10 Simple Ways to Get Paid to Text in 2024
The average American sends or receives 32 text messages per day. Across the country, over 6 billion texts are sent daily. With so many texts going out and coming in, it’s time to start asking: What if you could actually get paid to text?
There are companies out there willing to pay for texters. Some want trained professionals to provide SMS-based coaching. Others want everyday people to text their answers to quick survey questions. And still others just want you to receive text messages, no action required.
Read on to learn the best text-for-cash companies out there — and how much they pay.
How to Get Paid to Text
If you’ve ever signed up for a survey website to make a little extra cash, you know how it goes.
- Sign up.
- Answer a million demographic questions.
- Wait for a survey.
- Spend ages actually answering survey questions.
By the time you’re done, you’ve spent a lot of time and energy to make that dollar.
These text-based services streamline the process. After signing up, your job is pretty simple. Keep an eye out for a text asking you a simple question. Then, reply with the answer.
25Clicks
25Clicks is a microtask site: It pays you to complete quick, simple tasks on the internet.
What kind of tasks? Here’s a real, recent example.
- Go to Google and search for “domain authority checker.”
- Click on the Loganix website.
- Click the About page and write a one-message description.
- Reply to this message with the answer.
This example pays 50 cents per task, but the website’s payment ranges state they’re from 50 cents and 75 cents per task. All tasks can be completed by SMS (there’s an app, but you don’t have to use it after sign-up).
Pro: Simple and straightforward. Regular tasks.
Con: Low overall earning potential. The site says most people earn between $5 and $15 per month.
1Q
1Q sends — you guessed it — one question. You get paid 25 cents per answer. You answer via text in the 1Q app, which is available for iPhone and Android. Surveys may be made up of more than one question, helping you rack up your quarters. Additionally, you can grab an extra 25 cents per referral.
Pro: Quick and easy.
Con: Questions are few and far between. Low earning potential.
JustAnswer
Do you have medical, legal or other specific expertise? You could get paid to text through JustAnswer.
Signing up with JustAnswer is more involved than other text-based services. You need to provide evidence of a professional degree, certificate or equivalent experience to be accepted.
Once you’re in, however, you can make a lot more money than with simple survey apps. The exact amount varies based on your customer rating and the volume of questions you take on. One RV expert told Business Insider that he started off making $4.50 per question and ended up making $21 per question.
You can answer questions via text chat in the JustAnswer app.
Pro: Relatively high earning potential.
Con: Complex, variable payment structure. Requires advanced degree or career experience.
How to Get Paid for Receiving Texts
Companies send out text messages all the time. To make sure they are going through successfully, they regularly test the networks.
But to test the network, they need to test phone numbers. That’s where you come in.
“By letting us send text messages to your phone, you allow us to test and improve mobile operations,” says McMoney, a leading SMS-testing app.
Pros: It’s almost totally passive. All you have to do is receive texts.
Cons: SMS-testing apps are only available as APK files – that means that not only are they Android only, but they are not offered on Google Play. You have to download them manually. In addition, payouts are very small. You can expect to make a few bucks a year.
Still interested? Here are a few options.
McMoney
McMoney is an SMS-testing app run by consumer experience company CM. Payment for texts varies by location, and McMoney doesn’t disclose a range. You can expect at least one text per three days. Payment is PayPal only.
MoneySMS
Another popular SMS-testing app is MoneySMS. Users receive .02 euros, about $.022 in US dollars, per text. Payouts are exclusively in euros, Bitcoin, or Litecoin. If you want dollars, PayPal makes it easy to convert currency for a small fee.
SMSProfit
SMSProfit pays 1 cent to 6 cents per text and sends one text per day. You can receive payment through PayPal or BitCoin.
How to Get Paid for Premium Text Conversations
If you already have a platform and a following — as an influencer, psychic, professional leader or anything in between — you might try charging your followers for text conversations. These services make it easy.
Premium.Chat
Once you sign up with Premium.Chat, you get a link to share with your followers. They add their payment method and request to chat with you. From there, you text or video chat in Premium.Chat’s browser-based app.
You can set your own fees on a per-minute or flat-fee schedule.e. Premium.Chat takes 40% of your earnings until you start making $20,000 total per month – from there, your share of earnings increases.
Pro: High earning potential.
Con: Only works if you have a platform.
Fibler
Fibler is another platform for public figures to monetize chats and get paid to text with followers. When you sign up for the Fibler app on Google or Apple, you get a unique Fibler link. Your fans click on it and get sent straight to your profile in the Fibler app.
From there, you can set whatever rate you want for premium text chats and voice calls. As a bonus, you can also charge for live video chats and pre-recorded webinars.
Pro: No hidden fees. High earning potential.
Con: Low earning potential if you don’t have a platform.
Text-From-Home Jobs
Texting can be a side hustle, but can it also be a career? There are bona fide work-from-home jobs — part-time and full-time — that involve a whole lot of texting.
CoachBit
CoachBit is an app designed to help kids succeed in school.
The company is looking for Role Model Coaches — part-time, remote workers who guide students through online study. Coaches communicate through the CoachBit platform’s texting and voice note capabilities.
Pro: Steady payment.
Con: Requires a set schedule.
Headspace
Psychology grads looking for remote, text-based work: Headspace may be for you. The mental health app is always looking for behavioral health coaches. They provide on-demand video therapy and psychiatry services (including through text messaging).
Payment varies based on experience and role, but Glassdoor estimates around $65,000 per year as the base payment for behavioral health coaches.
Pro: Steady payment.
Con: Requires specialized education. Hours can be tough — including holidays and night shifts.
Working Solutions
Working Solutions is a customer service company that requires applicants to have a headset and quiet area. That may not sound like a texting job, but hear us out!
Once you’re hired, you get to choose which contracts you take on. If you want, you can opt for purely text-based roles. Payment varies depending on the contract, but workers report making about $15 to $20 an hour.
Pro: No advanced degree required.
Con: Jobs vary — so does payment.
Build Your Own Text Service
Want to text for money but not inspired by any of these options? You can always build your own text service. By coming up with an idea and posting it on a freelancing platform, you can text for cash on your own terms.
Fiverr
The Fiverr marketplace is full of text-based services. Are you interested in consulting for supply chain management? Sales? Dating advice as a life coach? There’s somebody on Fiverr offering all these services by text. Why not you?
Pro: Totally flexible. You choose what to do and what to charge.
Con: A lot of competition.
Contributor Ciara McLaren is a freelance writer with work in HuffPost, MoneyGeek, and The Penny Hoarder. You can find her on Substack (@camclaren). Deputy editor Tiffany Wendeln Connors updated this post.
