If you are stuck wondering how to make 500 in a day then you’ll benefit from this article. I’ll teach you how to make $500 fast right now.
You’ll see my legitimate list of free money making apps and sites I use to make five hundred bucks fast on the regular. I’m always scouring the net, forums and Reddit for real ways to make money online. In fact, I can support myself with my arsenal of money-making sites to make 500 big fast.
The best part? A lot of these require no effort at all to make your $500 rather quickly. I get it. Life happens. Sometimes you need to make money fast to pay a bill or you’re trying to save up for something you want.
I’m sure you’re ready to see how you can earn your $500 now, so I’ll quit preaching and just get to the list so you can earn a quick $500 as soon as today.
Realistic ways to make $500 fast (in a week or less)
Side hustle your way to make $500 fast. Enough said.
Pick up a side hustle
1. Deliver food with DoorDash
If you need $500 fast, DoorDash is one of the easiest options. It’s a food delivery app where you pick up and drop off restaurant orders, and you can start earning as soon as you’re approved.
No special skills are needed—just a car, bike, or scooter and a smartphone. Dashers typically make $20–$25/hour, so you could hit $500 in around 20–25 hours.
Work during dinner rushes or weekends for better tips and higher Peak Pay bonuses. Plus, DoorDash offers Fast Pay, so you can cash out daily if needed.
2. Walk dogs and pet sit with Rover
If you love animals then becoming a pet sitter is probably an enjoyable way of making $500 fast.
Finding pet setting gigs with easy with apps like Rover, which is the largest pet sitting marketplace.
If you are interested in treating Rover like a part-time job and take two or three dogs for two weeks out of the month, you can earn an average of $1,000 per month.
This is more than double your goal of earning $500, and if you wanted to charge a higher hourly rate, you stand to earn even more.
You can literally earn $500 in a couple of days by becoming a Rover sitter.
3. Pick up a labor gig or bartend on Craigslist
Craigslist is a goldmine for quick cash gigs, especially if you’re willing to hustle. You can find short-term labor gigs like helping with a move, yard work, or setting up events, as well as one-time bartending or serving opportunities for special events.
These gigs often pay $15–$30/hour and usually pay in cash at the end of the day. Check the “gigs” section under labor or events, and make sure to confirm pay and details upfront. It’s an easy way to make money fast with no long-term commitment.
4. Sell plasma for quick cash
Donating plasma is a straightforward way to make money fast, with many centers offering sign-up bonuses for first-time donors.
Depending on the location and your eligibility, you can make $50–$100 per visit, and some places pay even more during promotions. The process takes around 1–2 hours, and you can donate up to twice a week.
Check online for plasma donation centers near you, and don’t forget to bring a valid ID and eat a good meal beforehand. It’s an easy way to get a chunk of cash with minimal effort.
Sell your stuff
You can consider selling your stuff to help you make 500 dollars fast. Take a look at some ways you can get the best bang for your unwanted items.
5. Sell tech, CDS, DVDs, games, and books with Decluttr
Decluttr is a website that will give you an instant price for your used phones, tablets, consoles, and much more!
You can literally round up all your unwanted items and then download the Decluttr app or use the instant price quote here to see how much you an get.
If you accept how much they are offering, they’ll send you a free label to ship your stuff to them.
Once they get your items, you’ll get paid the next day via PayPal, direct deposit or you can get a check in the mail.
This is a great way to work your way to making $500 fast as you probably have a lot of old tech lying around (don’t we all?).
6. Sell clothes on Poshmark
If you have a bunch of old clothes lying around you can round them up and list them on apps like Poshmark. If you sell 10 items that are worth $50 or 20 items that are worth $25 then you can have about $500 pretty quickly.
Poshmark is the leading marketplace to buy and sell your unwanted clothes. I will be honest, Poshmark does take a big chunk of every sale you make on its app, but the high fees are justified if your listings are selling well.
Plus you’ll get paid money for clothes you might not even consider wearing anymore and are taking up space in your closet.
One good thing is that there aren’t any listing fees and you can work your way to making $500 with this selling app/website.
7. Sell on Craigslist
I made well over $500 by selling stuff on Craigslist. I would list whatever I could get my hands on that had no value to me. At times I had 30 listings on the marketing place, however, my phone was constantly blowing up.
While you may not want to be bothered with that many listings, you can still stand to make money selling your services or unwanted junk on Craigslist.
Some people try to find appliances for cheap and flip them for even higher for a quick buck. I made my hundreds on Craigslist by buying cheap iPhones and flipping them for a profit. Take a look at the free section on the site and see if you can any good furniture that you can pick up and then sell to make a quick $500.
8. Facebook Marketplace
Facebook Marketplace is arguably better than Craigslist now. The interface is clean and easy to use to sell your items. Plus, you can also do the same techniques on Craigslist on this platform.
Take a look to see if you want to sell your items on Facebook Marketplace and start hustling!
Use apps to make money
While you won’t make $500 fast with just one app, you can use many different signup bonuses to work your way to earning quick money.
9. Nielsen
Nielsen makes it ridiculously easy to earn money just by downloading their app. All you have to do is install it on your phone, and it quietly tracks your internet usage in the background (totally anonymous and safe).
For doing nothing else, you can earn $60 per year, and it’s completely passive. Just set it up, forget about it, and let the earnings roll in.
It’s a no-brainer for the BeerMoney crew looking to stack easy cash with zero effort. Pro tip: pair it with other passive apps for even more free money!
10. Fundrise
Look, I’m not going to waste your time hyping up something that doesn’t deliver. If you’ve ever thought about investing in real estate but figured it was out of reach, Fundrise is the real deal.
I’m using it, and here’s what I love:
- You only need $10 to start. Yeah, you read that right—ten bucks.
- They do all the hard work—buying, managing, and growing real estate.
- You get steady, passive returns without lifting a finger.
I’ve already seen my account grow, and the best part?
It’s stupid easy to use. Here are my sweet beermoney gains so far:
This isn’t some risky crypto gamble or a get-rich-quick scheme. It’s a legit way to grow your cash over time.
Sign up now and start with just $10
We earn a commission for this endorsement of Fundrise.
11. 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 $500 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.
12. Fetch Rewards
Fetch Rewards is a must-have app for anyone who loves free money. Just snap pictures of your receipts from grocery stores, restaurants, and even gas stations to earn points.
Those points add up fast and can be redeemed for gift cards to places like Amazon, Target, and more. You don’t have to buy anything special—literally any receipt works. Use code C1JAV when you sign up to get a $2 referral bonus right away.
Pro tip for the BeerMoney crew: stack Fetch with cash-back apps to double up on rewards. It’s super easy, and you’ll be cashing out in no time!
13. Acorns
Acorns makes it simple to start investing and grow your money without even noticing. Sign up today, and you’ll get a $20 bonus added to your account to kickstart your portfolio.
With Acorns, you can invest spare change from everyday purchases or set up automatic contributions, like $100 a month.
Want to know how powerful that is? Investing $100 monthly at an 8% average annual return could grow to $150,000 in 30 years. That’s the power of compound growth! The sooner you start, the more time your money has to grow, so don’t wait—your future self will thank you.
Best market research sites to make $500 fast
Pretty sure you have made well over $500 dollars by now but if you wanted to earn more check out the highest paying market research sites that actually work and pay via PayPal.
Yep, I sat down and studied all of the best survey apps to find out for myself which ones are legitimate (and high paying), and which ones are not.
If you want to compare some more, here is the list of the best money making surveys:
14. Swagbucks
Swagbucks lets you earn money in so many ways like taking surveys, shopping online or playing games, but I love racking up SB (Swagbucks) watching videos in my spare time. You can cash out your SB as gift cards to hundreds of merchants or get your cash by PayPal.
Many claim this to be one of the easiest ways to make money online and they’re not wrong. They’re offering a $10 sign up bonus right now, so act fast.
Plus, if you’re an avid shopper you can get major discounts to popular stores, just yesterday I was about to get 60% off Kohls coupons just for being a member. Becoming a member to earn money and even save is a no brainer. Most avid users make over $1,000 each year simply by joining the platform.
15. Survey Junkie
Survey Junkie’s interface is super smooth and intuitive (unlike the majority of survey company websites that look like they were built in 1997), and members are paid in cash via Paypal. If you’re going to be taking surveys from your mobile phone, then Survey Junkie is your best bet.
Oh, and Survey Junkie also has an 8.9/10 rating on TrustPilot — the highest of any online survey company. This is one is the more reputable survey companies out there and I use it often.
16. InboxDollars
Earn cash, not points. InboxDollars pays members to read emails, take surveys online, playing games, and search the web! Overall, Inbox Dollars is super easy to navigate. I’ve tried other paid survey sites and just end up overwhelmed.
It also does a nice job of breaking down the offers into categories. And you’ll always see the amount of money you’ve earned at the top of your window, which is exhilarating! Right now they are offering a $5 sign up bonus just for joining.
Need more ideas to score $500 fast?
A ton of people are searching online for how to make money quickly.
Well, look no further, because if you wanted more ways to make money online besides these free ideas above, there are more apps that pay you real money.
If you didn’t claim your $5-10 bonuses already, don’t forget to check out the best sign up bonuses below:
- SurveyJunkie: Make up to $50 per survey in your spare time from home to take online surveys, participating in Focus Groups and trying new products. Join SurveyJunkie Now
- Swagbucks: Watch videos, take surveys, shop and more to earn real money. Join Swagbucks Now to Get $10 Free
- InboxDollars: Has so far paid its members over $40 Million. Watch videos, take surveys, shop and more. Join InboxDollars Now and Get Free $5
