11 Best Money-Making Apps for 2023 (2024)

Thanks to a vast selection of apps, making money on the side has never been easier. You can earn extra money by signing up for food-delivery services or even through cash-back rebates on things you’d buy anyway.

While you won’t get rich through the apps, it’s worth taking a look at some easy ways to help your budget just by using your cellphone. Some of the apps pay you through credits or gift cards, while others pay in cash.

Best Money-Making Apps of 2023

If you’re looking for a new revenue source, look no further than the palm of your hand to monetize your spare time. Here are some of the best money-making apps of 2023:

1. Google Opinion Rewards: Surveys
2. Surveys On The Go: Surveys
3. Ibotta: Cash back
4. Acorns: Investing and cash back
5. Rakuten: Cash back
6. Swagbucks: Cash back and surveys
7. Foap: Photos
8. Dreamstime: Photos
9. Decluttr: Selling
10. Uber Eats: Gig work
11. Gigwalk: Gig work

1. Google Opinion Rewards

Taking surveys is just one way to earn some rewards, and Google Opinion Rewards is among the options that let you do just that. To get started, download the app and answer a few questions about yourself. Then, Google will send you questions and surveys about a range of topics, asking you anything from which logo you like better to questions about your next vacation.

In exchange for your participation, you can earn money each survey you complete and get paid via PayPal. Alternatively, you can get credit to Google Play, where you can use those credits to buy more apps.

• Type of app: Survey
• Amount you can make: Up to $1 in PayPal or Google Play credit per survey
• Where to download the app: Google Play and the App Store

2. Surveys On The Go

Surveys On The Gois another free app that pays you for your feedback on various topics and issues. Just answer a few preliminary questions about yourself, then get started sharing your opinion and getting paid for it.

The company sends out one to two surveys a week and pays cash via a PayPal account, or you can apply your earnings toward gift cards.

• Type of app: Survey
• Amount you can make: $1-$5 for most surveys; some pay $10 and up
• Where to download the app: Google Play and the App Store

3. Ibotta

Ibotta is a cash-back app that allows users to earn money back on their purchases. Users can browse through a variety of deals and offers before they shop, purchase the items and then upload a photo of their receipt to claim cash-back rewards. Ibotta offers cash-back on groceries, online shopping and even certain services.

• Type of app: Cash back
• Amount you can make: Varies based on shopping habits and promotions
• Where to download the app: Google Play and the App Store

4. Acorns

Acorns is an investment app that helps users grow their savings by automatically investing their spare change. It rounds up purchases to the nearest dollar and invests the difference into a diversified portfolio. In addition to this round-up feature, Acorns also offers a cash-back shopping feature, where purchases with partner retailers can earn additional investment contributions.

• Type of app: Investment and cash back
• Amount you can make: Earnings depend on market performance and spending habits
• Where to download the app: Google Play and the App Store

5. Rakuten

You can get cash back when you shop through Rakuten at more than 3,500 retailers. The site also has coupons to provide even more value.

If you shop online anyway, this is a good way to get additional cash back on top of whatever rewards you might get through your credit card by receiving a percentage of your purchase price back.

• Type of app: Cash back
• Amount you can make:Depends on current promotions, but can be 10% of purchase price or more
• Where to download the app: Google Play and the App Store

6. Swagbucks

Put cash back into your wallet withSwagbucks, a cash-back and survey app.Swagbucks operates like a mix of others on this list, providing both cash back when you make purchases and rewards for taking surveys or even watching videos.As with Rakuten, the percentage of cash back from retailers depends on current promotions and changes frequently.

As you earn Swagbucks, you’ll be able to cash out with gift cards.

• Type of app:Cash back and surveys
• Amount you can make: Cash back on purchases varies by store; users typically earn between $1 to $5 per day with surveys; however, some pay as much as $250
• Where to download the app: Google Play and the App Store

7. Foap

If you’re an avid photographer, your talent could translate into money. Foap gives you the opportunity to sell your best pictures to marketers, businesses, web designers and anyone else willing to pay up to $10 for the perfect stock photo.

Foap splits the cash with its users 50-50, typically giving you up to $5 for every image you sell.

• Type of app: Photo
• Amount you can make: Up to $5 per sold photo
• Where to download the app: Google Play and the App Store

8. Dreamstime

If you’re a little more than an amateur photographer, why not upload your photos to Dreamstime? When you do, you create an archive of images that other people can purchase. There are more than 226 million stock photos on Dreamstime, making it one of the busiest archives in the world.

This platform will take a little more work than Foap, but you can sell items multiple times, making it an option that could help you eventually earn passive income. And along with photos, you can sell your original illustrations, videos and audio files on Dreamstime.

• Type of app: Photo
• Amount you can make: As much as 60% of the selling price for your images, videos and audio files
• Where to download the app: Google Play and the App Store

9. Decluttr

Among the top quick-cash apps isDecluttr, which focuses on used electronics. With a few screen taps, you can turn old cell phones, DVDs, outdated video game consoles and CDs into cash.

With Decluttr, you can get rid of things you no longer need in a single transaction — and you’re guaranteed the price quoted in your original appraisal, which requires you to scan a barcode for each item.

• Type of app: Selling
• Amount you can make: Dependent on items sold
• Where to download the app: Google Play and the App Store

10. Uber Eats

Serve up some food with Uber Eats.By connecting with the Uber Eats app, you can pick up food from restaurants and deliver it to the hungry people who order it. The best part is that you can receive your pay on the same day you make your deliveries.

• Type of app: Gig work
• Amount you can make:Varies by location and is based on several factors, including the number of pickups and drop-offs, time, distance and tips
• Where to download the app: Google Play and the App Store

11. Gigwalk

Gigwalk connects you to gigs in your surrounding area. The assignments offered — mainly from consumer brands and retailers — are temporary and can take between five minutes to several hours to complete. You can choose a gig that suits you, like collecting data or checking store displays, and earn anywhere from a few dollars to $100, according to the app’s website.

• Type of app: Gig work
• Amount you can make: From a few dollars to $100 per assignment
• Where to download the app: Google Play and the App Store

How To Choose the Best Money-Making App

While there are money-making apps that really work, some of them are not worth your time. Consider the following questions to determine whether the app you’re looking at is legitimate:

• Is the app free? If not, is it worth the payment? Be wary of a free app that then asks you to pay for a subscription. Most platforms that offer money aren’t going to ask you to pay first.
• How are the reviews for the app? Do they sound legitimate? On the download page on Google Play or the App Store, you should be able to see reviews from users. Be skeptical about reviews that are too vague or effusive.
• How long has the app existed? Does it have a good reputation on third-party sites? Many of the apps listed above have existed for years and have a number of third-party reviews for you to sift through.

Final Take

The amount of money you can make through apps depends on whether you’re choosing the right ones to download.Most money-making appsaren’t going to make you rich overnight, but they can add to your wallet. The best apps are the ones that suit your schedule and your interests and also pay you for things you’d normally do, such as cash back on your shopping.

Cynthia Measom, Taylor Bell and Barri Segal contributed to the reporting for this article.

The article above was refined via automated technology and then fine-tuned and verified for accuracy by a member of our editorial team.

Information is accurate as of Nov. 20, 2023.