How to Make Money in GTA Online - GTA 5 Wiki Guide

How to Make Money in GTA Online
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If you want the best Cars, Weapons, and Properties in GTA Online, you're going to have to make money. GTA Online offers so many options to players that the best way to make money isn't always apparent.
Rockstar's recent GTA Online 1.04 patch alters the payout structure for Missions. Jobs now pay only one-half their original cash value on subsequent playthroughs.

1. GTA 5 Stimulus Package

As some compensation for GTA Online's widespread launch issues, Rockstar has publicly promised all current GTA Online players a $500,000 bankroll boost to their characters. Any player who logs in during October 2013 is eligible.[n]
Updated Nov 1:
First announced in October, the GTA Stimulus package will likely appear in early November, possibly as soon as the weekend of Nov 8. This compensatory program offers $500,000 as an outreach by Rockstar toward the community as a way of atoning for some of GTA Online's service woes.
The deposit will come in two installments, each of $250,000. Rockstar announced that they'd like to get the first batch of money into player hands by the end of the week of October 13-20th.

2. Get a Job

Jobs are the most efficient way for early-game GTA Online players to farm wealth. They are relatively short, provide substantial rewards for success and adequate rewards for participation. They also offer opportunities to increase Stats, Rank and Reputation.

Jobs also offer an upward path of mobility toward greater cash rewards. The more Jobs you take on, the more financially rewarding new Jobs become.
Jobs can be found scattered all over the Map, but the easiest way to access Jobs is to check the Quick Jobs tab on your Cell Phone. From this menu you can access all unlocked Job types for your character and find matchmaking options for partners in crime.
You will sometimes receive occasional invitations from other players to participate in Jobs. Completing elements of the in-game story also opens new types of Jobs to the player.
Looking to earn money in single-player GTA ? Head over to our Making Money in GTA 5 page and you'll score more money than you can spend!
Once involved with a Job, you may choose to remain in a Job Playlist with other players, moving between Deathmatches, Races, Sporting Events (including parachuting) and missions.
Survival matches unlock at level 15 and are a great way to earn cash. Successfully making it to the end of level 10 (normally takes less than 10 minutes) pays out $20,000. These survival missions are anywhere from 1 to 4 players and fairly simple to beat if you work as a team. The plane boneyard map has a building that you can climb onto the roof of that gives you a pretty big advantage. You can replay these as many times as you like and rake in the dough. 
Jobs create a cycle of increasing returns, growing in value as you grow in experience. Supplement competitive Jobs with occasional Missions to keep opening up new options.  
Several multi-player cooperative Mission type Jobs provide substantial cash rewards to ambitious players.
Due to the recent 1.04 patch, any jobs you replay give you only half as much of a payout than when you first completed them. 

3. Grab Quick Cash

As a change of pace, you can also knock over a convenience store or steal a car to pick up extra bucks.
Car Theft has a pretty great return, although you can only perform thefts infrequently. Robberies can be fun, but they're dangerous and not particularly cash efficient.

Selling Cars

Los Santos Customs Mod Shops will purchase non-tracked cars for handy prices. Driving a jacked car to a nearby Mod Shop will garner a little extra spending money. Note that cops online are always on the lookout for stolen cars. The rewards can be substantial, although you can only sell one car per in-game day (48 minutes). SUV's sell for good prices, ranging between 3,5K and 7K (Baller is worth 9k). Lampadeti Felon's sell for $9,000+. For more Information view Best Selling Cars.The math appears to be that the modshop sell price is 10% of any vehicles actual purchase price (which is why no car can be sold for more than $9,500, upgrades notwithstanding).
Repair prices match to the discounted 'sell' prices (ie. Damaged car will sell for $2,200, repair costs $300. Repaired car sells for $2,500). 
It is also worth considering using your second character slot as a 'car mule'. That is because all banked money is shared between your characters, but any one of your characters can only own one property(for now). Therefore, invest in a cheap 6-car garage for your second character (preferably near a mod shop, for labours sake). At the start of any gaming session, use your mule to go off hunting for any $6-9k cars, filling your garage. Find a seventh car, sell it. Now switch to your main character, play as normal, then roughly every 50 minutes, you can switch back to the mule and casually sell the held cars. Of course the additional benefit (particularly at this point in time) is that switching between your characters does a 'manual' save to the Rockstar vapour servers.
The Richman area is probably one of the best places to prowl for the high-end (but sellable), cars.
Simeon also has a varying wish list of high-priced rides. He will text you a list of cars he desires. If you happen upon one of these, take it to a mod shop, respray it, then drive it down to the docks. Bring them to him, and you'll garner a decent reward (approx. x2 what a mod shop would offer depending on the condition of the vehicle), even if you are left stranded in the docks.

Robberies

GTA Online Robberies are similar to GTA 5 Robberies. You step into one of the many potential stores (which include gas stations and different convenience stores), point a gun at the clerk, grab the money, and flee before the cops arrive. Online, a couple of new twists are added to the process.
First, yelling at the Cashier causes him to unload his money more quickly. Note that your yelling may be overheard by others on your chat channel. Second, Robberies may be conducted cooperatively with other players, with the bagman responsible for divvying up the cash at the Heist's conclusion. To divide the earnings, you hold select to bring up the Quick Interaction menu. From here you go to Inventory->Cash. After this you merely click the split option, and divide the money amongst the participants. Note that cuts are in percentage and not raw amounts for convenience. 
UNSTOPPABLE GETAWAY STRATEGY:

This method requires 2-players, but if done correctly, you will be able to hit every store in San Andreas multiple times while barely taking any damage.
First, get a Three-Star Wanted Level. Next grab a police van. Have someone driving and someone in the back. BE SURE THAT THE DOORS ARE CLOSED! The police van is covered in armor and has bulletproof windows. If you back the van up to the doors of the liquor store leaving just enough space for your partner to open the doors and get out, you can hit every store in San Andreas, making an easy 15 grand at least. The hard part is losing your wanted level afterwards as the van is incredibly slow.

4. Protect Your Earnings

Don't forget to stash your ill-gotten gains in the bank as soon as possible. Opportunistic rivals wait like vultures to steal money from players coming off Jobs with full pockets.

Dive into your Cell Phone, browse the internet, and deposit your money in the bank immediately after every Job. The easiest way is to simply click your phone, then click the tab relating to money and click the third option which should be Maze Bank. 
Don't waste your early game cash on Clothes or cosmetics. Save your money for Weapons, Ammo, and Armor, and invest in a $25,000 Garage if you're interested in collecting Cars. At the moment you can only have one property in your ownership. This means if you buy a garage, you cannot purchase a house at the same time. However you can sell your old properties at a slightly lower price than that which you purchased them for. Some players might find it better to save for a house rather than a garage. 2-car garage houses are roughly eighty thousand or less. Six-car garage houses are around 120 thousand. Ten-car garage houses start around 200 thousand. 
When you die on the free-roaming world map, you respawn at a Hospital. While it's not immediately apparent, every one of these visits is siphoning money straight out of your banking funds. The cost in currency is a real burden for cash-strapped new players. Likewise, players sometimes harvest rival corpses for cash, stealing your recent earnings off your body. There are two main ways to avoid expensive Hospital fees.

MUGGING

Once you reach Level 50, you can call Lamar and he'll have a thief mug another player. This can be a quick way to make some cash if you are the one calling the thief; alternatively if you are the one who gets mugged, a random masked NPC brandishing a knife will run at you, knock you over, and take all of the cash that you have on hand. (This is why getting in the habit of putting your money in the bank is so crucial.) It should be noted that it is possible to stand up and kill the thief before he gets away. The reward will be your money back and an achievement/trophy. 

Play in Passive Mode

Passive Mode becomes available to players after their first open-world death. It can be activated at any time in the open world through the Interactive Menu. It costs $0 to enter Passive Mode. Passive Mode protects you from an attack by players on foot. You can neither harm nor be harmed by enemies outside of a Vehicle. While this doesn't protect you from being run over by Cars, it does keep you from being chosen as a special target for jerk-sniper-campers. Climb onto a low roof and you're almost immune to damage, allowing you to peruse Jobs at will.

Stay in Jobs

An even better defense against cash-drain, during money farming, is to stay altogether outside the open world and hop from Job to Job as quickly as possible. Dying during Jobs will only cost you hospital fees (you won't drop your money like in free mode), and since Jobs are already the best way to farm money early on, you'll do well to simply follow the flow of a group Playlist while farming.
Also by doing one of the Airport races.