How to make money online: 11 ways to earn a bit of cash from your laptop
Let's be real: we'd all like a little bit more money, wouldn't we? Whether you're a student with a loan or in full time employment, the chances are by the time you've paid your bills, bought some food and vaguely browsed the Topshop sale, you feel skint.
If you're reading this and thinking 'yes', 'yep' and 'agh yeah', consider making some extra cash from the comfort of your laptop screen. Because yes, there are ways to make money online. From taking surveys to translating, the world internet is your oyster cash cow.
Online surveys
Taking online surveys is perhaps the easiest way to earn a bit of extra cash online because it requires absolutely no skill and can be quite quick and fun to do. MoneySupermarket recommends the likes of Swagbucks, Google Opinion Awards and Crowdology; once you've signed up, you can start completing surveys. These will in turn convert into points and, once you meet a certain threshold, money.
Topics can range from the type of tea bags you use to what you think of Brexit. For most sites you need to reach a threshold of between £5 and £20 before you can cash out your earnings via PayPal.
Make sure you do your research before you assume this will be earning you big bucks, though - some sites have a threshold of £50 before you can cash out any money, so you want to make sure you're getting something back for the time you're dedicating.
Stock photographer
If you can take a decent photo, you may be able to earn some cash from it online.
Stock photography websites will pay you for your photos (make sure you check with your pals if they feature, though!) Every time someone downloads one of your images, you’ll earn a royalty which is a percentage of the price paid by the customer. There’s an endless list of stock photography sites to choose from, and the royalty percentage you get for a submitted photo can differ wildly from site to site. Check out Shutterstock and Alamy to start with.
Plus, some sites like Stocksy and the app Clashot also accept smartphone photography, meaning that you don’t have to have a professional camera - just an eye for a good picture.
Translator
Fluent in another language? Sign up as an online translator and you can start earning extra income whilst also practising your language skills.
Sites like Unbabel and FairLingo will pay you to edit and review translations of subtitles, product descriptions, and emails so they’re sound less like Google Translate and more like an actual person.
These sites allow you to sign up to do as many or as few hours you want a week, meaning that how much extra cash you earn (deposited to your PayPal account once a week) is really down to the time you can commit.
Online tutor
Still remember that mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell? Or know The Great Gatsby from cover to cover? You could put this knowledge to good use by signing up to be an online tutor.
Sites like MyTutor are always looking for university students and graduates to tutor GCSE or A-Level students looking to up their grades. It could be a great way to earn a bit of extra income, plus you don’t need to have any teaching experience to work as an online tutor.
Test company websites
With What Users Do, you can literally earn money for browsing some of your favourite sites. Yep, companies like ASOS, Channel4 and Virgin Atlantic are keen to know what you think of their homepages and through What Users Do you can get paid up to £300 a year just by sharing your feedback with them.
You’ll be asked to complete ‘tests’ during which you’ll be tasked with completing simple actions such as finding a product or navigating to a particular page. One thing to note is that as part of the deal, your screen (and sometimes voice) will be recorded during these tests. So if you’re not comfortable with this, this might not be for you.
Music reviewer
If you spend your evenings and weekends listening to the latest album drops and discovering new TV shows, SliceThePie could be a perfect way to make some extra money outside of your 9-5. Like WhatUsersDo, they’ll pay you for sharing your honest opinions on new unsigned artists and upcoming TV shows.
They’re US-based, but anyone can sign up - it just means you’ll be paid in US dollars, which will be converted when you deposit your earnings from your PayPal balance to your bank account. Withdrawals are allowed once you’ve made a minimum of $10 and the more detailed and descriptive you are, the more money you'll earn per review.
Virtual assistant
If you’re looking to make working online your full-time gig, becoming a virtual assistant might be one of the best options. Not only does it pay well (typically between £15 to £25 an hour), but you can say goodbye to that dread commute and hello to working from the sofa.
As a virtual assistant you could be tasked with anything from bookkeeping to answering calls to organising meetings. It can be just as full-on as a typical PA role, but there is the option to set your own hours and be part-time if you’re looking to hold down another job alongside it.
Write and sell an eBook
Have a great idea for a book, or better yet already written one? With Amazon Kindle store, anyone can publish an eBook and become a certified author. Whether it’s thriller, romance, memoir or non-fiction, once you’ve listed your book and given it a title, you’ll earn 70% of the sale, with Amazon taking the remainder as a fee.
You’ll retain the rights to your book and can set the price anywhere from £1.49 - £6.99. Considering Amazon is one of the biggest online retailers, even if you’re not sure anyone will be interested, it’s worth a go to earn a bit of extra cash, right?
Create an online course
Take advantage of the growing e-learning market and create your own online course. From gardening to game design, whatever your passion is, there’s bound to be someone out there who’s interested in learning it.
Start teaching for free with Skillshare, where you’ll earn royalties based on the number of minutes people have watched your classes every month. However, if you’re willing to pay a bit extra for a membership to Kajabi or Teachable, you can set your own prices for your courses and (hopefully) make your money back and more!
Freelancing
If you’re an expert in a specific area, whether that’s graphic design, social media or video editing, you could be making a bit of extra income by freelancing as a side hustle.
Whilst you can of course set this up yourself, sites like PeoplePerHour and Fiverr have an endless list of clients with projects. A fee is taken by the site for every job you complete, but you’ll have access to a wide range of gigs that vary in both duration and pay.
Online coach
Like freelancing, this is for anybody who consider themselves an expert in a given field. Only, instead of knowledge of programmes and software, you’ll need to possess some of the most desirable ‘soft skills'.
Empathetic and understanding? Great! Why not try your hand at relationship coaching. Friends see you as their ultimate hype woman? Career coaching might be your calling. There’s tons of different ways you can turn your passion into a legitimate online side hustle and get paid to help inspire and motivate others.
Consider your side-hustle, sorted.
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