Earn extra money without leaving your phone
You need a bit more income and the raise is not in the picture. What do you do?
Yes, there are options like driving for Uber or delivering groceries with InstaCart, but there are plenty of other choices for those who are time-strapped. In fact, if you have a smartphone, you can download a few apps (or be able to access the internet using your smartphone) and start earning money in your spare time. Sure, you may not end up earning thousands of dollars a month, but a little bit of money is better than nothing.
This app, by a pioneer in the distributed retail auditing space, pays you to be a secret shopper. Jobs from GigWalk include auditing stores in terms of their product placements and even how they market products at their storefront. There are a wide variety of businesses and retailers involved with these types of gigs.
To start, download their app and sign up for an account. On the app, you can find jobs that are near your location. These tasks can be as simple as taking photos of a certain section in a store all the way to speaking with a staff member. You’ll be able to see when these jobs need to be completed. You can apply for them up to 24 hours in advance and be notified if you’ve been chosen. Once you complete the job, you’ll be paid instantly via Paypal.
Earn money with this app by sharing your opinion. It depends on the survey, but you could be asked about your opinion on certain topics such as current events, sports, entertainment and tech products. Once you download the app, you answer a few personal questions such as age and gender.
Once a new survey that matches your demographic is available, you’ll be notified. Sometimes it’s a simple as answering a yes/no question and you’ll receive an average of $1. Once you earn $10, you can receive the cash via Paypal.
Fancy yourself a photographer? This app will pay you to take photos of various things such as art, food, nature and cities using your smartphone and selling them to a company called Depositphotos. Pick your best photos and upload them via the app and sell them anywhere from 50 cents to $80 per photo. You’ll earn royalties for every photo sold, which is up to an average of 44%.
As for which types of photos will sell well, check Depositphotos to see what kind of photos are there. You can also check a list of popular photographers on Clashot to get an idea of what sells. Once you register for an account at Clashot, you just need to upload a photo, write a description of it and go through the verification process and you’re ready to start earning some cash.
Yes, you can earn money for shopping. This app will show you products and rewards at various retailers. You’ll earn points for walking into the store, scanning select items and more if you end up making a purchase. You can even do this while you’re browsing online. Just head to a retailer’s website, view certain products and earn points that way. Once you earn enough points, you can use them to redeem gift cards and select retailers.
Think of Ibotta as a couponing app, except it doesn’t require you to scour through tons of newspapers. All you need to do is unlock cash rewards for retailers (including grocery stores) near you. They can be as simple as answering a question for watching a 30-second video. After making a purchase at the store, you scan your receipt and you’ll receive cash back within 48 hours. Some will automatically verify your purchases if you link a store loyalty card. There are other retailers where you can get cash back if you shop via Ibotta online portal.
Once you reach $20, you can transfer the money to your Paypal or Venmo account. If you choose, you can also use your cash back rewards to redeem gift cards.
You can access Swagbucks online or via their app. You earn points called SB by doing simple tasks such as completing short surveys, watching videos, shopping via their online mall, voting in daily polls, entering contests and even referring your friends. These points can be redeemed for gift cards from major retailers like WalMart or for cash via Paypal.
This is another mystery shopping app that’s similar to GigWalk. To earn money, you apply for a shift (what they call a gig) and complete simple audits and local stores. In most cases, you only have 24 hours to complete a task. Onc they review your work, you’ll get paid directly to your Paypal account.
The more shifts you complete, the more points you get. This, in turn, will help build your reputation and go higher in ranking. When that happens, you have the ability to complete more shifts in a day.
Dosh is an app that gives you cash back when purchasing certain products and services. You simply link your debit or credit card and Dosh will monitor your purchases and give you a percentage back. For example, you’ll get money back if you dine out at participating restaurants. You can even get bask back from booking hotels and shopping through the app.
To start using Dosh, download the app, verify your email address you registered with and connect your card and Paypal account. You’ll get all cash earned to your Paypal account.
Final Thoughts
Using websites and apps are merely a fraction of the options you can choose to earn some money in your spare time. If you have more time after work or even on the weekends, you can earn even more money with other side gigs. The point is that you don’t have to rearrange your lifestyle (or devote hours upon hours a week) to earn some extra cash.
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