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AppsFreebies

Get Paid Apps for Free: Try These 35+ Resources

Tom Nathaniel
September 13, 2023
Some of the links may be from a sponsor. Advertising Disclosure

There’s nothing worse than finding an app on the Google Play Store or iTunes and finding out that it’s going to cost you money.

Sure, while it’s going to cost you a few dollars, it’s much sweeter if you can get it for free.

So, in today’s post, I wanted to talk about the many ways you can download paid apps for free, requiring no money on your part.  Just a few minutes of your time.

And, yes, all of these strategies are 100% legal and truly work, I promise you that much.  You won’t need jailbreak, an APK or anything like that, I promise.

Set aside a few minutes of your time, follow the steps below and you can have that paid app you wanted in no time.

Let’s begin!

How to Get Paid Apps for Free on Android or iOS Today (35+ Ways)

Swagbucks

I promote Swagbucks a lot on this website but trust me, it’s for a good reason.

And if you’re not familiar with the company, I’ll quickly explain.

In short, Swagbucks will reward you to do simple tasks, such as answer questions for research companies or even sign up for an offer.  For instance, I just signed up for Hulu the other day and Swagbucks gave me $30 in credits for doing it.  Not bad.

But, honestly, the money is in the surveys.

For instance, check out some of the surveys I had as of this writing:

That one survey alone would net me 3,500 SB or $35 in rewards.  The list would go on and on and does update daily.

Now, you’re probably wondering where the heck this is going and how it relates to getting paid apps for free.

Let me explain.

Once you earn enough SB, which is the company’s currency, known as Swagbucks, you can then cash out for a variety of rewards, including Google Play credits, as noted below.

Only requiring as little as 2,500 SB, sometimes less if on sale, I can promise you that it can take a few days to reach that threshold, especially if you’re just starting out.

Aside from Google Play gift cards, the company also offers hundreds of other redemption options as well, making it a great place to make a few bucks on the side.

Out of all the options I list here, this is one of the few that allows you to choose an app you want.

Swagbucks is 100% free and only takes a few minutes to join, so at least check it out to see if it’s worth your time.  You have nothing to lose!



Google Opinion Rewards

Quite possibly the easiest way to get any app you want for free on the Google Play Store, the app, Google Opinion Rewards is the winner, hands down.

Free to download and operated by Google, the Google Opinion Rewards app will send you survey opportunities based on your phone usage and where you go throughout the day.

For example, let’s say you went to a restaurant and ate for an hour or so.  If you have the app downloaded, Google will first send you a notification, letting you know there’s a survey available.

Then, once you click it, Google may want to know about this visit, asking you a few simple questions, such as how did you pay.

Like a survey, it varies.  In some cases, they may just ask you some questions based on your demographic profile.

I have used this app for months now and earn quite a bit just for seconds of my time, usually anywhere from $0.10 to $1.  Take a look at my balance right now, for instance:

This is just from the past 30 days or so!

The only downfall is that you can only use the cash rewards in the Google Play store, but if you want a paid app, then this is the way to do it, I promise you.  It will work just like cash in that case.

Keep in mind that it may take a while, sometimes up to 24 hours, before you get the first survey, but if you’re active enough with your phone, you could get one or two surveys a day as I do.  Plus, as your profile could be different than mine, you could earn more or much less than what I promoted, so your results will vary.

For now, keep it downloaded and see what kind of action you get.  It’s free.

AppsFree (Android)

I found the “AppsFree” app while searching the Google Play Store, and according to the app’s description, it appears they will list a variety of paid apps in which you can download for free.

Now, you won’t be able to pick out a paid app that you personally want to download to free, but rather, you’re going to have to choose from a list, all of which is updated daily.

Glancing at the app, it appears you can adjust the list with customized filters, where you can define the minimum download or rating threshold, and even subscribe to categories of interest so that you only see apps that benefit you.  This is a great option to weed out the junk since a lot of these apps often promote garbage that’s not even worth your time.

To date, the app has more than 3,800 reviews, with a 4.5/5 rating on the Google Play Store and is 100% free to download.

AppsSales (Android)

Out of all the apps that list paid apps gone free, AppsSales seemed to have the most reviews and the greatest reputation.

And much like, AppsFree and Paid Apps Gone Free, the two apps mentioned above, AppsSales works in the same exact way.

Download the app, find the temporarily free apps that usually cost money and/or even see the best apps on sale for the day if you want to pay a discount.

According to the app’s description, AppsSales manually reviews every app to ensure that the hottest sales are published, and the price history provides transparency to give you as much information as possible.

Again, you won’t get the exact app you want for free, but there’s a good chance you will find other paid apps for free that you could enjoy right now.

Best App Sale

Best App Sale is a pretty intense app since they not only show you the latest paid apps for free, but they also show you deals on Xbox, PSN, Steam, Nintendo eShop and so many more.  A great option if you consider yourself a deal seeker.

Free to download, the Best App Sale allows you to view the app’s price history to see if you are truly getting a good deal, and you can even manage a “follow” list if you want the app to notify you when an app goes on sale.

If you’re patient enough, this could be one of the best ways to literally do nothing and get the app you want without paying a cent.

With the Best App Sale, you will never miss a deal, and best of all, it’s free.

Website:  Best App Sale

AppSliced (iOS/iPhone)

Most of the apps I already mentioned were designed for Android users, so I wanted to include some iOS (iTunes) options as well.

And while the selection was quite limited, I did find one popular app, known as AppSliced.

AppSliced works in the same way as the others, offering alerts when a paid app goes free or even offered at a steep discount.

Unlike most of these apps, however, they offer a pretty nice search feature right on their desktop version if you just want to browse without downloading the app.

iOSnoops (iOS/iPhone)

More of a website, rather than an app, iOSnoops will post the latest price drops, apps that have gone free, and even the new apps that hit the market.

This could be a good choice if you would rather visit a website instead of downloading an app onto your phone.

As the website name implies, these are the apps for iTunes only.



Freapp (iOS and Android)

Freeapp is a pinch different than most of the apps I list here because it finds and selects apps based on your profile.

Working just like that of a social media network, you can manage your profile, follow your friends and discover new apps for free.

Then, based on your interests, it will pick out apps that it thinks you may enjoy.

With more than seven million downloads, the app is 100% free to download and is a great option if you’re looking for new recommendations and paid apps that are now free.

/r/GooglePlayDeals (Android)

If you’re familiar with Reddit, you probably already know they have a subreddit for everything.

And yes, they have a somewhat decent subreddit called r/GooglePlayDeals.

With about 10 to 15 app deals posted per day by the community, this is yet another alternative to book if you don’t like the idea of downloading a ton of apps.

Android Police (Android)

AndroidPolice.com, one of the largest Android blogs on the internet, has a fantastic deals section where you can find the temporarily free and apps on sale for the day.

Posted once a day it seems, you will have to find the blog post by following this link, but once you do, they sometimes post up to 30+ apps for the day that you can download for free temporarily.

Another great choice if you don’t want to download any apps or see what deals are happening for the day.

AppsShopper (iOS/iPhone)

AppsShopper is said to be one of the largest iPhone, iPad, and Mac app directories, with the prime purpose of helping people discover new apps.

With a simplistic design, AppShopper lets you search for paid apps that are now free or even apps that are currently being offered at a steep discount.

Not an app, but rather a website, it’s a decent choice for iOS users.

Play Store Sales (Android)

At first, the website may seem a pinch outdated, but that doesn’t matter because we’re all here for the free apps, right?

As the Google Play Store has tens of thousands of apps, most being junk, the Play Store Sales website does the dirty work, weeding out worst and bringing us the best paid apps that are now free today.

With a few posted on the main website, definitely bookmark this website as an option if you simply want to visit a website only.

myAppFree – Paid Apps for Free (Android)

As the name proclaims, this app helps you discover new apps every day.

Aside from being able to download free apps, it will also alert you of heavily discounted apps and even useful themes.  You can set your filters so that it only shows you free apps, however.

To use, just scroll the list and then download an app you like.  If you see one you like, be sure to do so fast as some offers only last 24 hours!

Slickdeals

I promote Slickdeals a lot, but who wouldn’t when thousands of amazing deals are posted daily?

Instead of browsing through these thousands of deals, I just recommend you search near the top, using search terms such as “apps,” “Google Play” or even “iOS.”

Then, with your search results, be sure to filter out your results by the ratings and date to ensure you’re getting the best deals as of late.

App deals do pop up a lot here, so make sure you check it frequently to see what you can take advantage of.

Complete Surveys/Tasks for an App You Want

I wrote about all of these companies in my 25+ ways to get a free Google Play code, but I will mention them here as well, just in a shorter version.

Basically, all of the methods I listed above are for apps that are currently free, but the problem with this is that these apps may not be what you want.  I get that.

So, if you want a paid app and don’t want to pay, then, unfortunately, you’re going to have to either complete a surveys/tasks or win a contest.   There are illegal routes, of course, but I respect developers and what they do, so I won’t even go there.  Plus, the risks of viruses/malware is too high.

So, while you could win a contest, your best bet will rely upon the surveys/offers.

It takes minutes to do and you can earn quite a bit, especially if you join the companies I mention below.  Honestly, answer a few survey questions and you can easily earn $5 by the end of the day, I promise.

Once you earn enough points, you can then cash out your credits in exchange for a Google Play gift card to buy the apps you want.  It’s not that hard, I promise you that much.

Without further ado, here are the free companies I recommend that can earn you Google Play credits in no time if you don’t mind investing a few minutes of your time:

In my opinion, you will have the best luck with Survey Junkie and instaGC, seeing they have very low redemption rates, but honestly, you can’t go wrong with most of these options.

All of these options are free and take seconds to sign up.

Be sure to check out a few of these options to see which one works best for you.  Some people I find like doing the surveys while others like testing new apps, so it’s hard to know what works best for your interests.

Again, if you just want to buy an app or two, then you probably only need to offer up a pinch of your time to get enough credits for a few dollars.  Cash out and be done with it.

Final Thoughts

Out of all of these options, I highly recommend Google Rewards, the main reason I list them first.

It’s free to download, and most of the time, you could earn at least $1 in a matter of minutes of downloading, but sometimes it could take longer.  It all depends on your demographics and phone usage.

If you don’t have a particular app you want and/or don’t mind waiting, then I would consider the many highly-rated deal apps.

Download one or two, or if you don’t like the idea of downloading an app, consider checking in on blogs such as Android Police.  These options list 30-50+ paid apps that are now free daily.  It’s not that had to find a daily list.

And lastly, if you want to earn almost immediately, then Swagbucks and the many other related companies I list last would be your best bet.

In some cases, you could earn as little as $5 in less than an hour, making it a great choice if you want a paid app and don’t want to wait.  Of course, this will take some time investment, but if you don’t have the cash, I don’t know what else to tell you here!

In conclusion, there are many ways to get paid apps for free, you’re either going to have to get lucky with a free sale or invest a few minutes of your day to earn it.

Regardless, it can be done.

As always, if I’m missing any resources and/or you want to comment on one, you’re more than welcome to leave your thoughts in the comments below.

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Tom Nathaniel

Hi! My name is Tom Nathaniel, and I created LushDollar to help share my honest thoughts on everything money. You won't find gimmicks here. It's the Internet's most honest money site after all. I graduated from Arizona State University, and I have worked in the finance industry since 2006, consulting with multiple Fortune 5000 companies.

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