How would having a bit of extra money change your life?
Would you use it to pay off debt or bills? To finance a vacation or to treat yourself a little bit? Maybe you want to save for the future. Sometimes it feels like we only have enough money to spend on what we need, but what if you had enough to spend on what you want?
Even if you work a full-time job, there are dozens of ways to make money outside of work. Side hustles vary greatly, and often enable you to utilize your own skills and knowledge to earn some extra cash. Having a little bit more money can really go a long way in helping you save or better manage essential expenses. Or it can simply take the financial stress out of everyday life.
The amount of time you’re willing to devote to a little extra work will ultimately determine how much you’re able to make. So kill that downtime by earning, and see all the ways your life will change with some extra money!
Here are 36 ways to make some cash on the side.
Earning Extra Income Can Change Your Life
Having a side hustle or a way to make some extra money on a daily, weekly or monthly basis can be life-changing. Whether you’re putting this money aside for retirement or splurging on an upcoming vacation, you’ll find that life is a little sweeter when there are additional paydays.
To put it in perspective, many of the ways to make extra money on this list can bring in around $100 to over $500 each month, mostly with a little bit of effort and a ton of freedom.
While that may not seem like anything crazy, in one year, an extra $500 a month adds up to $6,000! This extra $6,000 can go a long way in terms of boosting your savings or cushioning a checking account.
Earning extra income doesn’t have to be hard as long as you’re smart about it.
Choose a gig that allows you to utilize prior knowledge or a passion of yours, and work on your own schedule. There’s a certain sense of freedom when it comes to working on a side hustle, and you’ll find it fits a wide range of schedules and preferences, whether you’re looking to make a quick buck doing menial work or capitalize on a hobby or skill.
If you love to travel like we do at AIY, you’ll quickly realize that generating extra income is especially handy because a quick side job can translate into extra time spent adventuring or help finance a future excursion.
Plus, many of the methods to make extra money allow you to work on the go, so even if you’re traveling you’ll be able to keep earning.
There are certainly tradeoffs, like having to devote extra hours to your side hustle after a full day’s work or while on the go. But let’s face it, chances are you’re spending those hours watching Netflix anyways so you may as well do something productive instead.
Life can really improve when that extra bit of money hits your account each month. Regardless of whether you’re using it to save for the future or book a flight across the world, you’ll certainly be glad you have it.
✨The 1 Thing We Never Leave Home Without…✨
Coming from someone who has been traveling the world for the last 8 years AND has been in the hospital 2x, travel insurance is something everyone NEEDS to get. Get a quote below!
How to Make Extra Money
Looking to make some extra cash? There’s something for everyone on this list, whether you’re searching for passive income or interested in monetizing one of your hobbies.
Here are some of the best ways to earn money with a side hustle.
18 Side Hustles to Earn Extra Money Offline
Rent or sell your things, offer your services to those in need, or work with children — these are all examples of easy and quick ways to make money offline. That said, many offline side hustles are facilitated through an app or website as a means to connect those interested in earning to those in need of a service.
But you get the point… here are 18 ways to make extra money offline.
List Your Home on Airbnb
You Can Earn: $500 – $2,000 per month
One of the easiest ways to make extra money is to list your home on Airbnb. Whether it’s a single room or an entire house, someone out there is willing to pay you for a place to rest their head.
The flexibility that Airbnb gives hosts is outstanding as you can rent your place while still living in it. Spare bedroom? Fold-out couch? Whatever extra space you have, you can list it.
Airbnb allows you to be a host whether you’re inhabiting the property or not, and it’s a great way to utilize unused space and earn money from it. With over 150 million registered Airbnb users, no matter where your listing is, you can bet someone will come across it.
The best part about listing your home on Airbnb is that you get to set the prices and dictate when you want to rent. Signing up and creating a listing is entirely free, and they only charge a 3% service fee per reservation.
How much you earn is determined by many factors like location, whether you’re renting an entire place or just a room, the season — you get the idea. The cool thing is that Airbnb can provide a real-time estimate of how much you could earn, based on your location and home capacity.
For example, if you wanted to list a private room in Boston, based on average prices, you’ll be able to earn around $1,860 per month for just 15 days of occupancy!
Another great thing about listing your home on Airbnb is that the payout process is hassle-free. Airbnb will typically release payout after 24-hours of the guest’s scheduled check-in time. How soon the money arrives in your account will then depend on your selected payment method.
As an Airbnb host, you also have the flexibility of setting the availability of your home and deciding on the price of your listing and the house rules for your guests.
Whether you’re home or on the road, you have the ability to make large amounts of money by listing your place on Airbnb.
Talk about making extra money fast and effectively! Want to learn how to become an Airbnb host? Our complete guide can help get you started.
Rent Your Car
You Can Earn: $300 – $600 per month
Looking for more things to rent out? Give your car a spin!
With platforms like Turo, you can rent your car to those looking to use it for a short term. This is awesome if you live in a big city and have other transportation options, or if you have a spare car just collecting dust in the garage.
The money you make on Turo greatly depends on your car and location. For instance, the average earnings per month in the U.S. for listing a 2015 Nissan is $442, which amounts to $5,300 a year! What would you do with an extra $5,000?
Turo has three different levels of insurance, and with the basic option, they take a 15 to 25% cut of each ride. That said, all you have to do is set the pick-up and drop-off terms and make a gigantic profit from letting someone drive your ride around for a few days.
Drive for a Ride-Sharing App
You Can Earn: $20 – $35 per hour
Car too precious to let other people drive it? Why don’t you drive other people instead?
With the rise of the sharing economy, Uber, Lyft and other ride-sharing applications are sweeping the world and always looking for more drivers.
Through setting your own schedule and driving where you want, these apps allow drivers to make between $20 and $30 an hour, depending on the location.
Now, you can even sign up for ride-sharing initiatives like GrabHitch or BlaBlaCar which gives you the opportunity to make back gas costs while driving someone in the same direction you’re already going. Doing this, you’re not only earning money but not losing any time either!
This is a super easy way to earn some extra income because you completely set the terms. If this is something that interests you, it’s free to sign up as a driver, but just note, most apps take 20 to 25% from each fare.
Deliver Food
You Can Earn: $8 – $12 per hour
People not your thing? Drive around food instead! Nowadays, you can order food from just about any restaurant and have it delivered.
Through services like GrubHub, DoorDash, UberEats, Postmates or FoodPanda, you can sign up to deliver food — all you need is a reliable way to get from Point A to Point B. Whether it’s your car, bike, scooter or feet, as long as you can get the food delivered on time, you’re set!
To give you an idea of how much you can make picking up and dropping off food, the average UberEats driver makes between $8 to $12 an hour. Uber takes a 25% cut, but you also earn a pick-up fee, a drop-off fee and a mileage fee as well.
Pro tip: To make maximum amounts of profit, deliver during a lunch break or dinner rush. You know how people love their takeout!
Deliver Groceries
You Can Earn: $10 – $15 per hour
Along the same lines as delivering food, you can also deliver groceries to those who need them (or to those who are too lazy to go out and get them themselves).
Through apps like Instacart, customers are able to put together a grocery list and then you do the shopping for them while earning an average of $11 an hour. It doesn’t get much easier than picking up a few boxes of cereal and a case of soda for a payday.
This is another one where you can work whenever you want, so freedom is of the essence here!
Become a Driving Advertisement
You Can Earn: $300 – $500 per month
While we’re riding the car wave, one last way to make extra income using your vehicle (and probably the easiest way) is to become a driving advertisement.
Through the platform Wrapify, you can sign up to have your vehicle wrapped in an advertisement and make money from driving it around. The more you drive, the more you earn, so you can feel good going to the grocery store that’s a little further away or dropping your friends at home instead of making them walk.
How much you make greatly depends on the location and type of car you’re driving, but on average, people with wrapped cars are making between $300 and $450 a month! That’s a lot of money to deck out your car.
Clean Out Your Closet
You Can Earn: $50 – $400, depending on what you sell
Is your closet filled to the brim with old clothes? See those branded bags you don’t want to get rid of but know you’re never going to use? This is the perfect opportunity to make some extra cash.
People are eager to buy second-hand clothing, bags and shoes — no matter where you’re listing them. If you want to go the online route, you can use websites like Poshmark, but it’s also easy to sell your clothes in person to second-hand stores like Buffalo Exchange, Second Time Around, or something of the like.
Just remember, the days of that leather mini skirt are over and it’s ready to find it a new home.
Sell Unused or Unwanted Stuff
You Can Earn: $50 – $3,000, depending on what you sell
Not keen to part with any of your clothes? What about other unused or unwanted stuff that’s just laying around the house? You can earn a good chunk of cash by selling old electronics, sports equipment, and jewelry, so why not clear out the garage and make a quick buck at the same time?
For those who want to sell their pre-loved items from the comfort of their own home, there are websites like eBay and Craigslist where strangers will buy just about anything. Otherwise, you can head down to your local pawn shop with the loot!
For electronics specifically, there are many places where you can trade in an old computer or cellphone for cash. What are you waiting for? Start cleaning out that junk!
Rent Your Stuff
You Can Earn: $20 – $200 per day, depending on what you’re renting
Alright, so some of your stuff has sentimental value or there’s a slight chance that it’ll come in handy at some point down the road. Why not rent it instead of just letting it collect dust?
Using platforms like Spinlister, Fat Llama, and RentNotBuy, you’re able to find people looking to rent out sports equipment, camera gear, baby supplies, and even appliances!
Obviously the money you earn depends on what you’re renting and the demand for it but either way, the website or app you choose takes roughly 15% of each transaction. That still leaves you with a pretty decent profit from renting something that’s just sitting in your garage.
Sell Your Unused Gift Cards
You Can Earn: 96% cash back
Do people keep on giving you Starbucks gift cards every time it’s your birthday because you loved it when you were 15? I’m sure some of you have a stack of unused gift cards either sitting in a desk drawer or taking up space in your wallets.
But now, you can trade those gift cards in for cash or credit — something more useful than just holding on to the card and not using it!
Using websites like RetailMeNot and CardPool, you can sell your unused gift cards for a high percentage of cash back. With CardPool, you can even visit one of their locations to walk out with cash in hand.
Pretty good deal for something you’re not going to use!
Be a Mystery Shopper
You Can Earn: $5 – $25 per mission
Did you know that certain brands actually hire people to put their employees to the test? These people are called “mystery shoppers.”
Essentially, the deal is that you go into a specified establishment, shop around, ask the employees questions and gauge their attitude, willingness to help, along with things like store cleanliness, inventory and more.
Companies will pay you to report on these aspects in hopes of improving their in-store experience and providing customers with a better shopping experience.
To find mystery shopper gigs, you can check out websites like BestMark and Second to None.
Become a Tutor
You Can Earn: $25 – $100 per hour
If you know a thing or two about standardized tests or just school classes in general, there’s a chance that you’ll be able to find a side job tutoring kids and teenagers!
I made a small killing tutoring kids for their SATs and ACTs without having to pick up any new knowledge. Teach them the basic principles of test-taking, give them a practice test, and voila! A huge amount of cash for very little work.
If tests aren’t your thing, you can be a standard tutor who gives homework help or assists students in areas where they’re struggling. Tutoring jobs are a prime way to make some extra income because it’s generally only for a few hours a week, but pays a ton.
Nanny / Babysit
You Can Earn: $15 – $50 per hour
If you like the idea of making extra income with kids, but school isn’t your strong suit, you can make some extra money by babysitting or nannying!
Pick kids up after school, make them snacks and color, or play outside until their parents get home from work. Seems like a pretty good deal to me!
Babysitting gigs depend entirely on the needs of the parents and your schedule, so you’re able to work when your times align. If you work a full-time job during the day, perhaps make yourself available during date nights and weekends so the parents can enjoy some time out and you can make some money.
Pet Sit
You Can Earn: $15 – $20 per day
Kids not your thing? What about dogs and cats?
When pet owners go away, they’re always in need of someone to take care of their furry companions while they’re gone. Make some money by taking care of said pets — you’d be surprised what people are willing to spend to make sure their dog or cat is in good hands.
You can sign up to be a pet sitter on a website called Rover which connects animal lovers to owners who are traveling.
Walk Dogs
You Can Earn: $10 – $20 per walk
If taking care of pets long-term is too much of a commitment, you can always walk dogs during your free time. Walking dogs is the perfect side hustle for animal lovers looking to make some extra money because all you have to do is pick up the dog, pick up his poo and drop him back off again after a spin around the block or two.
Pretty easy, huh?
You can use the website Rover to sign up to be a dog walker or an app called Wag. Just always remember to keep those good boys on a leash so no one goes running away!
House Sit
You Can Earn: free accommodation
House sitting is probably the easiest way to make money because all you’re doing is making sure the house and the little furry friends that go along with the house are looked after. This often means getting a swanky place to stay as well, which is ideal for travelers looking to save money on accommodation.
Offer Your Services
You Can Earn: $50 – $150 per month
If you consider yourself a pretty handy person and are able to help people who need assistance, you should check out TaskRabbit. TaskRabbit connects people in need of help with those who can offer it.
Whether it’s doing small chores around the house, building furniture, or mowing the lawn, you’ll find it all on TaskRabbit. Just sign up on the app, find what tasks are available in your area, and help where you can!
This is a really nice way to earn money while helping others as well.
Donate Plasma
You Can Earn: $20 – $50 per donation
Donating plasma will make you a good chunk of change quickly.
All you do is go to a center, sign up and let them jab you with a needle and take your blood. From there, the plasma is separated from your blood, and when you’re finished you’ll get cash.
This involves some minor pain, but no more than you’d experience giving blood, and I’m sure the money tunnel at the end of it numbs the pain just a bit. You can expect to receive between $20 and $50 every time you donate plasma!
Pretty good deal, right?
Read More: 33 Best Travel Jobs to Make Money While Traveling (You Can Do It Too!)
14 Ways to Make Extra Money Online
Making money on the side these days is easier than ever because in many cases, all you need is a smartphone or laptop with an internet connection. There are dozens of ways to make money online, with an enormous variety in how much you can earn.
Everyone who works at Adventure in You has made money working online, and has even turned it from a side hustle into a career! From sporadic to consistent, you’ll find jobs online that will be a hearty supplement to your current income or simply something you can do to pass your free time.
Blogging
You Can Earn: $100 – $20,000+ per month
Our favorite way to earn extra income online is blogging! Running a blog is a great way to earn a little bit of cash while working a full-time job. With enough work, your blog even has the potential to become your full-time job!
Blogging is a great way to supplement your income as you can write whatever you want. I recommend finding a niche to base your blog’s theme around and from there, the sky’s the limit!
There are a multitude of ways to make money from blogging, including affiliate marketing and advertising, all of which are in your control. How much money you make is entirely up to you and the amount of time you’re willing to put into building and running the blog, but after a while, this can be a prime source of income.
Want to find out how exactly you can make money from blogging? Check out this free training by the founders of this blog!
Do Some Freelance Work
You Can Earn: $20 – $70 per hour
Have a certain skill that others may be seeking? Consider taking on some freelance work to make some extra cash.
You can become a freelancer for pretty much anything these days: writing, designing, developing, translating, photography… seriously, anything! Using platforms like Fiverr and Upwork, you’re able to market yourself and connect with those who are in need of work done.
Freelancing is one of the best ways to make extra income because it’s entirely up to you what you do for work, how much you want to work, and what your rate is. Determining all of these elements is a total game changer because you’re completely in control of what you decide to do.
It may take a little while to get up and running, but the projects should be rolling in in no time. And as you gain experience and your network grows, you can increase your rates!
Become a Virtual Assistant
You Can Earn: $10 – $30 per hour
If you’re uber organized and are effective at scheduling and managing a calendar, you may find some extra income by becoming a virtual assistant.
Instead of typical assistants who never leave their boss’ side, a virtual assistant works remotely and generally only puts in a few hours of work every day. The tasks you do as a virtual assistant greatly depends on the client, but it’s mostly things like scheduling meetings, answering emails, booking flights and accommodation… you get the point.
This is a great route to take if you find yourself binging on Netflix when you could be making extra money. All you need is a couple hours a day to make an extra few hundred dollars every week!
Take Surveys
You Can Earn: $20 – $100 per month
Too much free time? Spend it making money instead.
Surveys are a simple way to bring some extra money. All you need to do is log onto a website and start taking them! Most don’t take any longer than 20 minutes and ask very general, easy-to-answer questions. Fill out a few a day, and you’ll have between $50 and $100 at the end of the month.
How much each survey pays varies greatly, but you can find some good ones on websites like Survey Junkie, VIP Voice and MyPoints.
Use Swagbucks
You Can Earn: $10 – $50 per month
I know I said that some of the methods mentioned above are the easiest way to make money, but it honestly doesn’t get any easier than Swagbucks.
Swagbucks is a search engine where you can earn points for each of your searches. You can then trade in the points for gift cards or cash. Make it your homepage and use it rather than the standard options like Google or Bing and you’ll accumulate enough points for a cash-out before you know it.
On Swagbucks, you can also fill out surveys, watch videos, and play games to earn extra points if you’re invested in using this to make heaps of extra money on the side.
Get a Gig on Amazon Mechanical Turk
You Can Earn: $2 – $7 per hour
Being such a large website, it’s no wonder that computers can’t do everything for Amazon. This is why there’s Amazon Mechanical Turk.
This platform is essentially crowdsourcing, where registered workers can do menial jobs for a bit of money. There are hundreds of thousands of these jobs, all ranging in what they require but they’re basically things like tagging photos, updating descriptions, that kind of thing.
The jobs on Amazon Mechanical Turk don’t pay much, but if you work for a good chunk of time and pick the right jobs, you can end up making just over $7 an hour.
Manage Social Media
You Can Earn: $20 – $50 per hour
Social media is one of the most popular marketing methods for businesses everywhere in the world today, making social media managers in high demand. It’s a great way to supplement your income.
You can find social media work on freelance platforms like Fiverr and Upwork, but you can also approach a local business with a social media pitch. It’s nice to do this kind of work in person if you have a particular store in mind. Plus, if it’s a smaller one on a local level, you can physically go in, take photos, and build the brand’s image with them.
Social media work takes a little bit of experience with platforms like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, but if you’re well-versed in the smartphone world and constantly taking #selfies, you should have no problem curating a beautiful feed and writing compelling captions.
Test Out User Experience
You Can Earn: $10 per test
Have you ever used a website that was just impossible to navigate or an app that was extremely counter-intuitive? If so, you’ve run into problems with user experience (UX) and user interface (UI).
To prevent this kind of confusion among potential customers and clients, brands will pay you to test out their website or apps to make sure that everything runs smoothly. Giving feedback will not only earn you a quick buck, but it’ll help a developer smooth out any problems and create a more efficient and effective user experience.
The types of platforms that need testing range greatly in both topic and functionality, but you can find all kinds of options on UserTesting.com, TryMyUI, and Analysia.
Start an Etsy Store
You Can Earn: $25 – $1,000+ per month, depending on your product
Particularly crafty? Why not open your own Etsy store to sell your goods? You can sell pretty much anything on Etsy, from t-shirts to paintings to chocolate and beyond.
If you’re creative and spend a lot of your free time making knick-knacks, you can make a good amount of money by creating an online store and selling them to people across the globe. It takes a little bit of time upfront to get your store running (and you do need to make the things you’ll be selling, after all), but once you have a solid and appealing inventory, you can set your prices and collect money for your creations.
This is a very nice way to supplement your income as it gives you the ability to make money from a hobby. Plus, you get to set your own prices so you — and only you — get to determine how much your precious work is worth!
Sell Your Photos
You Can Earn: $20 – $300 per month
Avid photographer with some great shots? Selling your photos another way to make money from a hobby or a passion.
There are dozens of platforms and websites to sell your photos on, ranging from stock photo sites to ones that go directly to consumers. If you’ve taken a lot of travel photos, this is a great way to capitalize on them.
Check out places like Foap, Fine Art America, SmugMug, Shutterstock and PhotoShelter for more information when it comes to selling your photos. Some of these sites even let you create a t-shirt, mug or poster from your photo, from which you’ll get profits every time someone purchases one.
Talk about passive income!
Teach Online
You Can Earn: $20 – $30 per hour
If nurturing young minds is something you’re interested in, becoming an online teacher is right up your alley.
Teaching online is not like teaching in a regular school because you get to decide when you want to work and how many hours you’d like to put in each week. This is a flexible way to earn extra money while doing some good in the world too!
Many of the schools listed on online teaching platforms are spread throughout the world, giving you the option to teach in the evenings or early mornings due to different time zones. There are basic requirements to become an online teacher like a college degree and a TEFL certification (which can be acquired through an online course), as well as a stable internet connection.
You can learn more about this kind of work and all of the requirements on a website called Teach Away.
Create an Online Course
You Can Earn: $20 – $300 per month
Impart valuable information to others without direct interaction by creating an online course.
Pick something you’re good at, and then create a structured lesson to teach others about your specialty from the comfort of their computer. This takes some work upfront, but can turn into passive income after you publish the course and people begin taking it.
You’ll basically be paid every time someone goes through the course so after it’s all made, you can just sit back and collect your extra money.
Popular platforms you can check out are Skillshare, Udemy, and Teachable, all a great pool of shared knowledge.
Play Poker
You Can Earn: $20 – $700 per month, depending on your skill and/or luck
Have a knack for card games? If so, you can supplement your income by online gambling.
There are thousands of online poker games where you can bet and win real money. No matter where you are in the world, as long as you have an internet connection you can earn.
Playing poker isn’t without its risks though. Betting is a gamble, and there’s no guarantee that you’ll win a ton of money. That said, hitting a jackpot could be all you need to finance that next trip or make a hefty payment.
Trade Cryptocurrency
You Can Earn: $500 – $1,000 per month
Ahh yes, crypto. There’s no way I was going to make it through this article without at least mentioning this volatile way to make money.
With the rise of cryptocurrency also comes the rise of trading, allowing owners to make (or lose) a ton of money, rather quickly. The crypto market fluctuates like crazy, giving those who own crypto a huge thrill, and some money with that.
If you have a little bit to invest and you choose credible projects, you’re bound to see your money grow, as long as you’re patient!
Read More: 8 Ways to Travel the World for Free in 2024
4 Easy Ways to Make Money Using Your Phone
We spend most of our days glued to our smartphones anyways, so we may as well make some money from it. Here are some apps you can download that will reward you for a wide range of activities!
Cashback Apps
You Can Earn: $20 – $70 per month
Did you know that if you’re smart about it, spending money shopping can actually earn you cash back?
There are tons of apps that will reward you for shopping in general or more specific purchases. All you have to do is go to the store, and then scan your receipt through the app. The way most of them work is you get points for each scan which are translated to gift cards or simply cash that you can receive through PayPal.
The app Ibotta even gives you $10 for signing up! Other apps that you can check out are Dosh, Shopkick, Ebates and Receipt Hog.
Nielsen Homescan
You Can Earn: $15 – $100 per month
If the above method interests you, check out Nielsen Homescan while you’re at it. By downloading this app, you become a Nielson Consumer Panelist. Simply scan items at the grocery store and earn points!
The more you scan, the more you earn. Plus, you get rewarded for having the app on your phone for a long period of time. In fact, they’ll even give you $50 for keeping the app for a year!
Apps that Track Your Activity
You Can Earn: $5 – $10 per month
There are tons of apps that will pay you for giving them access to your activity. They run in the background and collect data from your phone, which you will then be rewarded for.
Yes, this is a little creepy because you may not be entirely sure what data these apps are collecting, but hey, they do pay you for access so it’s a tradeoff. If you’re looking to make a few extra bucks, check them out.
Some popular options are Screenwise Panel which gives users $6 for signing up and then $3 every week, or Media Research Panel which pays $5 every month.
Rewardable
You Can Earn: $5 – $20 per month
Finally, if you’re up for going on missions to earn, you can download Rewardable and complete specified tasks nearby.
These may include taking photos of store signs, reporting on prices, or checking to see how stocked shelves are. You simply upload these to the app and you can get paid between $4 and $7 each time! You can also complete smaller tasks for less money.
This is an easy way to kill time if you don’t mind wandering around a store for a little bit!
Are you feeling inspired to pick up a side hustle after reading this? I know I am! There are so many easy ways to make extra money these days, many of them by barely lifting a finger.
Whether you take the offline or online route is entirely up to you, but I can guarantee you’ll be a little happier with just that extra bit of money on a regular basis.
Happy earning!
Need more inspiration? Check out these articles:
- How We Get Paid to Travel the World
- The Truth on How We Can Afford to Travel
- How to Earn Money with Airbnb (Get Started Now!)
Inspired? Pin It!
