A while back, I wrote that I like to look for money when I walk around. I find a minimum of $50 a year and would estimate over $100 most years (it helps to live in Japan where they have $1 and $5 coins). I received an email asking me where are the best places to find coins and so here is my top ten list for those who want to try.
Before I begin, let me emphasize that if you are doing this to try and make extra money, it’s not going to work.
Finding Money Walking Is Not About Finding Money
While it may be hard to understand, it really isn’t about the money. I have had a lot of friends in the past hear about how I am able to find money and decide they are going to try it too. Invariably, they come back in a week’s time saying that they haven’t found anything. The truth is, you won’t find anything most days. But, if you are not already looking, when you do find money, you probably wouldn’t have if you had not been looking. Those that are successful at it view it more as a game and treat it as such.
Another thing is I am basing this on my experience living in Japan. While I assume they will convert pretty well to those living in other countries, there are bound to be some slight differences. One of which is I walk a lot more in Japan than I ever do in the US (increasing my chances). And without further ado, here are the top 10 places I find money:
Top 10 Places To Find Money While Walking
10. Sidewalks: Most people don’t look at the sidewalk when they walk. It’s surprising how many people walk by money simply because they don’t see it. Keep your eyes on the sidewalk while walking and you are sure to find some coins.
9. Gutters: This may only apply to countries where there are a lot of people that ride scooters like in Japan. Walking on the edge of the sidewalk so that I can see the gutter increases the chances of me finding money. Gutters are especially good places to look after a rain. People usually want to get into their cars quickly and often overlook dropped coins.
8. Intersections / Crosswalks: I’m always on the lookout for money when crossing the street. For some reason, it seems to gather here more than on the sidewalks and gutters along the main portion of the street.
7. Train / Subway Stations: Public transportation stations are a good place to find fallen coins. People are taking out money to buy tickets and coins drop to the ground here and there.
6. Telephones: This used to be a great place to find coins and would have been much higher on the list if I had written it 5 years ago. With everyone now carrying a cell phone, it’s becoming harder to find coins around phone booths. Still, it’s worth a look since money does drop and people do forget the coins they are feeding into the phone from time to time.
5. Stores: People are at stores to buy things so they are taking money out of their pockets to pay for items they want. Coins get dropped and not all of them get found. Keep your eyes open along the sides and corners and you will find a stray coin from time to time. This is especially the case at the checkout stations at places like Target or Kroger.
4. Parking Lots: If I have an opportunity to cut through a parking lot, I don’t do it to save time or distance, but to look for coins. Parking lots are one of the better places to find coins. This is usually the case because people are digging into their pockets for their keys and accidentally pull out coins.
3. Self-Pay Parking Machines: I always pay special attention when I walk past a parking lot that has a self-pay machine as the person is exiting. This is because a lot of the time people are digging into their pockets and sometimes accidentally drop coins on the ground. Most of the time when this happens, the person doesn’t even notice it. Instead, they just leave. When this happens and the timing is right, that coin will become mine.
2. Around Vending Machines: There are a huge number of vending machines in most major cities and simply looking around them will provide you with a bunch of coins over a year’s time. This is especially true in winter when it’s cold outside and people are wearing gloves (I find far more coins in winter than I do in summer), or when its raining. They don’t have a feel for the coins and are more likely to drop one without noticing because of the weather. I’m sure I could find even more if I was willing to look under the vending machines (they even make special tools in Japan for people to do that), but I just can’t bring myself to do that.
1. Vending Machine Return Coin Slots: The place I find by far the most coins is in the coin return slots of vending machines. Luckily, most of them are clear plastic so you can see into them without getting down and reaching to feel around. As mentioned above, winter is the best time as people are often wearing gloves and don’t feel the coins they leave behind.
If you’re reading this because you’re interested in ways to make money without impacting your lifestyle, consider reading these other great articles:
Clark.com has an excellent list of 23 ways to make easy extra money.
Go Banking Rates has a great listing of some of the weirdest ways to make money.
Savvy New Canadians have a listing of 25 apps that help you make money with your smartphone.
Dinksfinance has a listing of radical ways to build wealth.
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