Sometimes being frugal isn’t enough to meet your financial obligations and goals and you’ll have to look for ways to earn some extra cash. Whether you’re a stay at home parent looking to supplement your family’s income, looking to pay down debt or establish an emergency fund or saving for a special purchase, here are some ideas to help you make some extra money.
Note that these are not get rich quick schemes and they might not work in every situation. The idea of this post is to help you brainstorm ways to use your unique skills and resources to make money that might not have occurred to you before.
1. Childcare. Occasional babysitting is not just for teenagers, in fact many parents prefer to have adult sitters and will pay a premium for experience child minders. Consider signing up with a service like Sitter City to find jobs.
2. Run errands for those who are too busy or incapable of doing it themselves. Be sure to check with your auto insurer and local regulations if you decide to offer a service that gives people rides, for example taking the elderly to do their shopping.
3. Pet sitting/dog walking. If you love animals but can’t have a pet of your own this could be a great part time job and a way to spend time with pets.
4. Secret shopping. Be sure to read the FTC guide on Mystery Shopping first to give you tips on signing up with a reputable agency. Also know that most require you to pay upfront for things like restaurant meals and then reimburse you for expenses along with the fee, so this might not be a good option if you are seriously strapped for cash.
5. Housecleaning. If you’d rather not do this on a regular basis, consider offering one-off services like helping get Spring/Fall cleaning done or specific jobs like washing windows, getting a home ready for a big party and so on.
6. Freelance writing. Even if you don’t have experience writing for publications, you can make money writing short, informative articles for companies such as Textbroker. You can find work writing for blogs at the Problogger job board, too. There are often writing jobs offered on Craigslist but proceed with caution as you could be scammed into working for free or ridiculously small amounts.
7. Start your own blog. This is by no means a guaranteed way to make money, but if you enjoy writing and/or taking photographs this could be a nice way to make a little extra money and have some fun. You can even be paid to review products or be given free samples, trips and other perks if you have a popular blog. You can get more information at Mom Bloggers Club.
Blogher is one ad network that bloggers can join to get ads that pay per view and sponsored review opportunities, and there are many more.
8. Handyman/woman services. If you are good with your hands, this can be an excellent way to make money and help people. Look into getting liability insurance if you do this sort of work though, as you could be sued if something goes wrong even if it’s not your fault. This kind of insurance is usually not prohibitively expensive and can offer great peace of mind. Ask your insurance agent for details.
9. Computer repair/lessons. Some ideas: help restore computers that have been crippled by viruses, make backups, fix computers that are slow, install new operating systems and teach people how to use their computers.
10. Do customer service work at home. West at Home is one company that offers people jobs working at home doing customer service work, such as taking orders from people calling 1-800 numbers. Your computer will need to meet certain minimum standards and you’ll need to purchase a headset to be able to type and talk on the phone at the same time. You can learn about similar jobs at the WAHM forums (work at home moms, but anyone can register and read, not just mothers).
11. Help with catering/clean up for special events. Call around to temporary staffing services and catering companies in your area to find out if they maintain an on call list of people looking to work doing things like setting up and breaking down large parties or serving and tending bar. You might need to obtain a permit to serve alcohol depending on your location, so do your homework.
12. Pass out samples or demonstrate merchandise. You can search for jobs and register a profile on the National Association for Retail Marketing website. This is a great job for outgoing personalities with a lot of patience.
13. Be a search engine evaluator/assessor. Lionsbridge and Leapforce are two corporations that contract people to work at home to evaluate search engine results. These jobs are in high demand so it can be awhile before you hear back.
14. Score essays and other standardized tests. Pearson Educational Measurement is one company that hires people to grade essays and other standardized tests. You’ll need to meet certain educational requirements and the work is seasonal by nature. This would be perfect for teachers and other professionals that have the summer off.
15. Perform small tasks. Amazon Mechanical Turk offers computer users the opportunity to make money doing small jobs like drawing boxes around objects in a picture or clicking on links to see if they are live or not. Most tasks pay pennies but you can do dozens or hundreds in an hour. It’s not great money but a lot of the jobs are things that can be done during commercial breaks while watching tv or other down time. Don’t do any tasks that ask you to sign up for mailing lists or complete offers, such as applying for credit cards.
Some other tips:
- Craigslist is not the only place where you can advertise your services for free. Many local papers now offer free online classifieds. Don’t forget about bulletin boards in local stores and community areas like churches or synagogues. Be sure to let everyone in your circle know that you are offering these services, networking is one of the most powerful ways there is to get a job.
- If you are wary posting your private phone number or email address in public, get a free email account to forward to your main address and sign up for Google voice to get a free phone number that can record voice mails for you, send you text transcriptions of the messages and forward the calls to your land-line or cell phone (only in the USA).
- Use reasonable caution before going to a stranger’s home. Be sure to let somebody else know where you are going and if the situation seems off to you, leave.
- Make sure to discuss and agree upon all terms before you start a job, including how and when payment will be made.
- Talk to your insurance agent about getting an umbrella policy for liability and any limits that might be placed on your auto or home insurance if you use them for work.
- Look into local regulations, particularly for services that involve food, transporting individuals or child care.
- Before you sign up for any work at home opportunity, do a search to find out about any complaints. Don’t let your hope for extra income cloud what you already know: if it’s too good to be true, it probably is.
- Do not pay a company to work for them. If they need to run a credit check or background check, it should be on their own dime. Also, be very cautious before handing over your social security number or other unique identifiers. There are legitimate reasons that a company would need this (for example to give you a 1099 at the end of the year) but you should check out their reputation thoroughly before handing it over.
- Speaking of 1099s, remember you are liable for taxes on any income you make. Keep careful records and stay on the right side of the IRS.
How do you earn extra money? Any tips or words of advice for those looking to find a way to bring make extra cash?
You may also want to check out these 9 ways to start earning extra money on the side.
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{ 44 comments… read them below or add one }
I currently have a full time job, but I do some freelance webdesign and website maintenance. I have also been thinking about selling my photography. I saw some not-that-great pictures being sold for $25 each, so if that sells, my (in my opinion better) pictures should sell too. There are a few venues I am thinking of, but I haven’t had the time to set up accounts and try it yet. If anyone has any advice on selling photographs, both digital and prints, I would appreciate it.
Hi KM. I have a friend who sells items with their photography on it on Zazzle. I am not sure of all the details, so I will forward them the URL to this post and let them reply to you. I *believe* they have written a post on it themselves.
If you have a specialized skill to offer, I find that it’s much easier to find “side work.” Find that skill and make it into a business.
I would add that almost any skill could be in demand. Many people believe that they have no particular skills worth “selling” but many others are making a good living selling the very same skill.
With the Internet giving us the ability to reach so many people, anyone could be making decent side income with some hard work and persistence.
A blog is a great way to add some side income, but it’s not an easy process and people have to realize it’s basically another job that requires time.
Helping out a friend is always a great way to make some extra money. Picking them up from the airport, moving, house sitting etc. When looking around for a way to make extra cash, ask around. Chances are a friend knows someone who needs an extra hand.
Great tips, Tracy. Thorough. I am forwarding this one to someone I know who’s looking for ways to make extra money while staying home with her kids.
These are some great tips and some which I am going to look into for myself. Thanks for all the wonderful articles you write. I look forward to your blog in my inbox every day.
Good list. Your tips are very practical and easy to do. This will help a lot of people to somehow reach their financial goals and save more money.
Taskrabbit.com is an errand running sites that allows people in the community to sign up as “runners” to run errands for other people. They’re currently in Boston and San Francisco.
When I was between jobs, years ago, I started a house cleaning service. I posted fliers at coffee shops, the Y, anyplace that had a bulletin board. I had more work than I knew what to do with. It was a temporary thing because I was moving across country so when it came time to move I sold the business and made a nice little profit.
I have friend that cleans roof gutters and installs Christmas lights for seasonal side work. When I was single, I would house sit. Family friends would go on vacation and I got paid to play with their pets. I loved it.
Good tips here, it is always nice to pick up a little cash.
Similiar to what Scott mentions, I would suggest mowing yards. If you pick up 1-2 yards per week, it will only take a couple of hours of your time, and you should make at least $30 per yard. Plus, another benefit is that you are getting a little extra exercise.
I always believed that we “create” our own jobs. It’s time that people stop depending on the state of the economy for their source of income and look at what they can offer the world with their natural skills and talents. I agree with MoneyNing that almost any skill can be in demand and with the power of the internet anyone can find a way to be successful, whether it is a monetized blog or just using the internet to advertise your services.
This is some good advice. There are so many more options to be able to work from home than people realize. Thanks for the writing resources in particular. I’m always looking for extra gigs and ways to spread content. Thanks.
You can always earn money at home by doing blogs and working as a freealance blogger. Thanks for sharing. Read more finance tips and wealth building at my site.
Mystery shopping has been really great for me when I’m low on cash. True, you don’t get the money right away, but it’s still a really big help. And occasionally you get to buy free stuff
Also, like someone else said above, if you have a skill – use it. I play piano and I’ve been making lots of money lately teaching lessons; it’s gone so well that I actually was able to quit my part-time job. I still don’t make a LOT, and I have to be really careful, but it’s great doing something that I actually enjoy.
I use a combination of many of the above to pull in money since the economic recession (or maybe depression is a better word for it) hit. Babysitting, e-bay to sell extra items I no longer use, etc.
I also have an online business doing affiliate marketing. This one can take some time to develop but if you are good with marketing, don’t mind investing time to learn a new skill, & can be patient you can pull in some extra dollars over time with this one. The thing about making money online is not to lose too much money on training courses that are nothing but an e-book or get involved with pure scams where you get nothing or very little back in return.
Just be careful out there because there are too many people touting make thousands overnight, etc. This doesn’t happen overnight. Just remember if it sounds too good to be true, it most likely is. Yet there are a few really good training programs out there that are very legitimate and can get you on a long term path to having an extra stream of income available every month.
I’ve read a few stories of people making money on sites like http://www.justafive.com . I think the concept is great, find something you can do really quickly that is valuable to others and promote it through Facebook, Twitter etc. There are some great jobs posted there that can save people a lot of time and money. Some fun stuff too like Trombone lessons for $10 over skype.
Another idea for making money easily is to start your own cell phone recycling business. Only 10% of people that buy new cell phones, sell their old cell phone. The number is lower for businesses. So….go to small businesses and ask if they have any old cell phones that they would like to sell. Familiarize yourself with the price that companies will pay for certain models or tell them you will get back to them with a quote. If the company has 20 Blackberry Bold’s, SellYourCell.com will pay nearly $100 (prices change) so you offer them something less, say $50, and you pocket $50 per phone. That’s $1,000. It’s a bit more complicated as you need to make sure that the phones will pass the technical check (work, not cracked, screen is OK, no water damage) but you can learn this quickly and if your profit margin is high enough then getting a bad phone once in a while won’t hurt you. This is a huge market since most people don’t know you can sell their old phones or think it’s too much trouble. Good luck.
Some great ideas here for quick extra money. One thing your readers who want to monetize their blogs might consider is joining forces with OpenSky.com. I was researching a story about small business and learned about them–very interesting way to make some money with your blog.
Hi,
My friend and I when started blogging have no idea this would be so much fun. Now, I can’t live without blogging. Blogging can make money as well as promotes you globally.
Through your post I would like to suggest blogging to retired people especially the senior citizen who can contribute by sharing their knowledge and experiences with others.
textbroker is good but requires you to be a resident of US…are there any other sites for global readers…similar to textbroker
You mention at the bottom that a company should pay for background checks but list West at Home a good option for extra money while they charge 30 bucks for a background check
Item #10: Do customer service work at home. Lists “West at Home” as the primary site to apply to. But note, at the end of the article, you list “other tips”
including:
Do not pay a company to work for them. If they need to run a credit check or background check, it should be on their own dime.
I looked into the West At Home site and found they charge you $29.95 to do a background check.
Most people need that extra money every once in a while, so it is a good idea to explore all the options available to do just that. Anyone can benefit from this, even retired people that would like to add to their savings. All it takes is some effort, and then the rewards will come.
Freelance writing has changed my life in just a couple of months. I realised in August, having bought a house that we are living and renovating at the same time, that my current wage would not be enough to survive on. I already worked on the internet, but hooked myself up with some writing work and have TRIPLED my income. Not only has this helped a lot financially but it’s given me a huge confidence boost.
If you can write- give it a go, you never know the opportunities that’ll you’ll come across.
I’d like to know more about writing online. I have had lots of experience writing, but I don’t know where to look online to find writing gigs that pay. Could you direct me to a few legitimate sites?
I’ve only just seen your message, so I hope you get this reply. I find all my work through oDesk. You do have to be careful as some people will try to rip you off…but I have worked over 60 contracts in a year and that has only happened to me once.
There is also a site called eLance, but I haven’t used it, so can’t say if it is any good!
I think craft items are good way make some extra cash people love hand made items but don’t have time to learn a craft skill.
Working from home can get boring and tedious, so have to have the right attitude in order for any home based work or business to succeed.
One of the easiest way to earn online is to sell people your services. For instance you are willing to design a new graphic ad for $5. This way you can put your talents at work and generate income.
Howdy, i’m a professional dancer. i’d like to see to make a showreel regarding my promotions. I also would like to use some animation. Can someone suggest me a fantastic animation studio, but not necessarily very expensive? I’m here for 3 months for a tour.
Love
Kim.
how can i earn extra doing accounts/ bookkeeping online?
Beconme a virtual assistant, your skills are high and in demand for other businesses. google, virtual assistant forums, their a others who have been doing it for years will give you tips.
I may sound stupid, but I need some direction. I’m in dire need of income, stuck at home disabled with some skills (among them customer service, surfing the net, a little bit of writing) but can’t seem to find the faith and guidance to engage in using skills to make some income. I feel confident that once I find a niche I will soar, but it’s just the take-off. Any suggestions? Thanks, Madeline
Some you should sign up on elance, guru.com or odesk.com to be freelancers especially the Marg with book keeping. Consider becoming a virtual assistant and launch your business. Selling on Amazon and Ebay does not hurt. You would be surprised how easy it is, to just set your profile, punchin the ISBN numbers and sell those dvds, books, eletronics, that you have no need of. Not to mention a garage sale, pool with a family member get the word out!
Oh and tried and true, sell Avon, Mary Kay or Tupperware or all three. Princess House, etc..
I love the great ideas! I was actually thinking on providing services to organize their cluttered areas I just want to know if there are specific requirements. (Like a license or permit) to be able to provide this service to people.
I am somewhat confused. In the “other tips” section of your article you say not to pay to work for a company or the necessary background check. You recommend WEST at Home though and they charge you for a background check. Is this something that you should NEVER pay for or does it depend on the company?
I was in radio for awhile and am interested in doing radio commercials, voice-over work and independent announcing. Is there a site for this?
HI im sarah i just turned 18 . i love with my older sister and her family . my mom died so I had to move south of california and I cant find a job. I ride my bike 6 miles to school and back. I am trying to earn my diploma because i was homeschooled all my life and my mom’s high school diploma isn’t recognized
and I found out I don’t have time. I need to earn my GED and join the navy because my brother in law will lose his job in 2 years. But for me to do that I have to take 15 semesters credit hours. and I have no money! I need it to continue my education and be able to actually eat. I cant take any food with me because there’s no food that can stay good all day in a backpack and have no money to buy food at school. I need a job really bad.. i have been applying everywhere that I can ride my bike to. No one is willing to hire me because of the diploma issue. I look like a high school drop out. is there any thing i can do to make money that they wont care about the diploma. I am great with children. I have worked in preschools with my mom as his little help when I was younger for 5 years and since then I taught 2 years at churches and worked in nursery’s and with that I have worked with some twins, down syndrome children and autistic childern . I am great researching. and i am very good with people.
Sarah, try being an in-home babysitter or a personal nanny. Lots of those jobs on craigslist in your local area (or close by). Also look for babysitting agencies like Seeking Sitters. They are in the yellow pages. Also make hand-written fliers and post in the area like at the library or grocery stores offering babysitting services.
Starting a blog, in my opinion can wield amazing results, but it does take work to begin. Over time, it becomes possible to make passive income, income with little effort.
Excellent tips! Thanks for sharing. Online income opportunities are a great way to earn money online. There are many ways to earn online which makes it easy to find something that works for you and will help you accomplish financial independence and freedom.