When it comes to thinking about the skyrocketing cost of living and the fact that 37% of current retirees say they have no retirement savings – we could all use some extra cash in our pockets.
While there are a number of side hustles and creative ways to make a bit of extra money, most of us working strict 9-5s, managing a family, and just trying to get by in life don’t exactly have the time to launch this kind of endeavor.
The good news? It is possible to get free money now, for minimal effort and WITHOUT additional cost to you.
We’ve developed this list to help you find a number of different realistic ways to increase your earnings, capitalize on what free time you do have, and have some money to pocket for retirement.
Real Ways to Get Free Money: NOW!
- Unclaimed money
This one might seem a little far-fetched. But, believe it or not, there are actually websites out there dedicated to helping you find cash that never actually made it your way. Wild, we know!
All you have to do is search your name, free of cost, and it will let you know if there are any outstanding funds you can claim. So, if you’re in need of money right now, these sites are the best place for you to get started.
- Free government assistance
Okay, this may not help you make extra cash, but if you’re in a bind and are reading this article because you need money NOW – there are government assistance programs that exist for those in a bad financial place.
You’ll need to meet certain qualifications, but if you’re in desperate need right now, and want to avoid putting yourself into further debt with one of those high-interest loans, check out Benefits.gov to figure out what you’re actually qualified for. It may be a handy place to look even if you’re not in a bind but have a low pay rate – you’d be surprised what you may be qualified for!
- Survey sites offering FREE money (and bonuses for sign up!)
Okay – we know how frustrating it can be when you’re looking for free money, are sent to a survey site, and it just isn’t worth it. But we’ve found the best survey sites that won’t scam you, won’t overload your device with viruses, and actually give you up-front benefits to enjoy.
One of the best parts about this list is you could go the extra mile and sign up for all of them to see just how much you can make in one sitting!
- Swagbucks ($5 Signup Bonus)
Swagbucks is one of the original ways to earn free money online and is the web’s most popular loyalty and consumer rewards program. Members of this free rewards service can access free gift cards or cash for the everyday activities that they’re ALREADY doing online. Like searching the web, playing games, watching videos, or shopping online. You can easily redeem for Amazon gift cards, PayPal and other gift cards and great prizes.
It’s a great place to start if you’re looking for easy and free money online. They offer a $5 signup bonus to new users for creating an account, which gets you on your way to cashing out your earnings.
You can also get an additional $10 bonus by going to the Swag Up page in your account and making a purchase of $25+ from one of their merchants. This may not be for everyone – but if you’re looking to make an essential purchase already, it’s a great thing to consider for an additional bonus!
- MyPoints ($5 Welcome Bonus)
Much like Swagbucks, MyPoints rewards you for similar interactions online. They offer a $5 Welcome Bonus that you can put toward an Amazon or VISA Gift Card.
But if you’re looking for a little extra cash? Similar to Swagbucks, you can receive a $10 bonus for your first purchase. So, again, if you have some necessary purchases to make and want to receive cash back – it’s a good place to start!
- InboxDollars ($5 Signup Bonus)
Earn cash easily whenever you have a few minutes with InboxDollars – paying for your opinions and experiences. While many sites offer this service, InboxDollars offers $5 of free money OR free gift cards.
All you have to do is sign up and verify your email address, and the money is in your pocket!
- Survey Junkie ($10 Signup Bonus)
Survey Junkie sees more than 10 millions worldwide and is a great way to make free money. You can make money in two ways: taking surveys and sharing your online behaviors.
It’s a great way to make money off the data that most companies sell for free – with Survey Junkie you’ll be given rewards points just for letting them track your behavior so they can share those insights with marketing research companies. You’ll be giving them quality market research, and capitalizing on your web journeys!
You don’t need to do anything to make your first $10 – just sign up and they’ll credit the amount to your account!
- Investing apps offering FREE stock
If you’re looking for free money that’ll turn itself into something big – there’s a number of different apps that offer free money to get you started with investing. It makes it easy for anyone to break into the industry – and is a surefire way to make a bit of extra cash that could turn into something big!
- Tornado (Up to $1k Bonus)
Tornado saw the stark divide between the tools available to institutional investors and to individuals, and they were pretty alarmed by the platforms encouraging frequent trading, as opposed to intelligent investing. They knew that anyone could become a better hands-on investor with the right resources. So, they set out to level the playing field with their investment platform.
They provide a random award to new members of up to $1k for signing up to their site and placing a trade within the first month of sign up. You may not get the full $1k, but everyone gets a reward of some kind.
- Robinhood (FREE Stock for Sign Up)
Robinhood makes it possible for you to build your portfolio, starting with just $1, so you can invest in stocks, options and ETFs at your pace and commission-free. You can get free stock simply by opening a commission-free brokerage account, which can be kept or traded later.
But you can also receive additional stocks when referring friends to sign up – which means there’s a number of ways to benefit from this platform.
- Play games for FREE Money
It may sound a little crazy, but given all the many ways you can earn money for simple tasks, it should be no surprise that there are apps out there that will give you free money, just for playing games. Sure, we wouldn’t recommend quitting your day job for this one, but it’s a great way to make a bit of extra cash – especially if you enjoy playing a game on your work break, on a toilet break, or just every now and then!
- Swagbucks LIVE
Swagbucks LIVE is a sub-brand of Swagbucks. It’s a free mobile app that allows users to win free money simply by winning trivia tournaments. Each trivia game enters you into rounds with other players (of the same skill level, might we add), you’re given a few seconds to answer each question, and you move further along for each question you answer correctly.
You can win anywhere from $50 to a whopping $1k from each game and, if you haven’t yet created an account for Swagbucks, you can still take advantage of their $5 Signup Bonus for this app!
- Blackout Bingo
If you love a good game of bingo, you’ll love the chance to make some extra cash through Blackout Bingo. It’s a mobile gaming app that allows you to win real money simply by playing bingo against other real-time players. You may have to pay to play in some of the high-earning tournaments, but there’s also an option to play for free by using the coin rewards to “buy in”.
It’s a super simple way to make money. And the best part? They’ll reward you just for getting started, with a $5 deposit into your account when you play your first game!
You can either cash it out or put it toward furniture games or tournaments. It’s entirely up to you. But fair warning: you may surprise yourself by just how much you can actually win from this application!
- Solitaire Cash
Solitaire Cash is another free app that lets you play against other plays (of a similar level) to win cash. It has 4 million downloads worldwide and boasts users ability to win as much as $83 per win!
It has both pay-to-play tournaments and free tournaments, making it perfect for anyone to enjoy. The best part? They offer rewards to users who upload cash to play the game. For every $1 deposit, you’ll earn two additional gems to use in the app, and you can also earn bonus cash depending on how much you upload…
- Rewarded Play
Rewarded Play is available through the Google Play Store and enables you to earn free money for casual online gaming.
Unlike the other listed gaming apps, they have a number of gaming options including Solitaire, Wheel of Fortune, and Yahtzee. It makes it easy for you to play and earn points to redeem for gift cards for major retailers (like Amazon) without getting sick of the same game format.
It’s the perfect all-rounder for those who don’t have an expertise in any particular game, but want to try their luck.
- Bank accounts offering FREE Money for Sign Up
There are a number of different banks that are trying to up their anti by offering free cash for opening a new account. Most of them don’t require much to earn this particular bonus, but it’s important to check out all the small details and fine print to make sure you’ll only benefit from participation.
The best bank accounts to sign up with for FREE money are the kind that have no monthly fees for your use.
If you want a succinct list of bank accounts currently offering FREE bonuses for sign up? We recommend checking out this extensive list at VitalDollar – they’re keeping it up to date to make sure you don’t get duped!
- FREE money for managing your finances
If you’re considering signing up for one of the many financial management apps available today, you may want to consider one of the few from this list!
- Personal Capital ($50 Sign Up Bonus!)
Personal Capital is a free software for managing your finances. While they also offer personalized services for additional fees, anyone can use the free software without needing to pay for other services. It helps you calculate and track your net worth, stay on top of your bills and spending, and analyze your finances and investment reports.
And they’re currently offering a $50 sign up bonus, just for trying out their extensive money management tools!
- Rocket Money
Rocket Money is a free mobile app that helps users to manage their finances. It aims to lower the cost of monthly bills, managing subscriptions and seeking refunds that you may be owed – all on your behalf!
It’ll flag any recurring payments and give you the option to cancel them. It’s a pretty handy tool for saving money each month and, while there aren’t any additional sign up bonuses, it’s definitely worth looking into this free platform to see how much you can save in the long run!
- Get FREE Money with Credit Card Sign Up Bonuses
There’s a number of credit cards that offer FREE sign up bonuses which can be pretty handy for earning some extra cash. However, with this one, there’s a lot more risk involved. We have another article “How to use rewards credit cards to make money in retirement” that goes into all the details and precautions to follow.
If you’re interested in making free money with credit card sign up bonuses, we recommend checking out that article now to help you make money, the secure way.
- Earn money for retirement with employer 401k matching
One of the most overlooked methods for getting free cash is 401k matching. If your company offers a 401k, there’s a big chance they also match the first few percent of your salary contributions.
For every $1 within the limit you put into your 401k, your company will also invest $1 of their own money. It’s literally free money.
A lot of people aren’t taking advantage of this offer, as they’re afraid to invest in the long-term and prefer instant cash as opposed to delayed earnings. But the fact is that it’s a really smart way to secure your financial future.
And, don’t forget, you can always withdraw your 401k funds early. So, if you’re worried about waiting until retirement, just remember that, with an additional fee, you can take out as much as you want now!
And that’s a wrap on our best realistic and easy ways to get free money now. But there’s countless other ways to make money fast and quickly, whether that’s being paid for your time, capitalizing on sign up bonuses, or any of the other many side hustles available today.
If you’re looking for more ideas on how to make money to secure your financial future, explore our full range of blogs on Retirement and Earning Money today!
