THE PENNY HOARDER
We’ve all got smartphones these days, and almost everything we do on them requires using an app.
Wouldn’t it be cool if you could make extra money just for using them? Well, you can.
You’re not going to get rich by downloading mobile apps, but you can use these to earn a little extra money every month.
Considering some of them require you to do nothing, or just watch videos or take some paid surveys, it doesn’t seem like a bad deal to make a few extra bucks.
To get you started, we put together a list of our favorite apps that pay you just for using them…
1. This App Helps You Start Investing — And Pays You $10
We’re kind of obsessed with Acorns around here (and not just because it gives you $10).
We love that anyone can use Acorns to start investing. You don’t have to have an MBA or even make it all the way through “The Big Short” to understand how to invest with this app.
You just link your bank account and Acorns does the rest by rounding up your purchases to the nearest dollar and investing the change in the stock market.
To get the $10 bonus:
- Download the free Acorns app.
- Link your bank account, and spend money the way you normally would. Your digital change will get automatically invested.
It probably won’t save you enough to retire on, but it’s a terrific reward for using a free app, and an easy way to set aside money for the future, without even thinking about it.
2. This App Helps You Sell Your Old Clothes
Do you still have a prom outfit from, like, 10 years ago?
It’s never going to fit — or come into style — again, but something just keeps holding you back from sending it to Goodwill.
Maybe money could change your mind? Instead of storing clothes indefinitely, try selling them on an app like Letgo.
3. This App Pays You to Take a Picture of Your Receipts
Yeah, did you know that you can get paid cash back just for taking a picture of your receipt?
Here’s how it works….
1. Sign up for Ibotta here (you just need a name/email address to start).
2. Browse through the cash-back offers in your area and take note the next time you go to the store (the offers change every week). For example, in my city, Ibotta will give 2% cash back on Best Buy purchases, $0.25 cash back on any Target purchase, and $3 cash back when I buy an appetizer from any restaurant. Pretty cool, right?
Once you’ve reached at least $20 in earnings, you can request payment via Paypal or Venmo. And right now, Ibotta is giving new users a $10 sign-up bonus, just for redeeming their first receipt.
4. This App Pays You to Take Simple Surveys
The Ipsos I-say mobile app is one of the best, legitimate paid survey apps out there. They’re currently rated an A+ with the Better Business Bureau.
The questions are pretty simple. What do you like more — Coke or Cherry Coke? How many times have you been to the movies in the past 12 months? You get the idea.
You won’t qualify for every panel, but you can usually earn about $5 for 30 minutes of work.
5. This App Pays You to Drive Around Town
Need a fun, flexible way to earn money while also meeting lots of new people?
Try driving with Lyft!
Demand for ridesharing has been growing like crazy, and it shows no signs of slowing down. To be eligible, you’ll need to be at least 21 years old with a year of driving experience, pass a background check and own a car made in 2007 or later.
We talked to Paul Pruce, who’s been driving full-time with Lyft for over a year. He earns $750 a week as a driver.
Best of all, he does it on his own time. You can work days, nights or weekends — it’s up to you!
6. This App Pays You to Watch Videos
The folks over at InboxDollars will actually pay you to watch videos!
The videos are sponsored by brands who need to get them in front of as many eyeballs as possible. Every time you watch one of the ads Swagbucks will credit your account with a little bit of cash.
You’ll get a free $5 just for signing up.
7. This App Helps Sell Your Old Electronics
Decluttr buys your old CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays and video games, plus hardware like cell phones, tablets, game consoles and iPods. Plus, enter PENNY10 at checkout to get an extra 10% for your trade-ins!
You scan each product’s barcode with your phone, and Decluttr makes an offer.
Prices vary — usually about 50 cents to $3 per item — but you can unload your media in bulk to make an extra $50 to $100 this week. And never have to look at them again.
With Decluttr, you can sell stuff online without having to deal with individual listings and buyers.
And shipping is free. The company emails you shipping labels to cover the cost. Just print the label, pack your items in any box and ship it.
8. This App Pays You for Walking Into (and Shopping at) Stores
Sick of shopping online and headed to a real, live store? Download the Shopkick app first.
Once you sign up, the app pays you “kicks” for walking into certain stores (including Target, Walmart, TJMaxx and more). These can be redeemed for gift cards to Amazon, Target, Walmart, Starbucks, Sephora, Best Buy and more.
It pays you even more “kicks” for scanning items in stores and purchasing them with a connected credit or debit card, as well as for scanning receipts and mobile shopping.
9. This App Helps You Find Out Where You Are Wasting Money
We all sign up for stuff. Sometimes it’s easier to put subscriptions on a recurring payment and forget about it — looking at you Netflix.
If you can’t keep track of them all, check out an app called Trim. Once you sign up and connect your bank account and phone number, it analyzes your transaction history for recurring payments.
When it finds one, the app sends you a text and cancels any subscriptions you don’t want to keep.
10. This App Scans Your Email Receipts for Price Changes
Deleting your emails could cost you serious money.
Why?
An app called Earny helps gets you money back for your online purchases at stores like Target, Walmart, Old Navy and more — but you have to keep your email receipts.
Here’s how it works:
- Earny will scan your email archives for receipts. It’ll find your purchases from any of more than 20 partner retailers and monitors the prices everywhere online.
- Earny tracks to find price drops on your purchase, always trying to get you the most money back. It then claims the difference with the retailer or credit card issuer on your behalf through price protection policies.
You’ll earn cash back while you lounge at home in your new throwback getup!
11. This App Pays You for Booking Hotels, Shopping and Dining Out
Dosh is a new cash-back app that pays you for making purchases at more than 100,000 hotels, online stores, and restaurants — including Starwood Properties, Marriott, Cost Plus World Market, Nike, Target, Chuck E. Cheese’s, and many more.
Here’s all you have to do:
- Download the app and sign up.
- Securely connect a debit or credit card.
- Live your life and watch the cash back roll in.
In addition to cash back, you can also collect a $25 bonus for booking your first hotel through the app, as well bonuses for referring friends and local businesses.
12. This App Houses Virtual Scratch-Off Tickets With Real Prizes
There’s something so satisfying about those gas station scratch-off tickets, but it’s better to avoid them because, well, that’s not Penny Hoarding.
Instead, try using a free app like Lucktastic. Each day, a new assortment of digital scratch-off tickets is released. Lucktastic says instant wins range from $1 to $10K. You can also earn tokens, enter contests and play games.
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