We’ve classified the gig apps we’ve reviewed into several categories based on the type of work they offer (e.g., driving and delivery, manual labor, survey-taking, and so on).
We have separate rubrics that we use to review apps in each category. Each rubric includes different scoring factors, which we’ve assigned weights to according to their importance.
We’ve explained our categories and how their rubrics work below.
Caregiving
These job apps are designed for various types of care providers, including those who care for other people (e.g., senior caregivers and babysitters) and other types of caretakers (e.g., dog walkers, house sitters, and pet sitters). Some apps are strictly gig apps for booking one-off jobs on demand, while others are also job-seeking platforms for longer-term roles.
Our rubric for caregiving apps
| Scoring factor | What it is | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Fees | The cost of using the app, in terms of registration and membership fees as well as commission fees on your earnings. | Important |
| Job Availability | How easy it is to actually get jobs, according to factors like qualifying locations, local competition, and app popularity among employers/clients. | Moderately important |
| Payments | How good the payment system is for caregivers in terms of how quickly you get paid and how much you can earn. | Moderately important |
| Signup Process | How quick and easy it is to sign up and the rigorousness of the eligibility requirements and background screening process. | Moderately important |
| Worker Protection | The availability of app user support as well as what safety features the app provides in terms of screening clients and giving caregivers the power to vet and block clients. | Less important |
House sitting
House sitting platforms allow you to find homeowners who are looking for someone to stay in their house while they’re away for days, weeks, or months. These platforms don’t pay you, and they often come with pretty high membership fees. You’ll also have certain responsibilities, like housekeeping and often pet care. The tradeoff is that you can access free accommodation in a variety of locations.
Our rubric for house sitting apps
| Scoring factor | What it is | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Fees | The registration and membership fees you need to pay to use the platform as well as any expenses you’re expected to cover. | Important |
| Opportunities | How easy it is to actually claim house sits, according to factors like locations available, competition among sitters, and the popularity of the platform among homeowners. | Important |
| Signup Process | How quick and easy it is to sign up and the rigorousness of the eligibility requirements. | Less important |
| Sitter Protection | The availability of app user support as well as what protection features the app provides in terms of screening homeowners and offering assistance in the event of a last-minute cancellation. | Less important |
Local professional services
These are tasking apps and lead-generating sites designed to help independent contractors find paying clients in their local community. The purpose of these apps is to either help skilled contractors find independent work or handle marketing and payment processes for people who are already running their own business.
Our rubric for local professional apps
| Scoring factor | What it is | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Fees | The cost of using the app, in terms of registration and membership fees, the cost of leads, and insurance/equipment costs. | Important |
| Job Availability | How easy it is to actually get jobs, according to factors like qualifying locations, local competition, and app popularity among employers/clients. | Less important |
| Payments | How good the payment system is for contractors in terms of how quickly you get paid and how much you can earn. | Important |
| Signup Process | How much time and effort it takes to sign up as well as the strictness of the eligibility requirements. | Less important |
| Worker Protection | The availability of app user support as well as what protective features the app provides in terms of client screening, payments for last-minute cancellations, and user blocking. | Less important |
Shift work
These are on-demand gig apps for picking up one-time shifts or finding temp jobs at local businesses. While some of these apps are specially designed for shift workers in a particular industry, others offer the freedom and flexibility to book gigs that don’t require previous work experience or special qualifications.
Our rubric for staffing apps
| Scoring factor | What it is | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Job Availability | How easy it is to actually get jobs, according to factors like qualifying locations, local competition, and app popularity among employers/clients. | Important |
| Earnings | How much you can earn through the app (accounting for any fees) and how quickly you get paid. | Very important |
| Signup Process | How much time and effort it takes to sign up as well as the strictness of the eligibility requirements. | Less important |
| Worker Protection | The availability of app user support as well as what protective features the app provides in terms of client screening, payments for last-minute cancellations, and user blocking. | Less important |
Tutoring
Tutoring apps provide a digital approach to finding students and offering tutoring services. In most cases, these are platforms dedicated to online tutoring, and they may specialize in a certain educational field or offer a range of subjects to choose from.
Our rubric for tutoring apps
| Scoring factor | What it is | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Job Availability | How easy it is to actually get jobs, according to factors like qualifying locations, local competition, and app popularity among students. | Moderately important |
| Flexibility | How much freedom you have to set your own rates and schedule as well as the variety of age groups and subjects you can teach. | Moderately important |
| Earnings | How much you can earn through the app (accounting for any fees) and how quickly you get paid. | Moderately important |
| Signup Process | How much time and effort it takes to sign up as well as the strictness of the eligibility requirements. | Less important |
| Tutor Protection | The availability of app user support as well as what protective features the app provides in terms of student screening, payments for last-minute cancellations, and user blocking. | Less important |
Selling online courses
Platforms for selling online courses provide subject matter experts with a way to earn a passive income by creating and uploading pre-recorded classes. Unlike traditional teaching platforms where teachers interact with students, online course selling sites allow you to offer educational content as a product to sell, and the platform usually takes a cut of your revenue.
Our rubric for online course selling apps
| Scoring factor | What it is | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Competition | How easy it is to actually make sales, according to factors like the current market saturation and the strength of the platform’s user base. | Important |
| Requirements | The difficulty of meeting instructor and course requirements and how much time and effort it takes to register. | Moderately important |
| Earning Potential | How much you can earn through the platform and what percentage of your revenue you take home. | Important |
| Flexibility | The extent of your freedom on the platform, including the number and types of courses you can upload and the flexibility you have to change your course prices or sell your courses on other platforms. | Moderately important |
Driving and delivery
These apps provide gigs that will put you behind the wheel of a car (or another vehicle, such as a truck or motorcycle). Some of them are ridesharing apps that will task you with picking up passengers and taxiing them around; others will task you with delivering products, which range from food and groceries to medical and construction supplies.
Our rubric for driving and delivery apps
| Scoring factor | What it is | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Earnings | How much you can make from an average gig on the app, calculated on both an hourly and a per-mile basis. | Important |
| Job Availability | How much work the app is able to provide in most of the markets that it operates in. | Important |
| User Experience | What driving for the app is actually like, both in terms of the app’s usability and the nature of the work itself. | Moderately important |
| Support / Customer Service | How easy it is to get in touch with the app’s support team and how much help they provide to drivers. | Less important |
Microtasking
These are websites that offer paid surveys and other small tasks (“microtasks”), such as watching ads and videos, playing games, and reading emails. Microtasking apps provide one of the easiest ways to earn extra money, although usually not that much money, since their payouts tend to be fairly small.
Our rubric for microtasking apps
| Scoring factor | What it is | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Earning Potential | The hourly rate you can expec to earn on the site, and how large the signup bonus is (if there is one). | Very important |
| User Experience | The variety of the site’s tasks and how reliable they are (whether they disqualify you and/or glitch frequently). | Important |
| Withdrawal Process | How much you have to earn to cash out, how long it takes, and what options you have (PayPal, gift cards, etc.). | Moderately important |
| Fees | Whether the site will hit you with added fees (e.g., when withdrawing cash), and if so, how high they are. | Less important |
Moving
These apps will pay you to help people move. Depending on the app and your role (which you’ll often choose when you sign up), you may operate a moving truck or van, or you might just show up at your customers’ houses and help them load their furniture and packages into the truck. Moving apps generally require you to be in good physical condition.
Our rubric for moving apps
| Scoring factor | What it is | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Earnings | How much you can make per hour from the app’s gigs, especially relative to the difficulty of the work. | Important |
| Job Availability | How reliable the app is as a source of regular moving gigs. | Important |
| User Experience | How difficult the app is to use and what jobs are like (including how the app pairs you with other movers). | Moderately important |
| Support / Customer Service | How easy the app’s support team is to reach and how helpful they are when you have issues with your gigs. | Less important |
Freelance writing
These are platforms that freelance writers can use to find clients and jobs. Some of them are open marketplaces; others will pair you with an editor who will match you with projects and supervise your work. You can find many different types of assignments on writing platforms, although on many, online content writing (SEO-style blog posts) are the most popular.
Our rubric for freelance writing apps
| Scoring factor | What it is | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Earnings | The per-word rate of an average project, as well as how big of a cut the app takes of your earnings. | Important |
| Job Availability | How plentiful freelance projects are, and how difficult it is for newcomers to break in and establish themselves. | Important |
| Assessment/Registration | How hard it is to sign up as a freelancer (e.g., whether you have to take a writing quiz and provide samples). | Moderately important |
| User Experience | The site’s overall usability, the quality of the projects on offer, and how supportive the editors/staff are. | Moderately important |
Renting out your car
Car rental apps allow you to earn somewhat of a passive income by renting out your vehicle to other drivers when you’re not using it. Some of these apps even offer opportunities to start up and grow your own car rental business. In exchange, you may pay a membership fee or sacrifice a cut of your earnings to the platform.
Our rubric for car rental apps
| Scoring factor | What it is | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Competition | How easy it is to actually find renters, according to factors like the current market saturation and the strength of the platform’s user base. | Moderately important |
| Requirements | The strictness of host and vehicle requirements and how much time and effort it takes to get approved to list a vehicle. | Moderately important |
| Earning Potential | How much you can earn through the platform, how many different ways you can earn, and what percentage of your revenue you take home. | Important |
| Insurance/Protection | The extent of insurance coverage offered through the app, how much control you have over who rents your vehicle, and the convenience of the claims filing process. | Important |
