5 Quick Apps You Should be Using Daily to Make Money & Earn Free Stuff

I’ve used a variety of apps at one point or another to earn a little extra spending money. Some have been way too boring and tedious, and require too much time to make a small amount of money. I’ve compiled five apps or websites that I’ve found to be most worth my time. Check them out, and use my referral codes for some extra bonuses as you sign up for each one.

1. Givling

This app is for you if you a) have student loans b) have a mortgage c) want to purchase a home d) want to start or contribute to a retirement account, or e) know someone with student loans or a mortgage… So, basically, it is for literally anyone with a heartbeat! Givling crowdfunds up to $50,000 of each student loan or mortgage that is chosen. If yours isn’t that large, you can gift the remainder to anyone else you know! As of October 2019, Givling has paid out over $4 million. You could also be lucky enough to be a random draw winner for $10,000 towards your loan or mortgage while you’re waiting to make it to the top. They also do daily $500 drawings for those who have played 10 times in the past 30 days.

Another huge benefit of playing Givling is the opportunity to win a weekly trivia prize by playing True/False trivia. In July of 2018, I won over $4000 by winning the weekly game! So many ways to win.

Your first two plays every 24 hours are free, but you can pay to play more games. THE BEST PART about Givling is the ultimate goal – to help you pay off your student loan or mortgage. As you watch ads, play trivia games, or fund the queue, money is accumulated and eventually paid out to one of the players. I spend maybe 10 minutes on this app each day (sometimes less). There’s no guarantee you’ll ever make it to the top, but the multiple ways to win randomly make this app worth it. Check it out on the app store or online, and use code LS503586 upon signing up.

If you’re good at trivia–check out CashShow in your app store as well. I’ve earned about $5 in my first week of play. Use code C7DS7V when you sign up for an extra life!

2. Ibotta

Ibotta has been around for a while, but if you haven’t given it a chance, NOW is the time! Ibotta gives you cash back on a variety of purchases, both in-store and online. If you’re shopping in store, you can browse that particular store on the app to see which items will earn you cash-back. Simply clip the coupon, purchase the item, and take a picture of your receipt. Your account will be credited within 48 hours (usually way faster).

One of my favorite things about the app is the rewards available for wine, beer, and spirits. A few weeks ago I got cash back for drinking margaritas at Buffalo Wild Wings! There’s always a wide variety of rebates available in the Spirits category. At the time of writing this post, there’s a coupon for $4 cash back on packs of Coors and Bud Light, or $3 back on popular vodka and rum brands. Ibotta also partners with a variety of online retailers (Kohls, Amazon, Cabela’s… SO MANY MORE!) to reward you with cash-back on your purchases.So far, I’ve cashed out over $100. Start with $10 in your account when you sign up and use the code “l7fjww” – an even better excuse to check it out!

3. Acorns

I’ve been an acorns user for a few years, but have only been consistently using it for the past 16 months. Acorns is an app that allows you to connect your debit and credit card information so you can invest your spare change. They do all the investing work for you, so essentially you don’t even need to use the app on a daily basis once the account is set up. Here’s how it works–Say you spend $11.40 at Target (I know what you’re thinking, “Is it even possible to spend less than $50 when you walk into a Target?”), Acorns will round your purchase up to $12 and invest the extra 60 cents for you. There’s also the option to make recurring deposits beyond your spare change. I’ve been investing $10/week, plus my spare change, and earned over $150 in my first year through the growth, dividends, and partner offers. As I save more, my money will (hopefully) continue to earn more and more. There’s no guarantees with investing, of course, but the app predicts my account could hit $100,000 at age 55. You can take your money out at any time. Sign up through https://acorns.com/invite/5ADNU3 to start with a free $5 in your account!
Note: If you’re interested in hands-on investing without trading fees, check out Robinhood! It isn’t as quick as the other apps mentioned, since you do the research and make the trades. It is a great app to learn more about investing in stocks. The interface is very user-friendly. Start with a FREE stock by using my referral code! http://share.robinhood.com/laurens229

4. Verydice

I spend less than one minute on this app every day, but I have earned enough points in the past few months for purchases on Amazon like Mrs. Meyer’s hand soap and Gorilla Glue. All you have to do is open the app once every 24 hours, spin a wheel, and roll your dice. If you want to earn more rolls each day you can watch videos, invite friends, take surveys, or complete other offers.  If you were to spend a minute to roll your dice each day for a year, by the time the holidays roll around, you’d certainly have enough points for at least one gift on your list! I’ve gotten into the habit of rolling my dice on my walk to the car each morning. Super fast and easy! Download verydice from your app store and use code “1103038” when you sign up to start with 50 bonus rolls!

5. Shopkick

This app will give you points for simply walking into a store (Target, Walmart, TJ Maxx, & more). You can also earn points by scanning certain items or purchasing items. Once you earn enough points, you can redeem them for a variety of different gift cards. If you’re going shopping anyways, it is SO worth it to check out this app beforehand to see if you can earn points for something you’re already planning to do. Start with 250 kicks (points) after you Walk-in or Scan within 7 days of signing up when you use my referral code SALE340782 upon sign up. Happy shopping!

Others to check out:

The five apps above are not the only ones I’ve used to make a little extra cash, but they do require the least amount of work. Below are a few more you might want to check out and see if they are for you!

• HQ & CashShow

These are both trivia-based apps. Sadly, I haven’t earned any money with HQ (you need to get 12 questions correct in a row). I have won money with Cash Show, which requires you to only get 5-6 questions correct in a row before you begin earning. Both of these pay out in similar ways-whatever you win is split with everyone else who has won. HQ has potential to earn you more IF you can win. Cash Show is more slow and steady. For both, the questions generally start off super easy, but quickly get more difficult and require actual knowledge of the topic (or some really great guessing skills!). The downside to this app is that you have to remember or be available to play during the live games. Cash Show has several games a day, HQ only has two. Push notifications help to remind me when to play Download HQ in your app store to try it yourself and use laurenlouise50 when you sign up, use code C7DS7V for Cash Show when you sign up for an extra life!

• Mobee, Gigwalk, EasyShift, Field Agent

These ones take a little more work, but do lead to more rewards. Each of these apps requires you to complete some type of task at a store or business. When you download Mobee, you’re given “Missions” for which you earn points upon completion. Missions usually consist of locating a product within a store near you. Download it from the app store and use my invite code TMZC when you sign up. Gigwalk, Field Agent, and EasyShift require more time, but also pay more and pay cash through PayPal for your work. You might be asked to take pictures of certain displays in a store, or to rate and describe the quality of customer service you received at a store. I earned $104 over 4 months when I was active with EasyShift. Sometimes it can be a little awkward to complete missions which require you to take a lot of photos in a store, so keep that in mind before accepting a job.