Best Apps to Make Money in Australia 2026: 25+ Tested & Ranked

Up is one of Australia’s best digital banks, and they’re giving away $15 at sign-up plus an extra $5 when you make 5 purchases (any amount — even $0.01 taps). Use the referral code SCONS to make sure you get the bonus.

The app itself is genuinely excellent — great budgeting tools, instant notifications, and one of the highest savings rates going around. Even without the bonus, it’s worth having.

Join Up Bank (code SCONS) →

Ubank (owned by NAB, so your money is backed by one of the Big Four) is offering $20 for new customers who use the referral code AFWLLL7. You typically just need to open an account and deposit a small amount.

Their savings rate is competitive, and having the NAB backing gives a level of security that some people prefer over the pure neobanks.

Join Ubank (code AFWLLL7) →

Wise isn’t a traditional “bonus” app, but it saves you a fortune if you ever send money overseas, travel, or buy from international stores. Their exchange rates are the mid-market rate (what you see on Google), compared to the 3–5% markup the Big Four banks charge.

If you send even $1,000 overseas per year, you’ll save $30–$50 compared to using a bank. Sign up through our link to get your first transfer fee-free.

Try Wise (fee-free first transfer) →

Pro tip: Stack all of these. Every one of these bonuses is independent of the others — there’s no rule saying you can only have one bank account. Open all three, grab your $35–$40+ in bonuses, and then decide which one you actually want to use day-to-day. I personally use Up as my daily driver and Ubank as a secondary savings account.

Octopus Group consistently topped my earnings charts. They’re an Australian market research firm, and their surveys tend to be longer (15–30 minutes) but pay significantly better per hour than the global platforms. You’ll also get invited to focus groups and product testing opportunities that pay $50–$150 per session.

The key with Octopus is filling out your profile completely. The more they know about you (demographics, shopping habits, interests), the more surveys you’ll qualify for. I went from getting 2–3 surveys a week to 5–7 after spending 10 minutes updating my profile.

During my experiment, Octopus Group earned me $187 in a single month with about 2 hours per week of effort. That’s the best return on time of any survey platform I tested.

Join Octopus Group →

Survey Village is a solid runner-up. The platform aggregates surveys from multiple research firms, so you get a wider variety than sticking with a single company. The $10 cashout minimum is the lowest among the top platforms, which means you can start earning and cashing out quickly.

They’ve also got a referral program, so once you’re on the platform, you can earn a bit extra by inviting friends. The surveys are a good mix of quick ones (2–5 minutes, $1–$3) and longer deep-dives ($8–$15 for 30–45 minutes).

Join Survey Village →

Purkle is another Australian-based platform that flies under the radar a bit. What sets them apart is the product testing opportunities — you’ll occasionally get sent physical products to try and review, which is a nice change from staring at survey questions.

The regular surveys pay well too, averaging around $12–$18/hr. Payments are reliable and usually processed within a few business days. They offer both bank transfers and gift cards.

Join Purkle →

SaySo is a great option if you’re new to the survey game. The interface is clean, surveys are well-screened (fewer disqualifications mid-way through compared to some platforms), and the $10 cashout minimum means you can get paid quickly.

The survey flow is consistent — I was never waiting around for new surveys to appear. They’re particularly good for shorter surveys (5–10 minutes) that you can knock out during downtime.

Join SaySo →

Pureprofile is one of the oldest and most established survey platforms in Australia — they’re actually listed on the ASX, which gives them a bit more credibility than some of the smaller players. You’ll get a steady stream of surveys, and the payouts are reliable.

The hourly rate is a step below the top three, but they make up for it with volume. You’ll rarely run out of surveys to complete, and they offer some interesting content-based activities (watching videos, reading articles) that break up the monotony.

Join Pureprofile →

AttaPoll is a mobile-first survey app with the lowest cashout threshold on this list — just $3. That makes it perfect for testing the waters if you’re skeptical about paid surveys. You can literally sign up, do a few quick surveys, cash out $3 to your PayPal, and prove to yourself this is real.

The hourly rate is lower than the Australian-specific platforms, but the convenience factor is high. Surveys are typically short (2–8 minutes) and the app sends push notifications when new ones are available. Great for filling 5 minutes while you’re waiting for a coffee.

Join AttaPoll →

Purple Patch rounds out the list. They’re an Australian research panel that tends to have fewer surveys than the bigger platforms, but they occasionally land high-value studies ($20–$50) that are worth jumping on when they appear.

I wouldn’t rely on Purple Patch as your primary survey platform, but as part of the stack (signing up for all seven and doing whichever surveys are available), it adds a solid extra $30–$50 per month with minimal effort.

Join Purple Patch →

Survey stacking strategy: Sign up for all seven platforms. In the morning, open each app and do whatever surveys are available, starting with the highest-paying platforms (Octopus Group first). You’ll naturally gravitate toward 2–3 favourites, but having all seven means you’ll never run out of surveys to do. This is how you hit the $400–$550/month range.

ShopBack is the king of Australian cashback. They partner with over 2,000 retailers including Amazon, eBay, Woolworths, Coles, Booking.com, The Iconic, Kogan, and basically every major online store you can think of.

How it works: before you buy anything online, open ShopBack, search for the retailer, and click through to the store from within ShopBack. That’s it. You shop as normal, and a percentage of your purchase gets credited to your ShopBack account. Typical cashback rates range from 1–5% for everyday retailers up to 10–30% during promotional periods.

The browser extension is a game-changer — it automatically pops up when you’re on a supported retailer’s website, so you never forget to activate your cashback.

For a household spending $2,000–$3,000/month online (including groceries, bills, insurance), you can realistically earn $50–$100/month in cashback without changing your shopping habits at all.

Join ShopBack →

TopCashback positions itself as having the “highest cashback rates guaranteed,” and in my experience, they often do beat ShopBack by 0.5–2% on the same retailers. They have fewer partner stores overall, but for the big-name retailers, they’re frequently the better deal.

The smart move is to have both apps installed and quickly compare rates before any purchase. It takes 10 seconds and can mean the difference between 3% and 5% cashback on a $500 purchase ($10 difference for 10 seconds of effort — not a bad hourly rate).

TopCashback also runs regular “bonus” promotions where they’ll offer elevated rates for specific retailers, sometimes hitting 15–20% on categories like insurance, broadband, and mobile plans.

Join TopCashback →

Quick tip: The biggest cashback wins come from categories you don’t think about — insurance renewals (5–12% cashback), broadband/mobile sign-ups (up to $50 cashback), and travel bookings (3–8% cashback). These are purchases worth hundreds or thousands of dollars, so even a small percentage adds up fast.

Best strategy: Open both accounts. Use Up Bank as your daily transaction account (the app and budgeting tools are genuinely the best in Australia), and Ubank as your high-interest savings account (Ubank often edges out Up on the savings rate by 0.25–0.5%). Grab both sign-up bonuses while you’re at it.

Raiz is the original Aussie micro-investing app. It rounds up your everyday purchases to the nearest dollar and invests the spare change into a diversified portfolio of ETFs. It also lets you set up recurring investments.

The beauty of Raiz is it makes investing completely automatic. Connect your bank card, choose a portfolio (Conservative through to Aggressive), and forget about it. Your spare change gets invested without you lifting a finger.

It’s not going to make you rich overnight, but over years of consistent micro-investing, the compounding effect is real. I started with Raiz three years ago and my round-ups alone have grown to over $2,800 (with about $400 of that being investment returns).

Try Raiz →

Stake revolutionised stock trading in Australia by offering $0 brokerage on ASX trades and access to US markets at very competitive rates. If you want to buy individual shares or ETFs (rather than the pre-built portfolios Raiz offers), Stake is the way to go.

The app is clean, fast, and beginner-friendly. They also offer fractional shares on the US market, so you can buy a slice of Apple or Tesla without needing $300+ for a full share.

Try Stake →

moomoo is a relatively newer player in the Australian market but has been making waves with aggressive sign-up offers (often including free shares) and a powerful charting and analysis platform. If you’re the kind of person who wants detailed technical analysis tools alongside your trading, moomoo delivers.

Their brokerage fees are competitive with Stake, and the platform offers both ASX and US market access. The sign-up bonuses tend to change frequently, so check what’s available when you join.

Try moomoo →

Important: Investing carries risk. You can lose money. The apps above make investing accessible, but they don’t eliminate risk. Never invest money you can’t afford to lose, and consider speaking to a financial adviser before making significant investment decisions. This is general information, not financial advice.

CoinSpot is the most popular crypto exchange in Australia with over 2 million users. They’re AUSTRAC regulated, support 400+ cryptocurrencies, and offer instant AUD deposits. Their sign-up bonus typically involves a small amount of free Bitcoin after your first deposit.

Join CoinSpot →

Swyftx is the other major Australian exchange, known for having some of the lowest trading fees in the market (0.6% compared to CoinSpot’s 1%). The app is polished, and they frequently run promotions for new users.

Join Swyftx →

Warning: Crypto is extremely volatile. These sign-up bonuses are worth grabbing if you’re interested in crypto, but don’t invest more than you can afford to lose. The bonuses themselves are essentially free, but any additional money you put in is at risk.

WeMoney connects all your bank accounts, credit cards, loans, and investment accounts into a single dashboard. You can see your total net worth, track spending patterns, identify where money is leaking, and find better deals on your existing financial products.

What makes WeMoney especially useful in the context of this guide is that it helps you track whether all your money-making efforts are actually paying off. You can see your survey income hitting one account, cashback landing in another, and interest accumulating in your savings — all in one view.

The app will also flag if you’re paying too much for insurance, if there’s a better interest rate available on your mortgage, or if a bill has increased. It’s like having a financial advisor in your pocket (a free one).

WeMoney also has a community feature where you can see anonymised benchmarks — how your savings rate, spending, and net worth compare to other Australians in your age group. It’s surprisingly motivating.

Try WeMoney (free) →

Why this matters: The single biggest factor in building wealth isn’t how much you earn — it’s how much you keep. WeMoney gives you visibility into both sides of that equation. Pair it with the earning strategies in this guide and you’ve got a complete financial system.

Morning: Quick Survey Check (10–15 minutes)

While I’m having my morning coffee, I open my top 3 survey apps (Octopus Group, Survey Village, SaySo) and knock out any available surveys. This is usually 1–3 surveys taking 10–15 minutes total. I don’t stress if there’s nothing available — some mornings are busy, some are quiet.

Estimated earnings: $5–$15/day

Lunch Break: More Surveys If Available (10–20 minutes)

Quick check of the remaining survey apps (Purkle, Pureprofile, AttaPoll, Purple Patch). If anything good has popped up, I’ll do it. If not, I skip it. The key is never forcing surveys that aren’t there — you end up with low-paying garbage surveys that tank your hourly rate.

Estimated earnings: $3–$10/day

Any Online Shopping: Always Through Cashback (0 extra time)

The ShopBack browser extension is installed on my laptop, so it automatically pops up whenever I’m on a supported retailer. I click “activate” (literally one click), shop as normal, and the cashback accumulates. For bigger purchases, I’ll quickly check TopCashback to see if they’re offering a better rate.

Estimated earnings: $50–$150/month (varies wildly based on spending)

Banking: Passive Interest Earning (0 effort)

My savings sit in Ubank earning 5.5%. My day-to-day spending goes through Up Bank. Raiz rounds up my purchases and invests the spare change. This all happens automatically without any ongoing effort from me. I check WeMoney once a week to make sure everything’s tracking as expected.

Estimated earnings: $15–$40/month in interest (depends on balance)

Monthly Total

Plus one-off bonuses of $50–$80+ when you first set everything up (sign-up bonuses from banks and crypto exchanges).

Let’s be real about a few things:

• This is not a get-rich-quick scheme. The survey income requires consistency. Skip a week and your monthly total drops noticeably. It’s a side income, not a replacement for a real job.
• Survey income is taxable. The ATO considers survey income as assessable income. If you’re earning $400–$550/month from surveys, that’s $5,000–$6,600/year that you need to declare on your tax return. Keep records of your earnings. Apps like Pureprofile and Octopus Group provide payment histories you can use.
• Cashback isn’t “earning” — it’s saving. Don’t spend more just because you’re getting cashback. The goal is to get cashback on spending you’d do anyway, not to justify extra purchases.
• Investment returns are not guaranteed. Raiz, Stake, moomoo, and crypto exchanges all involve risk. Past returns are not indicative of future results. Only invest what you can afford to lose.
• Sign-up bonus terms change. The bonuses listed in this guide are current as of March 2026. They can change or be withdrawn at any time. Always check the terms when you sign up.
• Protect your personal information. Only sign up for platforms through official links. Never share your bank passwords. Legitimate survey platforms will never ask for your credit card details.

Are these apps actually legit?

Yes. Every app and platform in this guide is a legitimate, established business. The banks (Up, Ubank) are APRA-regulated and covered by the government’s $250,000 deposit guarantee. The survey platforms are established market research firms. The cashback platforms have been operating in Australia for years. I’ve personally used every single one and been paid by every single one.

How much can I realistically earn per month?

With the full stack (surveys + cashback + smart banking), $600–$900/month is realistic if you’re consistent with surveys and do most of your shopping through cashback. Without surveys, you’re looking at $50–$200/month from cashback and interest alone. The sign-up bonuses are one-off (about $50–$80 total across all platforms).

Do I have to pay tax on survey income?

Yes. The ATO considers income from paid surveys as assessable income. You need to declare it on your tax return, usually under “other income.” Keep records of your payments throughout the year. Most survey platforms provide payment histories you can use as records. If you’re earning significant amounts, consider speaking to a tax accountant.

Which app should I start with if I only try one?

ShopBack. It requires zero extra effort (just install the browser extension and shop as normal), and you’ll start earning cashback immediately on spending you’re already doing. After that, open Up Bank (free, $15–$20 bonus, great app) and sign up for Octopus Group (highest-paying survey platform).

Can I use these apps if I’m on a visa (not a citizen)?

Most of them, yes. Survey platforms typically only require an Australian address. Cashback apps work for anyone in Australia. For banking apps, you’ll need to meet their ID requirements — Up Bank and Ubank both accept a range of Australian IDs (not just passports). For investing and crypto platforms, you’ll need to provide ID and may need a Tax File Number (TFN).

How long before I see actual money in my account?

Sign-up bonuses: 1–7 days after meeting the bonus conditions. Surveys: most platforms pay within 1–3 business days of reaching the cashout minimum. Cashback: varies by platform and retailer, typically 30–90 days (retailers have to confirm the purchase first). Bank interest: credited monthly.

Is this worth it for someone who already earns a good salary?

Depends on how you value your time. The cashback and smart banking parts are a no-brainer for anyone — they take zero extra time and can save/earn you $100–$500/month. Surveys are the time-intensive part. If you earn $80/hr at your day job, spending time on $15–$25/hr surveys might not make sense. But if you’re doing them during downtime (commute, TV, waiting rooms), it’s money you wouldn’t have earned otherwise.

Are there any costs involved?

Almost everything in this guide is free. The bank accounts have no fees. Survey platforms are free to join. Cashback platforms are free. The only potential costs are: Raiz charges $4.50/month (waived for balances under $15,000 in some plans), and investing/crypto platforms charge trading fees when you buy or sell. But the money-making and saving aspects of this guide are entirely free.

Start With the Highest-Value Apps First

Don’t try to set up everything at once. Start with the three categories that deliver the most value for the least effort, then add the rest when you’re ready.

• Sign-Up Bonus Stacking Guide: How to Collect $50+ in Free Cash

  The exact order to open accounts and how to meet bonus conditions as fast as possible.

• Survey Earnings Experiment: 30 Days, 7 Platforms, Every Dollar Tracked

  Day-by-day breakdown of earnings, time spent, and which platforms paid the best.

• Best Cashback Offers in Australia: ShopBack vs TopCashback

  Head-to-head comparison, which platform pays more by category, and stacking strategies.

• Ubank vs Up Bank: Which Neobank Is Better in 2026?

  Full feature comparison, savings rates, app quality, and which one to choose.

• Best Stock Trading Apps in Australia: Stake vs moomoo vs CommSec

  Fees, features, and which platform suits different types of investors.

• Best Crypto Exchanges in Australia: CoinSpot vs Swyftx vs Others

  Security, fees, supported coins, and sign-up bonuses for every major exchange.