How Secret World Works: The Complete Guide to the App (2026)

Most apps make you pick a lane. One for gigs, one for selling, one for deals, one for your portfolio. Secret World puts all of it on one map, so the first time you open it there's a lot going on.

Look at the photo up top. A guy carrying a box up the steps for a neighbor, and getting paid for it. Two girls selling hoodies off a rack on the sidewalk. A coffee shop running a buy 2 get 1 free sale. Three different hustles on one block. That's the future we pictured, and it's what we're building for.

This is the full walkthrough. Every marker, every button, and how trust works when you're dealing with people you just met.

The short answer: Secret World is a free app for iPhone and Android that shows a live map of opportunities around you. Gold coins are paid tasks you can pick up, flame-eye pins are pop-ups selling something nearby, and storefront pins are local shops with deals. You can post your own task or pop-up, build a Creator Card where your past work is your resume, and every job you do adds to your record.

How do you sign up for Secret World?

It takes about a minute.

• Sign in with your phone, Google or Apple. Phone gets a text code.
• Add your email. That's where receipts and your weekly "best near you" email go. It's for contact, not for logging in.
• Turn on notifications and location. Location is what makes the map work. Without it, you'll see an island telling you to turn it on, because a map of what's near you can't know what's near you.
• Add a photo, your name and your birthday. Secret World is 18+. If you're under 18, you don't get in. Stay in school.

That's it. No bio, no resume, no long profile. You can add a bio later whenever you want.

What do the pins on the map mean?

The map is your home screen. It only ever shows three kinds of pins, and each one is a verb.

• Gold coin: earn it. A paid task someone nearby posted. Carrying a couch, walking a dog, helping set up a market table.
• Flame with an eye: make it. A pop-up. Someone selling food, clothes, art or a service near you right now, for a set amount of time.
• Storefront: save it. A local shop on the map, with its deals, menu, memberships and jobs.

Up top you'll see Earn Now with a piggy bank and a dollar amount. That's the total money in tasks around you at that moment. It's not a button, just a reminder of what's on the table.

Filter the map with All, Task, Popup or Business when you only want one kind.

How do tasks work on Secret World?

A task is a small job with a clear finish line. Tap a gold coin and you'll see what needs doing, where, when and what it pays.

• You pick it up. No resume, no interview. If it fits your time and you're close, you're in.
• You chat in the app to sort out the details before you go.
• You show up, do it, get paid the way you both agreed.

Some tasks offer barter instead of money. A haircut for help moving. A free plate for an hour at a pop-up. You decide if the trade is worth it.

Tasks are everyday stuff that doesn't need a licence or a trade. If a job needs an electrician or a plumber, it doesn't belong on the map.

Posting a task is free, and Secret World doesn't take a cut of what you earn. New to this? Start with How to Earn Money by Tasks: A Simple Guide for Beginners.

What is a Scene?

A Scene is a task with a whole cast. One person posts it and hires several people into different spots for one event.

Say you're shooting a music video. You need someone on camera, a few extras, a driver and someone holding lights. Instead of four separate posts, you write it as a Scene: the spots you need filled, and the moments that happen, in order.

Each spot is its own job. People apply to the spot they want, you pick who you want for each one, and each person is paid and rated separately. It's a script, not a contract. If one spot doesn't get filled, the shoot still happens.

Scenes work for shoots, crowds, staged moments, crews and pushes online, like getting real people to support a post.

How do pop-ups work?

Tap the + in the middle of the bottom bar and pick what you're making first: a task or a Scene, a solo pop-up or a group pop-up.

A pop-up tells people what you're selling, where you are and how long you're out. People nearby see it on the map in real time, the same way they'd see a coffee shop.

• Solo pop-ups are you and your table, rack, chair or trunk.
• Group pop-ups are a few people going in together, like a mini market or a block event.
• Pop-ups can move. Food trucks, mobile car washes, mobile barbers and drivers can keep their pin where they actually are.
• Add a menu. List what you sell, with photos and prices, so people know before they walk over.

Pop-ups were always buried under the algorithm. On a map, the person two blocks away sees you without following you. We wrote more about that in Pop-Ups: The Stores Your Feed Never Shows You.

What is a Creator Card?

Your Creator Card is your resume, except it's your work instead of your school or your last job.

• A main persona and a side persona. Who you are, like Barber and DJ, or Photographer and Foodie.
• Hit me up for. What people can ask you for: content, catering, modeling, a ride, a hand.
• Find me on. Links to wherever you already post and sell, like Instagram, TikTok, WhatsApp, Etsy or eBay.
• Your record. The proof, built from real jobs (more on that below).
• A Message button, so anyone who likes your work can reach you.

Creator Cards live in the Creators tab, sorted by city with the newest people first. Creator Cards get verified, which is the green check, so people know the card belongs to a real person. A card is meant to be screenshot-worthy, the kind of thing you'd be proud to post.

How does the self-review and record system work?

This is the part that keeps strangers honest.

Your self-review comes first. Before anyone has rated you, you get to say who you are, in your own words. It shows on your profile above everything else. When you're new, that's what people read. As you do more jobs, real ratings build up underneath it and either back you up or don't.

Your record is built from real jobs only. After a task, the person who hired you rates how it went. Those ratings add up into a five-point shape, like a fighting game stat chart:

• Showed up: did you come
• On time: were you on time
• Did it right: was the job done properly
• Went extra: did you do more than asked
• Replied fast: did you answer messages quickly

A bigger shape means a stronger record. Stars alone don't tell you much. The shape tells you exactly what someone is good at.

It goes both ways. Hirers have a record too: whether they paid what they agreed, whether they closed the job out, and whether the job was what they described. So if someone posts a $40 task and pays $20, that follows them.

Comments come with it. People who worked with you can leave a few words, and you can see both sides before you say yes to anyone.

How do shops and deals work?

Shops get a digital storefront on the map. Tap a storefront pin and you can open each part of it:

• Deals to save money.
• Menu with items and photos.
• Memberships, like a gym or club plan the shop offers.
• Hiring for real shifts and store jobs.

There's no coupon to claim. You walk in and tell them you saw the deal on Secret World. Once a week you also get one email with the best deals near you, instead of a pile of spam.

Own a shop? That side is the separate Secret World Business app. More in How to Promote My Local Business Online with Secret World.

What are Moments?

Moments are your diary. Post what you're up to, and choose Everyone or Just me for each one. You can also limit how far back people can scroll, like the last three days or the last month. It's your page, not a feed fighting for attention.

Chat and staying safe

Everything you agree on, you agree on in Chat, so there's a record of it. Before you meet someone, check their profile and their record. Meet in public the first time when you can, and tell a friend where you're going. If something feels off, walk away and report it in the app. We put the full checklist in Meeting Someone Nearby: How to Stay Safe.

Why we built it: the entrepreneur era

The old path was one job, one boss, one paycheck. That's changing fast. Lots of people already make money on the side, and Bankrate's 2025 survey found 34% of Gen Z have a side hustle. We think the entrepreneur era is coming, where everyone is a business owner for themselves of some kind.

You might pick up tasks this week, run a pop-up next month and open a real shop in a few years. Secret World is built for that whole path. The map doesn't care if you have a storefront, a following or a resume. It shows what you've got to the people around you.

And it's built on people. AI can write your emails and answer your questions, but it can't carry a couch up four flights, braid hair, cook a plate, show up to your shoot or hand you a hoodie at a pop-up. The work on Secret World happens face to face, between real people a few blocks apart. Human to human connection is the part AI can't replace, and it's the part we're building on.

That's the future we pictured. Every pin on the map is somebody's business.

Where Secret World works

Secret World works worldwide. It started in New York City, where the map is busiest, but you can post a task or drop a pop-up from any city you're in. Taking your hustle on the road? Read How to Make Money While Traveling: Everything Is a Pop-Up.

Frequently asked questions

How does the Secret World app work?

Secret World is a live map of opportunities around you. Gold coins are paid tasks you can pick up, flame-eye pins are pop-ups selling something nearby, and storefront pins are local shops with deals. You can post your own task, Scene or pop-up, build a Creator Card, and every job you finish adds ratings to your record.

Is Secret World free?

Yes. Downloading Secret World, browsing the map, picking up tasks and posting tasks and pop-ups are free right now, and Secret World doesn't take a cut of what people earn. Shops that want a digital storefront on the map pay a monthly subscription through the separate Secret World Business app.

What is the self-review on Secret World?

The self-review is a short description you write about yourself, in your own words, before anyone has rated you. It shows first on your profile, so new people get a fair start. As you finish real jobs, ratings from the people you worked with build your record underneath it.

How do ratings work on Secret World?

After a job, the person who hired you rates how it went. The ratings make a five-point record: showed up, on time, did it right, went extra and replied fast. Hirers get rated too, on paying what they agreed, closing the job out and describing the job honestly.

What is a Scene on Secret World?

A Scene is a task with several roles for one event, like a music video shoot that needs a camera person, extras and a driver. Each role is its own spot that people apply to, and each person is picked, paid and rated separately. The event still happens if one spot goes unfilled.

Can AI replace the work on Secret World?

No. The work on Secret World is human to human: carrying, cooking, braiding, shooting, selling and showing up in person. AI can help people write a post or answer a question, but it can't be there in real life. Secret World is built on real people a few blocks apart helping, hiring and buying from each other.

Do I need to be 18 to use Secret World?

Yes. Secret World is for people 18 and older. You enter your birthday when you sign up, and anyone under 18 can't get onto the map.

Get on the map

That's the whole thing. Earn it, make it, save it, all on one map. Download Secret World