I Need Money Today: 26 Ways to Earn Cash When You Urgently Need It

If you’ve found yourself down on your luck and thought to yourself “I need money now,” you’ve come to the right place as you can get cash today.

If you just having some bad luck recently and have been thinking “I need money now,” then you will enjoy this post.

Because I get it, life can be messy and has its ups and downs. Whatever you need the money for, it seems like it couldn't have come at the worst time, right?

But before you pull out the credit card or ask for a payroll advance, check out our list of 22 ways you can get cash now (or even get money today).

Just remember that you're able to learn from this experience and better prepare yourself with an emergency fund for times like this. But let's just get started with how you can get money right now, and we can deal with the rest later.

Ways to Get Money Right Now

In order to get through an imminent financial crisis, you have to consider the following tips as they are crucial for meeting end needs and figuring out how to deal with certain situations smartly.

1. On the spot personal loans

If you need money right now, personal loans can be a source of urgent financial aid in case of an emergency. The same applies to your will to meet expenses and needs, and there are so many finance assisting companies, providing financial aids. Banks, government or non-government companies, financial institutes, and private lenders are operational to endow their customers with financial help. Loan lending procedures are not much though if your credit score is good enough. Lenders will need to authenticate your basic legal documents before approving your application. This quick loan will be transferred to the borrower’s bank account soon after the approval, almost within 24 hours. This can include payday loans and installment loans.

LENDERRATES (APR)LOAN AMOUNTVISIT
sofi personal loan8.99% – 25.81%$5,000 to $100,000GET MY RATE
credible personal loans5.95% – 35.99%$1,000 to $100,000GET MY RATE
opploans personal loan59.00% – 160.00%$500 to $4,000GET MY RATE
upstart personal loans8.13% – 35.99%$1,000 to $50,000GET MY RATE
upgrade personal loans7.99% – 35.97%$1,000 to $50,000GET MY RATE

If you have poor to bad credit, you should consider using LendJet to get a personal loan. You can see our full review here.

2. Bring into play your emergency savings

Smart people have proper contingency plans to deal with emergency situations. If an emergency occurs, you should first look around on your savings and reserves before applying for any loan. Think deep and have a detailed look on your pre-existing savings and credits, because being in control of your finances is a great stress reliever. Your savings could be in any form such as;

  • Fixed deposits
  • Mutual funds
  • Insurances, Medicare, etc

3. Borrowing from whom you can (family & friends)

You can borrow money from your near dear ones in a time of financial need. They might be your family, friends, colleagues or anyone that you can trust in a time of need. Depending on who you borrow from, these loans can opt to be legalized and have authorized terms and conditions in a written form to avoid future misconceptions and problems.

4. Think about your assets

If you have any investment in a form of a property or gold/silver/diamonds, they can be used as powerful assets as well. You can sell them to make quick money because of their great reselling value. Below are quick points to consider when considering your assets and coming up with money fast:

  • Loans against your assets
  • Loans against fixed deposits and reserves
  • Get advance paychecks from your company
  • Get a part-time job to earn more
  • Make use of your virtual or academic capabilities/services (artwork, etc)

Advantages and disadvantages of loans

When you are planning to get a loan, know that the latter contains advantages and drawbacks as well. You should choose the right option. Below are mentioned a few advantages and disadvantages of quick money.

Pros

  • Definite cash loan
  • Sometimes credit scoring might not be required
  • Suppleness
  • Quick and rapid approval
  • Minimal paperwork
  • Easy to get in case of emergency

Cons

  • Increased interest rates
  • Short termed loans are not suitable for consolidation ones
  • Debt problems
  • Some collection agencies are not trustworthy

If you consider all the above-mentioned tips and characteristics of money borrowing, you can get the maximum benefit out of it.

Other Ways to Get Cash Quick

There are many options to earn money online that are quick, simple, and don’t require much effort.

We all have limited time, life is fickle. For this reason, I have compiled 22 ways to earn money that are actually possible and can net you some money, the easy way.

We will first start with the quick wins, companies that’ll (legit) pay you money just for signing up:

Ways to Make Money Now

Next, we’ll move on to other ways to earn your money instantly.

5. Make money with paid online surveys

InboxDollars is a survey site and one of the best survey sites. I've used them before and they are pretty legit. They make money by using the information you provide and use it as market research. So, you're actually getting paid to participate in surveys, watch videos, play video games, make purchases online, read emails with promotions, use discount coupons or simply make purchases online.

It's actually kind of fun to do this while you're watching TV or just bored. Obviously, you will not get rich just by responding to surveys, but it is a way to get extra income per month.

In the US, here are some of the highest rated paid survey websites:

  • Swagbucks is one of my favorite survey pages. A large variety of surveys and in different categories and they make payments via PayPal.
  • Another website that I like very much and that is available in several countries is Survey Junkie. You can earn money by taking surveys, watching videos, completing tasks, trying new products, etc … it also has a very cool interface!
  • With InboxDollars you could earn money mainly by watching advertisements but now the most interesting sections are surveys, videos, games, and searching. Plus, they give you a $5 sign up bonus here if you sign up before this month.

    Join InboxDollars and Claim $5 Now

6. Claim the best internet freebies you can get right now

When trying to make $300 fast, every dollar counts.

Thankfully, you can easily pad your wallet or purse with cash back apps like Ibotta ($10 sign up bonus), Checkout 51 (free groceries), and Pei ($15 sign up bonus) that pay you for the shopping you do daily.

Sign up for all three and that's a quick $25 just for downloading three apps – not bad.

Here are some other companies that pay you for downloading:

  • Survey Junkie: Make $2-50 in your spare time each day by taking surveys, participating in focus groups, and testing new products. Join Survey Junkie here.
  • Swagbucks: Similar to Survey Junkie, but with a few more ways to earn (such as watching videos and using their search engine). Get a $5 signup bonus for joining.
  • Rakuten and Dosh: Two cash back apps that essentially pay you whenever you shop; Rakuten offers a $10 signup bonus and Dosh offers a $5 signup bonus.
  • Acorns:  Once you connect the app to your card, it rounds up your purchases to the nearest dollar and funnels your digital change into an investment account. Sign up to try it risk-free with a $5 sign up bonus

7. Make money with your gas receipts

Have you ever dreamed of paying less for gas each week? Well, that time has come, with GetUpside you can earn money by sharing your purchase receipts and shopping at local stores. I heard about this app on the radio and decided to try it out for myself.

The system is simple: you take a photo of your gas receipt and upload it. Then the app will digitize the receipt information and you'll get up to 25 cents off each gallon. I'm surprised I don't hear about this app more often though, I make a killing with it.

You can likely rack up an extra $60 fast this year by using it. And you can also save up to 35% at restaurants and 15% at grocery stores near you. The money you earn can be transferred to your Paypal account or redeemed for gift cards to buy at Amazon and other stores. You can get a download link sent to your phone here.

Start Paying Less for Gas

8. Share your home with Airbnb guests

Another smart way to make money fast is by listing your space on Airbnb.

It's smart because it's simple and free to list and you easily make $300 in under a week.

You can actually see how much you're able to make by using their cash pay-out calculator to do some quick research beforehand.

By creating a free account, setting up a 5-minute listing and setting whatever prices you want, you have the potential to skyrocket your income. Of course, the nicer your home and location the better.

However, you don't even need to have a spare room or home to share to earn with Airbnb since they now offer “host experiences“.

This is a really unique thing that they offer and are expanding into. If you ever had friends from out of town visit and you showed them the cool things to do in your city, now you can get paid for doing just that… for strangers.

If you're interested in learning more about getting paid for basically being a tour guide or listing your space.

9. Get money right now with ZippyLoan

If you actually need money now, then you can opt for a personal loan. When you need money in a hurry ZippyLoan is where to go. You apply for a loan through the Zippy Loan site, if approved they send your loan application to one of many loan providers.

You review the loan details and e-sign if you like what you see. No risk in checking what offers you'll get. You can borrow between $100 and $15,000 as soon as tomorrow. Loans service for up to 60 months.

ZippyLoan connects borrowers to lenders through their network of lenders. They'll find you the lowest interest rate and is one of the best no credit check loan. You can visit ZippyLoan here.

Get $300 Right Now

10. Get $10 right now with Rakuten

If you enjoy shopping online and always look for the best deals, Rakuten is a solid choice to make money the easy way.

Rakuten gives you money back on your purchases made. To get started all you need to do is register and before you shop next time, visit Rakuten first then your favorite store after. I do this every time I shop online because Rakuten works with almost every online store I can think of.

From the moment you start using Rakuten your savings is sure to add up and you can make $300 quickly depending on how often you shop. You can get paid via PayPal too. Rakuten also gives you a $10 sign up bonus to start. Get your bonus here.

Sign up Free - Claim $10 Cash

11. Make money selling on on Shopify

Use your creativity to make money if you have knowledge of creating personalized items! You can offer T-shirts, mugs, pillows, sweatshirts, among other products, with customized designs to the clients' taste on Etsy.

I've got a friend that creates art and he can charge whatever he wants. It's all about creating a lucrative brand, then you can earn a lot. Selling personalized products will help you get money, and you can also use social media to promote yourself and use Facebook ads to reach people all over the country. You can learn more by visiting online stores like Shopify and Etsy.

Pro tip: Using Shopify integrations can assist you in building out an online store is a few days, with really little risk since they offer a free trial.

Claim 14-Day Free Trial at Shopify

12. Teach English online

Becoming a tutor is a good option if you have your afternoons free, it also allows you to earn a good amount of money. The pay is actually very good and can earn an average of $20/hr by teaching English online.

The most recognized website for teaching English online in the US and UK is EF Education First.

Live in the U.S. or U.K. and hold a bachelor's degree? You can earn up to $20.00 per hour to teach kids English online from home.

13. Offer your services on Fiverr

From the comfort of your home, it is very easy to earn money online using Fiverr. By using Fiverr you can offer your services for $5 or more, and you can easily create an account and start earning money right now. No joke.

On Fiverr, thanks to a large number of service categories, you can offer a variety of services: from unconventional services, such as writing a phrase on your face or body, writing names with legos or dancing to a song, or professional services such as logo designs, website design, proofreading or writing articles.

Fiverr opens up a whole range of possibilities. One of the advantages of Fiverr is that it allows you to manage your own time and schedule. If you want to know more about how to make money with Fiverr, you can visit the site here.

Earn Money on Fiverr

14. Get paid to be healthy

Do all your friends post flashy Instagram pictures and look amazingly good?

Even if they don't, I wanted to get fit and make it a habit, but it was tough to get started.

What helped me lose over 10 pounds was when I had my own money on the line.

In fact, I was able to do with HealthyWage, and won $1,050 after losing only 10 pounds.

So if you need some extra motivation and an extra $300 or more then head over to HealthyWage to learn more.

You'll have to decide on how much weight you want to lose and how long you need to reach your goal. You then bet on yourself and can win up to $10,000 depending on your HealthyWager.

Make Your Weight Loss Bet

15. This free app could make you up to $180 this year

Another option to make money fast is by joining the SavvyConnect community. By joining, you can receive many incentive rewards up to $100 just by simply installing and keeping its app active on your devices from home.

At first, you may feel a little timid about installing random apps on your phone, but you will soon realize that SavvyConnect is the real deal once they start paying you – up to $15 per month ($5 per device type) and up to $180 in a year, simply for remaining active in the SavvyConnect community.

What's required?  Install the SavvyConnect app to your PC, Smartphone, or Tablet to earn $5 per device per month.

If you feel like you could benefit from making passive income, then consider this passive income opportunitySavvyConnect.

If you're at all interested in making easy money, then you can learn more about SavvyConnect here.

And you only need to install the free app on your phone, and it's likely you will make up to $180 this year with this free app!

Get Started with SavvyConnect

16. Make money driving with Lyft

If you want to make legitimate money quickly, driving with Lyft is a smart side hustle.

With Lyft, you get to drive people around your city and get paid well (I'm talking an extra $500 to $1000 a month with just a few hours on the weekend).

Of course, your earnings will vary but you can earn even more now in 2019 since you get tipped directly and even get a $1000 driver sign up bonus in all cities.

The smartest way to earn more is to drive when there is surge pricing. You might have guessed that surge pricing occurs when people are out and about most (weekday & weekend nights).

So instead of partying up this weekend, why not make your $300 fast with Lyft?

17. Lower your monthly bills

“I could not believe how easy this was to do. It took me about 5 mins of work and I had about $70 in my account.”

When you want to make a quick $300, one of the easiest ways you may overlook is finding easy ways to lower your expenses.

I didn't realize how much I was overspending on my cable, phone bill and to random subscriptions that are on autopay.

Most people don't bother with the trouble of calling up AT&T, Verizon, Sprint (or whatever cell phone provider you use) to try to get their cell phone bill lowered. So let someone else do it for you.

Avoid overpaying on bills by using Cushion, a free bot that will negotiate down bills for you. It will even check on those pesky subscriptions for you.

You'll need a Facebook account to use it, as it communicates with you over Facebook messenger (or via text).

It's pretty simple to sign up using your Facebook account and takes a minute. You'll likely be able to save over $300 this year by using it!

Say Goodbye to Overpaying with Cushion

18. Rent your car when you’re not using it

Driving for Lyft is legit and the current driver promotion of $1,000 guaranteed is the icing on the cake. But, I can't always do drive people around with my schedule.

I have 2 other jobs and that means my car is just sitting in the parking lot 15 hours a day.

Being the smart side hustler I am, I turned to make money with my idle car and you can too.

You've got an asset if you have a car, why not make money with it on Getaround?

Getaround lets you make money by sharing your car. It's pretty simple to use, just list your car and they handle everything else (insurance, logistics of renting it out, scheduling, handing over keys)… they pretty much do all the work for you.

You can make $300 fast with this side hustle depending on your car and how many hours you can share it per week.

I'm paid monthly and make an extra $520 a month by sharing my car around 26 hours per week (an extra $6,240 a year).

Try Getaround for Free - Start Listing

19. Let a chatbot save you $300 this year

The next idea for you to save an extra $300 this year is by letting automation do the work for you.

Trim is a money saving bot that sends you messages via Facebook messenger and can help you save money.

After a quick 2 minute sign up the bot will go through your spending habits, show you all the subscriptions you're signed up for (and should cancel), and even negotiate your utility bills for you.

Basically, a free personal financial advisor that you don't have a pay a cent for, in fact, this chatbot will actually save you money. 

It's also worth mentioning another bot that has a black belt in fee negotiation is Cushion (I use both since they're both free).

20. Download Nielsen app and collect $50

By using the internet as you do every day, Nielsen invites you to make a difference – and you can make money too.

I downloaded this app on all of my devices and make around $300 a year passively.

You don’t really have to do anything other than initially registering your devices (phone, laptop, tablet) and they'll pay $50 per device.

This is a smart way to make extra money as even if you just install it on your phone they'll pay you $50 a year keep their app on it.

They also keep things interesting for me since they give away a modest $10,000 each month. I like to think I have better chances of getting it than the lottery, so consider it a free lotto ticket each month, too.

If you are interested in getting paid passively, I recommend that you sign up through here for a registration bonus.

Get $50/Year Per Device

21. Make money investing in real estate

Wouldn’t it be great if you could invest in commercial real estate and apartments without dealing with all the hassle of buying, improving, and re-selling real estate?

You don’t have to be a millionaire to invest in these types of properties. Fundrise allows you to now invest in large-scale real estate for as little as $500.

For example, I invested in $1,000 in February (to diversify my portfolio) and my account has gained $15.98 in profit since then, it's actually quite exhilarating!

Through their real estate investment products, investors earned an average of 8.74 – 12.4 percent on their money last year, and all without painting a wall or dealing with unruly tenants.

  • 8.74% – 12.4% historical annual returns
  • Diversify your portfolio with real estate
  • Maximize your earnings with a low-fee approach

There is a reason why they currently have over 300,000+ users, this app really pays us!

If you’re interested, I recommend you sign up for more information from Fundrise by clicking here.

Invest in Real Estate with Only $500

22. Deliver groceries with Instacart

You can also make money fast by delivering groceries.

Instacart delivers groceries from local stores in two hours from stores like Whole Foods Market, Target, Costco and Petco. Why should you care? Because this is a lucrative opportunity for you to make money fast.

If you wanted to become an Instacart personal grocery shopper, you'll earn an average of $15 per hour!

How to make that $300 fast though?

Sign up as a personal grocery shopper and start to receive grocery orders through an app on your smartphone and then shop and deliver groceries to the customer’s door. You can start earning quickly and get paid weekly and schedule hours based on your schedule.

Get Paid to Deliver Groceries

23. Fill out surveys

There are many sites on the Internet that pay people to fill out surveys. For each survey you complete, the website allows you to earn points that you can exchange for money.

Most sites like Survey Junkie or Swagbucks allow you even cash out your earnings for real cash through PayPal. You could probably make $300 bucks in a month by spending an hour taking surveys a few days a week.

You won't get rich, but you will earn some money and that's what this article is all about.

You will find more information and more recommended survey sites and ways to earn money in this article on the best money apps.

24. Sell your old clothes

If you have a lot of old clothes, that you have not used for many years and that you honestly do not know why you keep, do not hesitate to sell it and get money. There are many websites, like Ebay or selling apps that can help you get rid of clothes, shoes, and accessories that you do not use.

If in your country there is still no platform to help you sell your clothes, you can organize a garage sale among your neighbors, in order to declutter your wardrobe and earn money.

How to get money right now

25. Get a personal loan

If you didn't like any of the options above, and REALLY need money right now you can get a quick personal loan.

We compared the best personal loans for people who need quick money fast. Don't worry, personal loans can be a great alternative to credit cards for large or unexpected expenses. In fact, you can enjoy fast and easy online applications with all the reputable lenders below (just be sure to pay it back quickly). Get money deposited into your bank account in a matter of seconds, here are your options:

LENDERRATES (APR)LOAN AMOUNTVISIT
sofi personal loan8.99% – 25.81%$5,000 to $100,000GET MY RATE
credible personal loans5.95% – 35.99%$1,000 to $100,000GET MY RATE
opploans personal loan59.00% – 160.00%$500 to $4,000GET MY RATE
upstart personal loans8.13% – 35.99%$1,000 to $50,000GET MY RATE
upgrade personal loans7.99% – 35.97%$1,000 to $50,000GET MY RATE

Life has its ups and downs, and anyone can find themselves in a financial emergency at any time. If you are smart, you'll be well prepared for any type of emergency that arises.

Financial emergencies can be of any type as nobody knows when an unforeseen circumstance can occur that might lead you to a serious financial emergency. You might be facing a critical situation and without emergency savings things can get dire with unexpected high amounts of utility bills, medical emergencies, past due bills, or home repairs.

This can leave you left wondering from where you can get some fast cash now?

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