Top Money Making Game Apps
Do you want to make money by playing games on your phone?
That sounds like it would be too good to be true, but there are actually a lot of apps out there that let you do it! In this post, we will be showing you the best apps that pay you to play games.
What’s the Catch?
20 Best Money-Making Apps 1. This mobile app, which has issued $1 billion to its users since it was rolled out in 1999, is a discounter's dream. Use it to take advantage of instore apps on. With over 15 million users, Swagbucks is one of the top apps for getting cash and gift cards. In fact, the app has already paid out over $500 million in gift cards and prizes, meaning there’s a real opportunity to make money through this app. The app tracks your activity and awards you “Swagbucks” (hence the name) for all of your activities.
Before you download any of these apps, you might be wondering a company would ever do anything like this or what the catch might be. I mean, why would any company pay you to play free games on your phone?
There are three common reasons that you would get paid to play games.
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- First, companies pay money for people to use their apps to boost their player base and appear more popular on an app store. Because there are millions of apps out there, they need help from people like you to get higher rankings.
- The second reason is that free apps often want people to play so they can get “hooked” on a game and buy in-app currency. They’re hoping that the few cents you earn from downloading the app will go directly back into their pocket. Obviously, the best way to avoid this happening is to ignore any purchase opportunities!
- The final reason — and in my opinion, the sketchiest reason — is gambling. Some gambling apps will give you free tickets to play to win money. Then they’ll give you some “great deal” where you pay money on more tickets to gamble. The best approach to these apps is to accept the free tickets but never pay for anything they offer you.
Now, with that out of the way, here are the apps!
Earn Money by Playing Games on Android
Let’s start with apps that pay you to play game son Android.
1. Verydice
- Available on: iOS and Google Play
The premise is simple enough: you roll the virtual dice, win tickets based on what you roll, then redeem your tickets for prizes! You have a limited number of rolls per day, and they make their money by selling additional dice rolls.
2. InboxDollars
- Available on: iOS and Google Play
In addition to being a paid survey site, Inboxdollars has a whole section of games that you can play and get paid for! Basically, companies pay InboxDollars to find people to play their games, and the site passes a little of that money on to you.
Read our detailed review of InboxDollars for details and other ways to earn, plus a few tips on how to make the most money with InboxDollars.
3. Coin Pop
- Available on: Google Play
Coin Pop is a free app that rewards you in coins for every second you play games from their list. You can exchange the coins for gift cards or cash prizes.
4. CashPirate
- Available on: Google Play
This app offers a variety of ways to make money by downloading new apps, completing surveys watching videos and, yes, playing games.
5. Fitplay
- Available on: Google Play
Offering an experience with no deposits or in-app purchases, Fitplay is just here to reward you for trying new games. Just choose one off their list and start earning rewards.
6. AppStation
- Available on: Google Play
AppStation offers a variety of genres to choose from and get paid to play, like casual, action, strategy, puzzle or arcade. The games are all free to play, and your rewards are given by the amount of time you spend playing.
7. Lucky Miner
- Available on: Google Play
Featuring a cute user interface and a wide range of rewards, up to and beyond a $50 PayPal cash payout, Lucky Miner pays you by the minute to try new games.
8. Cash Alarm
- Available on: Google Play
Cash Alarm offers to give you your first gift card a few hours after you start playing one of their games, which is a big plus. You and your friends can also get bonuses for referring them to the app.
9. Golden Farmery
- Available on: Google Play
With new apps on offer every day, Golden Farmery will pay by the minute for you to play a variety of mobile games across all genres. Win rewards and cash out the next day.
10. Mistplay
- Available on: Google Play
Bored with your current game library? Mistplay offers mobile users recommendations for new games and even rewards you for playing them! The app also has a chat function to stay in touch with other players!
11. Cashout Rewards
- Available on: Google Play
This app lets you earn points by:
- Installing free apps
- Playing games
- Completing surveys
- Watching videos
You also get a guaranteed 10 points every day you log on. Once you have enough points, you can redeem them for PayPal cash and gift cards.
12. Bananatic
- Available on: Google Play
This app is specially made for people who are already into online games. Offering rewards like gaming mice and video games, this one’s perfect if you’re a gamer yourself or are looking to get a gift for one in your life.
Apps that Pay You to Play Games on iPhone
While there are many game apps that pay you real money for both Android and iOS devices, there are a few that are exclusive to iOS devices.
Some of the best include:
13. HQ Trivia
- Available on: iOS
Play a new quiz with word games and trivia every day with HQ Trivia! It’s actually a very popular app to play trivia and win cash. This app has had guest celebrities like The Rock, Robert De Niro, and more drop in, so keep your eyes peeled.
14. Toy Town Cash Money
- Available on: iOS
This app takes an interesting approach to earning cash by playing games. There are no in-app purchases or pay to win scenarios. All you have to do is play their games and earn tickets. The tickets let you enter into one of their many cash prize draws. If you win, you get the money paid to your PayPal. Pretty simple, right?
Best Apps that Pay You to Play Games
Here are applications that pay you for playing games.
15. Toluna
- Available on: iOS and Google Play
Toluna is a survey site with a hip modern twist, aiming itself at young would-be “influencers.” In addition to surveys, it offers a series of its own games which users can play and get rewarded for.
16. Swagbucks Live
- Available on: iOS and Google Play
From the popular online rewards site Swagbucks comes a trivia game that can earn you cash prizes! Answer all the questions quickly and correctly to qualify for a grand prize of up to $500!
17. Play and Win
- Available on: iOS and Google Play
Offering a grand prize of $50,000, Play and Win is a trivia game that offers cash prizes for its most knowledgeable players. A new game starts every hour, with players competing against each other.
18. Lucky Day
- Available on: iOS and Google Play
Love casino games but don’t like the crowds? Then Lucky Day is the app for you. Featuring scratch-offs, blackjack, and more coming soon, you can play to win real money!
19. Big Time
- Available on: iOS and Google Play
From WINR Games, Big Time offers real money to play their games. The money is handed out through a raffle, so the more tickets you earn playing games, the better your chances of winning big!
20. Lucktastic
- Available on: iOS and Google Play
Featuring a new contest to pay for your grocery trips, Lucktastic also offers Lucky Trivia Live, a trivia show that you the audience can participate in and win from!
21. Long Game
- Available on: iOS and Google Play
Long Game is a banking app that features a gamified rewards system. Every day, you can use points you’ve earned for using their card to play games and compete for up to a million dollars!
22. Wealth Words
Imoney App Ios
- Available on: iOS and Google Play
Like puzzles? Wealth Words has crosswords, poem and story puzzles you can play to win 30, 200, even 700 dollars! The app offers secure instant withdrawal through PayPal for your winnings.
23. Brain Battle
- Available on: iOS and Google Play
Brain Battle offers players a chance to earn tickets by playing games. One ticket is all it takes to be entered to win cash prizes. Plus, the more people play, the bigger the rewards will be.
24. Appnana
- Available on: iOS and Google Play
Appnana says that it has paid over $10 million to its members over the years it’s been open. You play games they offer you, then you redeem your rewards for gift cards for places such as:
- Amazon
- iTunes
- Google Play
- Xbox
Final Thoughts
There are lots of apps that pay you to play games out there, you just need to install them and get playing! Just make sure you don’t fall into the trap of paying for in-app purchases while you’re having fun.
Have you used any of these apps before? Do you know of any other app that pays you to play games? Let us know if you liked any of them!
When you’ve got some free time on your hands, it’s easy to pull out your phone and scroll social media or play a video game. Well, why not try out some legit game apps to win money?
Yes, these apps do exist, and there’s a wide variety of them out there so you won’t get bored. You may want to try a daily scratch-off ticket, or perhaps you’re interested in a trivia game. You could earn cash and rewards by giving your opinion on new games, or maybe you just want to play solitaire. All those options are available!
Top Game Apps to Win Money
Have a little fun and put some cash in your pocket with these legit game apps to win money. You probably won’t make a ton of money with these apps, but you’ll still have some fun. And yes, we tried them all out first!
1. Lucktastic
If you like scratch-off lottery tickets, you’ll want to check out Lucktastic. It’s a scratch and win gaming app that is 100% free. Just pick the theme of your card, swipe to scratch, and test your luck!
Scratch cards are updated daily with new themes, and you can win daily, too! Enable push notifications to receive special limited cards in addition to your normal daily cards.
Even if you don’t win, you’ll earn tokens that can be redeemed for gift cards from over 30 major brands and retailers. You can also use your tokens for entries into any of their contests like Gas for a Month, Groceries for a Month, and prizes from Amazon. Refer your friends to earn 1,000 additional in-game tokens!
Lucktastic is 100% free and has no in-app purchases, but plenty of ads (as I’m sure you can imagine). It has a 3.9-star rating from 300,000+ customer reviews on Google Play.
Download Lucktastic:Android
2. HQ Trivia
If you’ve always dreamed of being on a game show, HQ Trivia is your chance to do just that! You can win real cash prizes for free on this live game show app.
To win, tune in each day to answer trivia questions and solve word puzzles. Be sure to turn on push notifications so you don’t miss the live shows. You only have ten seconds to answer each question, so there’s no time for Googling! If you get all the questions correct, you’ll split the grand prize with the other winners.
Earn coins by playing the Daily Challenge before each live show. Coins can be redeemed for extra lives and “erasers” that eliminate incorrect answers. You’ll get extra lives when you invite your friends to join the fun, too.
As you can imagine, there are some ads. You can also purchase coins to help in your gameplay. This app has a 3.6-star average rating from 160,000+ customer reviews.
Download HQ Trivia:Android iPhone
3. Swagbucks LIVE
Formerly known as Swag IQ, SwagbucksLIVE is another free live trivia game show. It works very similarly to HQ Trivia in that you tune in to the live show and answer multiple-choice questions. If you answer all the questions correctly, you’ll split the grand prize with the other winners.
Even if you slip up and answer incorrectly, keep going as you’ll continue to earn Swagbucks LIVE’s digital currency for all questions you answer correctly. You can then use this currency for a second chance to win or redeem it for cash or free gift cards. Invite your friends to play to get free rejoins, too.
The digital currency for Swagbucks is, well, Swagbucks (they’re listed as SB on the app). If you’re familiar with Swagbucks, you know that you can cash these in for gift cards like Amazon and Walmart or cold hard cash via PayPal.
This app has an average 4.7-star rating from 22,000+ customer reviews.
Download Swagbucks LIVE: Android iPhone
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4. Long Game Savings
Long Game Savings is a unique app that incentivizes saving money by offering interest on your savings and the opportunity to win cash prizes.
You’ll need to create an account and securely link your bank to get started with the app. Deposit money into your new Long Game account, then use your Long Game card for everyday spending to earn interest and get chances to play games and earn cash or cryptocurrency.
You’re also encouraged to set a savings goal and add money to your account to reach those goals. That’s another way to earn coins to play games.
Note that the app is only completely free if you enable automatic savings and use your debit card frequently; otherwise, it’s $3/month. (There is a 30-day free trial.) All your money can be withdrawn at any time. And yes, it is FDIC-insured.
A similar app to Long Game Savings is Acorns, which invests your spare change automatically. You won’t get to play games with this app, but you will earn by “rounding up” your purchases into a virtual change jar.
This app has a 3.8-star average rating from 4,000+ customer reviews.
Download Long Game Savings:Android iPhone
5. Mistplay
Mistplay is a loyalty program for mobile game players that gives you rewards – including money! – just for playing.
To get started, just download the app, discover new games, choose a game, and start earning points. The more you play, the more you earn! Points can be redeemed for gift cards or cash rewards.
If you have friends who love mobile gaming, you’ll want to invite them to join as you’ll earn points for referrals and can chat and play with them.
Mistplay takes your gaming preferences and habits into account when choosing which games to show you. This is helpful on both ends as you’re more likely to play games you enjoy!
This app has a 4.1-star rating from 100,000+ customer reviews. It’s currently only available for Android, but you can sign up for the iPhone waitlist.
Download Mistplay:Android iPhone (waitlist)
6. Lucky Day
Test your luck each day with the Lucky Day app. It’s a free sweepstakes app that allows users to win money and prizes.
Games include scratcher, lotto, and raffle games with the opportunity to win cash and earn rewards. There are no in-app purchases or deposits. Rewards can be spent on gift cards to Amazon, Walmart, Target, and more.
This app has a 4.1-star rating from 900,000+ customer reviews. Note that it’s currently only available for Android.
Download Lucky Day: Android
7. Boodle
Boodle is a free app that gives you rewards in the form of coins by playing mobile games and engaging in other activities like completing offers and answer daily polls.
Coins can be redeemed for gift cards to Amazon, Visa, Chipotle, and lots more. You’ll discover new apps and games and earn coins just for trying them out, and you can refer your friends and family to earn bonus coins.
This app has a 3.8-star rating from 700+ customer reviews. Note that it’s currently only available for Android.
Download Boodle: Android
8. The PCH App
You’ve heard of Publishers Clearing House with the giant checks showing up at people’s front doors, right? Well, they also run an app called The PCH App.
This free sweepstakes app awards instant win prizes to users when you play simple games and scratch-off cards. Use your entry wins to enter the big sweepstakes of your choosing.
You’ll also earn tokens when you play each game that can be traded in for rewards. Tokens can be redeemed for entries into smaller giveaways like for gift cards, microwave ovens, and even trucks. So, everything’s a giveaway and there’s no guarantee you’ll win anything, but it’s still a fun and simple sweepstakes app to try out.
This app has a 3.9-star average rating from 350,000+ customer reviews.
Download The PCH App:Android iPhone
9. Bananatic
Bananatic is a website and app that rewards users for trying out free online games, playing and testing them, and writing game reviews. It’s a fun way to try out new games and give developers some feedback.
As you play, you’ll be rewarded with Bananas for completing simple in-game quests and writing reviews. Bananas can be exchanged for real prizes like additional games, Amazon gift cards, and digital gift cards to gaming platforms.
This app has a 3.2-star rating from 4,000+ customer reviews. Note that it’s currently only available for Android.
Download BananApp:Android
10. Brain Battle
Math whiz? Try out the free Brain Battle app and test your math skills by quickly answering simple math questions of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
As you play, you’ll collect tickets that you can then use to enter the regular cash prize draws. The more tickets you collect, the better your chances of winning the cash prize which is paid out via PayPal.
You can also earn tickets by completing occasional special offers and connecting to their social media accounts.
Brain Battle is a free app, but there are ads. However, there are no in-app purchases and you don’t have to pay anything to win.
This app has a 4.5-star average rating from 26,000+ customer reviews.
Download Brain Battle:Android iPhone
11. Solitaire Cube
Raise your hand if you love solitaire! If that’s you, did you know that you can earn money by playing Solitaire Cube?
The gameplay is just like regular draw-3 Klondike Solitaire. You have 5 minutes to play each round, but you can end at any time to get bonus points for finishing early. You earn points even if you don’t fully complete each round.
Their Skillz platform matches you with other players who have a similar skill level, and then you’ll play the same deck head-to-head with another player. If you earn more points than them, you win.
I didn’t see any ads, and you can play for free. However, the only way to win money is to enter their tournaments and competitions. To do that, you’ll need to pay actual money as an entry fee. However, the prizes are also cold hard cash. So, think about your skill level before you enter!
This app has a 4.6-star rating from 58,000+ customer reviews. Please note that it’s currently only available for iPhone.
Download Solitaire Cube:iPhone
12. Givling
The main focus of Givling is crowdsourcing funding to pay off the student loan and mortgage debt of its users. However, even if you don’t have student loans or mortgage debt, you can still play.
Givling offers a free trivia game that teams you up randomly with two other users. Earn points by answering questions correctly to bring your team to the top of the leaderboard and split the weekly prize.
Another way to get money is to join the funding queue by earning points for completing offers and shopping through the Givling app. The top user on the queue becomes the next person that receives funding toward their student loan or mortgage debt. Note that it is extremely time-consuming and potentially expensive to earn enough points to get to the top of the queue.
This app has a 4.6-star average rating from 1,700+ customer reviews.
Download Givling: Android iPhone
13. Lottery – Play the Powerball
Play the lottery from your phone with the Lottery app. The app itself is free, but you’ll need to buy the actual lottery tickets (just like you would at the gas station or grocery store).
Different locations will have different lottery games available, but I was able to buy tickets for Powerball, Mega Millions, Daily 3, and lots more from my phone.
There is a service fee, but the app does save you the trip of buying lottery tickets at the store. You can also cash out right from your phone and collect 100% of your winnings.
I don’t play the lottery, so this wouldn’t be an app I would use, but if buying lottery tickets is already a part of your routine, you may be interested in streamlining this process with the Lottery app.
This app has a 4.5-star average rating from 15,000+ customer reviews.
Download Lottery:iPhone
Summary
Top Money Making Game Apps
When you’ve got some time to kill and are looking to put a little cash in your pocket, try out one or more of these legit game apps to win money and have a little fun. Good luck!
What Game Apps Actually Pay You Money
Have you won money with any of these legit game apps? Please comment below to share your experience!