How to Make Extra Money at Home on the Side
The best way to reach your money goals is to learn how to budget the money you already have, but once you have that down your next step should be to make extra money.
Just think about it, if you have a set amount of money and you’re not making extra money with a side job the only thing you can do is cut back on your spending. But there’s only so many cuts you can make to your budget before you end up hungry or homeless. It’s definitely wise to budget your money, but ultimately you are going to need a good way to make money on top of your current income.
If you are a stay at home mom looking for ways to make extra money online, then these easy stay at home mom jobs are perfect for helping you make an extra $1000 a month.
If you already have a full time job, then these are easy ways to make side money at home after you put in a full day of work.
What can you do if you make an extra 1000 dollars a month?
- reach your financial goals faster
- pay off debt faster
- start saving more
- start investing in 401k & retirement accounts
- save for college tuition
- start your own business to make more money
- create financial independence
- save for a family vacation
Now is the time to start making extra money on the side, so that you can find financial freedom faster! No one wants to struggle with money for the rest of their life. Take control now and use these ways to make extra money online to create a life that you love.
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9 Easy Ways to Make an Extra $1000 a Month at Home
You want to find a way to make money, and you know that it would be best to learn how to make money from home. The online world has created so many new money making opportunities!
I know I was nervous about learning how to earn money online from home. It almost sounds like a scam, but what I have learned is that many companies are looking for ways to hire independent contractors and freelancers to help them get work done in their businesses.
This is beneficial to the company because they don’t have to pay you as an employee and spend money on benefits, office space, and other overhead. It’s great for those of us who want easy ways to make money on the side without being tied down to a cubicle.
Today our goal is to help you figure out how to earn 1000 dollars in a month online with easy ways to make money fast.
How do you decide what online side jobs you should try?
These easy side jobs are probably not going to be things that you’re passionate about. Sometimes the goal of a side job is just about making money.
But the good news is that an online side job could potentially lead you to your next step in finding something that you love. I started making money online as a search engine evaluator. It was a great job for me because it was flexible, so I could work around my kids’ sleep schedule. At the time, I could only work 1 to 2 hours a day so it worked with my availability. There was no extensive training or courses I needed to take to get started and I could make extra income quickly.
The 3 main things to help you pick an online job that makes money on the side is to choose a job that is flexible, works with how much time you can invest, and meets your extra income goals. These easy easy to make money from home are a good starting place because there is no learning curve. It’s not like starting a business and having to figure out how to market your products or waiting on sales to come in. You can apply for these jobs and make money now.
My first online side job lead me to more online jobs like taking surveys, website testing, freelance writing, teaching online, and now blogging.
I like to think of these jobs as your first step to make extra cash online that could potentially lead you to a completely new career!
1. Online Surveys
Taking online surveys is one of the fastest ways to make money online! All it takes to get started is your time, and the best part is that you can take online surveys while you’re waiting in the car line at school, watching your favorite Netflix shows, or whenever you have some down time. The surveys usually take between 5 to 20 minutes and pay depends on the type of survey and length of time. Surveys are your best bet to make money quick and easy!
How do you get paid with survey sites?
Companies are constantly doing market research to improve their branding, messaging, and products so they can give the people what they want. Survey sites are the middle man between companies and consumers. Companies pay for you to give them your opinion about their products and services.
Which survey sites can you trust?
There are hundreds of survey sites online, but there are only a few that I like to work with because they always pay on time and I can choose to get paid with Paypal cash.
Two of my favorite sites:
Want to see more tips and tricks for making money with survey sites? Check out Best Tips to Make Money with Survey Sites
2. Teach English Online
Teaching English online is one of the easiest ways to make extra money online as a teacher. You can work from the comfort of your own home and build relationships with students on the other side of the world!
I worked with VIP Kid for about a year and was able to earn $1200 a month working 2-3 hours a day, 5 days a week. My hours were really early between 5am to 8am. I liked teaching before my kids woke up and those were the times when the most students were online, so that guaranteed me a teaching time slot.
You can earn about $20 per hour with VIP Kid and they offer additional bonuses each month for teaching a certain number of classes, opening a certain number of time slots, and referring friends.
You MUST have a bachelors degree (in any field) to work with VIP Kids and experience working with kids. Your experience can be as a tutor, coach, Sunday school teacher, preschool teacher, camp counselor, etc.
I had a great experience teaching with VIP Kid and found the company to be very supportive of the teachers. I quit teaching with VIP Kid to pursue my blogging business as my full time side hustle.
You can apply to VIP Kid here or check out these Top Online English Teaching Jobs.
3. Freelance Writing
Make money writing for online websites, businesses, and magazines.
Today businesses can’t survive without an online presence. But most businesses can’t afford to keep up with the content themselves while doing all the other tasks that keep their business growing. That’s why businesses often hire freelance writers to write website content, blog posts, social media posts, newsletters, and even ebooks.
I started working for a local business writing blog posts for their website. I was contracted to write 3 – 4 posts per month and the pay was $30 per post. I picked up a second business and was able to increase my prices to $50 per post and scheduled 2 posts per month with that client. The posts only took me an hour to write.
One of the best places to start a freelance writing job is to attend a free networking event in your city. Introduce yourself as a freelance writer and pitch your services to other businesses. That’s how I landed my first job, and they helped me find my second client!
You can also look online for freelance writing jobs. Search Craigslist for freelance writing jobs or freelance writing gigs. These are usually local small businesses who are looking for help with getting content on their website. Always research the company and try to meet in person to make sure the job is legit. If you ever feel uncomfortable, then follow your gut and walk away from that job.
Other online places to search for freelance writing jobs:
While I was working as a freelance writer, I realized that if I started my own website I would be able to use writing as a passive way to make money!
4. Blogging
Writing to help people solve their problems is a way you can make extra money from home legitimately.
Blogging has become my number one favorite way to make extra cash online. When my kids are all in school, I plan to pursue blogging as my full time work at home job and not just a way to make money on the side.
I think one of the best parts about blogging is that you can be both creative and build a business all from your computer. It takes time to make money especially if you are a beginner, because there is a huge learning curve. I’ve had to learn everything from how to write a blog post, learning how to use SEO, and how to use social media to get traffic to my website.
How do bloggers make money online?
There are 3 main ways to make money as a blogger.
- Ad Networks – This just means that ads are placed on your site and you make money depending on how much traffic visits your site.
- Affiliate Income – When you suggest something awesome that will help your reader solve their problem, you can add a link that tracks the sale back to you. You earn a small commission from that sale.
- Selling Products or Services – Creating products or services that let you help your reader solve a problem they are having. These can be printables, binders, ebooks, workbooks, courses, or physical products like coffee cups, bags, earrings, etc. Services can include coaching, consultations, virtual assistance, writing, etc.
You can start blogging without making an investment, but it will definitely take time to start making $1000 per month. For some people, it takes 3-6 months to start making $1000 per month. It took me about 2 years to start making $1000 each month. But now I’m making more than that and some months I don’t have time to work on my site!
Read this post about Creating a Plan to Start a Blog without any Money!
5. Search Engine Evaluation
Help search engines make sure that the results are accurate when someone does a search!
This is a big job for search engines. The algorithm that is created to bring back the very best search results can sometimes bring the wrong information. You can get a job that helps to correct any information that is not accurate in search results on search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc.
This is really important for search engines because their goal is to provide people with exactly what they are looking for! I worked with Appen (used to be Leapforce) for about a year on a project evaluating social media. This was one of the easiest ways to make extra money.
I seriously tell everyone to apply for jobs with Appen, because it is a flexible job that pays on time each month. You can be assigned to work on multiple different projects and then you choose the hours that you want to work. The pay ranges between $10 – $13 per hour.
If you are looking for an easy way to earn real money from home, then this might be the perfect job for you!
6. Website Testing
Earn money fast by testing websites user experience. The goal for web designers is to create an easy website experience that is intuitive to anyone who lands on the site. The easier a site is to use the longer someone is likely to stay which means more money for the business!
You can help web designers and app designers create better user experiences by taking website tests. Basically you record yourself walking through a website or app and explain the things that you’re doing while you record your experience. This goes back to the designer and they use your information to make tweaks on their site or app.
I worked with User Testing and made $10 per 20 minute user test that I did. This was just as fun to do as taking surveys and you can get paid quickly to your Paypal account. After you complete each test you will be paid 7 days later (to the minute!). If you need to make money fast website testing is a great way to earn extra money!
Check out more details & companies that hire: How to Make Money as Website Tester
7. Social Media Manager
Small businesses and bloggers all need social media presence to grow their brand. No one has time to be in all the places at once!
You can start working as a social media manager helping businesses with customer support, social media posts, and scheduling. These are pretty basic social media tasks that anyone who uses social media can offer to busy small businesses and bloggers.
Take free courses to learn how to improve your social media skills on Lynda.com with a free subscription from your local library.
As you start to grow your business you can learn more higher level tasks like creating ads on social media that drive sales. When you can prove that your services help grow business, then you can start charging more money for your services!
Read how Jenny Weg teaches you How to Become a Social Media Manager
8. Transcription
Start earning money from home by listening to audio and turning it into online documents.
If you enjoy quiet time focusing on just one task and can type fast, then transcription could be a great way to make an extra $1000 a month while working from home. As a beginner transcriptionist you only need your computer, internet connection, and headphones.
Companies who hire beginner transcriptionists usually don’t pay as well as finding clients to work for on your own. But working with a company is a good way to get started and gain experience even if it doesn’t pay as well.
Read about how Laura Quarty started her own transcription business and check out these 6 Transcription Companies for Beginners.
9. Sell Things Online
Look through your home to see if there are any unopened gifts you’ve forgotten about or clothes that you’ve never worn. See if you can take those items and sell them. Try selling on Craigslist or a local Facebook group to get started. Whatever you sell take that money and reinvest into your little business to buy more items from flea markets or thrift stores.
My friend Melissa and her husband Rob, from Flea Market Flipper, started with a $50 chair they flipped and reinvested all the way to $94,000 in products to sell! Their ultimate goal is to buy a rental property by the end of 2019.
Read more about my friend Melissa and flipping adventures at Flea Market Flipper.
More Ideas to Make Money at Home
There are so many ways to get started making money from home. You can start a small business or use your hobbies to make money . Get creative and turn your favorite craft projects into extra cash!
The most important thing that you have to do is GET STARTED! It’s often the hardest step. Don’t get stuck on thinking this has to be the job that solves all your money problems. Think about this job as your stepping stone to something great that will change the path of your money journey!
If you are still feeling stuck and not sure what the best job for you is, then I highly recommend you sign up to get the FREE Work at Home Workbook! It’s designed to help you think through your goals, your budget, and create an actionable plan to get started making money from home!
