29 Legit Money Making Apps for Android/iOS (Apps That Pay You Cash)

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We’ve extensively tested the most popular money-making apps to find the ones that are legit and worth your time, ranking them based on their earning potential, ease of use, user ratings and company reputation.

Our top picks across all categories include:

• Branded Surveys. Reputable paid surveys app with a large inventory of available surveys.
• Mistplay (Android only). Earn points by testing games. Redeem your points for gift cards or cash. Best for mobile gamers.
• Rakuten. Cash-back shopping app with a $30 bonus for new users. Best for frequent online shoppers.
• SurveyJunkie. Take surveys, share opinions and redeem points for cash or gift cards. Best for earning gift cards. 
• Swagbucks: Complete tasks like surveys and watching short videos to earn rewards. Best for those who enjoy diverse online activities.

Keep reading to explore the full list of legit money making apps, their features, and their pros and cons.

Our list is divided into the following categories: 

• Side cash apps. Earn extra cash by completing tasks like surveys, playing games and shopping on your phone. These apps offer fun, low-effort earning opportunities.
• Gig and sharing economy apps. Make an average of $15 to $20 per hour with tasks like shopping, delivery and dog walking. These apps provide additional income on your own schedule.
• Investing apps. These apps provide an easy and accessible investing experience for beginners.

Note: The reviews and ratings below were collected on August 2, 2023. We update this data periodically throughout the year to keep it current.

Side Cash Apps

To create this list, we extensively tested and analyzed the top survey apps, best cash-back apps and gaming apps that pay. While these apps will not replace your income, they’re an effective way to earn free gift cards or rewards to transfer to a bank or PayPal account.

#1. Branded Surveys

Branded Surveys is a highly-reputable survey platform that’s been around since 2012 and has paid out more than $38 million to its users. 

What makes Branded Surveys stand out is its large inventory of available surveys, which generally take 5 to 15 minutes each and can pay up to $5.

The downside to Branded Surveys in our testing was the high disqualification rate. You may not qualify for all surveys available on the platform, or you may get kicked out after answering a few questions because you don’t fit the demographic. 

Minimum withdrawal: You can cash out once you’ve earned $5, with available options including PayPal, bank account transfer or gift cards (including Amazon).

Download Branded Surveys.

Branded Surveys

Turn Your Opinions into Cash with Branded Surveys

Join the Branded Surveys community and start earning up to $140 per month simply by sharing your thoughts on products and services. It's quick, easy, and free to sign up. Plus, you'll receive a 100-point welcome bonus to get you started.

Register Here

#2. Swagbucks

Swagbucks is a reader and personal favorite for good reason: while you can take surveys, there are also several other simple tasks you can do to make money, such as watching videos, playing games and getting cash-back for shopping online.

While Swagbucks is a solid survey platform, its wide variety of tasks and generous $10 sign-up bonus make it one of our favorite overall money making apps.

Minimum withdrawal: There’s technically no minimum to cash out, but most reward options start at $3 (including PayPal cash and select gift cards).

Download Swagbucks.

#3. Survey Junkie

Survey Junkie is a top market research company with over 10 million members, high user ratings, an “Excellent” Trustpilot score, and a low $5 cash-out minimum. 

It stands out for its large inventory of surveys, allowing for flexible earning opportunities. 

Although there’s no sign-up bonus, new users can complete high-value tasks like profile surveys and watching a video to quickly reach the $5 minimum payout.

Minimum withdrawal: 500 points gets you a $5 transfer to your PayPal account, or you can redeem these reward points for gift cards.

Download Survey Junkie.

#4. Rakuten

Rakuten is a top-rated app that offers up to 40% cash-back at more than 3,500 partnered merchants. Simply search for the retailer in the app, click the link, and shop as usual.

For in-store purchases, link your card and activate cash-back offers before checking out. 

Sign up using this link for a $30 bonus on your first qualifying purchase. 

Minimum withdrawal: $5, but note that payments are not available on-demand. Your cash-back will be paid automatically every three months via your choice of PayPal, paper check or American Express rewards points.

Download Rakuten.

#5. Mistplay

Branded as “the loyalty program for gamers,” Mistplay is a free gaming app that rewards you with points for playing games on your Android smartphone (an iOS version is in development). 

Sometimes, you must provide Mistplay with feedback on the game itself. In other cases, you’re required to reach certain in-game milestones (like leveling up).

Your points can be redeemed for gift cards to major retailers like Amazon, Starbucks and the Nintendo store.

Minimum withdrawal: 1,500 points, which is roughly equal to $5 in value.

Download Mistplay.

#6. Fetch Rewards

Unlike many receipt scanning apps, Fetch Rewards works at any store. There are no barcodes to scan or coupons to clip, and you don’t have to buy specific products to earn points.

The big downside to Fetch is that each receipt only pays a few cents. However, you’ll get bonus points for buying sponsored items, and these are often common household products that you may be buying anyway.

Minimum withdrawal: 3,000 points gets you a $3 gift card.

Download Fetch Rewards.

#7. Upside

Upside is a cash-back app focused on gas purchases. In our testing, we found gas stations that offered up to 35 cents per gallon (though 25 cents and lower is more common).

The app also quickly expands beyond just gas, offering cash-back at certain retailers and restaurants.

Minimum withdrawal: You can withdraw at any time for a $1 fee. Once your balance reaches $10, you can withdraw for free.

Download Upside.

#8. Bingo Cash

Bingo Cash is a modern take on the classic game, offering real cash prizes and a free-to-play model. 

The game has a rating of 3.5 out of 5 on our scale. The rating is primarily because it’s a pay-to-play game for those who wish to enter cash tournaments. However, you can try it out for free and even enter tournaments without any requirement to pay.

Players are matched based on skill level, ensuring a fair game as everyone receives and sees the same balls and cards. Those who finish among the top three in their game win cash prizes.

Bingo Cash stands out for its multiplayer tournaments and daily bonuses, allowing diverse earning opportunities.

Although there’s no sign-up bonus, new users can quickly accumulate winnings by participating in regular or cash tournaments.

Minimum withdrawal: Players can cash out their winnings securely through PayPal and Apple Pay, with no minimum withdrawal specified.

Download Bingo Cash.

#9. Rakuten Insight

Rakuten Insight is a paid survey app from the company behind Rakuten, the most well-known cash-back shopping portal in the United States. The app is only available for Android devices, but we found it easy to take surveys on iPhone via their mobile-optimized website. 

We earned $9.62 per hour during our testing period, making this one of the best-paying survey apps we’ve reviewed. 

The downside to Rakuten Insight is that the number of available surveys is limited compared to bigger platforms like Survey Junkie.

Still, the above-average pay makes this a great option when you’re thinking about giving paid surveys a shot.

Minimum withdrawal: $5 to cash-out via PayPal.

Download Rakuten Insight.

#10. Nielsen Computer and Mobile Panel

Nielsen, a renowned research company known for TV viewership ratings, also analyzes smartphone usage with their Nielsen Computer and Mobile Panel app. 

This app runs in the background, anonymously collecting data on phone usage and activity types, such as browsing or watching videos. 

Users are entered into a $10,000 monthly sweepstakes and can earn up to $50 per year in gift cards or PayPal cash if the app remains installed for 12 months.

Download the Nielsen Computer and Mobile Panel app.

#11. SurveyMonkey Rewards

SurveyMonkey, which is widely used by numerous businesses for gathering customer feedback, also offers a lesser-known rewards app. 

In our testing, we earned an impressive $13.56 per hour (significantly above the survey app average). 

The platform’s surveys are typically brief, taking just 2-3 minutes to finish. However, survey availability is limited; we received only nine opportunities during a month-long test. 

Despite this, we reached the $5 cash-out minimum with minimal time and effort.

Minimum withdrawal: You must earn a minimum of $5 to redeem rewards. Amazon gift cards or a contribution to charity are the only redemption options. 

Download SurveyMonkey Rewards.

#12. InboxDollars

InboxDollars is a popular money making app that lets you earn through surveys as well as a variety of other tasks. It’s owned and operated by the same company that runs Swagbucks, but there are some key differences between the two (including that it’s one of the few sites where you can get paid to read e-mail).

InboxDollars also rewards you in real money (not points) for the activities you complete. The downside? There’s a $30 minimum to cash out, though the $5 sign-up bonus can help you reach that milestone.

Minimum withdrawal: $30 to cash out.

Download InboxDollars.

#13. Ibotta

Ibotta is widely recognized as one of the best cash-back apps for groceries, but has expanded into local retail and online cash-back. 

It works like this: you use the app to scan the barcode of the product you purchased at the store, and then you upload a photo of your receipt. Often, you’ll have to watch a 15-second video clip to have the money posted to your account. 

Both my wife and I use the app, often stacking one of the many apps that are similar to Ibotta to double-dip on rewards. We’ve found the 30 seconds it takes to always be time well spent. 

You can earn a $5 welcome bonus by signing up with our link and making a $15 purchase through the app.

Minimum withdrawal: $20 in cash transferred to Venmo or PayPal.

Download Ibotta.

Gig & Sharing Economy Apps 

The gig and sharing economy has opened up dozens of legit earning opportunities that you can leverage with your smartphone, including on-demand delivery jobs, odd jobs and more.

#14. DoorDash

DoorDash allows you to earn extra money by delivering restaurant take-out orders. You’ll need a car, bicycle or scooter, a driver’s license, and valid insurance to become a Dasher.

With DoorDash, you have the flexibility to schedule your shifts ahead of time or use DashNow, a feature only available during peak hours where no pre-scheduling is required. 

That means you’ll have less scheduling flexibility than with UberEats (see below), but it also means you’ll usually have a more consistent flow of orders (because there are fewer drivers working at any given moment).

Download the DoorDash driver app.

#15. Instacart

Instacart lets you earn money by shopping for and/or delivering groceries. Full-service Instacart shoppers both shop for and deliver items, but if you don’t have access to a car, you can be an in-store shopper only.

Similar to many gig economy apps, a big perk of working with Instacart is that you can set your own schedule. That said, peak times, such as weekends, often pay the most per hour.

Instacart shoppers get paid per order based on the time it takes to complete the order, as well as the distance (if delivering). Delivery drivers also get tips from customers.

Download Instacart.

#16. Fiverr

Fiverr is a freelance marketplace known for its wide variety of tasks offered.

What’s unique about Fiverr is that you’re the one designing the gig and posting it for others to buy. As such, you can create jobs you can fulfill entirely from your smartphone.

This could include video editing, proofreading and photo editing — among many others.

Visit Fiverr.

#17. Uber

Uber gives you two ways to make money with a single app: ride-sharing as a driver or delivering takeout food orders with UberEats. And with over 100 million active monthly customers in 900+ cities, there’s plenty of demand to keep you busy.

Being a driver with Uber is the most famous side hustle in the world for a reason: Uber freelancers can earn solid money (earnings vary based on factors like location and demand), and you can work literally whenever or wherever you want, with no need to set a schedule. Just open the app, make yourself available and then accept the gigs that are sent your way.

UberEats is similar to DoorDash (mentioned above) in that you can earn money by delivering food orders from local restaurants using your car, scooter or bike — or even on foot in some cities.

Plus, whether you drive people or deliver food, you have the ability to request instant payout for a small fee — meaning you can get paid the same day you work instead of waiting around for a deposit to hit your bank account.

Download the Uber driver app.

#18. Rover

Rover is a pioneer in the pet care industry when it comes to pet sitting, dog walking, doggy daycare and boarding. The app allows you to connect with local pet owners in need of these services. Rover advertises that walkers can get paid up to $20 per hour.

It’s ideal for those living in a more urban area, where they can often take out multiple dogs and travel short distances. For those not living in a city, boarding can help maximize your earnings.

Download Rover.

#19. Steady

Not sure which gig economy job you want to take on? Steady aggregates local gig economy and money making opportunities for you in one app. This way, you can see what’s available and find offers customized to your availability and skills.

The app has a strong community aspect as well, where other gig workers share best practices, tips to earn more, and how much they’re actually earning.

If you’re brand new to the gig economy, Steady is a good choice to lead you in the right direction. 

Download Steady.

#20. Turo

Turo is a car sharing app that allows you to earn money by renting your vehicle. 

The app works similarly to Airbnb in that you can list your car for rent and set your own price. Once a renter is found, they’ll contact you to arrange a time to pick up the car. 

Alternatively, many Turo hosts use remote lock technology, giving renters access to the car without meeting in person. Theoretically, you can earn passively, as the app handles the entire transaction. 

Download Turo.

#21. Neighbor

Neighbor is an app that allows you to get paid for renting unused space in your home. This could be an extra garage spot, driveway space, shed, attic or basement.

While there is some work involved upfront — such as listing your space and connecting with clients — once the storage is set up, there’s very little work required on your part.

Download Neighbor.

Investing Apps

When we think of money making apps, it’s all about turning minimal time, effort and resources into cash — all through your smartphone.

A select few investment apps fall into this category, in that you can earn money without investing a lot of time or cash. This may include being paid a sign-up bonus, getting free shares of stock, or having the ability to automatically invest your spare change.

#22. Acorns

Acorns is a mobile app that automates investing through:

• Spare change investing. Acorns’ Round Ups feature sets aside the difference from your purchases (e.g., 80 cents from a $17.20 expense) and invests it into a mutual fund, helping you save and build an investment portfolio gradually.
• Acorns Earn. Partnering with hundreds of retailers, Acorns allows you to earn money when shopping at specific stores (up to 10% of the purchase amount) and adds it to your investment account.

By using Acorns Earn and investing spare change, you can build a substantial portfolio for retirement or generate side income.

Download Acorns.

#23. Public

Public is one of our favorite apps for investing in individual shares of stock.

What stands out about Public is its simplicity: the app offers a very clean and user-friendly experience, and forgoes more advanced features, like options and futures trading, that aren’t necessary for beginning investors.

They also have a generous sign-up bonus, giving you free stock worth up to $300 in value simply for opening an account — no deposit is required.

Download Public.

#24. Fundrise

What stands out about Fundrise is that it allows you to invest in commercial real estate projects for as little as $10. You then earn passive income from quarterly dividends, as well as investment income once a property is sold.

Download Fundrise.

Miscellaneous Money Making Apps

From taking pictures of products at local retailers to achieving fitness goals, these apps don’t fit into one of the categories above but are still great for making extra money.

#25. Foap

Foap is a mobile app that allows you to make money by selling pictures you take with your phone. What’s nice is that one photo can sell multiple times, which allows you to generate a source of passive income.

The best way to earn is through “missions,” in which Foap teams up with a specific brand to show how everyday people use their product. 

Minimum withdrawal: There’s no minimum, but Foap pays you once per month via PayPal.

See also: Here are some more ways to get paid to take pictures with your phone.

Download Foap.

#26. Bookscouter

A popular free app among book lovers, Bookscouter allows you to sell used books.

How it works is that you enter or scan a book’s ISBN number and Bookscouter provides a list of companies looking to purchase that title (along with how much they’re willing to pay).

Those who earn the most know where to find used books for cheap (garage sales, library book sales, etc.), and use the app on the spot to find the ones that will fetch the highest profit margins.

Download Bookscouter.

#27. Field Agent

Field Agent is an app that allows you to make money by completing random local tasks, like taking pictures of products (to make sure they’re properly displayed) and completing mystery shopping missions to evaluate stores’ customer service. In that sense, it’s a form of mystery shopping (which can be a legit side hustle).

It’s also one of the best apps that pay you for walking.

This free app is best suited for those in urban areas, as you’re only paid on a per-task basis. Since you have to factor time and cost of travel into your net earnings, you’ll make more if you live near a high concentration of participating businesses.

Minimum withdrawal: $10 via PayPal.

Download Field Agent.

#28. eBay, Craigslist and Other Selling Apps

Selling your stuff is one of the best ways to make money fast. Apps such as Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace (located in the Facebook app), and OfferUp are great for selling items locally.

eBay is best suited for selling items outside of your local area. While you have to ship the item, you can typically sell it for a higher price (as your group of potential buyers is greatly enhanced). This makes eBay ideal for collectibles and items that are in high demand (like iPhones).

Not sure what to sell? We did the research to find the best things to sell online.

Further reading: Alternatives to Craigslist for selling stuff locally.

#29. Evidation

Evidation (formerly called Achievement) is a combination of a survey app and a fitness app. It works by syncing with other fitness apps you have on your phone, including:

• Apple Health
• Fitbit
• MapMyFitness
• MyFitnessPal
• And over a dozen others.

In addition to earning rewards via healthy activities — e.g., hitting 10,000 steps in one day —  you can earn rewards for answering health-related surveys. 

Minimum withdrawal: You’ll need a minimum of 10,000 points to cash out, which gives you a $10 gift card to popular retailers.

Pro tip: Turn this into a passive income app by syncing it with an app like Apple Health, which tracks your activity and steps in the background.

Money Making Apps That Aren’t Worth Your Time

We found plenty of apps that didn’t make the cut. Here are some of the most popular, along with why they’re worth skipping. The links below will take you to our full review of each app, where you can learn more.

• ATM App. While it has an interesting premise — users can choose to match with brands and then get paid for interacting with them, in a form of “brand dating” — we found the earning potential to be very low.
• Honeygain. This app does legitimately pay you for sharing your internet connection. However, the pay rate is so low it’s not worth the hassle of installing it.
• KaskKick. When we tested this app, our earnings came out to just $1.43 per hour.
• LifePoints. We found LifePoints to have an extremely high disqualification rate combined with a limited inventory of surveys. So while it’s a legit site that will pay you for your time, there are better options.
• Lucktastic. This popular sweepstakes app was shut down in March 2022.
• OnMyWay. The app promises to pay you cash for safe driving, but you have to refer 250 users to unlock cash rewards.
• Sweatcoin. You can only earn money by referring friends to Sweatcoin — not by walking, as advertised.
• Testerup: The company makes bold claims about how much you can earn, but when we tested the app, our earnings came out to less than $1 per hour. Plus, you have to reach $70 in order to cash-out.
• Zogo. This free app pays you for completing lessons about basic personal finance topics. We made an average of $6.07 per hour in our testing, but our earning rate declined quickly the more we used the app.

Money Making Apps FAQ

Best Money Making Apps: Final Thoughts

Our top priority when compiling this list was to make sure every app we included was both legitimate and worthwhile. There are many other apps out there, and while some of them work for some people, others just collect your data and waste your time without providing any real chance to cash-out your earnings.

Depending on your situation, they may or may not be worth looking into. But this list is the cream of the crop.

Our pick for the overall best money making app is Swagbucks, thanks to the wide range of ways it gives you to earn. If you’re looking for a dedicated cash-back app, Rakuten is an ideal choice; for a best-in-class paid survey experience, go with Survey Junkie.

You won’t get rich by using these apps to make money, but they can work as a small source of extra cash. And some — like Uber and DoorDash — can turn into lucrative side hustles.

R.J. Weiss

R.J. Weiss, founder of The Ways To Wealth, has been a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ since 2010. Holding a B.A. in finance and having completed the CFP® certification curriculum at The American College, R.J. combines formal education with a deep commitment to providing unbiased financial insights. Recognized as a trusted authority in the financial realm, his expertise is highlighted in major publications like Business Insider, New York Times, and Forbes.