With inflation hitting nearly 9%, rising prices are killing us. What can you do? Earn some extra cash. Here are the best ways you can do that. This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of...
Talk about sticker shock. All these rising prices are absolutely demolishing our bank accounts. With inflation at a 40-year high, the cost of groceries, gas and just about everything else is going through the roof.
For years, inflation remained at or below 2%, but now prices are up a whopping 8.6% compared to the previous year — the biggest price spike since 1981.
What can you do about it? You can try to earn some extra cash, and we’ve got a list of ways you can do just that. Every little bit helps.
1. Let This App Pay You up to $83 When You Win Solitaire Games
Lots of us already play Solitaire on our phones for fun or just to pass the time. Want to see if you can win money at it?
There’s a free iPhone app called Solitaire Cash that lets you play for real money. You could get paid up to $83 per win.
You might be thinking: There’s got to be a catch. This is definitely one of those spammy apps, right?
Wrong. There really isn’t a catch. Sure, you can pay to play in some higher-stakes tournaments, but there’s no pressure. And, in fact, there aren’t even any annoying ads.
With each game, you’ll battle it out against at least five other players. Everyone gets the same deck, so winning is totally a matter of skill. The top three players who solve the deck fastest can win real money — anywhere from $1 to $83.
Over on the App Store, it has over a million downloads and more than 15,000 ratings, averaging 4.7 stars (out of 5).
To get started, just download the free app and start playing your first game immediately.
2. Get Paid for Your Opinion (as Soon as Today)
Got opinions? Get paid for them!
Sure, there are a lot of online survey sites out there. The catch is that, with a lot of them, it takes forever before you can actually get paid. You find yourself taking tons of surveys before you ever see a single cent — if you even qualify for the survey at all.
That’s why we like a website called Survey Junkie. It rewards you no matter what — even if you don’t qualify. And it lets you cash out a lot faster than its competition — you could even get paid today.
You get points for every survey you take, and once you’ve earned 500 points, you can cash out and get your first $5. A lot of sites make you wait until you’ve earned $20 or $25 worth of points before you can claim your earnings.
Most people get their money within seven days of signing up — but the pace is entirely up to you. Plenty of folks cash out the same day. And you can choose to get paid via PayPal or with digital gift cards.
No, you won’t necessarily get rich taking surveys online, but it’s an easy way to make a little extra cash while you’re killing time. Signing up takes about one minute, and you’ll immediately earn points just for creating your account. You’ll be that much closer to cashing out.
3. Earn 70% Higher Interest On Your Savings (One of the Highest Available)
Interest rates at most banks these days are downright pitiful. You’ll be lucky if you earn a quarter at the end of the year.
But an online bank called Vio has one of the highest earning rates you’ll see — 1.03% APY* (Annual Percentage Yield) on your money market savings. That’s 70% higher than the average high-yield savings account.
Not only does it pay well, it also costs nothing to open an account. You just need to transfer at least $100 to keep it open.
Security is also top notch. You can depend on bank-level encryption, FDIC insurance up to $250,000, with the highest level security you can obtain.
There’s a reason why it’s been named the best high-yield savings account by websites like Fox Business, CNet and CNBC. And it has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau.
If you’re ready to save smarter and earn more, open a free Vio Cornerstone Money Market Savings Account. Get started here.
4. Get a Free Slice of a Fortune 500 Company From This App
Do you think it’s too late for us non-millionaires to get our hands on a piece of a Fortune 500 company?
Well, it’s definitely not. We found a free app called Public that lets you own slices of stocks, so you can invest in companies without having to pay for an entire share, if you don’t want to.*
They’ll even give you a slice of a popular stock for free when you download the app and sign up.
It takes just minutes to download the app, and when you finish setting up your account, Public will give you the free slice of stock you select during signup as a bonus.
5. Get Paid up to $600/Week to Drop off Starbucks
Your city is filled with two things: Starbucks, and people who want Starbucks.
An app called Doordash will pay you to pick up and deliver an extra latte when you’re already out and getting your caffeine fix. And it’s not just coffee. You can deliver from Chipotle, Chick-fil-A, Five Guys and hundreds of other restaurants in your area.
With Doordash, you set your own hours and work as much or little as you want, meaning how much you make is up to you.
You’ll earn money for each delivery, plus tips. Jose Neri, from California, reports earning $500 to $600 a week working just lunches and dinners.
The best part? No passengers — that grande, no-whip macchiato will be the only thing to hear your beautiful singing voice.
If you sign up for Doordash now, it’s possible to get your first paycheck this week.
6. Turn Your Junk Mail Into Cash
You know all those flyers and advertisements you get in the mail each day? The ones you never wanted but have no idea how to opt out of?
Well, you can turn them into cash.
The Small Business Knowledge (SBK) Center is a market research company that wants to get a peep insight your mailbox. Join its consumer panel, and start shoveling that junk mail into a postage-paid envelope and, at the end of each week, send it over to the SBK Center.
No, you won’t be rolling in extra cash, but you can earn up to $20 every six to 10 weeks.
7. Find Out If You’re Overpaying
Wouldn’t it be nice if you got an alert when you’re shopping online at Target and are about to overpay?
That’s exactly what this free service does.
Just add it to your browser for free, and before you check out, it’ll check other websites, including Walmart, eBay and others to see if your item is available for cheaper. Plus, you can get coupon codes, set up price-drop alerts and even see the item’s price history.
Let’s say you’re shopping for a new TV, and you assume you’ve found the best price. Here’s when you’ll get a pop up letting you know if that exact TV is available elsewhere for cheaper. If there are any available coupon codes, they’ll also automatically be applied to your order.
In the last year, this has saved people $160 million.
You can get started in just a few clicks to see if you’re overpaying online.
8. Sell Someone Else’s Stuff
Selling Craigslist freebies is a great way to make a profit quickly, because you get the items for free. You could even have cash in hand today.
Go to the free section on Craigslist and look for things that are close to you and easy to sell immediately. They could be scraps from a job site or metal items you can sell, for example.
For a quick turnaround, avoid items like furniture or electronics. These can be good to sell, but they’ll take longer.
Cash in your treasures by reselling on Craigslist, including them in a rummage sale or selling to specialty buyers, like a pawn shop or a local business.
So, don’t let sticker shock get you down. And don’t let it destroy your bank account. Even though prices keep rising, earning some extra money can help you weather the storm.
Mike Brassfield (mike@thepennyhoarder.com) is a senior writer at The Penny Hoarder.
*Capital One Shopping compensates us when you get the extension using the links provided.
**See viobank.com for more details
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.