11 Ways to Get Free Money Now (Including Free Government Money)

Have you ever watched one of those corny TV infomercials where the guy says, “But wait! There’s more!”? 

Now imagine after every time you shopped, ate out at a restaurant, read an email, or watched a video that the same infomercial man popped up and said, “But wait! You can earn free money!” 

People always told me there’s no such thing as free money. 

But they never tried the things on this list. 

Fortunately for you, I’ve tried them all. This is a list of the top ways to earn free money (including free government money). 

How to Get Free Money

Here are ways to get free money now!

1 – Search For Unclaimed Money

The easiest way to get free money is to search for unclaimed cash. Perhaps you have a forgotten security deposit or uncashed dividends.

You might be lucky and have thousands of dollars in unclaimed property, but you’ll never know if you don’t search for it.

The best part is there’s no need to pay anyone to locate this money; it’s free and only takes a few minutes.

You can find unclaimed money by visiting Unclaimed.org. This is a government website, and all you have to do is select your state, enter your full name, and you’ll be able to collect any unclaimed cash.

2 – Use Cash Back Apps 

I’m a big fan of cash back apps like Fetch and Upside.

Is Fetch Rewards Safe? Yes! Then check our our Upside review.

You can save money and earn points with these apps when shopping, eating out at restaurants or filling up on gas. It makes shopping much more enjoyable knowing I’m putting money back in my pocket, not just taking it out. 

So if you want to earn cash back, head to the Apple App store or Google Play store and download Fetch Rewards and Upside.

Be sure to check each app for current offers, as some require you to claim the offer before making a purchase. After spending, scan your receipt and earn points for cash on what you spend. 

Want different rewards? Points can also be redeemed for gift cards to popular places like Amazon, Walmart, Applebee’s, and more. 

3 – Review a Mock Trial 

You’ve probably heard of jury duty. The government sends you a summons via postcard and says they’ll pay you a few bucks for your time.

Well, websites like Ejury work the same way. But you earn significantly more (around $10 to $25 per trial), and it only takes about 20 minutes of your time. 

If you live near a big city and there are multiple trials in your area, you could dedicate a few hours every day and earn over $100 daily.

Here are the basic requirements to participate:

• You must be 18 years or older
• You must be an American citizen
• You should have good reading and writing skills

The only problem with Ejury is that it works depending on your location. For example, if you live in a small county with fewer people, there won’t be many cases, which could limit your earnings potential.

4 – Watch Videos

Let’s get real; watching videos won’t give you enough money to live off. But if you’re like me and watch YouTube videos for a few hours every day, why not earn some money in the process?

This is where Swagbucks can help.

Swagbucks allows you to earn points by completing tasks online. This could be watching videos, playing games, or filling in surveys.

Swagbucks will pay you in Swagbucks Points, shortened to “SBs.” You can redeem these SBs for gift cards or PayPal cash.

Pro tip: I recommend visiting the Swagbucks subreddit. The members always share offers with the highest payouts, making it easy to fatten your Swagbucks wallet.

Also, be sure to check out this guide on how to get paid to watch Netflix.

5 – Play Games

Who doesn’t love playing games and earning money? This is why Drop is such a popular app.

Drop is a rewards app that pays you for playing games, shopping, and taking surveys. Users get paid in points which can be redeemed for gift cards to places like Amazon, Uber, or Starbucks. 

They have tons of games like Solitaire, Bingo Blitz, WorldWinner, Coffee Stack, and more. 

You can also sign up for the premium version by linking your credit card. You’ll receive premium offers, exclusive monthly point drops, Hoops replays, and boosted surveys. 

The premium version is completely optional to join. It’s possible to earn money on the free version without entering your card details.

6 – Take Surveys

Surveys are another excellent way to get free money easily. However, many websites will ask you to complete surveys but won’t pay you for them. So go with a reputable website to avoid spinning your wheels.

I’ve tested multiple survey websites, and SurveyJunkie works great.

They provide some of the highest payout rates in the industry and have a long track record of making payments on time.

But SurveyJunkie is more of an aggregator than a survey website. It gathers the highest-paying surveys from multiple sites, including VIP Voice and Ipsos i-Say. So if you’re looking to find the most lucrative surveys under one digital roof to get free money, sign up for SurveyJunkie.

Keep in mind that if you’re taking surveys and answering C for every question, SurveyJunkie won’t accept your survey. Instead, they’re looking for honest answers to help them conduct market research.

7 – Read Emails

When a friend of mine first told me about reading emails for money, I thought it was a joke. But after some research, I found that it’s a legitimate way of making money. You probably read emails every day, so why not monetize them?

But how does this work?

These “Get paid to read emails” websites earn cash from advertisers promoting products and services. So by reading these emails, you’re engaging with their content.

However, choose the correct website, as many scams that won’t pay out your hard-earned money. This is why I suggest InboxDollars. I tested InboxDollars and highly recommend them.

The signup process only takes a few minutes, you won’t have to enter any credit card information, and there are no earning limits.

8 – Lower Your Utility Bills

Another easy way to get free money is to lower your utility bills.

The US government offers programs like the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and Lifeline Program that assist lower-income households with heating and cooling costs, energy-related household repairs, and bill payment assistance.

You automatically qualify if you already participate in a government program like Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI). 

If you aren’t part of these programs, you can still qualify by applying on the program’s website.

With these programs, the government will pay a part of your energy bill. If you’re living in colder states and require a lot of heating, this can save you thousands of dollars.

9 – Join Sites That Give You Money to Invest

I recently started trading on Acorns and Webull. These trading apps give you money for free if you invest a certain amount, allowing you to earn thousands with no obligations. 

In addition, you won’t have to leave the funds in your account for a specific timeframe, so you can withdraw them whenever you wish.

Acorns also has features to track your shopping habits and invest your spare change. I’m in love with this feature as it encourages you to put money away, even if the amount is tiny. 

Let’s say you like buying a Starbucks coffee every morning for three dollars, and your change is $0.75. After a decade of daily investments into an index fund at 8% interest, you’ll be left with over $4,000, not accounting for inflation.

Check out Acorns and Webull today to turn spare change into investments for your future. 

10 – Negotiate Your Bills

I always thought that bills were a fixed price and non-negotiable. 

The good news is, I was wrong!

If you aren’t good at negotiating, don’t worry. There are apps like Trim that utilize artificial intelligence (AI) to negotiate for you via online chat. Because this AI has terabytes of data (this is a lot), it knows what works and what doesn’t.

According to Trim, their robots have a success rate of over 70%!

So if you want to lower your monthly bills, sign up for Trim. It’s free, and if you want more advanced functions, the premium plan only charges 15% of your first year’s savings.

11 – Get In Shape

Are you trying to get in shape? What if you could reach your weight loss goals and make money simultaneously?

Sweatcoin and HealthyWage allow you to do just that.

HealthyWage will give you prizes when you reach specific weight loss goals. For example, losing 15 pounds within six months could win you $500! 

To take advantage of this, head to HealthyWage, calculate your prize, make a bet, lose weight, and win free money! This can be an effective motivator when you’re feeling down and want to quit.

Make even more by downloading Sweatcoin to earn money while walking or running. Sweatcoin tracks your steps. So, the more you walk, the more you earn.

Commonly Asked Questions About Free Money

How To Find Unclaimed Money

Finding unclaimed money is easy. Head to Unclaimed.org, select your state, enter your name, and Unclaimed will show you any money you forgot to claim.

How Do I Get Free Money?

A few ways to get free money include searching for unclaimed property, using cashback apps, reviewing mock trials, and answering surveys. The best part is that everything can be done online, so you won’t have to leave the comfort of your home! If you want to be extra resourceful, you could also donate plasma for money.

How Do I Get Free Money Right Now?

You can get free money right now by signing up for apps and websites like Drop, Swagbucks, and SurveyJunkie. These sites will pay you to watch videos, play games, and complete surveys. You can get cash payouts within a few hours, making this a fantastic way to get free money fast.