18 Best Passive Income Apps to Earn Extra Money (2026)

If passive income apps earn is on your radar, this short guide cuts through the noise. Here is what is worth knowing, and how to put it to work today.

Key Takeaways

• 18 Best Passive Income Apps to Earn Extra Money From cash back and rewards points to dividends and REITs, there are numerous ways to earn pa...
• Here are the best apps for doing just that.
• Written by Farrah Daniel Last Updated: May 6, 2024 Reviewed by Jeff Proctor Home Passive Income Some of the links on DollarSprout point to p...

18 Best Passive Income Apps to Earn Extra Money

From cash back and rewards points to dividends and REITs, there are numerous ways to earn passive income using only your phone. Here are the best apps for doing just that.

Written by Farrah Daniel Last Updated: May 6, 2024 Reviewed by Jeff Proctor

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Passive income is seldom 100% passive. But while you have to do something to earn cash or rewards, who said that something has to be difficult?

That’s the beauty of passive income apps. Whether you get paid to invest in portfolios or save money on groceries, it’s possible to earn money outside of your 9-to-5, and do so in a way that requires very little energy or effort.

Although you likely won’t get rich overnight, passive-income earning apps that offer cash payouts can help you build an emergency fund or save up for a financial goal. And those that offer gift card rewards give you extra virtual cash to make purchases you need or ones that don’t fit into your budget.

Passive Income Apps Worth Using

There are tons of money-making apps out there you can use to generate passive income, but they’re not all worth the trouble. To help you earn extra money effortlessly, we found the best ways to make passive income from apps you should consider, and most of them can make you money while you sleep.

Some of these are side hustle-like apps that can lead to long-term revenue, while others are apps you can download and only need to think about when you want to check your rewards balance.

1. Freecash

Key features:

• Completely free to use.
• A robust rev-share model allows app users to passively earn income indefinitely. 
• Can actively earn additional earnings by completing micro-jobs or taking advantage of bonus offers. 

While the idea of earning entirely free coin is a bit of a misnomer, Freecash.com is a get-paid-to (GPT) site with a cool twist , earning up to 30% of all your referred users’ earnings , forever. 

New members start in a 5% tier, meaning you’ll earn 5% of all your referred users’ earnings. It’s a 10-tier system that tops out at the cited 30% figure. 

Freecash.com recommends three proven methods for sharing your affiliate link to garner sign-ups beyond just your family and friends: 

1. Create YouTube videos that discuss tips, tricks, and hacks for earning on the app. (Be sure to mention that new users will earn $0.05 to $250 just for signing up). 
2. Write a site review [for Freecash] on Reddit. There are a number of subreddits oriented around helping readers find ways to make money online. Write a genuine review of the platform and focus on providing value to readers so they too can earn passive income using the app. 
3. Add value to popular X (formerly Twitter) tweets and threads. Like the Reddit suggestion, search for trending tweets or trending threads and share value with readers. If they like your content, it’s more likely they’ll sign up using your link. 

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In addition to the passive, pyramid-like model of earnings from referrals, users can earn income by completing any number of small tasks. 

Paid surveys, quizzes, signing up for offers, testing apps, you name it; app users can look for opportunities that suit their interests and capitalize on them if there’s one that has a good ROI on their time. 

Related: 20 Best Places to Find Small Task or Micro Jobs

2. Pogo

Key Features:

• Earn money passively by sharing anonymized data.
• Get paid for location insights, shopping habits, and surveys.
• Runs in the background, no effort required.

Pogo allows you to monetize data that numerous apps collect for free. It works with companies that need anonymous consumer insights and pays you in return. Simply install the app, enable location permissions, and link an account (optional for cash-back rewards).

The app runs automatically in the background, earning you passive income with zero extra work. You can also boost your earnings through surveys, cash-back offers, and reward bonuses.

I personally earn a little less than $1 per month , about $10 a year. Not a fortune, but I’m not one to complain about free money for doing nothing.

If you’re already sharing data with platforms like Facebook and Google, Pogo ensures you get something in return.

Related: 16 Legit Ways to Make Money From Your Phone

3. Robinhood

Key features:

• $0 opening balance and no annual fees.
• Invest in thousands of stocks with as little as $1.
• Customize your portfolio with pieces of different companies and funds to reduce risk.
• Offers commission-free investing in individual companies or ETFs.

If you want to try stock market trading, consider signing up for Robinhood, a commission-free trading app used to trade stocks, ETFs, options, and cryptocurrency. Experts and beginners consider Robinhood a tool that supports portfolios and generates passive income, especially since you can purchase and sell stocks for free.

Plus, when you download the app, Robinhood funds your account with free stock that could be worth up to $207. Read our Robinhood Review to get a full picture of Robinhood’s features and how it streamlines the process of investing in and buying and selling stocks.

4. Honeygain

Key features:

• Free to install, then sit back and watch your balance increase.
• Earn passive income in minutes just by sharing your internet.
• Can connect up to 10 devices on one account.

Honeygain is a passive income app that monitors and collects your web usage and traffic data from your connected devices. Then, it pays you for that information to report it to e-commerce, advertising, and web intelligence companies. It’s available for Android, Windows, macOS, and Linux devices, and all you have to do to earn passively with Honeygain is run the app in the background.

Earnings vary, so the amount you earn depends on the traffic sent to your devices, which can be influenced by your location, network speed, and how numerous IP addresses you connect to Honeygain. With three connected devices, for instance, you can make an average of $19 per month, or $230 per year.

5. Fundrise

Key features:

• Invest in a low-cost, diversified portfolio of real estate.
• Takes advantage of the premium returns typically seen in private markets to offer improved investment returns for the average investor.
• Portfolios are built to withstand prolonged periods of economic distress.

Traditionally, the barriers to investing in real estate are significantly high, which is why most people believe you need to have millions in the bank to participate. With Fundrise, people of any income can purchase shares from broad portfolios of real estate assets around the country through their two main products, eREITS and eFunds. In fac

Final Thoughts

Before you check out, double-check passive income apps earn against current offers and any coupons you can stack. Small habits like this add up to real savings over a year.

Originally published at dollarsprout.com.