Mobile apps used in Tanzania to earn money online

Executive summary

This report identifies and ranks mobile apps that are commonly used in Tanzania to earn money online (or to enable online income), with store metrics captured as visible on Google Play as of February 27, 2026. For many apps, the “earning” is direct (freelancing, driver/courier gigs, microtasks) while for others it is enabled (social commerce, content creation tooling, ecommerce operations). Google Play metrics (rating/reviews/download brackets) are global aggregates and will change over time. 

A key constraint for Tanzanian users is payouts: PayPal accounts in Tanzania are listed by PayPal as “send payments only” (no ability to receive), which makes many survey/microtask apps that pay exclusively via PayPal materially less practical unless the user has an alternate eligible PayPal setup (not assumed here). 

Across categories, the strongest “earnings-per-hour” paths tend to be:

• Driver platforms (where legally eligible) such as Uber and Bolt driver apps—because pay is tied to real-time service delivery, with defined commission structures and recurring payouts. 
• Freelancing marketplaces (especially for digital skills) such as Upwork and Fiverr—because earnings scale with skill, while platform fees and KYC rules are explicit. 
• Social commerce and creator monetization via platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok—because most cashflow is “off-platform” (brand deals, direct sales), which can make payout access easier, but income variability is high and depends on audience/community and product-market fit. 

Regulatory and compliance considerations in Tanzania matter most for:

• Ride-hailing (operator requirements and driver documentation, including LATRA-related documents referenced by Bolt). 
• Betting (use only licensed operators; one example app explicitly states it is licensed by the Gaming Board of Tanzania). 
• Tax (online creators and digital services have Tanzania Revenue Authority guidance, including on content creation and digital services). 

Scope and scoring methodology

Selection focused on apps that:

• are accessible via Google Play listings (and in some cases have Tanzania-specific pages or Tanzania-localized support pages), 
• support at least one recognized “earn money online” pathway relevant to Tanzania: freelancing, gig work, sales/marketplaces, microtasks/surveys, content/creator pathways, ecommerce operations, investing/credit products, or betting. 

Ranking criteria and weights

Each app receives an Overall score (0–100) computed from four components:

• Reliability & legitimacy (35%): brand maturity, transparency of terms, and (when applicable) explicit regulatory/verification requirements (e.g., driver docs, platform KYC). 
• Earnings potential (25%): modeled, category-based, emphasizing realistic scalability in Tanzania (e.g., gig work and skilled freelancing score higher than surveys).
• Payout accessibility in Tanzania (20%): whether typical cash-out rails are realistically usable in Tanzania; apps paying only via PayPal score lower because PayPal lists Tanzania as send-only. 
• User satisfaction (20%): based on Google Play star rating and review volume (log-scaled), using the snapshots shown in cited Google Play sources. 

A separate Trust/Reliability score (0–10) is reported as the analyst’s qualitative summary of the reliability component.

Ranked apps and comparison table

The table below provides a ranked comparison of 30 apps. Fields not found in the cited sources are marked unspecified.

Legend

• Platforms: A=Android, iOS=iPhone/iPad app, Web=usable via browser/portal
• Monetization method tags: (Freelancing, Gig-driving, Courier, Selling goods, Ecommerce ops, Microtasks, Surveys, Content creation, Affiliate/referral, Investing/credit, Betting)
• “TZ payout rails” list is limited to what is evidenced in sources; otherwise unspecified.

Notes on “Typical earnings range” (modeled)

Because most platforms do not publish Tanzania-specific earnings distributions in the official sources captured here, typical earnings below are modeled scenario ranges (not guarantees) and were used for the Earnings potential component:

• Driver/courier gigs: highly variable by city, hours, incentives, and vehicle costs; often “daily cashflow” with platform commissions (e.g., Bolt’s 20% commission statement for Tanzania). 
• Freelancing: highly variable by skill, portfolio, and buyer demand; explicit platform fees can materially affect net income (e.g., Fiverr’s seller commission; Upwork’s service fee). 
• Surveys/microtasks: typically low and inconsistent; also strongly constrained by payout rails (PayPal limitation in Tanzania is a major determinant). 

App-by-app data highlights

This section consolidates additional “load-bearing” details that materially impact earnings reliability in Tanzania.

Payout accessibility in Tanzania

Many popular microtask/survey apps explicitly pay to PayPal (weekly or on request), but PayPal lists Tanzania as send-only. This mismatch is a principal reason that survey apps are ranked lower on “payout accessibility,” even if their ratings are high. 

Apps with payout methods less dependent on PayPal—bank transfers, or Payoneer as described in some listings—score higher on payout accessibility. 

Platform fees that meaningfully affect net earnings

• Bolt: Tanzania support states a 20% commission; booking fee policies are also published and local reporting indicates additional fee structures can be a point of dispute. 
• Fiverr: Fiverr’s own materials describe a 20% commission on each transaction and a clearing period before withdrawal. 
• Upwork: Upwork describes a freelancer/talent service fee (10% on its pricing page) and also provides a fee calculator that indicates fees can vary by contract context. 
• Shopify: Shopify publishes both subscription plan pricing and explicit third‑party transaction fees that apply when Shopify Payments isn’t available (as is the case when your country isn’t supported for Shopify Payments). 

Category landscape

Risks, scams, and Tanzania regulatory considerations

Common “earn online” scam patterns to watch for

Across Tanzania-focused communities, the highest-risk patterns (often not tied to well-known brands) include apps that promise fixed daily returns for “watching videos,” “clicking ads,” or “deposit-to-unlock” earning with unusually high ROI. These are frequently associated with withdrawal lockups, KYC bait, or referral-chain incentives.

Practical risk-reduction steps that map to the apps in this report:

• Never pay in advance to unknown sellers on classifieds; one marketplace explicitly cautions users “do not pay in advance” and advises meeting in safe public places. 
• Treat survey apps with PayPal-only payouts as high friction for Tanzania given PayPal’s stated limitation (send-only); prefer apps with bank-transfer-capable rails. 
• For driver/courier apps, ensure income calculations include commission/booking fees where applicable. 

Tanzania-specific regulatory and compliance touchpoints

• Ride-hailing and driver documentation: Bolt’s Tanzania driver requirements reference several documents including a LATRA vehicle licence, commercial registration documentation, and police clearance certificate requirements, indicating that “earn via ride-hailing” is not purely a software decision—compliance is part of the cost/feasibility model. 
• Betting: Use of licensed operators matters. One betting app listing explicitly states it is “licensed by the Gaming Board of Tanzania” (licence number shown on the listing). 
• Tax (online creators and digital services): Tanzania Revenue Authority provides guidance affecting online income streams such as content creation and digital services; creators and digital sellers should treat monetization as taxable unless clearly exempt. 
• Investing: For investment-like apps, prioritize products explicitly referencing licensed entities and regulators. One finance app listing states that a fund manager is regulated by the Capital Markets and Securities Authority and references a microcredit provider regulated by the Bank of Tanzania with a license number. 

Data gaps and verification notes

• App Store ratings, iOS availability, and iOS “downloads”: Apple does not publish download counts publicly and many store pages are region-specific. Where iOS data wasn’t captured in sources, it is marked unspecified.
• Country availability: For some global apps, availability in Tanzania can vary by feature (especially payments, shop programs, and creator monetization). Several listings explicitly caution that features may not be available in all countries/regions. 
• “Typical earnings range”: This report uses modeled ranges for scoring because official, Tanzania-specific earnings distributions are rarely published in the primary sources captured here. Where platform fees are explicitly stated (e.g., Bolt commission, Upwork/Fiverr fees), those were treated as hard constraints on net earnings potential.