6 Ways to Get Instant Cash When You Just Can’t Wait

Fast cash offers are everywhere. But do those offers actually pan out?

Does this sound familiar? “Get your hands on fast cash now! Disclaimer: Cash is delivered within 2–4 business days.”

There’s nothing new about that. And while 2–4 business days might be fine in some circumstances, it doesn’t get the job done when you genuinely need a way to get instant cash.

We get it. Here are some ideas that will help you get some funds before the sun goes down.

1. Donate Plasma

They call it a donation, but in reality, you can get cold-hard cash on the spot for allowing these labs to drain your blood. Your blood consists of a few different parts, but the biggest portion is plasma.

Why do they want it? Plasma is hard to synthesize and can be used in medications, research, and certain treatments. Donating plasma is more time-consuming than giving blood, which is one of the reasons you can leave your plasma behind with some cash in your hand.

2. Get a Credit Card Cash Advance

Most loans take a little bit of time, even if it’s just a day or two. However, that’s not the case with a credit card cash advance. If you have a card that allows cash advances and has an available balance, accessing that money may be as easy as driving to the nearest ATM.

Bear in mind that most credit card cash advances don’t work like other purchases. Check your card agreement for details, but you’ll usually pay a higher interest rate on cash advance funds. Also, there’s not usually a grace period like there is for card purchases—you’ll start paying interest on that money from the moment you withdraw the cash.

3. Sell Your Old Clothes

Some thrift stores, like Goodwill, operate based on donations. It’s a great way to declutter but it doesn’t solve your cash flow problems. However, you can also find secondhand, thrift, and vintage shops willing to pay for quality used clothing. Of course, they’ll only take items that they expect to turn around and sell for a profit, so you’ll probably only be able to sell fashionable items in good condition.

4. Request a Payday Loan

Payday loans might be the easiest loan product to get approval for as long as you have a steady job. The general idea behind a payday loan is that you’ll borrow a few hundred dollars that you’ll repay out of your next paycheck. It’s generally a small, short-term loan that doesn’t require a great deal of risk for the lender. If you can’t repay it as agreed, the term can usually be extended—for an additional fee.

5. Work the Gig Economy

This one may take a little advanced planning, but once you’re set up, a lot of gig options let you cash out for any work you’ve done on the same day. You can drive people around, deliver food or groceries, set up store displays, and more. It’s work in exchange for pay, and it’s great to make the gig economy work for you if you need a way to get instant cash.

If you haven’t signed up for a gig platform in advance, you may still be able to find odd jobs that people always need to get done, like shoveling driveways in the winter, mowing grass in the summer, or raking leaves in the autumn. If you’re handy with wood or tools, you may be able to get a gig repairing home or fencing in exchange for some cash.

6. Sell Your Other Possessions

We talked about selling your old clothes to a thrift shop. You can sell clothes with this idea, but you can also sell absolutely anything else someone might want. Turn to popular sites or apps like Facebook Marketplace or Mercari and make a deal for same-day pickup/delivery. Look for buyers with a high rating, so you won’t be waiting around in a Walgreens parking lot for someone who won’t appear.

Get Money as Soon as the Next Day Through Lightning Money Loans

The unspoken truth about ways to get instant cash is that many of them are pretty limited. You can only sell plasma so often, for example, and once you unload all the clothes you don’t wear, they’re gone. Working a side hustle in the gig economy might be more sustainable, but it can also be exhausting if you add that to a full-time job and other responsibilities.

So if you still need money after going through our list, consider submitting a loan request through LightningMoneyLoans.com. We work with a network of over 50 lenders and financial partners, making it quick and easy to reach out to a lot of borrowing organizations at once. Most responses are rendered within minutes, and if you’re offered and accept a loan, you may be able to get the money deposited as soon as the next business day.

It’s not instantaneous—but it’s still pretty darn quick. Submit your loan request now.