8 Clever Ways to Free Up Cash

“Go through your credit card statements — you may be paying for a service you no longer use or find that a price increase occurred on another. I realized I was paying for iCloud storage, a platform I was no longer using, and found duplicate kids’ apps that automatically renewed monthly. Also smart: Sign up for free apps like Trim and SubscriptMe, which keep track of hikes in subscription prices and pinpoint ones that you haven’t used in a month or more.” — Dawn Casey-Rowe, author of A Broke Teacher’s Guide to Success: How to Build Your Dreams on Teacher Pay ($19.99, Amazon)

“My daughter and I sell toys she no longer plays with on Mercari, a resale marketplace app that allows you to sell items that you have around your house. In fact, last year I made $1,368! I just use my phone to snap a few pics and list items, and when I accept an offer, Mercari sends me a prepaid shipping label. I’m basically getting paid to reduce clutter in my house!” — Tonia Cupp, mom of one, Scottsdale, AZ

“Receive a gift card to a store you’ll never shop in? Sell it on Raise.com! Simply list the card and its balance and name your price. You can also search the site for discounted cards to a store you like to shop in or a restaurant you frequent. For example, you may find a $50 gift card to Target for $45. You just saved yourself $5 easily!” — Michael Outar, founder of Savebly

“That Groupon you purchased for five massages that you just have no time to use? Trade it in at Groupon.com/pages/trade-in. Simply click on ‘view details’ of your voucher and if it’s eligible (some must be traded in within a week of purchase), you will see a ‘Trade-In Voucher’ link to click. You’ll get Groupon Bucks in return, credits redeemable toward future Groupon purchases—anything from products to restaurants and more.” — Julie Ramhold, consumer analyst at DealNews

“Cash-back apps abound, but most require you to shop online to reap the benefits. Enter Ibotta, a shopping app that not only has the most cash-back grocery offers (you can get paid for buying things like Ben & Jerry’s ice cream!), but they also have great deals at various retail stores like JCPenney and Talbots. Sometimes they offer as much as 30 percent back! You simply upload a photo of your receipt to the app, and once the purchase is verified, the cash shows up in your account.” — Janet Alvarez, personal finance expert at WiseBread

“The average family receives more than 800 pieces of junk mail a year, 44 percent of which never even gets opened. Surprise! The Small Business Knowledge Center will actually pay you to send them your junk mail in the name of market research. To sign up, you answer a few questions about yourself on their site, then they send you prepaid envelopes. You fill them with your junk mail and you’ll receive points for everything you send in. Packets are usually worth anywhere from 100 to 500 points, and once you have 2,000 points, you can redeem them for a $20 Visa gift card.” — Amy Boyington, blogger at FrugalForLess

“We all have to buy gas, so why not make money off of it? An app like Trunow will tell you where to get the cheapest gas near you, then reward you when you buy it at that location. You can use rewards for free gas or cash out via PayPal for half the value (if you earned $25, you’ll get $12.50). You’re getting paid for something you have to buy anyway!” — Joanie Demer, co-founder of the Krazy Coupon Lady

“It’s so frustrating when an item you just bought goes on sale a week later. The good news: Many stores will pay you back the difference — some even beat the price and give you money back! An easy way to keep track? A tool like Earny or a browser like Paribus.co. For a 25 percent service fee (the first refund is free), they scour the receipts in your inbox, then claim your discounts automatically if the price drops. Paribus even keeps track of delivery times, and if that expedited delivery you paid extra for doesn’t come as promised, the app will request a refund of the shipping charge. Once processed, all refunds are applied directly to the credit card you used to make the purchase.” — Michelle Madhok, founder of deal site SheFinds

This story originally appeared in our print magazine.

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