How to Get Free Money Using 26 Ways (PLUS 7 Best Alternatives)

Last updated on February 5th, 2024 at 06:41 am

In this post, you’ll learn how to get free money using 26 different ways.

But before jumping to the tips and tricks here is the deal.

These methods will help you if you:

• Get fired from a job because of COVID
• Need to build their own house for the family
• Want to make money easily and avoid credit card
• Don’t have enough money to fulfill daily needs
• Have low income and want to earn free money online
• Are a student and want to make extra money
• Want to earn full-time income for living

The last one will apply to the 7 alternative methods how to get free money. So keep reading for full details.

Let’s jump into it.

What is free money?

Let’s first understand what free money stands for.

It is any amount of money that you earn/save with little work and effort. It can be in the form of a cash bonus, reward points, coins, gifts, or any physical good. But you don’t need to do any job, give service or any other hard work to get it.

The most common examples include:

• Signup bonus for registering an account on online websites
• Free balance your get for opening a new bank account
• Reward points on credit cards or cashback on your purchases
• And a lot more is discussed in the later chapters

Now you’re thinking that how much free money can I earn using these methods? 

I make sure that free money is not much bigger but enough for your daily little enjoyment. Using these tips you can earn $5, $10, or more every day, and that adds up to thousands a year. And that’s not a bad idea to earn some extra cash with little to no effort.

What are the benefits of free money?

Here are some interesting benefits of getting free money:

• No hard work and effort. Simple tasks will do.
• Helps you cover small daily expenses like pocket money
• You can earn thousands each year if you stay consistent
• Don’t need to devote full time but in your spare time 

Now jumping on to the methods to earn free money.

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How to get free money?

1. Make simple images 

Images and graphics are at the heart of digital content. Companies, individual bloggers, and business owners are paying big bucks for simple images. And they are simple to create. You can use software like:

• Canva
• Adobe Photoshop
• Sketch
• Adobe Illustrator
• Corel Draw
• And many more.

These images include social media pins, t-shirt designs, blog posts cover images and infographics, YouTube thumbnails, and illustrations.

You can learn to create these images and infographics using specific software and watch YouTube tutorials.

It takes just a few weeks of practice and you can earn a good amount of money. Even $50 to $100 per hour if you became an expert in this skill.

2. Consolidate your debt

Do you have high-interest debt like credit cards and student loans? Then you can avoid paying larger interest. It is possible through debt consolidation in which multiple high-interest debts are combined into one low-interest debt. 

And you know a little decrease in interest rate can put thousands of dollars into your pocket. 

But before going for consolidation you should first compare different lenders on the basis of loan terms, interest rates, and other policies. If you find an option with the lowest interest cost and highest savings then don’t wait. 

Commonly used consolidation methods are the following: 

• Credit card balance transfer 
• Taking out a personal loan
• Getting a home equity loan
• Obtaining a 401(K) loan
• Getting a HELOC

In the case of a student loan, you need to refinance it with low-interest debt. The refinancing options are given by the government as well as private lenders.

Related Post: How Does Debt Consolidation Work? Is It a Good Idea?

3. Use debt settlement

Using this method you settle an existing debt for less than the amount outstanding. 

Normally borrowers use it when their financial condition is bad and want to save or avoid bankruptcy.

So if you’ve higher debt and is difficult to pay back then use this method. Here you can either negotiate the amount yourself or hire a debt settlement company that charges you a fee. 

If the deal gets successful then instead of paying large interest you can save money in principal and interest amounts. 

But remember first try to negotiate on 30% of the amount to the lender and if he doesn’t agree to it you can go up to 50%. More than that will not benefit you because of other expenses like tax. So your overall savings will go down. 

When it comes to how to get free money the debt settlement method is amazing.

4. 401K plan match

Are you doing a job and your employer is offering a 401(K) plan contribution? 

Then you should respect this opportunity and grow your savings with a free employer match. 

You can enroll in this plan and enjoy the growth in retirement savings with free money. Usually, the employer matches up to 50% of your contribution or 6% of your annual salary. So if you do that it will be easier for you to retire with big savings.

5. Get free money with surveys

Market research is key to any business’s success. And companies use online survey sites to gather data and information about their targeted audience. They pay money every time anyone completes them. 

Normally there are questions between 1 and 10 but sometimes they exceed 15. As many questions are the more money you get on completion. The rates vary depending on the demographics and the company itself. Usually, rates are between $0.1 to over $2 or $5. 

But how do you get these surveys to actually make free money?

There are dozens of online survey sites online. Some are working for years and others are new. But most of them are trustworthy and pay in actuality.

Here is an article to get complete information: 49 Best Online Paid Survey Sites In 2021 (up to $100 per survey)

6. Share your opinion

There are many online sites that pay you for sharing reviews and opinions. They use your opinions to improve companies’ products and services. 

You can also test products like software and apps by giving an honest review. They pay money up to $4 or $5 for each review depending on products and companies. 

There are numerous online sites you can use like Fiverr, Product Review Mom, and MillionFormula. You can find more if you search this phrase in Google “Best online sites for reviewing and testing products”. 

You also like: 33 Tricks on How to Save Money on Groceries

7. Sell your old items

Do you have old things to sell? It can be furniture, a TV set, a tape recorder, a cable wire, a car, a house, or any other unwanted items not used for years. 

It is a good idea to sell them and earn some cash. Usually, old wood furniture and metallic things are pricey and can earn a good sum. 

But how do you sell old things? 

You can list them down on sites like eBay, Olx, and Amazon. You need to upload their pictures and descriptions. And anyone who wants to purchase will place an order and you ship it to the address given. 

You can search this query on Google and you find dozens of best-buyer companies as well. The query is “sites for selling old items” and you can change the country name with your own.

Here is a list of some best sites: 

• OLX
• eBay
• SellMax
• Amazon
• Nextdoor
• 5Miles

You can also sell them through a local retailer who deals in the old item.

8. Take tax refunds

If you paid more tax than the total liability due then you can claim a tax refund. Here the excess amount paid will be refunded to you or adjusted in the new tax. This way you can earn a valuable sum of money. 

Along with that, there are numerous tax benefits that you know can save you hundreds of dollars. Here is an article: Top 6 Strategies to Protect Your Income From Taxes.

9. Decrease your insurance expense

Insurance is a big cost when it comes to protecting your house or car. But you can significantly lower it or save each year if you follow certain tips:

• Compare the insurance rates 
• Be a safe driver 
• Take care of your house
• Enroll in the safe driving course 

Enrolling in safe driving courses you can get 6% to 14% insurance discounts. Which is a good saving in insurance expenses.

For more information, Investopedia has 50 tips on lowering car insurance costs.

10. Earn by watching videos

If you love watching TV and videos you can turn it into income.

Some online sites pay you for watching videos. They include video ads, TV trailers, and short film videos. You can easily make $5, $10, or even $30 a day.

Here are the most reputable sites:

• Swagbucks
• KashKick
• MyPoints
• InboxDollars
• Fusion Cash

Search on Google for “sites that pay for watching videos” and you can find many.

11. Sign up for investing sites

Online investing platforms give different types of rewards and bonuses for new users’ registration. You can get a cash bonus, stocks bonus, and free balance to trade financial assets.

The bonuses usually value more than $5 and up to $300+ in case of stock bonuses. Some of these sites give you a second bonus for making your own deposit. 

Here are some legit investment broker sites: 

• SoFi App (1 free stock)
• Public ($70 in free stocks)
• Robinhood (1 free stock)
• WellBull ($300 in bonus stocks)
• M1 Finance ($30 in stocks)

Here is a search string to find these sites: “investment sites that pay for signup”.

12. Lifetime ISA to get free money

Do you want to buy your first-ever home or save money for retirement? 

The Lifetime ISA is the best longer-term tax-free saving account. Here you get a free bonus from the government worth 25% of what you contributed to this account. 

You can contribute up to £4,000 a year and you get £1,000 from the government as a bonus. 

To open a Lifetime ISA account you must be over 18 years of age and less than 40 years of age. You need to make your first payment before 40 years of age. And you make these payments till 50 years of age.

13. Earn with cashback sites and apps

Cashback sites and apps give you a contribution in the percentage of commission they earn from your purchase. Its working is simple. 

You register to their website and make a purchase through their affiliate link. When your transaction is verified then they share a portion of the commission with you. This is called cashback on purchases. 

So instead of directly purchasing from any retail store you first register at the cashback site. Then purchase through them because they give you the opportunity to get cash back on thousands of stores.

Here are some of the most popular cashback sites online you can use: 

• Coupons
• Coin out
• Paribus
• Coupon Cactus
• Shop At Home
• Rakuten
• Dosh 
• Quick Rewards
• Swagbucks
• Top Cash Back
• Shop At Home
• Nielsen
• Fetch Rewards
• Ibotta 
• Extrabux 
• RetailMeNot
• Groupon

If you want to find more in-depth details then here is the article: 27 Best Apps For Cashback And Rewards

14. Earn free money while walking

Do you love walking to stay fit? 

I’m sure you and everyone other. There is good news for you and that is you can earn through walking. There are some apps and sites online that pay you for every step you walk. 

So you can register on them and they track your walk and pay in different manners like gift cards, money through PayPal, reward points, physical goods, and others. 

Here are some of them listed below:

• CharityMiles
• Achievement
• Sweatcoin
• Life coin
• Lympo
• Runtopio
• PeopleWalker
• Higi

For finding more details and apps you can read these articles: 13 Free Apps That Pay You To Walk (Actually) 2021

15. Get free money in scholarships

Do you want to take a higher education degree? Then you should know how to get free money for education using these opportunities.

There are numerous grants available at the federal, state, and regional levels. You can apply to them and it will cover all or a major portion of your education expenses.

They have certain criteria for eligibility so you should first read it carefully and then apply. 

These scholarships include the following:

• Demographic scholarships
• Academic scholarships
• Creative scholarships
• Talent and hobby scholarships
• Community service scholarships
• Athletic scholarships

For more information, you can visit this article on the Best College: The Student’s Guide to Scholarships and Grants.

16. Get student loan forgiveness

Do you have a higher student loan debt burden that is difficult to pay back? Then it is a good option to go for student loan forgiveness.

There are different types of forgiveness options available to different candidates depending on their eligibility and situation. The most common types include:

• Public Service Loan Forgiveness
• Teachers loan forgiveness
• Total or Permanent disability discharge 
• Discharge due to bankruptcy
• Closed school discharge
• And more

Here either all or a part of your student loan will be forgiven. 

Under the PSLF program, you need to make 120 monthly payments and after that, your outstanding loan will be discharged. While under the TLF program, you get $5,000 or $17,000 worth of amount forgiven depending on which one you qualify for. While in case of total or permanent disability, you get all of your loan forgiven.

So if you’re eligible then must apply. It is an effort-free way to earn what you are liable to pay.

17. Join online referral programs

There are hundreds of online referral programs that pay you dollars for referring members or friends to their sites. They either pay you for their purchase, signup, or any other action a member completes.

The payments are based on either commission or a fixed amount of money like $10, $20, or $50 for each referral. Some programs and sites pay you on a recurring basis. It can help you easily earn between $100 to $1000 a month.

You can withdraw payments through PayPal, Payoneer, Stripe, direct deposit, or any other channel they approve. 

Here is a list of some reputable referral sites:

• TopCashback
• Raise
• Shopkick
• Walmart Grocery
• Rakuten
• Uber
• Lyft
• Citi International
• Shipt

For finding more information on how to get referrals and finding more sites search this query in Google “sites that pay you for referring people”.

18. Trim your extra expenses

According to statistics Americans spend an average of $18,000 yearly on non-essentials. That comes down to $1,500 a month.

If you‘re doing the same, you can cut them and save money without doing much effort. What you ended up doing is locating those wasteful spending and putting a stop.

How to cut out these expenses?

Make a simple budget in a spreadsheet or use pen and paper. Then list down your income and spending with amounts. Now, checkmark the essentials and cross unwanted. 

From the next month practically start applying the budget and you will soon see your savings accounts grow faster.

Related Post: 40 Ways on How to Save Money Even If You Find It Difficult

19. Open a savings account

A savings account is the best way to earn free income. You just need to open a savings account and put money into it and sit back. Money will make money for you.

But saving accounts doesn’t mean that you open any kind of random account in a bank. Instead, you go for high-yield or online savings accounts. They give a much better return than common ones. 

Here is a list from Nerdwallet of the 11 best savings accounts of November 2021.

20. Birthday freebies

Multiple websites and stores offer birthday gifts and discounts. Also, many restaurants offer free food on your birthday which makes you feel special and enjoy the day.

If you want a complete list of sites and restaurants for birthday gifts then head over to this article: 20 Websites & Stores That Give You Free Gifts on Your Birthday.

21. Cut down on extra credit cards

Credit cards are a surefire way to allow banks to eat up your money. It looks very luxurious and easy to spend money with but in the end, it is a financial disaster.

If you’ve more than one credit card, you can cancel them to avoid paying huge interest costs. The reason is that interest rates are so higher on credit cards and compile debt very fast. When you’ve only a single credit card then you spend money wisely.

This way you can save your hard-earned money. Just lower the number of existing cards and avoid applying for new ones. 

Related Post: How To Pay Off Debt Fast (11 Bullet Proof Tips )

22. Switch bank accounts

Switching bank accounts or opening new ones can help you get free money in bonuses or interest rates. There are many banks that pay you a $200 to $500 cash bonus in your new account. Other than that you can eliminate the monthly checking account fee. 

If you want to know which banks currently offer these bonuses, here is an article: 8 Bank Promotions That Pay You to Open an Account. 

23. Review and test products

Lots of people are doing this online. It costs you nothing and you need to test and review different companies’ products. This includes digital products like software & apps and physical ones as well. 

This helps companies get true feedback about new products and make any necessary changes if needed. So they can do better marketing. 

As a product reviewer, you can help them. The rates may vary depending on the company and the type of product. But normally they range between $3 to $500 or more. 

But how do find products for review?

Here is the list of some reputable websites and panels:

• Pinecone Research
• Product Report Card
• User Testing
• Toluna Influencer Panel
• Crowdville
• Beta Testing
• Home Scan

To find more search on Google “top product review and test websites” and you can find many.

24. Signup to microtask websites

Microtask websites pay you for doing simple and short tasks between 30 seconds and 10 minutes. And the payment is based on the timing, task, and how many you complete. 

Here you either need to signup to social media sites or follow YouTube channels, etc. The payments are between $0.01 very low up to $2 or $3 as well. If you choose good-paying gigs then you can easily make $5 to $20 in an hour or two.

The most reputable sites you can use for this purpose include the following:

• Mechanical Turk
• Clickworkers
• Pico Workers
• Microworkers

For finding more websites you can visit this article: 20+ Microtask Websites That Pay You For Micro Jobs.

25. Get free money from the government

The government offers different forms of programs and funds that help the public in their financial matters. These programs come in different forms like charity donations to the poor, stimulus checks, and utility bills as well.

Here is how to get free money from the government: 

Get money for your child care. If you’ve adopted a baby then the amount ranges from $5,000 to $22,000 a year.

If you’ve any unclaimed benefits in the form of insurance, refund or any other government owe to you then recover them.

Get tax benefits for health insurance and grants for your college education

Apply for unemployment benefits if you’ve lost your job and get money to live until getting a new job.

For learning about more benefits you can read this post on: 18 ways to get free money from the government.

26. Play games online

Are you a games lover? I’m also. 

Why not convert that passion into a money-making opportunity with zero investment? 

There are many websites and apps that you can use on a laptop or mobile for playing games. In fact, if you’re a professional gamer then you can earn big like $60,000 a year. With that much money, it is fun also.

But beginner gamers can’t make that much but enough for your time and expertise.

7 Alternatives methods to how to get free money

1. Start freelancing

Freelancing refers to selling your skill as a service to other businesses or individuals and earning money in return. It is the most common way to earn money online. 

In fact, there are over 1.1 billion freelancers out of 3.5 billion workforces worldwide. And 57 million freelancers do work-from-home jobs.

And there is a significant amount of money in this profession.

According to data, the average hourly rate of freelancers is $21 worldwide and between $20 to $28 an hour in the US.

How to start a freelancing business?

The steps are simple. No need to overcomplicate it. Here is what you do:

• Learn profitable freelancing skills like marketing, bookkeeping, web designing, app development, etc. If you’re an expert already in any skill then amazing.
• Create an online portfolio where your work samples are listed. You can easily get them from previous work you did or doing free work for other businesses. 
• Start marketing yourself through social media, cold emailing, YouTube channels, and by creating accounts on freelance marketplaces like Upwork.
• Take a project and deliver value in your work and clients will be happy to pay you big bucks.

This is a simple framework no rocket science. But if you’re successful then you can earn as much money then doing a job in a random company. Because it is your business, not a random job.

2. Open a YouTube channel

These days YouTube is a popular platform for making money. Youtubers are earning big bucks each month with different types of niches.

In fact, YouTube pays an average of $0.1 to $0.3 per view to the channel owner. Which comes down to $10 to $30 per 1,000 views.

But advertising is not the only way to earn from YouTube. You can promote affiliate products, sell your own products, post sponsorships videos of brands, and sell eCommerce products. You just need to market to subscribers and drop a link in the description.

How to start a successful YouTube channel?

The steps are below:

• Choose a niche you love to create videos on. The most popular ones include pranks, traveling, cooking, games, health and fitness, and entertainment. For more niche search Google.
• Make a list of topics on which you make videos in that niche. You can make up to 10, 20, or 30 video topics list so you don’t run out of ideas.
• Get a high-resolution and quality video-making camera or mobile phone which one is right for the type of videos you make.
• Start creating videos and edit them for perfection. 
• Upload on Youtube. Include an attractive thumbnail. And stay consistent.

It is that easy to do. But success depends on your content quality and consistency. When the YouTube channels grow to a sustainable audience then it generates passive income month after month. Also, follow the YouTube guidelines along the way to avoid any legal trouble.

3. Run an online blog

This one is also a good option. Here you need to put a little investment that, is not much than your weekly expense. So it is considered free. 

But the benefit is huge. Because you only put in 10 to 30 hours a week but you can earn $32,800 a year that an average blogger makes. Not a benchmark, I know bloggers who make more than a million dollars a year.

How do you start a successful blog?

• Buy a domain, host, and install WordPress content management software.
• Choose a high-quality fast loading theme.
• Install some important plugins like Google site kit and other security plugins.
• Start publishing SEO-friendly content on a consistent basis.
• Regularly do SEO and promote your content.

When it starts getting traffic from Google then you can easily make money through AdSense, affiliate marketing, and selling your own products.

4. Sell online courses

Courses are one of the best-selling digital products online. There are gurus making millions of dollars a year from just selling courses on specific skills they are experts in.

So if you’re an expert in any kind of skill and you can teach it to others then best.

You can create your own ebook course or video course and market it to an online audience. You can sell it on online course platforms like Coursera, Udemy, Skillshare, etc. Here you don’t need to do much marketing effort.

5. Publish a book on Kindle

People love to read books. And they like books with novel stories and with amazing learning experiences. 

If you’re a writer and have a good story to write a book on, then why not convert it into a money-making opportunity? There are platforms online like Amazon Kindle and eBay, Smashwords, Payslip, etc.

You just need to publish your book on these platforms and start promoting it. The people will automatically buy it if they like your books and you get a passive income.

And this doesn’t cost a penny. You need to write it on your laptop and design a cover image in Canva or pay a few dollars to a Fiverr freelancer to do it for you. And when it is ready you publish it. 

6. Get paid for photography

Do you love photography and take amazing photos? Then turn that skill into a long-term passive income. 

There are multiple online photography and image-selling sites that pay top dollar for high-quality and amazing photos. The most trusted sites are iStock Photos, Shutter Stock, Etsy, 500Px, etc. 

There are two ways to make money this way. You can either sell a license of images or sell the individual image depending on your choice. But selling a license will pay you passive income each month while selling photos will only give you a one-time payment.

The payments range from a little $0.50 to over $100 for a single image. If you want to sell a license that grants the right to use the image then $9 to $10 for a single image or a yearly package like 25 images for $250. The earnings are calculated depending on the percentage of the license price a website agrees to pay you.

The earnings will be transferred to you through Paypal, Payoneer, or Skrill.

7. Rent your car or house

Renting your real assets like a house or car is another good way to earn monthly retainers. You can get good dollars to cover your monthly living expenses. 

In the USA house rents range from $600 to $4,900 for a single-bedroom apartment. While car rents range from $17 a day to over $840 a day depending on the state, area, and vehicle. The more luxurious it is the more dollars you get.

You can search online sites where you’re able to list down houses for rent or cars. 

Drawbacks of getting free money

Earning free money is the best way to cover some of your expenses. And it seems like amazing that you don’t need to invest much hard work to earn it. 

Note: these drawbacks don’t apply to all methods especially the 7 alternative methods on how to get free money.

But there are certain downsides to earning free money. These downsides don’t apply to all the methods but some of them do. 

Here are some major downsides:

• Earning through free apps and survey sites comes with lots of scams where you don’t get paid for your work.
• The monetary compensation is very low and so is a waste of time.
• In some methods, you need to pay dollars first and then earn through a refund or commission on the sale. Which is not a good method.
• Doing work on microtask sites and survey sites is a waste of time. You don’t earn a fair amount for your efforts.
• Payments issues are there and you don’t get paid until you accumulate a certain percentage of money.
• The credit card rewards and cashback methods require you to spend with your credit card. It is a surefire way to build more debt which can be difficult to pay.
• These methods are not for everyone. Especially if you need a full-time income to cover your monthly expenses as a father of kids or a housewife. 
• Payment methods are also an issue because most of them don’t support all countries.

If you consider these drawbacks in mind then you can easily guess whether these methods are good for you or not. 

Conclusion

You learned 26 ways to get free money. These methods are good if you need a little money. For example, these ways are suitable for students, if you’re new to online earnings, or if you want to make extra time valuable.

But these methods are not reliable for long-term sustainable income. For that, you need a proven business that helps you cover full-time expenses and saves you money.

That’s why I also shared 7 alternatives to ways how to get free money. These methods need your effort and little investment but are proven to generate big bucks. You can start them for free as well.

But if you want to earn big dollars then don’t go for free methods instead use alternatives.

Hopefully, you’ve got enough value from this post. If you’ve any questions or confusion regarding anything you can share them in the comments below.

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