In today’s economy, it doesn’t hurt anyone to have a little extra money. Whether you are paying off credit card debt or saving extra money for Christmas season, try out some of these ideas to get you earning a little extra money:
EBay – Selling things that you do not want or do not need on eBay is a great way to earn extra money. If you become a good eBay seller, you can offer your services to others and charge a fee for selling their stuff on eBay.
Mystery shopper – Thousands of companies will offer money and freebies for people who enter their business pretending to be a normal customer, and then write a review about their experience.
Gaming – If you are into gaming, you can make money by writing guides and reviews for the games. Also, if you play online games such as World of Warcraft, you can sell the gold that you make online. Some games like Entropia Universe work on a real cash economy. The currency in the game is based on real life currency so it is easy to put money or, more importantly, take money out of the game.
Clean houses – Many people are lazy or just do not have time to clean their houses. Put an ad in a local newspaper or walk around your neighborhood offering cleaning services for some money.
Extra job – Pick up an extra job. This can be waiting tables at a restaurant, delivering pizzas, and many other part time jobs.
Babysitting – Like kids? Offer to take care of people’s kids while the parents go out to dinner.
Pet sitting/walking – If you love animals, then offer to walk your neighbor’s pets for a set rate. You can also take care of peoples pets while they are out of town.
Rent out a room – Many people are looking for a place to stay and if you have an extra room in your house, good money can be made by renting it out to someone in need.
Experiments – If you live in or near a college town, see if the college needs people for experiments. They can pay quite good amounts of money: Some friends did this and got $20 for taking a 10 minutes survey.
Blog – Blog about anything you want to and earn money off of ad revenue to your blog. Blogs take some time to get started up, but can become majorly successful. Sites like Blogger have a partnership with Google Adsense and will set up your blog for you.
Sports tournaments – If you are good at a sport such as tennis or volleyball, enter tournaments in your area for cash prizes.
Blood plasma – There are over 500 blood plasma clinics in the US that pay $10-$30 per donation of blood plasma. The plasma is the fluid part of your blood and can be regenerated extremely fast, allowing a donation every 72 hours. Check out this site to locate a blood plasma center near you.
Sperm donor – Although this option is not available to most people (95% of the men who apply are turned down), it can be a great way to earn thousands extra a year. To become a sperm donor, you must be healthy, be between the ages of 18-35, and you must have no serious family histories of diseases. If you past the test, you can earn up to $100 per sample 1-2 times per week.
Write articles – If you like to write or if you are just knowledgeable about certain topics, try freelance writing. You can submit your articles to local newspapers or magazines, as well as publishing them online through sites like Helium, Associated Content, and others.
Photography – If photography is your passion, try selling photos online at different stock photo sites. Also, you can sell your skills and take pictures for events such as weddings, graduations, or Bar Mitzvahs.
In the end, the best way to make that extra money is to turn hobbies into income. If you like underwater basket weaving, sell the baskets. If you like rock climbing, write guides and reviews on different mountains and equipment. The possibilities are endless and the only limits on the ways you earn money are the ones you impose on yourself. A lot of these ideas came from YoungInfluence, a great resource on income for college students. Good luck!