Earning money for free by using a pedometer? It sounds too good to be true, but it is still possible with the app Sweatcoin. iPhoned found out if it works.
Sweatcoin: Free money by walking
Sweatcoin is the most popular app in the App Store at the time of writing. The makers promise to give users money when they walk outside. That sounds like a great deal: being healthy and being financially rewarded for it.
You can see the app as a kind of pedometer that keeps track of your steps and converts them into Sweatcoins. These coins are not a cryptocurrency, but simply a made-up coin that you can exchange for stuff or real money in the app. We answer some questions about this app.
Does Sweatcoin work?
Yes, the app works up to a certain point. By walking outside you earn coins, provided you give the app access to your location. The return currently amounts to approximately 1 Sweatcoin per 1500 steps. There is a maximum number of Sweatcoin you can earn per day. If you have a normal membership, you may not accumulate more than 5 Sweatcoins per day, with a maximum of 150 Sweatcoins per month.
By paying a monthly Sweatcoin amount you can increase this limit. The maximum is the ability to accumulate 20 Sweatcoins per day and 600 Sweatcoins per month. You then pay 30 Sweatcoins per month for this. You can also earn Sweatcoin by bringing in other people. If they enter the app via your link, you will receive a bonus.
Nice free money, but what is that in euros?
This is where the app starts to get a bit trickier. The Sweatcoins can be exchanged for stuff or euros. In terms of stuff, you should think of a free month of an app, audiobooks or complete smartphones. But a transfer via PayPal is also part of the options. The offer changes regularly.
Getting Sweatcoin transferred in euros is not easy, however. At the time of writing, the only option to withdraw the money via PayPal is $ 1000, but it costs 20,000 Sweatcoins. That means taking 30,000 steps every day for about three years.
Even if that sounds okay, the problem is you don’t know if that deal will be there in three years. The app is known for holding out your roots so that you keep going, but those roots will suddenly run out when you get close.
Then I just turn on the app in the background, right?
Now you may think: I just turn on the app in the background. After all, it can’t hurt and who knows, you might earn some nice things? You can do that. Make sure that the app uses a lot of battery power and that your iPhone is discharged faster.
The app does have a mode that puts less load on the battery, but then the steps are also counted less well. You also give the makers a lot of information by using the app. Among other things, about where you are going in one day.
So how does Sweatcoin make money?
Sweatcoin is not crazy and just wants to make money from you. The app does this in several ways. For example, Sweatcoin has deals with services that appear in the store. The application is a kind of advertising brochure, in which you are tempted to take out subscriptions.
Many of these services supposedly have a nice offer in exchange for some Sweatcoin, such as a month of free trial. However, if you check outside the app, that trial month often turns out to be possible without Sweatcoin. The app actually places referral links in the store, so that the makers rake in customers for other companies and earn from them. This while you feel good because you have walked a lot to get this deal.
Is Sweatcoin Worth It?
Do you still want to use the app? Then it is good to keep an eye on the above points. So don’t expect too much from it, but who knows, you might reap a nice extra here and there. You only pay for this with your battery and personal information. Also, don’t forget to always read the terms and conditions before taking advantage of a deal, because you don’t want to be tied to a subscription.
If Sweatcoin motivates you to walk extra, that is of course only positive. Download the app via the button below in the App Store.