12 free apps that help you earn money for doing almost nothing

Flickr / Garry Knight

We've all got smartphones these days, and almost everything we do on them requires using an app. Wouldn't it be cool if you could make extra money just for using them? Well, you can.

You're not going to get rich by downloading mobile apps, but you can use these to earn a little extra money every month.

Considering some of them require you to do nothing, or just watch videos or take some surveys, it doesn't seem like a bad deal to make a few extra bucks.

To get you started, we put together a list of our favorite apps that pay you just for using them.

1. This app pays you to search the web

The folks over at InboxDollars will actually pay you to search the web!

InboxDollars offers cash rewards for a variety of tasks, including online searches through their proprietary search engine.

Earn one cent for each of your first five qualified searches and another cent for every two after that. You can earn up to 15 cents per day through the InboxDollars search engine.

You'll get a free $5 just for signing up.

2. This app pays you for sharing (anonymous) user data

There's a new company called "Smart Panel" that will literally pay you to download its free app.

The app's purpose is to collect anonymous statistics from your phone to help your favorite web sites, apps, tech companies, and mobile carriers give you better services and more features.

The company wants to know how long you're spending on Facebook each week, what YouTube videos you like, and how often you check your email.

It's run by Verto Analytics, a trusted analytics firm.

Here's how it works ...

1. You can't download this from the app store. Here's the promo link. It's free to download.
2. Once you've qualified and downloaded the app, you'll earn $5. If you keep it installed for at least two weeks, you'll earn another $10. And then for every month you keep the Smart App installed, you'll get another $5. In total, you can earn up to $75 for the first year!

You can redeem your rewards via Paypal or an Amazon gift card.

3. This app pays you for sharing your Amazon purchases

If you're a regular Amazon shopper, you can earn money each month contributing to research to help companies understand what people are buying online.

Companies use this information to improve the online shopping experience.

Before you start the simple download process, let me give you the basic requirements:

• This will be a waste of time if you don’t shop on Amazon.

• You must be 18 and live in the U.S.

• You’ll need at least a Windows 7-compatible PC. If you have Windows XP or a Mac, it won’t work.

All good? Time to download.

To earn your first gift card today:

1. Sign up and download the ShopTracker app on your Windows computer and Apple or Android phone. It takes about two minutes. You’ll need to answer a few questions about your Amazon use to qualify.
2. Open the app and log in to your Amazon account to automatically share your purchase history.
3. You’ll receive your Visa e-gift card code for $3 via email within 48 hours.
4. Take a couple of minutes to share your purchase history to earn another $3 each month.

Your information is collected securely by The Harris Poll, a trusted market research company for more than 20 years.

ShopTracker removes your name, shipping address and any personal payment information before reporting your purchase history.