Home Side Hustle Basics Apps That Pay You to Sign Up
July 25, 2024
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VariesIf you’re searching for apps with sign-up bonuses, look no further. We’ve curated over a dozen apps in various categories that offer cash or other rewards (including points, coupons, and even shares of stock) when you sign up.
Whether you’re interested in cashback apps, survey apps, gaming apps, or investment apps, we’ve got you covered. We’ll give you an overview of each app and explain what requirements you have to meet to get its sign-up bonus.
What it is and how it works: Ibotta is an app that lets you earn cashback rewards when you shop at participating grocery stores and online retailers.
Here’s how to earn cash back on qualifying purchases:
You can find cashback offers by browsing products in the app or on your computer. Alternatively, you can download Ibotta’s browser extension, which will notify you whenever a retailer offers a cashback deal.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: You’ll receive a cash “Welcome bonus.” The amount changes regularly, but reportedly, you can expect to receive several dollars. Some sources suggest that it’s sometimes possible to get as much as $20, but we haven’t been able to confirm that, and other anecdotal reports claim that it’s inaccurate and that Ibotta’s bonuses are never that high.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: You’ll receive your Welcome bonus when sign up with the app for the first time. Don’t try creating multiple accounts to get more than one bonus; if Ibotta catches you, your accounts will be deactivated.
To qualify for the Welcome bonus, you also have to actually use the app by redeeming a certain number of offers. Refer to the “Bouses” page in the app to find out how many (the amount changes over time).
Sign up via Ibotta’s website or by downloading the app using the buttons below.
What it is and how it works: Formerly known as Ebates, Rakuten is another platform that lets users earn cashback rewards when they make eligible online purchases at participating stores.
To do this, you must shop on Rakuten’s official website or use its app or browser extension.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: The exact amount you’ll receive depends on Rakuten’s welcome promo at the time you sign up. In the past, they’ve variously offered bonuses of $10 and $30.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: You must be a new member of Rakuten (must have signed up in the past 90 days) and must make eligible purchases totaling at least $25 within 90 days of signing up.
Sign up via Rakuten’s website or by downloading the app using the buttons below.
What it is and how it works: Fetch Rewards is a rewards app that you can use to earn points by scanning receipts and playing games. You can scan a maximum of 35 receipts within a rolling 7-day period, earning a minimum of 25 points for each receipt.
You can use the points you earn to redeem gift cards from a store of your choice. Fetch partners with a variety of brands, including Starbucks, Amazon, Target, and Barnes & Noble.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: Fetch will reward you with a few hundred points when you sign up using a referral code. Unfortunately, this is a relatively small bonus—1,000 points are equivalent to about a dollar, so even in the best case, you’ll probably earn between $0.50 and $1.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: Again, to earn Fetch’s bonus, you must sign up using a referral code. If you missed entering your referral code when signing up, you can add it later, but it will only be effective if you enter it before scanning any receipts.
If you don’t have any friends who use Fetch Rewards, search for referral codes online.
Download the app using the buttons below.
What it is and how it works: RebatesMe is a cashback platform that gives you the opportunity to earn up to 40% cash back on eligible purchases with any of their 6,500+ partnering stores.
In addition to downloading their app, you can add the RebateMe Chrome extension to your browser, which will give you updates on their latest offers.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: RebatesMe offers a $10 signup bonus to members who sign up and meet their requirements.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: To receive your bonus, you must have signed up for RebatesMe in the past 90 days, and must earn at least $10 in cash back by making eligible purchases.
Sign up via RebatesMe’s website or by downloading the app using the buttons below.
What it is and how it works: Like RebatesMe, BeFrugal is a cashback platform that lets you earn up to 40% back on eligible purchases with their 5,000+ partnering stores.
They also have an extension you can add to Chrome so you can keep up with the latest offers.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: BeFrugal offers a $10 sign-up bonus to members who sign up and meet their requirements.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: You must be a new member of BeFrugal, sign up within their 1-year promotional period, and earn at least $20 in cash back by making eligible purchases.
Sign up via BeFrugal’s website or download the app using the buttons below.
What it is and how it works: Upromise is a cashback platform that primarily targets people who are saving for college tuition and other large expenses. As with other cashback apps, you earn rewards by making everyday purchases.
You can link any financial account to your Upromise account to receive cash back. The app particularly encourages users to link their 529 plans or student loan accounts by offering them a bonus when they do so.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: Upromise offers a $30 bonus.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: You must verify your email to earn $5.29. If you link a 529 or student loan account to your Upromise account within 30 days of signing up, you’ll earn an additional $25.
Note that, to receive the $25 bonus, your 529 or student loan account must be active from the time you sign up to the end of the 30-day cashback rewards redemption period.
Sign up via Upromise’s website or by downloading its mobile app.
What it is and how it works: Swagbucks is one of the largest online shopping rewards programs out there. You can earn “Swagbucks points” (SB) by making eligible purchases, taking paid surveys, playing games, watching videos, and completing other small online tasks.
Once you earn the equivalent of $15 in SB, you can use your points to redeem gift cards from various brands or receive cash via PayPal.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: Swagbucks offers a 200 SB bonus (worth $2) to new members, and a further 50 SB bonus ($0.50) when you fill out your profile.
They also offer an additional $10 discount that you can put towards eligible purchases of $25 or more made through their platform, but this is strictly a discount. You can’t directly convert it to SB or actual cash.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: You must verify your email to receive the first $2 bonus and complete a short profile quiz (which will take around 3 minutes) to receive the $0.50 bonus.
Sign up via Swagbucks’s website or by downloading its mobile app.
What it is and how it works: Survey Junkie is an online market research platform that lets you earn points by taking paid surveys and participating in focus groups. It’s very similar to Swagbucks, but with a tighter focus on surveys.
When you earn $5 in rewards, you can redeem them for cash or e-gift cards from partnering brands.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: You’ll earn no fewer than four small bonuses when you sign up:
All told, you’ll earn a bonus of $0.85.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: To earn your bonus, you must confirm your email address and complete the small tasks listed above.
Sign up via Survey Junkie’s website or download the mobile app.
What it is and how it works: Like Survey Junkie, LifePoints is an online market research platform that rewards its members for taking online surveys.
LifePoints credits can be redeemed in the form of gift cards, PayPal credit, or charitable donations. On average, 1 point is equivalent to 0.87–0.97 cents; they’re slightly more valuable when redeemed as gift cards and donations.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: LifePoints offers a 10-point bonus (worth approximately 9 cents) to members who sign up with them.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: LifePoints doesn’t offer a very large sign-up bonus, but they don’t have additional requirements you need to meet to earn it. You just need to create an account with them to receive your reward.
Sign up via LifePoints’s website or download the mobile app.
What it is and how it works: MyPoints is yet another online platform that lets you earn points by completing small, minimal-effort “microtasks,” such as shopping online, taking surveys, watching videos, and playing games.
You can redeem the points for gift cards or coupons from a variety of partnering online stores, as well as other businesses, such as airlines, hotels, and restaurants.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: MyPoints offers a 1,750-point bonus (worth $10) to members who sign up and meet its requirements.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: You must confirm your email address and spend at least $20 on eligible purchases via MyPoints within 30 days of signing up.
Sign up via MyPoints’s website or download the app.
What it is and how it works: InboxDollars is an online rewards platform that lets you earn cash by participating in simple activities, such as taking surveys, playing games, reading emails, and shopping online or at grocery stores.
You can cash out your earnings via PayPal, Visa, or gift cards once you have at least $15 in your account. After cashing out your first payment, you only need $10 for subsequent ones.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: InboxDollars offers a $5 bonus to members who sign up.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: You don’t need to jump through many hoops to get the InboxDollars welcome bonus. You just need to provide and confirm your email address.
Sign up via InboxDollars’s website or download the mobile app.
What it is and how it works: Branded Surveys is a fairly standard paid survey platform. Like the others we’ve listed, it rewards you for completing online market research surveys.
The platform rewards you in points, which you can then redeem via PayPal, as cash paid directly to your bank account, or in the form of gift cards when you earn 500 points.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: Branded Surveys offers a modest 100-point bonus (worth $1) to members who sign up.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: To get your money, you need to sign up, provide a few pieces of basic personal info (e.g., your age and ZIP code), and take a short questionnaire about your interests, hobbies, etc.
Sign up via Branded Surveys’ website or download the mobile app.
What it is and how it works: Opinion Inn is an online platform that rewards you for taking surveys and sharing your opinions on various topics with companies.
The payment for each survey varies, ranging from $0.5–$100 (although highly paid surveys like this are rare). You may qualify for more lucrative surveys if you have specialized knowledge or professional experience in an in-demand field, such as IT (because companies in that industry will be more interested in soliciting your opinions).
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: Opinion Inn offers a $10 bonus.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: You just need to create an account to receive your bonus, but to actually cash it out via PayPal, you need to hit a (rather high) $25 minimum payout threshold.
Sign up via Opinion Inn’s website or download the mobile app. Currently, Opinion Inn is only available for Android.
What it is and how it works: Mistplay is a mobile app that lets you earn by playing games, participating in contests, and completing various other challenges and tasks. The app rewards you with “Units,” which you can redeem for rewards like gift cards, as well as in-app perks, like special display pictures.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: You’ll receive 200 bonus Units (worth a little under $1) when you sign up and another 100 bonus Units if you sign up with a referral link, for a total of around $1.30–$1.50.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: To get Mistplay’s bonus, all you have to do is sign up, set a display picture, and answer a few questions about what games you like. If you don’t have any friends who use Mistplay, search online for a referral code.
Mistplay is only available for Android. Download it using the button below.
What it is and how it works: Robinhood is a commission-free trading and investing app (i.e., a brokerage). You can buy and sell stocks, ETFs, options, and cryptocurrencies with just $1.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: Robinhood will give you a small amount of stock when you register and link your bank account.
You get to pick the company you want shares in, but the amount you’ll get will be randomly determined, ranging from $7 to $175. (Unsurprisingly, most bonuses are on the lower end of that range.) If the stock you pick is worth more than the amount you’re awarded, you’ll get a fractional (partial) share.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: To get your free stock, you need to sign up, link a bank account, and deposit at least $1 into your brokerage account. Because Robinhood is a stock brokerage, you’ll have to jump through a few hoops to verify your account, including uploading a picture of a valid government-issued ID.
Sign up via Robinhood’s website or download the app.
What it is and how it works: Fundrise is an “alternative investment platform” that allows you to invest in real estate funds, startup companies, and other assets that aren’t listed on public stock exchanges.
Note that Fundrise charges a 0.15% annual advisory fee on all investments and further 0.85%–1.85% management fees on other investment vehicles. These fees will be taken out of your returns (the money you earn) on the app.1
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: When you sign up, Fundrise will give you $10 worth of shares in their Fundrise Real Estate Interval Fund, LLC. They may sometimes raise this; in July 2024, their bonus stood at $25.
Fundrise also reserves the right to completely terminate this promotional bonus at any time, so it’s a good idea to check whether it’s still current before you sign up.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: You must be new to Fundrise, sign up via their promotional page or an advertisement, and make an initial investment of at least $10 within 30 days of opening your account.
Sign up via Fundrise’s promotional page.
You can download the mobile app using the buttons below, but it’s still best to sign up via their promo link to ensure you get the bonus.
What it is and how it works: Acorns is a micro-investing platform that lets its users invest their spare change automatically. It offers a selection of pre-built investment portfolios for you to choose from, depending on your financial goals.
The way it works is that you’ll link your credit or debit cards to your Acorns account, and Acorns will set aside spare change from your every purchase (rounding it up to the nearest dollar). They’ll invest the money for you once it reaches $5 or more. You can also set recurring (daily, weekly, or monthly) deposits.
Unfortunately, Acorns charges a monthly membership fee, starting at $3.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: Acorns offers a $10 bonus to members when they sign up.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: You must create and verify an Acorns account and make a recurring investment of at least $5.
Sign up via Acorns’s website or download the mobile app.
What it is and how it works: MoneyLion is a financial service app. It offers loans, investment accounts, and banking services, as well as credit-building tools.
Note that MoneyLion charges certain fees, such as administrative, transaction, and ATM withdrawal fees. Before signing up, check out MoneyLion’s complete fee schedule on their website.
What you’ll receive as a sign-up bonus: MoneyLion regularly offers promotional periods. If you sign up during one of them, you’ll get a variable amount of money when you create an account.
As of the time of writing (July 2024), you’ll get $10 when you create a RoarMoney account (for mobile banking with MoneyLion) and an additional $50 if you set your paycheck to be directly deposited and go through with depositing at least $100.
See MoneyLion’s referral terms and conditions for their current bonus.
Requirements for the sign-up bonus: You must sign up via an invitation link from MoneyLion or with a unique referral code from an existing user (here again, you can find these easily online).
Sign up via MoneyLion’s website or download the mobile app.
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