“If I had a dime for every time I caught myself messing around on my smartphone…”
Most of us would be RICH, right?
Okay, literally, guys: wouldn’t you LOVE to earn money every time you use your phone? Ok yeah, no one’s going to pay you to text your friends or read your Facebook feed, but you CAN make money on your phone—for real. To be totally honest, you’re probably not going to make enough money to just up and quit your day job…BUT, if you’re going to be on the phone anyway…when you’re standing in line, waiting for an appointment, or riding the bus…then you might as well get paid, right?
The short answer: The legit ways to make money with your smartphone are: earning rewards for things you already do online (Swagbucks), getting cash back on shopping (Ibotta, Fetch and Receipt Hog), selling stuff you don’t use (Poshmark, Depop, eBay, OfferUp), and quick survey apps like Google Opinion Rewards. You won’t get rich, but it can easily cover a few extras every month, and it’s more productive than scrolling.
Updated: a few apps from the original version of this post shut down, so I swapped them out. Everything on this list is still up and running.
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It’s true! There are some really awesome apps out there that will pay you for things you’re already doing on your phone. So, you won’t have to do a bunch of extra activities, SPAM your friends, or spend all day on your phone to earn extra money. There are survey apps that pay you, games you can download to earn, and other apps that pay you for shopping (for things already on your grocery list). It’s easy!
One thing I have to say: there are a lot of junk apps out there that won’t really pay out or that encourage you to buy things you don’t need. Some require a bunch of extra time and effort. These are NOT great ways to earn money on your smartphone—you could probably find much better ways to use your time and energy to make money. Be selective and read reviews! Don’t just download every app that comes your way.
The good news is, the apps I’ve found here are legit and don’t require a bunch of extra time and effort. They’re simple and yes, kind of fun. You’ll find you WANT to use these paying apps because they get a little addicting. Like, “Oh, I have ten minutes, I’ll quick watch a video and earn some credits!”
So without further ado, here are 4 ways to make money with your smartphone that actually work!
1. Surf the Web & Watch Videos
It’s so easy to waste time mindlessly surfing the Web and scrolling though social media. Why not earn some extra cash while your scrolling finger gets a workout?
Quite a few apps award you with points for watching ads. Then, you can redeem your points for payouts—including gift cards and even cash! A few popular surf-and-earn apps:
Swagbucks
These days, Swagbucks is probably one of the most popular apps around. (Check out my honest Swagbucks review here.) You earn “SBs” by shopping, watching videos, and answering surveys–all of which you can redeem for gift cards or PayPal cash. Their members have earned over $185 million, so you know they’re doing something right!
Google Opinion Rewards
This is Google’s own survey app, and it’s about as low-effort as it gets. Every so often you get a super short survey (usually a few questions) and earn anywhere from a dime to a couple of dollars. On Android you get paid in Google Play credit (great for apps, books and movies), and on iPhone it pays out to PayPal. You won’t get rich, but it adds up for basically zero work.
2. Shop (Like You Already Shop)
Everyone shops. We all need groceries, shampoo, clothes, and other stuff, right? Believe it or not, there are smartphone apps that pay you to shop for items already on your shopping list. (Not a bunch of stuff you’d never buy anyway.) It’s simple, as there are only a few extra steps involved to start earning. Here are some popular get-paid-to-shop apps:
Ibotta
Get paid to grocery shop! Before you go shopping, you complete a few simple tasks on the app, each related to favorite brands or products you usually buy. After you go to the store, you take a picture of your receipt and you’re credited with a cashback amount. You can cash out via PayPal every time you earn at least $5. Ibotta lists new deals all the time, and a LOT of the items are probably already on your list! (Milk? Bananas? Bread?)
Fetch
Fetch pays you for receipts you already have. Snap a picture of any receipt (grocery, gas, Target, takeout…) and you get points you can trade for gift cards to places like Target, Starbucks and Amazon. It takes about 10 seconds, so it’s one of the easiest ones on this list to actually stick with.
Receipt Hog
Similar to Ibotta, Receipt Hog pays you to shop. You take a picture of your receipt from any store, play a few point-winning games and paid surveys, and then redeem your points for gift cards or PayPal cash. It’s so easy and most of the items are things you’d already be buying anyway!
3. Sell Items You Don’t Use
All of us probably have a few things lying around the house we don’t need. The beauty of smartphones is just how easy it is to take pictures of stuff and post it online to sell. It’s no longer a huge, complicated process (it’s even come a long way since I started selling clothes on eBay). No need to mess with confusing settings, set up backgrounds, or get a fancy camera. Here are a handful of cool apps for earning extra cash by selling your unwanted items:
Poshmark
After creating an account, take pictures of designer and brand-name clothing and immediately post them for sale–in LESS than a minute. There’s SO little hassle involved, it’s crazy. Poshmark keeps 20% of the selling price and the rest is yours! Poshmark is also a marketplace where you can buy AND sell, so go ahead and browse around–you might find a killer deal for up to 70% off retail price.
Depop
Depop is really similar to Poshmark—you just snap and sell. They retain a 10% fee on all sales, but you’re not limited to just clothes. You can sell accessories, collectibles, and other fun items. Depop is geared to a younger, social-media-savvy audience, so many sellers “model” the clothes (think selfies), but it’s not necessary. Instagrammers use Depop for flash sales.
OfferUp (and Facebook Marketplace)
letgo merged into OfferUp a few years ago, so if you used to love letgo, OfferUp is where it went. It’s basically a mobile Craigslist: snap a picture, post it, and meet up locally. No shipping, no boxes. Facebook Marketplace works the same way and it’s where a ton of local buyers are already hanging out. Just like any in-person sale, meet somewhere public (lots of police stations have safe exchange spots) and bring someone with you.
eBay
eBay’s mobile selling platform has greatly advanced since eBay began so many years ago. Sign up for an account, post items for sale, and wait for customers to bid. Simple, fast, easy to use, and an effective way to clean out your home and get rid of all that crud you don’t use. If you dread the thought of keeping up your seller score and giving feedback on eBay (or all the trips to the post office), you can also try their eBay valet service, where (for a fee) they do ALL the work FOR you for a percentage of the sale.
4. Play Games
If playing games on your phone is your thing (and I totally get that it’s not for everyone), then why not double your fun by making money while you play?
Honest update: the spin-the-wheel game app I used to recommend here shut down, and so have most of the “get paid to play” apps. The ones that are left usually pay pennies for a LOT of your time. If you love playing games on your phone anyway, use the games inside Swagbucks so at least your points all add up in one place. But I wouldn’t download a game app just to make money.
Whether it’s playing games, shopping, or filling out surveys, there are a bunch of ways to make money with your smartphone and most of them are really easy. Will you get rich? Um…no, but you’ll save a little and it’s more productive than just surfing around or reading comments on other people’s Facebook posts!
Make Money With Your Phone FAQ
What’s the best app to make money on your phone? For most people, the cash back apps (like Ibotta) and selling apps (like Poshmark or eBay) pay the most for the least effort, because you’re earning on stuff you were already going to buy or already own.
Can you really make money from your phone? Yes, but think “extra $20–$100 a month,” not a paycheck. If you need real income, check out my ways to make money from home or how to make $3,000 fast.
How do I avoid scam money-making apps? Skip anything that asks you to pay to join, promises big money fast, or has a high cash-out minimum you’ll never reach. Read recent reviews in the app store first.
So the next time you have some free time, get your smartphone to start working for you! Earn money from apps and have some fun in the process! What about you? What are your favorite apps and ways to earn money on your phone?
I used Poshmark for the first time a couple of weeks ago. It was easy to use and I opted for them to send me a check and that was fast too. Another one I keep hearing about and plan to try for clothing is Mercari. Getting rid of clothes clutter and making some extra money is a win-win! Need to try out some others you mentioned, thanks for sharing!
You know, I’ve never heard of Mercari before. Let me know how it goes 🙂
I love Mercari. I buy alot of items off there!
That’s a great article. But is it Possible to Make Money from Facebook Page in India
Thanks for sharing this because before I just heard to make money with smartphones but now I will use Ibotta. Thanks for advising me.
That’s a cool list of ways to make money from smartphones. I’ve tried SwagBucks before but it didn’t work as expected for me. Would give it a try again. Thanks for sharing.
Wow, It’s really cool! i was not any idea about that apps. Thank you for sharing this valuable content.
Glad to help!
Thanks for sharing these. I’m still a relative novice when it comes to money making apps, but I know that many people love phone apps, so I wanted to do a post on this topic for my blog and came across a lady that was making a regular side income each month using just 2 money making apps. She wrote a guest post for me detailing how she does it. i couldn’t believe how easy it was!
Am very interested to do this but don’t no how started it
Please someone should help me, I seriously want to make money online but I don’t have a clue. Please I need a help.