This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more information.
Can you really make money in an hour? Sounds impossible, right?
Be prepared to be surprised! There are a myriad ways to earn money in one hour and escape the financial squeeze.
We unpack a few ideas, from money-saving apps to working online to unlock some cash quickly when you’re in a pinch.
Thanks to rising inflation and the cost of living increasing, more and more of us need to look at additional ways to make money.
A recent report released by Lending Club indicates that 63% of Americans live from paycheck to paycheck. Having a regular 9 to 5 job is no longer enough to keep up with the rising cost of living.
What do you do when your paycheck can no longer meet all your expenses? Check out the following best options to make extra cash QC.
More Reading: Side Hustles for Stay at Home Moms
Table of Contents
26 Legitimate ways to Make Money In an Hour
Try any of the items in this list if you need extra cash fast!
Looking for a Quick Way to Earn Money?
Kashkick: Average users make $250 a month! KashKick.com is the newest way to make money right from your phone. Play mobile games, take surveys, or try new products. Try this super easy way to earn real money, from a trusted source. Join now!
Branded Surveys: Make money fast for simple surveys. $10 sign up bonus!
1. Sell things you no longer need
Look around your home and there are sure to be items you no longer use taking up valuable space. Clear out the clutter and earn a bit of extra cash from things that are just lying around.
This may be one of the quickest ways you can make money in one hour. And you can actually make as much as a few hundred dollars.
There is a demand for unwanted goods like clothes, jewelry, toys, and collectable items. Plus, household furniture in good condition and appliances, tools and equipment just to name a few.
Here is a list of the best apps to sell your used furniture on.
The market for unwanted items can be sold on online market sites and apps as well as to pawn shops, thrift stores, garage sales and flea market stalls.
More Reading: 16 Sites Like OfferUp Where You Can Sell Items
2. Try out a side hustle
There is a vast array of online platforms advertising side hustle opportunities that earn you extra cash. From blogging and proofreading, to transcription and virtual assistant services, there are many side hustles that can help you make money in an hour.
Check out marketplace platforms like Amazon Mechanical Turk, Fiverr and Upwork where dozens of to-do ads are placed daily. You can easily create a profile and start working freelance projects.
You can also start your own business like Amazon by Fulfillment or selling products on sites like Etsy.
If you have your own vehicle, you could boost your earning potential from delivery side hustles.
Apps like Doordash and Instacart pay good money for delivering things like groceries to people. Check out this guide to driving on DoorDash.
There is no limit to the money you can make from deliveries when you factor in the rate of pay and tips. And, making money in one hour is easy to do with these.
More Reading: Get Paid to Read Emails
3. Sign up to a consumer research study app
Paid survey sites have been around for decades offering consumers money for their opinions. Completing consumer surveys is a convenient and easy way to earn quick cash in your spare time and in the comfort of your own home.
There are many consumer survey sites like Paid Viewpoint, Survey Junkie and Branded Surveys that pay for you for watching videos and completing surveys.
Respondent works slightly different to other consumer research apps and pays a higher than average rate as it specifically targets bona-fide professionals for their opinions. You can actually make as much as $100 in an hour with Respondent.
Another high-paying site for interviews is User Interviews.
Click this link to get signed up with Respondent and quickly earn money for an hour of work!
4. Become a plasma donor
Believe it or not, donating your plasma for cash is a legit way of earning extra money in the U.S.
Plasma donors can earn as much as $50 for each donation. If you are desperate for extra cash and are looking for a way to make money in an hour, selling your plasma is a quick-hit.
As blood plasma is utilized in the manufacture of pharmaceutical products, you will need to pass a medical screening process before you can become a donor. To get started, find a plasma donor center near you.
5. Open up a new bank account
There are a number of banks that offer a sign up cash bonus. This is earning easy money the simple way.
SoFi Checking and Savings, Aos Bank and Alliant are just a handful of the many banks that offer a welcome bonus when you sign up for a new account.
You can actually get $275 bonus to open and account with this link on SoFi.
You can make money in one day, or even one hour with a bank account bonus simply by opening a new checking or savings account. Bank account bonuses require certain things like setting up direct deposit though.
Our Favorite Quick Cash Bonus
SoFi: Get $275 in cash for opening up a SoFi checking or savings account online.
6. Sign up to passive income apps
Another underutilized method of making extra money is through passive income apps.
Why wouldn’t you want to make money by hardly doing anything at all? Sound intriguing? So, how can you earn money through passive income apps?
Different passive income apps work differently. On some apps like Nielsen Panel you will earn points just by using their platform to browse and shop online. These points can be exchanged for cash that you can use for whatever it is you want.
Related reading: KashKick Review: Is is Legit?
7. Rent out your spare room
Depending on the appeal of your location, your spare room or condo unit standing empty can be prime rental space for tourists and out-of-towners.
You may need to do a bit of work to make the space comfortable for guests to live in but this method can be a worthy income-earner for you by advertising on apps like AirBnb
It goes without saying that you will need to earn good reviews from your visitors to see a constant flow of business.
You can learn about how I made $8,500 a month from my AirBnb passive income side hustle here.
8. Free up cash by spending less on bills
If only you could spend less on bills to save. Now you can with apps like Rocket Money.
Granted, Rocket Money will not strictly speaking earn you money but by using the app, you can find ways to save on your monthly bill spend which is almost as good as earning money.
The app focuses on lowering your bill spend by negotiating with your service providers. You get to spend less on your phone bill and data plans and Rocket Money will also cancel subscriptions you no longer use.
You can make money by saving money!
9. Beat the bookies
No, this is not about gambling and you may need to get to know how the system works to make money from it.
Matched betting is a tried and trusted technique that earns you money by using the free bets and incentives offered to you by bookmakers.
This type of double betting technique allows you to profit by placing opposing bets with online bookies which cancels out the risk for betting on the same event. This is definitely a unique way to make money in an hour, but worth a shot!
More Reading: Apps that Give You Free Gift Cards
10. Make money by shopping
There are shopping apps that let you earn cash by doing your weekly grocery shopping.
Many of these apps give you cash back for buying pre-identified items or for shopping at selected stores.
iBotta, BerryCart, Checkout 51, NCPMobile, Cash Crate and Rakuten are some of the well-known apps to try out.
11. Earn money by pet-sitting
If you are an animal lover then this can be a great way to spend time with animals and get paid for it.
Look after the pets of those in your neighborhood and get paid for it. Sites like Rover help you connect with pet owners looking for pet-sitting services.
Pet-sitting offers a flexible, income-earning opportunity that you can do in your spare time and according to your schedule.
It is a great way to make money in one day if you need it!
12. Get Paid for Odd Jobs
There are so may odd jobs you can quickly earn money for these days. Handymen make as much as $75 an hour now!
You can make fast cash with odd jobs like painting, lawn mowing, handyman, or even helping someone organize or pack for a move.
Advertise your services on NextDoor or sites like Task Rabbit. You can even use Craigslist to advertise your services.
13. Drive For Uber or Lyft
Rideshare services are an easy way to make money in an hour. I’ve done Lyft myself and love the way you can just click one button on the app and suddenly you are making extra cash!
It is super easy and very flexible since you can do it anytime that you want to. You can also drive as little or as much as you want.
Lyft frequently offers bonuses to amp up your earnings.
14. Deliver Food
Another way to make money in one hour is by delivering food. There are so many companies now that offer food delivery, it is a great way for you to make quick cash.
Here are some companies that will pay you to drive and deliver food:
- Uber Eats: Uber has its own food delivery
- DoorDash: (read my guide on driving for DoorDash)
- Shipt: Deliver groceries with Shipt
- Instacart: Another grocery delivery company that will pay you
15. Flip Items
Another good idea for making money is to flip items. This just means you buy something super cheap at a garage sale or your local Goodwill, and then resell it.
You can sell items online in places like Ebay, Facebook and Craigslist or OfferUp. You can actually find free items sometimes on sites like NextDoor and resell those.
If you are good with paint, you can buy used furniture and refinish it and resell it for a profit.
16. Borrow Money
Of course don’t forget about the option of borrowing money! When it comes to quick ways to generate cash this one works, while not ideal.
You can hit up your family and friends. Or, you can take out a personal loan from sites like Lending Tree.
—-> Get fast cash and improve your credit with Lending Tree personal loans!
There are also cash advance apps that will let you quickly borrow small amounts of cash like these:
- Dave: The Dave banking app lets you get up to $500 in 5 minutes or less
- Albert: You can get up to $250 cash advance with no fees on your first time
- Brigit: This financial app helps you get on track and you can get up to $250 quickly
17. Trade Stocks
This one may be a bit riskier! And, it requires that you already have some money you can play with. But you can definitely make money in an hour by trading stocks on the stock market.
Just be careful! Try SoFi Investing which is commission free. Depending on how much you put into your account, you can get a bonus of up to $1,000.
And, if you don’t want to have to make the choices, they have an option where they buy stocks for you and do all the work.
Tools you need to get started investing in the stock market:
Open a free investing account with SoFi. Sign up with this link and get $25 in free stock just for signing up!
Motley Fool will give you insider information and tips on what stocks to buy.
VectorVest: Stock analysis to help you know what to buy and what to sell!
18. Babysit
You may have forgotten this easy way to make money from your teenage years. Babysitting is a legitimate way to make money in one hour. (Or usually several hours!)
The rates these days for babysitting are really good. You can offer to watch your neighbor’s kids or advertise on a site like care.com.
You can even start a small daycare in your home and watch kids everyday for income.
19. Start Freelancing
Freelancers can make a lot of money per hour. And in this digital age, there is a lot of demand for freelancers.
You can work online or in-person with clients. There are many types of freelance work, you can do it just depends on your skills and interests.
You can work as a freelance graphic designer if you have skills and experience in that field. Just make sure to have a good reputation when starting out which is key. You could even look into the best reputation management services to help you boost your reputation so prospective clients know that you’re the real deal.
If writing is your talent, then work as a freelance writer. There are many websites, blogs and businesses looking for freelance writers and freelance graphic designers.
Here are some sites where you can advertise your freelance services:
How to Make Money in One Hour Online
Try these tactics to quickly earn money online in an hour.
20. Sell unused gift cards
Another easy way to earn cash fast is by selling unused gift cards.
Why let unwanted gift cards go to waste when you can turn them into cash by selling them on dedicated apps like Cardpool, Gameflip, GiftCash and GiftCardBin?
21. Become an affiliate partner on social media
Social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram are not just for connecting with others, you can make money from them too.
You may need to put in a bit of effort to set up as an affiliate marketer and build an audience but the earning potential from this source of income is unlimited.
22. Take advantage of referral programs
There are hundreds of apps and sites that pay for your referrals to friends and family. Invite others to sign up to these apps and you get paid for each new signing.
You can post your referral links on your social media accounts and invite your extended network to join. Some of the popular refer-a-friend programs are Inbox Dollars, Ibotta and Swagbucks.
23. Take Online SUrveys
There are several sites and apps out there that will pay you money fast for easy tasks like taking online surveys and watching videos.
They will even offer you money immediately in the form ofinstant sign up bonuses just for getting started. Our two favorites are Survey Junkie and Kashkick. Average users on Kashkick make $250 a month!
You can earn PayPal cash, gift cards or money deposited into your bank account.
Here are several sites:
- Survey Junkie: One of the most well-known and higher paying survey sites out there.
- Kashkick: will pay you to do fun things like watch movie trailers or share your opinion!
- Branded Surveys: Earn cash for tasks like answering surveys.
- Swagbucks: Get paid to play games, answer online surveys and even watch ads.
- Pinecone Research: You can actually earn as much as $3 for each survey completed.
Our Favorite Fast Online Earner
Kashkick: Get cash deposited into your account for things you are already doing on the internet!
24. Take Advantage of Sign Up Bonuses
There are many apps and websites out there that will pay you an instant bonus just to register and sign up.
You can combine a few of these for some easy cash. Here are our favorites:
- Best (Biggest) Bonus: SoFi ($275 bonus)
- Survey Sites: Survey Junkie or Kashkick
- Money App: Acorns
- Rewards: InboxDollars
- Investing: SoFi Investing and Robinhood
- Cashback: Rakuten and BeFrugal
25. Play mobile games
Apps like Blast offer its users the opportunity to make extra cash by downloading and playing mobile games.
Blast is paid by game developers to feature their games on the app. To encourage you to play the games, Blast offers you a monetary incentive every time you download a game and complete game missions.
You can increase your earning potential by improving your position in the higher tiers on the leader board and creating savings triggers.
You can even make money just for watching ads and videos, try this list.
26. Test Websites
There are companies out there that will pay you to test their websites. So, basically, you can make money in 1 hour for surfing the internet!
You will have to complete specific tasks and answer questions or maybe look for issues and bugs on a website.
You can earn as much as $15 for one 20 minute test. Here are some companies that will pay you for website testing:
Tips on Making Money in One Hour
Here are some tips to keep in mind if you are trying to earn money in just an hour.
Try more than one idea: We always suggest combining more than one money-making idea. This will not only help you earn more, but discover what you like doing best.
Find the highest paying tactic: It’s always good to make as much as you can. Go through this list and figure out which one makes you the most money the quickest.
Focus on your goal: If you start to feel like you don’t want to do the extra work, just write down a goal and keep it in mind! Maybe a vacation, or money to invest.
Frequently Asked QUestions
How can I make $100 dollars in one hour?
If you are trying to make as much as 100 dollars in an hour, you may need to try some of these jobs as shown by Indeed.com:
- Day Trader of Stocks
- Physical Trainer
- Massage Therapist
- Freelance Photographer
- Consultant
- Interior Designer
- Software Engineering Manager
- Doctor
- Psychologist
How to Make QUick Money in ONe Day on My Phone
If you are looking for some fast ways to make money in an hour or day from your phone, here are some options:
Sign up with an app that pays you for simple tasks like Survey Junkie or Kashkick. These apps will even give you a sign up bonus.
Become an affiliate marketer, making a commission from products you promote on your social media channel.
Create and sell an Non Fungible Token (NFT) on sites like OpenSea and Atomic Market.
Here are some other ways to make money in an hour from your phone.
What Fast Cash Options Should I Avoid?
Not everything that promises quick cash is good. Some things can be a scam, or end up costing you more money.
If you need money in an hour, or a hurry, avoid these money-traps:
Payday installment loans: Payday installment loans will try to entice you with fast money offers and make it sound good. But don’t opt for these as the interest charges can be extreme. You may end up unable to make the monthly payments.
Payday loans: Very similar to the installment loans, these carry super high interest rates and are just not worth it in the long run. A typical loan like this has a 400% apr! That is insane.
Auto title loans: You can get a short term loan that requires you to provide your vehicle title as collateral. Don’t do this! You could wind up losing your car and taking a big financial hit.
Final word
Why hassle for overtime when there are unlimited ways to earn money outside of your day job.
Between passive income apps, money-saving apps, refer-a-friend programs, mobile games, side hustles and plenty more, you can decide how much money you make. And, you can make the money you need in a short a time as one hour!
The best part is that you don’t need experience or qualifications to take advantage of many of these opportunities.
originally published 12/2022
NEXT MONEY-MAKING POSTS:
Best Books About Passive Income
25 Work from Home Jobs for Housewives
How to Earn Money Online Without Investment in Mobile
What are the Best Products to Sell Online to Make Money?
Daily CAPTCHA Work to Earn From
Online Jobs Without Investment Daily Payment
How to Start a Lifestyle Blog and Make Money
80 Trending Crafts that Sell Best
Creative Ways to Make $100 in a Day
HERE ARE MY FAVORITE MONEY APPS:
Rakuten for cash back on shopping. Use this link to make a $30 welcome bonus.
Acorns which takes your spare change from purchases and invests it for you to help you make even more money.
Empower (Formerly Personal Capital) for money management. Get a money dashboard, free analysis and personalized wealth advice.