It’s safe to say that a lot of us are looking for creative ways to make extra money as we stare down the last few months of 2020. This year has been a lot, and it’s no surprise that we’re all scrambling for ways to reinvigorate our bank accounts.
Side hustles aren’t for everyone, but they aren’t the only way to bring in extra income. Have you ever considered earning money through a passive income? When most people think of a passive income, they envision themselves as rental property owners or storeyed authors raking in residuals — but that’s not always the case.
Everything is digital these days, so you shouldn’t be too shocked to learn that there’s an app for that! And we’ve pulled together a shortlist of the best passive income apps to help you get control of your finances today!
Invest
Stash is one of my favorite investment apps. It’s user-friendly and highly educational if you’re just getting into stocks and a great tool to brush up on investment strategies if you’re not new to the stock market. There are no account minimums, and your monthly subscription fee is only between $1 and $9, depending on how serious you plan to be with your investing.
The app has a wide selection of thousands of different stocks and ETFs. Invest based on your interests or study the market and make bold choices. Investments start at $1, but the sky’s the limit if you know what you’re doing.
You can even set up savings and retirement accounts through Stash!
Rent Your Car (Or RV!)
This one gets a little niche, but it’s a great way to make a passive income if you have a car sitting around and collecting pollen in your driveway. If you’re looking at a long winter of working from home or you have a second car that you’re not using, have you considered renting it?
There are a couple of different apps out there that helps make this easy to do.
Getaround and Turo are two apps that make renting your car pain-free and straightforward. They both work similarly; all you have to do is download the app, upload a picture of your vehicle and the information about it, and list it available for rent. There are differences, however. Getaround tends to have lower booking rates, while Turo lets you set a higher fee. Turo does charge a 10% premium on drivers under 25.
Are you worried about your renter losing your keys? Fear not! Both apps offer keyless entry through an app-based locking mechanism you can set up in your car. As I said, they strive to make this passive income pain-free!
Now, if you happen to have a larger vehicle — like an RV — sitting in your driveway, you might want to look into RV Share and Outdoorsy. Some users on the apps report renting their RVs for over $300 a day! This is the perfect way to make a passive income off your RV when you’re not using it.
Please take a look for yourself to figure out which app is right for you; but I will say that Outdoorsy offers a much better insurance plan, but you’ll make more money through RV Share.
Rent Your Space
If you have extra storage space that you’re not using or a parking spot that you don’t need, we’ve got the perfect app for you. Neighbor helps you make money off unused space by connecting you with neighbors (get it?) looking for places to store their junk. The site boasts that in a year, you could make $200 off your unused closet space, $1200 off your basement, and $1300 of your garage. You’re sitting on money!
Are you worried about storing other people’s belongings? Don’t worry! Neighbor protects you with a 1 million dollar personal liability policy and offers a $25,000 renter guarantee. This is a great way to make use of your extra space and make a passive income in the process.
Shop
Yes, you heard that right. You can make a passive income by shopping! There are so many great cashback and shopping reward apps out there, but we will always love Rakuten (formerly Ebates). The app connects you with over 2,500 brand names and online companies that you probably already shop with.
The key is using Rakuten when you make these purchases — so be sure you use the app and download the browser extension on your computer. If you sign-up and make $25 of qualifying purchases in your first 90 days, you’ll even qualify for a $10 cash bonus.
What are you waiting for? Rakuten is one of the most popular cashback resources on the internet, and they’ve been around 1997.
Earn Free Gift Cards
MobileXpression is one of the most popular apps to earn free gift cards on. The app simply collects data for market research companies to use, and all you have to do is use your phone as usual. What are you waiting for? Download the app, set up your account, and start earning!
The nice part is that you can also earn extra credits from completing small tasks like taking surveys or answering prompted questions, which, in return, helps the market research companies better understand their target market.
Get A Mobile Assistant
Have you been stressing about your financial habits? Looking to cut out certain expenses and get better control over your money? Well, look no further than Trim. Trim is the financial advisor you can keep in your back pocket.
Most users save over $600 a year with Trim by cutting out unnecessary subscriptions, tracking your spending, and helping you negotiate lower rates on your internet and phone bills. While Trim isn’t a money-making venture like most forms of passive income, it does help you save money in the long run.
Play Games
We would be remiss if we didn’t mention our favorite mobile gaming app. Sadly, it is currently just for Android users, but it’s too good not to mention. Mistplay makes it easy to earn money while simply playing fun, addictive games on your phone!
All you have to do is download the app and start playing the games. Invite your friends and start playing games together, earning units that can be exchanged for real money. The games vary, and there are always new ones to discover.
Bottom Line
From rental properties on Airbnb to affiliate blogging and taking surveys on Swagbucks, there are so many different passive income apps out there! It’s just a matter of finding something you’re passionate about.
When it comes to renting your property or upselling goods online — you could end up turning your passive income into an active and thriving primary source of income! Don’t be afraid to try something new before 2020 gets away from you!
