Energy prices and inflation; everything seems to cost more than it used to, and many of us are wondering how to make extra money. Here are some of the best options; all of them possible while holding down a job!
Be sure to also check out our ideas on ways to save money.
Table of contents
Matched betting
Investing
Energy supplier referrals
Switch bank accounts
Sell unwanted items
Enter free competitions
Rent a room
Part-time salesman
Become a freelancer
Rent out your driveway
Surveys and adverts, etc
Start a website
Becomee an affiliate
Matched Betting
Matched betting isn’t gambling, it’s taking advantage of betting sites’ offers and playing both sides of the bet. If you’ve never bet online then you can easily make over £1000 by cleaning up all the new customer deals. Sticking around and putting in the extra time could net you hundreds or thousands per month.
Once a laborious task, there are now online companies who will walk you through the process. They’ll list the offers, have tools to find and place suitable bets, and enable you to track your winnings. The main matched betting names are Oddsmonkey and Profit Accumulator; I’ve used both and they are both excellent
Both services have free trials, so you can earn a little extra without signing up. If and when you do sign up, the monthly cost is trivial compared to the money you can earn.
Profit Accumulator
Earn over £40 with their free trial.
Oddsmonkey
Earn up to £63 with their free trial.
Invest for the long haul
If you have money set aside (other than an emergency fund), investing in a stocks and shares ISA is a great long-term decision. The average market return is about 10%, so your money will (on average) double every seven years.
It’s important to stress the importance of long-term. You don’t generally want to invest unless you can keep the money in there for at least five years. Even then, there’s the possibility that something will go wrong and the value can plummet for a while. Think of the great financial crash. Companies like Fidelity and Vanguard are good choices for setting up a direct debit and forgetting about it.
There are also lifetime ISAs if you’re under 40. The government gives you a 25% bonus on the first £4k reach year, but you can only cash it in on your first home purchase or retirement. Still, an excellent option if you aren’t fussed about the freedom.
We have an article covering the basics of investing here.
Energy supplier referrals
Many energy suppliers will give you a referral code for account credit – giving both you and those you refer a nice bonus. It’s not cash in your hand, but money off your bills is as good as money in your pocket.
For example, Octopus gives both people £50 credit! Here’s my referral link.
Switch bank accounts
Banks often have incentives to move your account across – this can be hundreds of pounds. At the time of writing you can grab nearly £1000 by moving between providers.
It’s a lot simpler moving accounts these days because the switching service will transfer everything across automatically. Standing orders, direct payments; everything! Of course you don’t need to move your main account if you have a spare account knocking around.
There are free apps to show the current offers and keep track of those you’ve claimed. One I’ve used is Switch Tracker.
Most switches will require that you have a couple of active direct debits, but apps such as that above have the option of creating £1 direct debits. Very handy if you aren’t using your main account.
Sell unwanted items
Often the first thing explored when figuring out how to make extra money. We’ve all got an assortment of things we never use. Selling such items will declutter your home and generate some extra cash – a double win. Always try and find previous sales history before listing your goodies; it can be surprising what others will pay for certain items. I once sold a DVD for a couple of hundred pounds, and I very nearly listed it for a fiver!
Ebay
A marketplace that needs no introduction – eBay has been around since the ’90s. Their fees aren’t particularly low but their customer base is immense, so it’s not a bad option if your items might have international appeal.
Facebook Marketplace
With billions of visits every month, Facebook Marketplace is an excellent option for finding local buyers. I normally list things here first due to no fees and a massive user base.
Shpock
Relatively new compared to eBay, but still a popular option. Shpock has the attractive advantage of no listing or transaction fees.
Enter free competitions
There are tonnes of free competitions out there, and plenty of them have cash prizes. Yes, it’s unlikely, but someone has to win. Check out our list of free competitions – we regularly add those we find with decent prizes.
Rent a room
For those owning a home and wondering how to make extra money. If you have a spare bedroom then you could be renting it out for a pretty penny. Not everyone is comfortable having strangers in their home, but it’s an excellent option for those who are.
You can earn up to £7,500 tax free if you don’t have much income.
Get a tenant
If having someone living with you for months or even years at a time sounds alright, getting a tenant could be ideal.
Airbnb
I’ve used Airbnb plenty of times when traveling. It’s rooms are normally cheaper and more conveniently located. If you live in a popular destination then you can command a decent price.
Part-time salesman
Reselling or signing customers up for a company’s products and services is a bit more involved than a passive website link, but the payouts are significantly greater. You can fit it in around your existing commitments and do as little or as much as you fancy. Door-to-door Avon and Tupperware parties are a couple of stereotypical examples. It’s important to reach out to as many new people as possible, and not simply harass a circle of family and friends.
Some companies have an initial fee or charge for a starter kit/demo stock, which is something to bear in mind.
Utility Warehouse
Energy prices are a hot topic at the moment, and plenty of people are looking to get the best rate possible. Their partner program reports that each new customer will normally net you around £250-300 per customer; not a bad payout! You’re not demonstrating a product or holding any stock, so in this case there are no start-up costs. Like many utility companies they also have a refer-a-friend scheme, which will get you £50 credit on your bills.
Body Shop at Home
As with Avon, you can become a Bodyshop sales rep. They say you can make 25-30% commission amongst other perks.
Become a freelancer / evening work
Join the growing trend of the gig economy. Everyone has a talent or skill, and someone out there may well pay you for yours. Sign up with one of the popular sites and offer your services to the masses. There’s also good old-fashioned babysitting, food delivery, or pulling pints at your local – excellent choices for evening work. Just don’t wear yourself out!
Uber
One of the first flexible working programs – become a taxi driver in your spare time. You don’t need to own a car to be an Uber driver, but the rental costs probably don’t stack up unless you’re doing a lot of driving.
Fiverr
Any good at graphic design, programming, audio, or marketing? Fiverr has an array of categories in which you can advertise your skills. I’ve used recently.
Taskrabbit
If you are a dab hand and putting together flat-pack furniture or performing odd jobs around the house, then Taskrabbit could be for you. They are now owned by IKEA.
Babysits
People are more likely to use the services of someone they already know, so facebook or a community noticeboard (if you are well known) are some of the best places to start. Failing that, there are online services for finding a babysitter. Babysits is one such site.
Rent out your driveway
How to make extra money using your home. I’ve paid to use people’s drives on several occasions, it’s often much cheaper than using pay-and-display services – especially for a longer period. This could be an excellent option if you have private parking and live in a particularly built-up or popular area. There are a few companies that will manage your bookings for you, but only one with reasonable commission rates.
JustPark
The site I’ve always used, and certainly one of the best-known. They’ll take a commission of 3% on the normal short bookings, and 20% for the first month of bookings that last over two months (then it’s back down to 3%). It’s completely free to sign up and list your space.
Surveys, adverts, etc
How to make extra money in a slightly more monotonous manner. Filling out surveys, watching adverts, and signing up for sites are not the most exciting or lucrative ventures, but the pennies add up. You accrue points by completing offers, and can generally cash out once you hit a threshold – be that gift cards or through PayPal. Spread it out over a year and you could bag yourself a few hundred quid.
Swagbucks
One of the largest and most established reward sites; they also have a phone app and browser extension, making accessing the varied offers that much easier.
iRazoo
iRazoo TV features countless videos that you can be paid to watch. Short films, new advertisements, app trailers, cooking tutorials, movie reviews, and much more.
Start a website/blog
Are you passionate about a topic (such as how to make extra money)? Perhaps you review movies or are a keen cook with interesting recipes. You can generate income by incorporating adverts in your content – Google’s AdWords is one such service.
Creating a site is incredibly quick and easy these days, you can be up and running in about 15 minutes with a hosted WordPress provider.
Hostinger
One of the biggest and most attractively-priced providers. If you can commit for a 48-month period then you can have hosting for a little over £1 a month. Ridiculous!
Bluehost
Another big name for hosting. For a few pounds a month you’ll get hosting, a domain name, and SSL encryption.
Become an affiliate
Affiliation marketing is when you direct people to another site’s services; this website has a few such links. Many companies such as eBay, Amazon, and Shopify have such programs.
How much can you earn? It varies wildy. Many programs will return relatively little, whilst others will reward you handsomely.
You don’t necessarily need your own website to be an affiliate, but that is the most common method.
There aren’t any particular affiliate programs to shout out – think about products relevant to your existing content and go looking. Maybe you review running equipment; an Amazon affiliate link to a pair of trainers would work well.