12 Stupid Simple Ways to Make Extra Cash

Could you benefit from some stupid ways to make money? When I mean stupid, I mean stupid simple methods to earn cash.

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Could you benefit from some stupid ways to make money? When I mean stupid, I mean stupid simple methods to earn cash.

Because I get it. Life happens.

Sometimes you need some extra cash to pay a bill or you're trying to save up for something you want. We've all been there, but what do you usually do when that happens?

This is an exhaustive list of ways of how to make cash fast that anyone can do, today, in order to make extra cash.

How to Get a Hold of Money When You Urgently Need It

Cash advance apps, also known as payday advance apps, allow users to borrow money before their paycheck. They can be used to bridge the gap between paychecks.

These cash advance apps help you get your paycheck early and can help you borrow money instantly so you can get $400 instantly. I mean you worked today, get paid today.

Best for a mobile banking solution
Best for all-in-one financial app
Access up to $500 today
Access up to $250 today
MMG Rating:
5.0
MMG Rating:
5.0
Pros:
  • Access up to $500 without fees or interest
  • 100% free, no monthly fees at all
  • Mobile banking app with variety of services
  • Rewards program and convenient features
Pros:
  • Cash advances up to $250
  • All-in-one app, banking, budgeting, saving
  • Free trial for 30 days
Cons:
  • No physical locations
Cons:
  • 30 day free-trial; $14.99/month after
  • No physical locations
Best for a mobile banking solution
Access up to $500 today
MMG Rating:
5.0
Pros:
  • Access up to $500 without fees or interest
  • 100% free, no monthly fees at all
  • Mobile banking app with variety of services
  • Rewards program and convenient features
Cons:
  • No physical locations
Best for all-in-one financial app
Access up to $250 today
MMG Rating:
5.0
Pros:
  • Cash advances up to $250
  • All-in-one app, banking, budgeting, saving
  • Free trial for 30 days
Cons:
  • 30 day free-trial; $14.99/month after
  • No physical locations

Ways to Make Stupid Easy Money

Keep in mind that there may be other, better ways to make money in the long term, but the money list below are ways to make quick cash in the short term.

Let's get started with the freebies… basically, get money for no effort. The first thing you'll want to do is check if you have any unclaimed money.

You might have an old bank account that you opened as a kid, a check from a former employer from your high school job or a utility deposit on an account you closed.

You can go to NAUPA and see if you’re owed any money and cash in.

Next, you can use this list to get some free moolah:

1. Free $50 Just For Downloading an App? Yes, Please.

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Have a phone, laptop, or tablet? Then you're eligible to earn $50 fast (per device) by installing an app.

This company will pay you to install its app on your favorite browsing device.

Nielsen will pay you $50 a year to keep their app on your favorite internet browsing device and they also give away $10,000 each month. So you can possibly make more than $50.

Get $60 for installing app
Nielsen Mobile Panel
5.0

This company will pay you $60 a year to keep their app on your favorite internet browsing device and they also give away $10,000 each month. You don’t have to do anything other than initially registering your computer or phone.

Join Nielsen Panel Nielsen Review

2. Get Paid for Taking Surveys — Earn Up to $50 Per Survey

payday loan apps

Taking online surveys to make money fast is a no-brainer. You definitely won’t become the next Bill Gates or make hundreds of dollars per day with surveys alone, but you won’t waste much time, and you can make money fast. The survey company that I use and recommend is Survey Junkie — it pays between $2 and $50 per survey, and many of them take less than 5 minutes to complete.

So if you took on average 10 surveys per day, every day for a month, you could make $375+ per month. If you took more surveys a day — the possibilities are endless. The secret to making money with Survey Junkie is with their affiliate program.

Sign up for Survey Junkie here

$1.6M+ monthly payout to its members
Survey Junkie
4.5
Over $55,000 Paid to Survey Junkie members daily

Survey Junkie is one of the highest-paying survey sites available. Complete three or more surveys a day, and you can earn as much as $100 monthly. With $76 Million paid out to date, Survey Junkie is one of the best survey sites available.

Start Earning Survey Junkie Review

3. Join Swagbucks and Earn Easy Cash Daily

app bonus

Swagbucks is another rewards site to make some extra money. It’s similar to Survey Junkie, but there are also a few other ways you can earn money as a member (including a 10 dollar bonus just for signing up).

Overall, I have reviewed dozens of online survey sites, but Swagbucks is one of the best since it offers more than just boring surveys. The website and app offer a variety of ways to earn “Swagbucks,” ranging from surfing the web (bye Google), watching videos (yes, seriously), or online shopping — it is a profitable option to make money with your free time. I used it for a few days and earned $10 in no time.

Earn around $50 to $1,000 per year
Swagbucks
5.0
$10 welcome bonus

Swagbucks offers a variety of ways to earn money online. You can take surveys, play games, surf the web, watch videos and more to earn points towards gift cards or cash.

Start Earning Swagbucks Review

4. Get Cash with KashKick

invest 5 dollars

With KashKick, your everyday online activities are rewarded. From answering intriguing surveys to downloading exciting game apps, you could earn up to $100 per app. 

Not just that, there are opportunities to earn while playing games, watching videos, and even simply reading emails. Although surveys remain a major earnings avenue, the sky's the limit with the variety of tasks available.

The best part? As soon as your balance hits $10, you can swiftly cash out through Paypal. Picture this: making some extra cash while lounging comfortably, phone or computer in hand.

Ready to dive in? Signing up is a breeze, and as a warm welcome, you'll instantly receive $1 just for completing your profile. One step closer to your rewards!

Earn up to $100 today
KashKick
5.0
Trusted by 2M+ users like you

This site pays you cash to play mobile games, save money, take surveys, and see offers — make $100 today. Over 2 million users agree that KashKick is a fresh and lucrative way to earn money and get paid directly to your PayPal!

Start Earning

5. Help Get Money Back on Price Drops with Capital One Shopping

When you buy something and the price drops just days later, what do you usually do? If you're like me, I'm not even aware of the price drop in the first place. That is how it is for most people. But one company is trying to change all that. Sign up for Capital One Shopping and find out if stores owe you a refund – effortlessly!

Capital One Shopping tracks your confirmation emails and watches for price changes so you don’t have to. When they detect potential savings, they let you know and help you get money back.

For example, if the price of a cardigan you bought online drops, they'll help you get the money back effortlessly. You don't do much other than having to sign up for Capital One Shopping!

This free app will scan your emails for any purchase receipts from dozens of online retailers. You don’t even have to know about the price drop in order to get your refund. It’s 100% free and can put money back in your pockets.

6. You Gotta Eat! Get Up to $240 Cash Back in Grocery Savings

ibotta cheats

Another simple way to rack up cash is by using Ibotta. This cell phone app is available for iOS or Android phones, helps you make money off your grocery receipts.

You can literally get cash back everywhere you shop with offers at hundreds of stores. Not points or credits. Get real cash via PayPal or Venmo, or buy a gift card with your earnings.

It's free and all that is required is to scan your receipts and you'll get free money back.

Click here to download Ibotta and get a $10 welcome bonus

Ibotta
4.5

Ibotta pays you cash back for shopping at over 500,000 retailers, which you have to do every month. So why not get paid for it? Get started saving today.

Start Saving Ibotta Cheats

7. Up to 40% Cash Back Automatically? Sign Me Up!

shopping addiction

Thanks to the internet, there is an endless number of ways to make cash fast for free. Did you know that you can get cash back (up to 40%) for items you would have bought anyway? You can do this by shopping online with Rakuten.

Rakuten is my favorite way to get cash back when I shop online and right now they are offering a $10 sign up bonus through this link.

Every time I shop online, I start at Rakuten and then I get cash back deposited into my PayPal account. Hello, free money!

Sign up for Rakuten and get a $10 Welcome Bonus

$30 welcome bonus
Rakuten
5.0

Rakuten offers cash back for shopping at over 3,500 stores, free to join, and shares commissions with members as cash back, paid quarterly. Members also get a $30 sign-up bonus. Since 1998, Rakuten has paid out over $1 billion in cash back.

Start Saving Rakuten Review

8. Make Money Off Your Receipts with Fetch Rewards!

money for receipts

If you don't buy groceries then you can skip reading this.

But if you do, then you need to know about Fetch Rewards. This app works directly with popular brands to bring you everyday savings on thousands of products throughout any grocery store. You can earn points and save without jumping through hoops. Buy what you want, where you want, and save.

They work directly with popular brands to bring you savings on thousands of products every day, no matter where you get your groceries. Just scan your receipts and make money fast.

Once you scan your first receipt, you'll get 2,000 points which you can claim for a $2.00 Visa Gift Card.

Sign up for Fetch Rewards for free

Fetch
4.5

Fetch is one of the top apps for scanning receipts that we've tried. It's great because it always gives you the same amount of points for each receipt, at least 25 points, and you only need to earn a little ($3) before you can take your money out. You can scan up to 35 receipts every week, so if you shop a lot and keep using the app, you could get a few free gift cards each year. Get 250 points when you use the code C1JAV during sign-up.

Start Saving Fetch Review

9. Get Real Gift Cards and Cash for Watching Videos

game apps to win real money
Source: iStock

The next thing you can do is sign up for InboxDollars which pays you, in cash, to watch fun videos & take surveys. This rewards club provides direct cash rewards to millions of members in the U.S. and U.K. for their everyday online activities, such as reading emails, taking surveys, playing games and signing up for offers.

If you sign up before the end of this month, they also give you a $5 free bonus just to give it a try.

By spending a couple of minutes per day on this (either on your break at work or during TV commercial breaks) you can earn and earn an extra $100/month.

Click here to sign up and get a free $5 bonus

$5 sign up bonus
InboxDollars
4.5

InboxDollars offers a variety of ways to earn money online. You can take surveys, play games, surf the web, watch videos and more to earn points towards gift cards.

Start Earning InboxDollars Review

10. Get a Free $1 for Connecting a Credit Card

best debt payoff apps

Dosh is the free cash back app that finds you money for shopping, dining out, booking hotels and travel activities with more than 100,000 merchants and brands nationwide.

Dosh is pretty straight forward and easy to use:

  • Connect your card: Securely link your credit and debit cards. Whenever you pay with your linked cards, Dosh gets you cash back.
  • Shop and dine out: Pay with your linked card at 1,000s of stores and restaurants, and get up to 10% cash back automatically in your Dosh Wallet.
  • Get paid to refer: Refer your friends to Dosh and get $5 for each one who signs up and links a verified card.
  • Transfer for cash: Do what you want. Transfer your cash to bank accounts, PayPal, or donate to charity from the app.

For more details on how to earn money with Dosh, check out our complete Dosh review.

Click here to sign up for Dosh and collect $1

Dosh

Dosh is the easiest cash back app to use because you can just set it and forget it. Just link a debit or credit card and you can start earning cash back today.

Our Review

11. Drive People Around

uber vs lyft

If you’re free nights and weekends, you can earn extra cash driving your fellow citizens around. You can earn money by driving with Uber – if you have a car, it’s a perfect way to earn extra cash whenever it’s convenient for you. A lot of people do this full time, so you can imagine that it’s possible to do this on the side and make extra money and be able to save it.

Once you’re a driver with Uber, you can choose to turn the app on or off and drive whenever you have some time to spare. They also have a feature that allows you to select your destination, so if you are leaving work (or any other long commute), you could pick up a ride that was going in the same direction. You can do this 2-4 times a week on your commute and can easily make extra money.

12. Earn a $200 Bonus for Joining Upgrade

make 20 fast

What do you know? Here is another easy way to earn cash. You'll earn a $200 welcome bonus when you apply for an Upgrade Card and then open a new Rewards Checking account.

To be eligible for this promotion, you'll need to sign up for their Upgrade Card first. This card is a cross between a credit card and line of credit.

Next, you'll need to open a free Rewards Checking account. Finally, you'll only have to make three transactions with either your Upgrade Card or your new debit card.

upgrade rewards card

All things considered, this is a bank account bonus that requires little effort to earn. While it's possible opening a line of credit results in a hard credit pull, we have seen Upgrade only do soft pulls based on customer input.

Compared to other cash offers, this one is significantly higher and does not have any requirements such as a direct deposit, minimum balance, or monthly fees. It's a legit offer.

Earn $200 bonus
Upgrade Cash Rewards Visa®
4.7

This hybrid credit card/personal loan product expands your options and offers a lot of flexibility. But if you have at least fair credit, you might qualify for cards with more benefits or loans with better terms.

Claim $200 Bonus

How to Make Stupid Easy Money

If you wanted more ways to make money online besides these stupid simple ways to make money, here’s my list of the best ways to make money online:

About the author

Brian Meiggs
Hi, I’m Brian Meiggs! I’m a personal finance expert and founder of My Millennial Guide, here to help you build real wealth. With a background in finance, I’ve spent years guiding people on smart, practical ways to grow their money. For stock market beginners, I recommend Acorns. It’s a simple way to start investing with just your spare change, helping you steadily grow your portfolio over time without the need to actively manage it. And if you’re interested in real estate, check out Arrived and Fundrise. I use both myself—they make it easy to start investing in property without needing huge upfront capital. These platforms are perfect for anyone looking to add real estate to their investments for passive, long-term growth. I believe these tools are great for building a balanced investment portfolio, combining stocks and real estate for a solid approach to wealth-building. You can trust this advice—my work has been featured in major publications like Business Insider, Entrepreneur, The Wall Street Journal, Yahoo Finance, NASDAQ, Discover, Fox News, and MSN Money.

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Build wealth with Arrived! Start owning shares in rental properties with just $100. It’s a simple way to earn steady, passive income without the high costs. Want an easy path into real estate? Arrived makes it possible.

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