Is there a way to get paid to do nothing? It may sound odd, but yes, some jobs do pay you for doing nothing at all.
With the economic issues happening worldwide, every other person is looking for ways to make some extra money by utilizing their free time.
How to Make Money Doing Nothing
If you are a student, you would definitely want to get out of your student loans as early as possible and pay your debts to get going with your life.
Even if you belong to a working-class member, a few dollars in your hand or in the bank doesn’t sound bad either, as earning money is becoming easier due to gig economy apps and remote jobs.
You can easily look up companies offering you money in exchange for your free time.
Let’s look at a few legit ways you can earn money and get paid to do nothing:
Our Favorite Side Hustles
Download these apps to make extra cash in your spare time. Get paid to complete surveys or take photos around your city.
Fundrise
Fundrise is a real estate investment platform that uses crowdfunding to pool funds with other investors in order to purchase properties.
The investment is open to every US resident who is 18 years or older.
Investments start from as low as $500, and you can earn real money from it.
How does it work? Fundrise deals with:
- Buying and renovating underdeveloped lands using your money
- Collecting rental incomes on stabilized lands
- Holding mortgages and collecting interest
- Acquiring properties that have the potential to appreciate in value
The profit money from rentals and interests is then distributed among the shareholders.
It can be a stable side income for you to save up money for the future, and you can just focus on building your career at present as Fundrise is a four to five years investment plan.
Later, if you decide to quit, you can easily sell your shares with a 3% penalty fee and redeem your money.
Invest your spare change with Acorns
Here’s another investment app you can use as a saving account for the future.
Just as the name suggests, Acorns works with small investments and have no minimum amount limit, and what more?
You can start investing even if you are a student. This app helps you to invest your spare change whenever you use your linked Debit card.
Also, whenever you use your Acorns-linked card at a select retailer, that retailer will invest some share into your account, which can be referred to as Found Money.
You can use wise hacks to save more:
- Automate your savings
- Boost your round-ups
- Take advantage of Found Money
- Earn bonus investments with AcornsSpend
- Refer friends to earn extra
- Stack earnings with credit card rewards
Acorns charges you monthly for using the app, so make sure you keep investing in small amounts daily to make it worthwhile.
Dividend Stocks
Invest in stocks that pay dividends.
Depending on how much profit the company of your choice generates, and how many stocks you have, you will get rewarded for your support.
As you may realize, this can be quite risky, so never invest unless you’re ready to give some of your money away. However, if things work out for the best, you will be looking at a handsome profit.
$5.000 invested in the S&P 500 would bring you $500 a year, not much but on a larger scale, this works like a charm ($500k throws off $50k a year).
M1 Finance is our favorite free investing platform. Some of the main reasons we like their platform is:
- it’s extremely customizable and flexible
- the user interface is very nice
- NO FEES
- fractional shares
- the auto-invest feature
Survey Junkie
Survey Junkie is an online survey app that pays users to take surveys for various companies.
You can also earn simply by completing a profile, validating an email address, and installing a browser.
In addition to these simple tasks, the app matches you with Focus groups, where you can earn money by attending group sessions.
You can sign up using:
- ZIP code
- Country of residence
- Date of birth
- Gender
- First name
- Last name
After you finish signing up, you can immediately start working and earning money.
It works via earning points when you perform various tasks, and once you reach 500 points ($5), you can cash your money using PayPal.
Completing just three surveys a day in your spare time can earn you as much as $40 a month.
Swagbucks
Swagbucks is another survey app you can use to earn some extra pocket money.
Use it to earn money just by watching videos, completing surveys, surfing the web, playing video games, and more.
The app works in the form of SB points (100 Points = $1), which can be redeemed as gift cards for retailers like Amazon, Starbucks, Walmart, etc., or you can simply get them cashed with your PayPal account.
If you want to increase your earnings, keep in mind to:
- Make Swagbucks your Default Engine
- Complete surveys and polls daily
- Shop online
- Watch out for Swag codes
- Complete daily goals
You can earn an extra $50 monthly or more using Swagbucks.
If you use it daily, you can also earn as much as $1000 a year.
Other than completing surveys, tasks like watching videos, signing up for newsletters, answering daily polls, and other activities also give up to 30 SB points daily.
MyPoints
MyPoints asks you questions about your experience regarding various topics and will send you rewards every time you complete a survey.
Earn free gift cards or cash out your points via your PayPal account.
Surveys can vary in topics from automobiles, fashion, travel to home and garden, and if you are lucky, you can also get free products for testing and review.
If you want to earn some extra points, remember to:
- Sign up for BonusMail from MyPoints
- Complete surveys sent by email
- Print coupons from the website
- Download the MyPoints search toolbar
- Look for double points days, instant games, and other special promotions
Each survey pays you differently, and the shorter ones will pay less money.
There are surveys that also pay as high as $50. Your earnings depend upon the number of surveys you complete daily.
More time can pay you more money, that’s the key!
Ibotta
Are you a fan of shopping? If yes, then congratulations! You have just landed on the best app to earn extra money.
Ibotta pays money by linking store loyalty accounts, making in-store purchases, and by shopping online.
You can use a few hacks for making money using the Ibotta app:
- Look for bonus and recurring rebates
- Buy the smallest containers
- Shop at dollar stores
- Make a price book for the best deals
- Look for deals on low priced items
- Keep your receipts
- Save on warehouse memberships
The amount of money you can earn depends upon how often you shop with participating retailers and take advantage of partner offers.
A $20 threshold is required for you to cash your money via Venmo or PayPal, or you can convert them into gift cards.
You can also earn a $30 referral bonus if you refer three new users to Ibotta.
Trim
Trim, also known as AskTrim, is not an earning app, but it can help you save money by cutting the extra costs you have.
If you subscribe to the Trim app, you can forget the anxiety and depression of cutting down unnecessary expenses and shaping your budget.
Trim will help you in various ways:
- Canceling your unused subscriptions
- Negotiating your bills
- Help your Credit Card Debt via TrimPay
- Financial coaching
- Calculating and sorting your debt
All you have to do is sign up as a premium user and link all your accounts to Trim, and you can forget all your worries.
Trim will automatically cancel your unused subscriptions and sort out your expenses.
Trim can even call your bank and ask them to look for some savings for you. How amazing can it be!
Just by paying $10 per month as a premium user and 33% of your annual savings if you are using Trim for bill negotiations, you can avail all the features of the app.
Ice and Water Vending
Owning any type of vending machine is relatively passive income, but ice and water vending takes even more work off your plate. That’s because instead of needing to restock chips, candy, or sodas as customers buy them, an ice and water machine makes its own inventory with a water hookup.
This option to make money doing nothing does require some upfront costs, but you can often finance a vending machine purchase. If you choose a good location, it could easily pay for itself and let you pocket the profits.
Check out the machines from Everest Ice and Water, which offer ultra-purified water and bagged or loose ice. Once you buy a machine, you’re the owner and don’t have to pay any franchise fees. All you have to worry about is occasional maintenance.
Test Subjects for Sleep Studies
How about getting paid to do what you love most – sleep? If that sounds tempting, then signing up for sleep studies could be just the thing for you. Some of these gigs can shell out over $100 a night, and all you’ve got to do is… well, sleep.
Sleep studies are all about diving deep into how we sleep. They look into our sleep cycles, any disorders, and how our snooze time affects our health. So, as you’re catching those Zs in a comfy, controlled setting, researchers will keep tabs on things like your breathing, eye movements, and even brain waves.
To get on board, it helps if you have a pretty regular bedtime routine and no major sleep issues. There might be a bit of homework, like keeping a sleep log or having a quick health check. And, while you don’t need any specific qualifications to be a part of this, it’s always good to know what you’re getting into and be aware of the study details.
At the end of the day (or night), you get paid to contribute to important research, helping scientists solve the mysteries of sleep. Sounds like a dream job, right?
Netflix Tagger
This job opportunity rose to fame in 2018 after many influencers and people started posting about it. As the name suggests, your job as a Netflix tagger is to denote apt tags for shows and movies.
For instance, if a movie has pg-rated content, gore, or violence, you must add the tags accordingly. Tagging shows helps Netflix bring suggested content to the viewers and also serves as a disclaimer to tell viewers beforehand what to expect from the show.
Adding tags can also tell people the languages they can watch the show. For instance, if the audio is available for an English show other than its native language, you can tag the show with the language’s name tag. This way, users can see content available in their language. A
However, the one downside of working as a Netflix Tagger is the lack of choice. Netflix does not let you handpick any movie or show to tag. So, whether a show belongs to your preferred genre, you still have to tag it.
While your input qualifies as metadata for Netflix, for you, it’s no more than watching entertaining shows and films and getting paid for them.
Read also: 5 Ways to Get Paid Watching Movies On Netflix
Testing Mattresses
Testing Mattresses is the literal definition of a job where you do nothing. Companies hire mattress testers to determine the quality of their products.
While there is some pre-job paperwork and writing a detailed evaluation of your experience, mattress testing is mainly about sleeping on the products.
Your evaluations give companies a way to improve their product and induce any necessary changes. According to Kiro News, you can earn up to $3K testing mattresses!
Sounds like a win-win.
Waiting In Line!
Back When the iPhone 5s was about to launch, Robert Samuel saw an opportunity to capitalize. Considering the hype built around the new Apple phone, Robert figured many people would jump at the chance of getting this new phone.
Robert took his chance by posting an ad on CraigsList. In this ad, Robert posted that he’d wait in line for someone standing in the queue. His idea took off, and according to EliteDaily, he once made $14K in one day waiting for people in the queue!
Since then, Robert has assembled a team of fellow waiters that follow his lead. The average rate for the first two hours is $45 and $10 for every additional half hour.
Listening Music
What if we told you that listening to music can also help you make money?
Platforms like Slice The Pie pay you to review new artists and music on Spotify. Similarly, HitPredictor is another platform that asks reviewers if the song is going to be a hit or not.
While listening to one song only pays 2-3 cents, any music aficionado can listen to multiple tracks and accumulate a hefty sum quickly!
Night Security Guard
Looking for a laid-back job where you can enjoy the peace of nighttime and have space to yourself? Become a night security guard.
As a night guard, you’re essentially the eyes and ears of a building or property when everyone else is gone. Whether it’s an office building, apartment complex, or construction site, your main gig is to patrol the place, keep an eye on the cameras, and make sure everything’s on the up and up.
Now, even though things are generally quiet, you’ve got to stay sharp. If there’s an odd noise or something’s not right, it’s on you to check it out. And if anything out of the ordinary does happen, jot it down in your logbook.
In terms of pay, you’re looking at roughly $28,000 a year on average.
Instacart
InstaCart asks you to work for your money, but don’t worry. It’s still easy money.
You have to download the app, sign up and work as a shopper for them, that’s all.
You can both work as a full-time shopper and in-store shopper.
Full-time Shopper:
As a full-time shopper, you can work in flexible hours and deliver orders of customers at their doors. You will:
- Be an independent contractor
- Shop and deliver groceries
- Be able to work flexible hours and as much as you can
- Be able to work on the go, if InstaCart operates in your vicinity
In-Store Shopper:
If you don’t have access to a vehicle, you can also work as an in-store shopper by packing and sorting out customers’ orders to put them in their carts. You will:
- Be a part-time employee of InstaCart
- Be working in the store and do not need to deliver
- Have to work at least 15 to 20 hours a week, including weekends
- Get benefits in the form of savings
- Work as much as you can because of the high demand of in-store shoppers
Your daily earnings depend upon the time you invest in the app, the number of orders you complete and also, and the types of orders you complete in a day.
The average is reported to be $14 to $18 per hour, but you can earn as much as $25, if you work really hard.
In case you were wondering how much is actually $25/hr you can check our post 25 an hour is how much a year.
DoorDash
DoorDash is a food delivery app that brings orders from restaurants to customers’ doorsteps.
How can it help you to earn money? The unique feature about DoorDash is that it doesn’t employ permanent drivers.
Instead, their delivery system is regulated by independent contractors who work according to their own schedules to deliver food.
These contractors, also called Dashers, are common folks like you and me. They can deliver food to customers and earn money easily.
If you are 18 years or older, you can easily sign up to DoorDash as a Dasher by providing you SSN and consent to a background check.
Once you are signed up, you can download the app and start earning right away by delivering food! Each order has a base pay from $2 to $10+.
You can earn a lot of money by completing more orders. Offers like Challenges, Peak Pay Hours, and Drive Orders can earn you higher pay than usual.
Last but not least, you get to keep 100% of the tips that customers give.
Here are a few tips to make your earnings hefty:
- Complete your orders on time
- Accept easiest and highest value orders
- Countercheck your order before leaving the restaurant
- Remember to pick up extras like straws, napkins, etc.
- Always keep your phone in your hand to be in touch with your customer and for directions to your location
- Choose the busiest hours to work so you can earn more
- If possible, accept multiple orders from the same location to save both time and money
- Make accurate and quick deliveries to earn extra tips from happy customers
- Make sure to check the weather and traffic on your route before taking an order
If you enjoy driving around, this can be the best earning app you can find for some extra money.
What’s best?
You can work on your own terms with no limits.
Read: How to Make $1000 a Week with DoorDash
Short-Term Rentals
Investing in short-term rentals can be a way to generate passive income, but it typically requires some initial effort and ongoing management. Short-term rentals, such as vacation rentals, can be rented out on a daily or weekly basis, providing a potentially higher rental income compared to long-term rentals.
To invest in short-term rentals, you will need to purchase or lease a property in a desirable location, such as a popular vacation destination. You will also need to furnish and decorate the property, market it to potential renters, and manage bookings and reservations. This can require some initial investment of time and money, but once established, short-term rentals can generate steady income with relatively little ongoing effort.
There are also platforms and services, such as Airbnb and Vrbo, that can help you manage your short-term rental and streamline the booking process. These platforms typically charge a commission or service fee, but they can also provide valuable exposure to a larger audience of potential renters.
Can You Get Paid To Do Nothing?
Earning some extra money can be a challenging task.
It requires an extra amount of time from your busy schedule, but if the only thing it costs is the free time that you spend playing games or watching TV, what harm can it do to go ahead and try it?
Working on these apps daily for 4 to 5 hours can make you some real money that you can use on things that couldn’t fit into your tight budget; the things that your children wanted to buy or a birthday gift for your loved one you wanted to buy.
If the ideas mentioned above are not enough for you, then you should check our post on passive income ideas and what are the best passive income apps.
Related: 9 Quick Cash Gigs
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