s not nothin’.

Download Ibotta for iOS and Android.

Apps That Make Money

Shopkick’s rewards are only good for shopping, so if you’re looking for something that will put cash directly in your bank account, this one may not be for you. If you tend to shop regularly at some of the same stores, however, Shopkick might help you get the most bang for your buck on your everyday purchases. You can earn “kicks” — reward points, essentially — for doing anything from scanning items in specific stores or making purchases with linked credit cards to just walking into some stores; then, once you’ve racked up enough kicks, you can trade them in for gift cards. The app also recently expanded to include a section called Shopkick Grocery, which provides more opportunities for users to earn kicks through increased product and store offerings, as well as rewarding users for doing things like trying out featured recipes.

Download Shopkick for iOS and Android.

There are a lot — and I mean a lot — of apps out there that will pay you to take surveys, so QuickThoughts is by no means your only option. What I like about QuickThoughts, though, is that it combines the pros of taking surveys (quick, easy, short) with the fun of apps like Field Agent (Missions! Sneaking! Secrecy!). You do have to qualify in order to take specific surveys, which means you’ll have to answer a few preliminary questions knowing that you might not actually gain access to the survey; that’s par for the course with most survey-based moneymakers, though, so it’s not unexpected. As far as the missions go, you can either do “a live-action challenge close to your location, or one… at your own pace the next time you’re out and about,” according to The Penny Hoarder.

Download QuickThoughts for iOS and Android.

Apps You Can Actually Make Money On Swagbucks

Check out the “Get Money” stream in the Bustle App for more tips and tricks on how to save and spend your money.