Since 2016, we’ve tested and reviewed more than 60 apps and websites that promise to pay you real money. Most aren’t worth your time.
These are the 7 we keep coming back to.
Some you can sign up for today and see money in your account within 24 to 48 hours — adding up to $50–$400 this month. Others take a few extra minutes to set up or you can take advantage of next time you’re at the grocery store.
All of them are legitimate, established companies with strong track records and high user ratings.
1. Earn as Much as $1K/Month Doing Simple Online Tasks
Most side hustles take weeks before you see your first dollar. Freecash is not that.
Companies pay real money for user feedback because it costs them less than hiring a research firm. Freecash connects those companies with everyday people willing to share their opinion.
No experience required, and you can start earning within minutes of signing up.
New members get a $5 bonus the moment they sign up. No personal info required. Sign up with just email.
That money is in your account before you complete a single task.
Then, test a mobile game and give feedback: $5–$100. Try a new app: $2–$15. There are over 8,000 different activities you can choose from.
Not sure what to do? Check out the leaderboard to see exactly what activities the top earners are doing.
Do a handful in a single evening and you could be looking at $20–$50 in your PayPal before you go to sleep.
Freecash has paid over $50 million to real users. Over 157,000 Trustpilot reviewers rate it “Excellent.”
See what tasks Freecash has available and claim your $5 bonus.
2. Get Paid $150/Month for Opinions You Already Have
You already have opinions about Netflix shows, Apple products, and the things you buy on Amazon. Brands spend millions to hear what people like you think.
Branded Surveys pays you for answering simple multiple-choice questions from your phone, in private, on your schedule.
Your responses are completely anonymous.
Joining Branded Surveys is free and takes about 30 seconds. No phone number or physical address is required to sign up. You can start earning right away with no waiting for approval.
Each day brings new surveys from top companies paying up to $5 each. It shows you exactly how long each one takes, so you always know what to expect.
Answer three per day and you could earn up to $150 per month for opinions you were going to have anyway.
Cash out once you reach $5 through PayPal, Amazon gift cards, or direct deposit. Most payments arrive within one to two business days.
Branded Surveys is owned by Dynata, the world’s largest market research company with nearly 50 years in business.
Their track record speaks for itself:
- $64+ million paid out
- Rated 4.5 on the App Store (13,150 reviews) and 4.3 on Google Play (13,400 reviews)
- 74,000+ users rate it “Excellent” on Trustpilot
- Recommended by NerdWallet as “a low-commitment and easy way to earn extra money”
Join free in under a minute and start getting paid for your opinions today.
As a reader of The Ways To Wealth, you’ll also receive an exclusive 100-point ($1) welcome bonus the moment you sign up.
3. Get Paid for Simply Watching TV
What if you could earn gift cards just for connecting the devices you already stream on? No daily grind. No tasks to keep up with. Just quiet rewards for the shows and streaming that’s happening anyway.
That’s exactly how Nielsen Pulse works.
Nielsen is the same company behind the Nielsen TV ratings, and one of the most trusted names in media research for more than 90 years. Nielsen measures what people watch, listen to, and buy for the world’s largest media and marketing companies.
When you join, you become part of Nielsen’s privacy-protected research panel that helps shape what gets made by the networks and streaming services you already watch.
Here’s exactly what that means for your privacy:
- What they see: Anonymous data about your streaming and device habits, like which apps and platforms you watch and how often.
- What they DON’T see: Your user IDs, passwords, or other private information. Nielsen does not record private conversations or sensitive data.
How it works:
- Sign up and answer a short eligibility survey about you, your household, and your devices
- Install the Nielsen Pulse app and connect the devices you stream on, like your phone, tablet, and TV
- Watch exactly what you normally would. The app runs quietly in the background.
- Earn reward points automatically. The more devices you connect, the more you earn.
Members can earn up to $250 a year in points with a TV connected, redeemable for gift cards from top brands. You’ll also get a 75-point bonus just for signing up.
Sign up today for free and start earning points toward your first gift card. Your rewards continue as long as you stay connected.
Your participation is completely voluntary and can be stopped anytime by uninstalling the app.
If you’re looking for the most effortless side income possible, this one quietly pays you for what you’re already watching. Join Nielsen Pulse today and start earning automatically.
Here’s How to Double Up Your Earnings from Nielsen: Nielsen also runs a longstanding second rewards program called the Nielsen Computer & Mobile Panel, which pays you for your browsing instead of your streaming. You sign up, answer a few registration questions, then install the Nielsen app or software on your computer, phone, or tablet. From there it works just like Pulse. It runs quietly in the background while you browse as usual, your data stays anonymous, and you earn up to $60 a year in points, redeemable via PayPal or gift cards, plus instant-win scratch-off games with a monthly top prize of $500. The two programs are completely separate, so you can join both and get paid twice by Nielsen.
4. Earn Cash Back on Gas, Groceries, and Restaurants You’re Already Visiting
You already buy gas. You already buy groceries. You’re already picking up dinner on the way home. What if you got paid every time you did?
Upside is a free app that gives you real cash back — not points, not credits — on gas, groceries, and restaurant purchases at over 100,000 locations nationwide.
You open the app, claim an offer at a gas station, grocery store, or restaurant near you, pay with your regular debit or credit card, and cash back shows up in your account.
That’s it. The whole process adds maybe 10 seconds to a purchase you were already making.
I’ve used Upside since 2021, but it wasn’t until late 2025 that the app really clicked for me. Grocery and restaurant offers expanded dramatically in my area, and gas offers got noticeably better.
Between December 2025 and January 2026 alone, I earned $60.24 — without changing where I shop or what I buy.
New users who download Upside with code THEWAYSTOWEALTH get an extra 25 cents per gallon on their first fill-up.
Some of my recent transactions: 21% cash back at Fresh Market ($12.14 on a single grocery run), 14 cents per gallon at Shell, and 13 cents per gallon at BP. Restaurant offers in my area typically range from 6% to 20% back.
You can cash out anytime to your bank account, PayPal, or gift cards from Amazon, Walmart, Starbucks, and 30+ other retailers. Bank transfers start at just $1.01. Gift cards have no fee and usually arrive within 24 hours.
Frequent users earn an average of $290 per year, and Upside users have collectively earned over $1 billion in cash back to date.
The app is rated 4.8 stars from 638,000+ reviews on the App Store and 4.5 stars from 431,000+ reviews on Google Play.
Download Upside and use code THEWAYSTOWEALTH for an extra 25 cents per gallon on your first fill-up.
5. Share Your Political Views—And Get Paid for It
Your political opinions matter more than ever, but do you ever feel drowned out by the loudest voices?
YouGov is one of the most trusted polling platforms in the world, with over 26 million members. Media outlets like The Economist, CBS News, and Reuters regularly cite their data to report on what Americans really think.
Join YouGov for free to earn up to $50 per month answering short surveys from your phone on topics like elections, healthcare, and the economy.
Your responses help shape the national conversation.
No phone calls. No spam. Your information is kept secure and private.
Share your political opinions and get paid.
6. Get Paid to Test the Hottest New Products
What if top brands sent you their newest products for free and paid you to share your feedback?
With i-Say by Ipsos, they will. From makeup to snacks to pet supplies, products show up at your door for free. You test them, share your opinion, and get paid.
Over 7 million members use i-Say to earn through surveys and exclusive product testing.
Creating an i-Say account takes less than 30 seconds. Once you sign up, you’ll receive daily emails with various ways to earn money.
Each product you test and every survey you complete contributes to your earnings. The more active you are, the more opportunities you’ll unlock.
Once you’ve accumulated enough points, cashing out with PayPal is quick and easy.
With over 53,000 positive reviews on Trustpilot, i-Say is one of the world’s most popular ways to turn opinions into cash.
Sign up free and get your first product to test
7. Get a Free $20 Just for Setting Up This Investing App
Acorns will send you a $20 bonus just for opening an account and setting up a recurring investment of $5 or more. That’s it. The $20 lands in your account within 10 days.
But here’s what makes Acorns worth keeping after you collect the bonus.
Acorns is one of the most trusted finance apps in the U.S., with over 14 million customers and 1.3 million reviews averaging 4.7 stars.
Unlike the other opportunities on this list, Acorns doesn’t pay you for your time — it puts your money to work for you, automatically, so your earnings grow even on days you do nothing.
The real power comes from how flexible it is:
- Short term: Hide away $30, $40, or $80 a month and put it directly toward paying off credit card debt faster — without even noticing it’s gone.
- Medium term: Add $20 a week, and in five years you could have $6,656 (assuming a 7% return) — enough for a major car down payment or to wipe out a lingering bill that’s been hanging over you.
- Long term: Stay consistent for 25 years, and your $26,000 invested could grow to $107,215 (at a 7% return) — an $81,000 gain that can give you a real boost toward retirement.
Acorns takes money you’d otherwise spend without thinking, hides it from yourself, and turns it into progress toward the goals that matter most.
Get started today and claim your $20 bonus.
| Company | What It Pays You For |
| Freecash | Test apps and games — $5 bonus before your first task, $50–$1,000/mo potential |
| Branded Surveys | Multiple-choice surveys from your phone — cash out at $5, up to $150/mo |
| Nielsen Computer and Mobile Panel | Keep an app on your phone — earn automatically, no tasks required |
| Upside | Cash back on gas, groceries, and restaurants you already visit — avg $290/yr |
| YouGov | Share political and social opinions — up to $50/mo, cited by CBS and Reuters |
| Ipsos i-Say | Surveys + free products shipped to your door — 7M+ members |
| Acorns | Set up a $5 recurring investment — get a free $20 bonus within 10 days |
Earnings vary; figures are promotional or represent top users, not a guarantee.
