The internet has truly transformed our daily lives is so many ways. Opportunities to make money once dependent upon being in the right place at the right time, or upon who you know, are now open to everyone. All require time, some perhaps more than they are worth, but can increase your income without leaving your home. Often the best way to make money online without paying anything is to find a way to earn money for things you already do daily. Let’s delve into twelve of the best ways you can earn additional income for free.
This article is a response to a community request. Friend of the site Joe posed the question – “how to make money online without paying anything”. If you have a topic you would like to see explored in a future article, add your suggestion on our upcoming topics page.
Disclosure
This post contains either affiliate links or referral codes. If you chose to follow the links, or use the provided code, and sign up for the service, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Tools and services are evaluated relative to the value they can bring to your financial journey. The existence or lack of an affiliate program does not impact the services/tools I chose to highlight. The opinions expressed below are my own.
Table of Contents
Take Part in Market Research
Market research is a nearly 50 billion dollar industry and has become the poster child for making money online. If you are willing to spend your time providing your honest opinion, there will always be companies willing to pay for the insight. With the only investment being your (valuable) time participating in market research is one the most ubiquitous was to make money online without paying anything.
Survey Sites
A myriad of companies will provide you the opportunity to complete online surveys for a few dollars per survey (often ranging from 10 to 45 minutes). While the well-known companies are legit, the value they place on your time may not be worthwhile. I have spent hundreds of hours completing online surveys in the background as I worked on larger projects. I never had an issue getting paid, but ultimately moved on to more time-efficient endeavors.
Providing your honest feedback to a company has value. If you like sharing your opinions, my best experiences were with Pinecone Research. I had a direct company contact, received payment on time via PayPal, and often received a product to keep after the review.
Become a Mystery Shopper
A quote I heard on a Graham Steven’s video that has always stuck with me is
“Before I do anything, I figure out if I can get paid to do it.”
-Graham Stevens YouTube
Becoming a mystery shopper can reward your observation skills and honest feedback with free meals, a night bowling, or a movie with your significant other.
Most opportunities require a bit of attention, which could detract from the evening itself. Often you will be asked to bring a friend with you. After your first couple of shops, you might not even realize the work.
Different companies connect shoppers with disparate opportunities. Depending on your preferred activities/retailers, the following companies may be of interest:
SecondtoNone– has a focus on retailers and restaurants.
AmusementAdvantage focuses on activities. Science Centers, bowling, possibly theme park visits (though I am yet to see an opportunity). Compensation often includes a small payment, reimbursement for activities (often for 2+ people), and a frequent bonus for quick responders.
Public Studies
If you live near a University, check and see if they have any open research studies. My local university has recently offered studies on sleep and dietary tracking to the community. I have seen these studies offer participants gift cards in the $100-$200 range for a 2-week study.
Sell your Skills
You have worked your entire life to refine a skill set unique to your passion and affinity. Skills attained through this dedication have value and can help those following in your footsteps. The internet makes the entire world a potential audience, and the current environment has driven many to become hungry to learn new skills. The following services allow you to share your expertise with an engaged audience and profit from your effort.
Fiverr
Don’t let the name fool you. While Fiverr made its name as a cost-effective way to outsource work falling outside of your wheelhouse, the market has evolved to allow its users to make far more off of their skills. No matter your skill, if you are reliable, time-efficient, and talented, you can find an audience. From ghostwriting to programming, foreign languages to speedrunning video games, sharing your skills with others makes their world a little bit better, and rewards you for the skills you worked so diligently to perfect.
Get started with Fiveer and get 10% off your first purchase!
Teach a Class on Skillshare
Skillshare allows you to bring your passion and expertise to an audience of millions thirsty for knowledge. Members pay into a membership pool, and that money is distributed based upon the number of hours the community views your lessons. You retain ownership of the content you publish on the Skillshare platform.
Market Your Personality
If you have a passion, the internet can help you find an audience with which to share it. The three opportunities below allow you to share a part of yourself with the world. Doing so may open the doors to affiliate programs, ad revenue, and sponsorship opportunities. Do not lose sight of the fact that earning and maintaining the attention of an audience is difficult. If you manage it for even a moment, appreciate it, and respect it. Fail to, at any point, and you will lose it.
YouTube
YouTube is an amazing way to get yourself in front of a passionate and engaged audience. It has grown from a niche platform to the second largest search engine in the world. If you can build a community of 1000 subscribers and provide them enough valuable content to earn 4000 hours of watch time (between subscribers and non-subscribers) within a rolling 12-month period, you can apply for monetization. To be accepted, you must have an AdSense account, and your content must adhere to YouTube’s content policies. If Google approves your application, you will share the earnings generated by ads attached to your videos.
Start a Blog
Launching a blog can be a fulfilling way to express yourself and share your thoughts with a passionate community. In good faith, I would not recommend using a free blogging service. A small investment in a good WebHost will gain you complete control over your site while providing a better user experience for your community.
Launching a blog and building a community around it takes time and a bit of luck. If you build something worth supporting the community which builds around it will make it worthwhile. While a slow burn with a large time investment, a profitable blog can be a great way to make money online.
Looking to start a blog? Start here: How to Start a Successful Blog in WordPress
Launch a Podcast
Podcasts each the ears of over a hundred million listeners each month. The ability to deliver informative and entertaining content in the background of our daily lives allows podcasts a unique place in our daily routine. While you may not always have your audience’s attention as directly as you might via a blog or even YouTube, podcast may allow you to get your personality in front of an audience who may have never engaged with your content.
Sell Unused Gift Cards:
We all have gift cards we will never use. Whether they came from a well-meaning friend who forgot we hate a certain restaurant, or a favorite store of ours closed their nearest location. Founded in 2010, Raise.com will connect you with users across the world who will gladly pay you for those gift cards which hold little value to you.
The Raise.com marketplace is also an excellent source for savings on your evening’s entertainment. Before you head out, take a quick look at the marketplace and you might be able to score a gift card at a discount.
Review– The Raise.com Marketplace is one of the few discount sites that has proven its worth over the years. We explore it in depth here: Raise.com Review-Profit as Unwanted Gifts Become Discounted Gift Cards
Click Here to Get Started with Raise. Use referral code KCRAWFORD7018 to save an extra 5% on your first gift card!
Increase Your Cash Flow by Cancelling Out Expenses
A close equivalent to making additional income is to reduce your expenses. Through comparative shopping, sales, loyalty programs, and coupons, finding the best price on things you would purchase normally can put money back into your wallet.
Use a Cashback Credit Card
A simple universal cash back credit card can often refund you between 1 and 2 percent on your everyday purchases. A targeted card can up that range to 5% or more. Credit card debt is one of the worst and ever-present kinds of debt in the US. Used responsibly, a great rewards card is simply a universal discount.
Our current recommendation for everyday purchases is the Citi Double Cash Card. This card provides a consistent 2% back on every purchase as long as you keep your payments up to date. Working on your credit score? See our other picks here: The Best Credit Cards Deserve a Place in Your Wallet
Take Advantage of Loyalty Apps:
The smartest brands realize the value of their customers and work to build and protect their loyalty. If you have a favorite retailer or restaurant, chances are they offer a loyalty program. These programs can often provide you with valuable coupons, keep you apprised of sales, or reward you with up to 10% back on your everyday purchases.
Loyalty programs will often stack with outside discounts included those from a rewards credit card to reward your patronage.
Save on Gas with Upside
The average household spends about $2000 a year on gas per year (courtesy of the Consumer Expenditure Survey).
*I chose to use historical averages here as the current environment has had an extraordinary impact on travel.
Founded in 2015, Upside provides a mobile app where you can search for a gas station near you. You then claim an offer at a discounted rate per gallon than the station’s listed price. After you fill up, you upload a picture of your receipt, and the difference between the offer you claimed and what you paid is credited to your account.
Review– Read our comprehensive Upside Review and see how it can save you money at the pump!
Click Here to Get Started with Upside. Use referral code 4DR4J to save an extra 15 cents a gallon on your first fill up!
Dip Your Toes in Investing With Bumped
Bumped is an aggregated loyalty app with the unique approach of rewarding your brand loyalty with stock. Upon signing up, you will select your favorite brand in categories ranging from apparel to quick eats, subscription services, ride shares, and more. Once selected, each purchase at one of your chosen brands will reward you a percentage back as stock. You can direct your stock rewards to be in an index fund or select up to 5 companies from hundreds.
The stock market historically outperforms all other asset classes, and almost 40% of Americans do not take advantage of it. Despite their growing pains, I have to get Bumped credit for making it easy for consumers to dip their toes in investing.
Review– I have used Bumped since pre-alpha. A full review of the service will be published by the end of the year.
Click Here to Get Started with Bumped
Save Money on Groceries With Ibotta
Ibotta is a rewards app focused on major grocery chains.
Before you trip to the store, log into the app and claim any number of their hundreds of available offers. If you purchase the item, upload an image of your receipt (you may have to scan the barcode of the purchased product as well), and Ibotta will credit money to your account.
Ibotta also functions as a payment processor for many retailers. Using their “Pay with Ibotta” program, you can purchase a digital QR code which functions like a gift card. Using this service can often save you between 2 and 10 percent on your purchase.
Ibotta is time-consuming, but does not require a lot of attention. I often feel it is not worth the time invested, but I have earned a couple of hundred dollars.
Get Started– Download the Ibotta app from the Google Play or Apple App store or sign up online.
Use code rynynee to get a $10 bonus once you scan your first receipt!
There are a myriad of ways to make money online without an investment beyond your time. Each would benefit from a bit of luck, but the dozen opportunities above will result in additional cash in your pocket. Special thanks to our community member Joe for inspiring this article by posting the question “how to make money online without paying anything”. If you have employed any of the strategies above, comment below and let us know your experience!
nice article