Who really wants to work in an office? These days, you don’t really have to. Check out these ways to make extra money without getting a real job. This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions...
Wondering how to make money without a job? A real job? Well, by “real” job, we mean your classic 9-to-5, Monday-through-Friday desk job.
Unless you win the lottery or strike inheritance gold, you can’t really live without an income. But you might be able to replace your day-to-day with more flexible side gigs and forms of passive income.
Whether you’re unemployed, disabled, a stay-at-home parent, retired or simply want some extra income, here are ways real people have made money without a typical job.
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. See How Much Extra Cash This Company Can Get You
Here’s the deal: If you’re not using Aspiration’s debit card, you’re missing out on extra cash. And who doesn’t want extra cash right now?
Yep. When you sign up for a debit card called Aspiration, you could get up to 5% back when you swipe at certain stores — plus they give you up to 50 times the normal national interest rate on your savings balance.
It’s perfect for earning extra cash for things that are already on your shopping list. You were going to buy these things anyway — why not get this extra money in the process?
This card used to have a huge waiting list, but now you can sign up for free.
Just enter your email address here and link your bank account to see how much extra cash you can get with your free Aspiration account. And don’t worry. Your money is FDIC insured and under a military-grade encryption. That’s nerd talk for “this is totally safe.”
3. Invest in Multi-Family Real-Estate (Even if You’re Not Filthy Rich)
The uber wealthy 1% have access to exclusive, lucrative real estate investments that seem totally out of reach to the rest of us.
But not anymore. A company called CalTier lets you invest in commercial real estate — specifically, multi-family apartment complexes across the country — for as little as $500.
Traditionally, you’d need a six-figure income or a million-dollar net worth to invest like this.
Instead, CalTier lets you invest like the big wigs in the real estate world, even if you’re not rich. Investments in multi-family housing have outperformed the S&P 500 for the last 20 years* — and it’s expected to grow another 33% this year alone.
CalTier also gives you a 30 day money-back guarantee. And if you have any questions along the way, you can talk to a real human to get them answered.
Ready to join the ranks of wealthy and institutional real-estate investors? It’s easy to open a free account and get started here.
4. Killing Time on Your Phone? Play Bingo for up to $83 Per Win
Our smartphones are the world’s greatest time-killers. Browse Facebook, Twitter, TikTok or Instagram. Watch a video on YouTube. Play some Minecraft or Roblox.
Oh, and there’s bingo. We found a free iPhone app called Bingo 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?
But 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.
The game is based on a classic Bingo format. You’ll battle it out against other players at your same skill level. Everyone gets the same board and sees the same Bingo balls. The top three players in a game can win real money — anywhere from $1 to $83.
Over on the App Store, it has a 4.7-star rating (out of 5).
To get started, just download the free app and start playing your first game immediately.
5. Get Paid up to $80/Month — Just for Sharing Your Opinion
Taking surveys might not sound like the best way to make money, but if you’re just vegging out on the couch — or pretending to be interested in your partner’s new favorite show — why not click a couple buttons? It could earn you up to $80 a month. Seriously.
There are a bunch of paid survey sites out there, but one of the best we’ve found is Survey Junkie.
They’ll ask you questions about things like, what kind of laundry detergent you use, or if you prefer Pepsi or Coke. You get points for answering, and many people accumulate enough points to request a check within a few hours.
More than 10 million people already use Survey Junkie, and it has 4.5/5 stars on TrustPilot.
Give it a try by visiting Survey Junkie and clicking the “Join Now” button. It’s free.
6. Get Paid to Skip Going to the Store
Picture this: You finish paying for your groceries, only to look down at your overflowing cart, dreading having to lug all that to your car. And then into your pantry. Isn’t it so much easier to do this online?
It is easier online, and it can be rewarding too. A free website called Rakuten gives you a kickback of 3%, 5%, 15% or more when you shop online at thousands of your favorite stores.
Between your Target and Instacart orders, Disney+ subscription and Ulta splurges, that cashback really adds up. Plus, it can be directly deposited into your bank account or they’ll send you a check.
We talked to Denver, Colorado, resident Colleen Rice, who says she uses Rakuten for things she already has to buy, like rental cars and flights. So far, she’s received checks in the mail totaling $526.44 — for doing nothing.
It takes less than 60 seconds to create a Rakuten account and start getting cashback. All you need is an email address, then you can immediately start shopping your go-to stores through the site.
Earning money for nothing? Not having to carry 80 lbs. of groceries? Sounds like a win/win.
7. Earn $300+/Month in Passive Income with Your Extra Space
If you’re like us, your garage probably isn’t doing much of anything at the moment. Maybe you have some tools in there, or maybe it’s home to your boxes of odds and ends, collecting dust.
But with a website called Neighbor, your extra space — whether it’s a spare room, an empty garage or a parking space — could be earning you an extra $300 a month in totally passive income.
Neighbor works by connecting people who need storage space with hosts who have the room to spare. The average host makes about $300 a month, but some people have earned up to $50,000 a year just by letting people park on their property.
It takes less than 10 minutes to get started. Just answer a few questions about your space, take some pictures and set your asking price. Neighbor will recommend a dollar amount based on your location and type of rental, but the final listing is up to you.
Neighbor even gives you up to $1 million in free protection as a host and offers protection plans for your renters, giving you both peace of mind.
Neighbor is an easy source of passive income, and it’s easier than most side hustles. It’s free to list your space, and you’ll only be charged a 4.9% processing fee from the profit you make each month, so there’s no risk to you.
Sign up here and see how much you could earn.
8. Earn up to $69/Hour Working From Home
We get it. There are kids to drop off at school, errands to run and dinner to cook, so the idea of getting a full-time job without any flexibility just doesn’t work for a lot of people.
Truth be told, life would be a lot easier if you could just make money without leaving the house. But that’s not something most employers offer. But have you considered bookkeeping? It’s the No. 1 most profitable business, according to an article in Inc Magazine.
And you could earn up to $69 an hour by starting your own bookkeeping business, according to Intuit, the creator of QuickBooks.
You don’t have to be an accountant or good at calculus to be successful at bookkeeping. As long as you’re motivated, a company called Bookkeepers.com will teach you everything you need to know. It’s one of the leading training courses in the field, and it even gives you the first three classes for free.
It’s helped thousands of people launch their own businesses, including Daniel Honan, a military veteran and former painter. He never considered starting his own company, but he signed up for Bookkeepers.com, and now he’s making $50,000 a year.
It only took him three months to get started, taking one class a week. Oh, and he makes his own schedule, earns up to $69 an hour and is able to spend more time with his wife than ever.
If you’re just a little curious, you just have to submit your email address here to take the first free class. If you stick with it, you could be running your own business in just a few months.
9. Add $225 to Your Wallet While Watching the News
It’s been a historic year in the news, and we’re all constantly refreshing for the latest updates. You probably know more than one news-junkie who fancies themselves a constitutional scholar or a foreign policy expert.
That might not be the best news for your dinner conversations — but it’s great news for your wallet. You could add up to $225 a month to your pocket by signing up for a free account with InboxDollars. They’ll present you with short surveys to choose from every day, which you can fill out while you watch tonight’s broadcast.
You just have to answer honestly, and InboxDollars will continue to pay you every month. This might sound too good to be true, but it’s already paid its users more than $56 million.
It takes about one minute to sign up, and start getting paid while you watch the news.
10. Get Paid to Lose Weight
Bottom line: HealthyWage will pay you to lose weight. How’s that for motivation?
Here’s how it works:
Read our full HealthyWage review, and sign up. Define a goal weight and the amount of time you’ll give yourself to achieve it. Place a bet on yourself ranging from $20 to $500 a month.Depending on how much you have to lose, how long you give yourself to do it and how much money you put on the table, you could win up to $10,000.
Success story: Katelyn Pincock and her husband, Cort, bet $75 per month for six months. She wanted to lose 40 pounds, and he wanted to lose 60. They met their goals and ended up winning almost $3,000.
11. Search for Unclaimed Money
State treasuries throughout the U.S. have had more than $43 billion in unclaimed funds at one time, according to The New York Times.
To see if you have any unclaimed money, check with the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators. (Beware: There are several look-a-like sites out there. Be sure you’re searching legitimate ones.)
Success story: Penny Hoarder reader Kelli Howell heeded our advice, performed a quick search and found unclaimed money in her husband’s name. Sure, it was only $56 in an old insurance claim, but that’s not bad for an unexpected check, right?
12. Get Paid to House Sit (and Even Travel)
Are you obsessed with HGTV and those dream homes? Well, you could get paid to hang out in one with a house-sitting gig.
Choose to housesit in your neighborhood or find gigs across the world (free travel accommodations!). Check out these five house-sitting websites to get started. A few have annual membership fees, but the experience — and income — could be well worth it.
We talked to one Canadian couple, Dalene and Peter Heck, who traveled the world via house-sitting gigs — from Honduras to Paris.
13. Sell Flea Market Gems for Profit
If you frequent flea markets or the “freebies” section of Craigslist, keep your eyes peeled for items you can resell for a higher rate.
Before you buy, get an idea of how much the item can sell for so you’re sure not to waste money.
Success story: Rob Stephenson calls himself the Flea Market Flipper and has made up to $30,000 a year finding and selling flea market gems. Once, the Orlando, Florida, man found a $30 prosthetic leg and turned around and sold it for $1,000 on eBay, his go-to selling site.
The Aspiration Spend & Save Accounts are cash management accounts offered through Aspiration Financial, LLC, a registered broker-dealer, Member FINRA/SIPC, and a subsidiary of Aspiration Partners, Inc. (“Aspiration”). Aspiration is not a bank.
CalTier: An offering statement regarding this offering has been filed with the SEC. The SEC has qualified that offering statement, which only means that the company may make sales of the securities described by the offering statement. It does not mean that the SEC has approved, passed upon the merits or passed upon the accuracy or completeness of the information in the offering statement. You may obtain a copy of the offering circular that is part of that offering statement here:
You should read the offering circular before making any investment.
There is no guarantee of success, and there is a potential for loss of your investment.
*https://www.caltierrealtyfund.com/strategy
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.