Are you a broke college student? Because I get it. Life happens.
Sometimes you need to pay for a textbook, or you’re trying to eat something besides ramen.
Here’s the short answer: the fastest money for a student is flexible work like food delivery, and the easiest is a couple of reward apps on the phone you already have. Neither one needs a resume or a fixed schedule.
Below are 8 ways to make money in college, starting with the ones that pay soonest, and then how to make that money last.
How to Make Money as a Broke College Student
1. Get paid to play games and try apps
This is the easiest place to start, because you can do it between classes.
Freecash pays you for playing mobile games, taking surveys and trying apps. It’s free to join, and PayPal and Venmo payouts usually process the same day. Most people earn a few dollars up to around $50 in a typical month.
Bigcash works the same way and has more than 3,000 offers, most of which take 5 to 10 minutes. You earn coins (250 coins is $1) and swap them for cash or gift cards.
One rule for both: skip any offer that wants you to spend more than it pays.
2. Delivery jobs
Delivery is the best fit for a class schedule, because you turn the app on when you’re free and off when you’re not.
DoorDash pays $2 to $10 or more in base pay per delivery, plus promotions, and you keep 100% of the tips. You have to be 18 in most states, and in select cities you can deliver on a bike, which helps if you don’t have a car on campus.
Pay goes out weekly, or you can cash out daily with Fast Pay for a charge.
What about Postmates? It’s part of Uber now, and its driver sign-up sends you to Uber’s delivery app. With Uber you can deliver by car, scooter, bike or on foot, and 100% of tips are yours to keep.
3. Score cash taking surveys
Taking online surveys to make extra money while in college is a no-brainer!
You definitely won’t get rich with surveys alone, but you won’t waste much time, and you can make some money the easy way. Here is my favorite (and highest paying) survey site:
Survey Junkie is free to join, and you can cash out once you reach $5 through PayPal, a bank transfer or a gift card. That low minimum matters when you’re broke, because you’re not waiting weeks to see your money.
4. Get paid to surf the web
Swagbucks is another great survey site for broke college students to make some extra money in your free time. You can also get paid to play games, shop online and scan grocery receipts.
You trade your points for PayPal cash or gift cards.
There’s a $10 welcome bonus, but read the terms first. You have to activate it and spend at least $25 at a featured store within 30 days of joining.
5. Get paid for sharing your data
By using the internet as you do every day, Nielsen invites you to make a difference, and you can make money too.
You install its app on your phone and your laptop and leave it running. You earn points worth up to $60 a year in rewards ($30 for mobile and $30 for a computer), and the computer app enters you in a monthly $10,000 sweepstakes.
You have to be 18, and you should know that you’re being paid for your browsing data. If that bothers you, skip this one.
6. Get cash back on stuff you already buy
You’d be silly not to get cash-back for items you would have bought anyway. Even as a broke college student, you still have to buy stuff, right?
Rakuten is my favorite way to make money when I shop online. Every time I shop online, I start at Rakuten and then I get cash back deposited into my PayPal account.
New Rakuten members get an extra 10% cash back as a welcome reward, up to an extra $50. Just know that Rakuten pays out every three months, so it’s not quick cash.
A few more that work the same way:
- Ibotta pays you cash back on groceries when you add offers and submit your receipt. You can withdraw once you reach $20.
- MyPoints is a daily rewards program for online shopping.
- InboxDollars pays cash for small tasks such as taking surveys, watching videos and playing games.
7. Earn gift cards playing games
We all heard the old saying “Time is money” right?
Mistplay is a free app for Android and iPhone that gives you points for playing new mobile games. The more you play, the more points you earn, and you trade them for gift cards from Amazon, Visa, Walmart, Starbucks and more.
It pays in gift cards only. Good for groceries, no good for tuition.
8. Get a part-time job in college
When you are in college, you have a bunch of expenses to pay for (food, textbooks, entertainment, and more!). Your best bet is to get a part-time job to help supplement your income and your resume.
Even better is an internship at a company that is relevant to your major. For example, if you are studying Finance, getting an internship at a bank would be very wise.
Ask your financial aid office about work-study jobs too.
While you search for these types of roles, consider gig economy jobs.
How to Make That Money Last
Learn to live on a budget
While you’re making more money, you’ll want to keep track of where it’s going.
Empower (it used to be called Personal Capital) has a free Personal Dashboard that shows all your accounts in one place. The dashboard and its tools are free. The paid part is its advisory service, which you don’t need as a student.
There are other free budgeting tools too, and proven strategies to budget for your student loans.
Build an emergency fund
If you don’t have an emergency fund then what happens if you face an injury, a car breaks down, or any other type of unexpected expense?
Having an emergency fund stashed away can help in these situations so you won’t make bad financial decisions.
You’ll want to have something that’s over $1,000 as a college student. Once you graduate, the usual target is enough to cover 3 to 6 months’ worth of living expenses.
Once you have this money stashed away, just leave it alone for emergencies.
Create savings goals
As a broke college student, you will face a bunch of expenses. Besides paying for college itself, you’ll have to pay for books, activities, and even summer vacations.
Make sure you are planning for these expenses. An easy way to do this is by using money-saving apps that can help.
You Shouldn’t Have to Be a Broke College Student
You’re not the only one in this spot, and most of it comes down to tuition and loans, not your spending. If debt is the bigger worry, read up on whether student loans are worth it and on debt forgiveness programs before you borrow more.
For this week, though, keep it simple. Pick one thing that pays fast (delivery, or Freecash and Bigcash) and one thing that runs in the background, and start today.
I hope you learned how to make money as a broke college student.