16 Creative Ways to Make Money (Earn up to $1000 per Month)

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16 Creative Ways to Make Money

Fill Online Surveys

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Online surveys are a great option if you only have short periods of spare time. Most surveys only take a few minutes, so they are easy to slot around other tasks in your schedule. You can earn up to $1 or more per survey. Some platforms even have higher paying surveys where you can earn $5+.

To begin, you’ll need to set up a profile on each platform. The companies use the information from your initial set up form to match you with appropriate surveys. 

Popular online survey platforms include:

Related: 15 Ways How to Make Money Online

Get Paid for Your Referral

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If you’re already using services or apps, one of the most creative ways to make money is to invite family members and friends to join. Many platforms have referral programs where you can get paid for your referrals. This may be a one time cash payment or a percentage.

For example, Swagbucks will pay you 10% on everything your referral earns. Alternatively, if you use Uber or are an Uber driver, you can get $5 for each friend who signs up using your referral code.

Test Websites 

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Lots of big companies need feedback on their websites. While they may have a design team to check for functionality. But, this does not necessarily reflect the user experience. So, companies look for people to assess how easy it is to navigate the site and their overall experience. This creates an opportunity for creative ways to make money. 

You can spend your free time visiting websites and then completing feedback questionnaires. The pay varies. For a simple website testing assignment that will take less than a minute, you can expect to earn $0.10. However, if the task requires more of your time and involves a larger questionnaire, you could earn up to $15. 

For example, User Testing pays $10 for 20 minute website tests. When you sign up, you need to create a profile and supply your basic demographic information. User Testing will then match you to appropriate assignments. 

Get Rebates for Your Receipts

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Even when you’re trying to tighten your financial belt, you will still need to spend money each month. Whether you’re grocery shopping or buying some new clothing items, you can get cash rebates for your shopping receipts. 

For example, Ibotta allows you to earn rebates on your instore and online purchases. You can download the app and browse the available rebate offers. Ibotta partners with over 1,500 retailers and brands. 

These include:

• Target
• Home Depot
• Lowes
• Best Buy
• Domino’s Pizza

For example, you may earn $0.50 for uploading a copy of your receipt where you bought chips. Or $5 for uploading your Target receipt. Since you’re buying these items anyway, you’re literally getting money for nothing. 

When you’re shopping online, you can just click through to your online store from the Ibotta app or platform. You’ll then receive a percentage of what you spend as a rebate. 

Once you accumulate $20 or more, you can redeem your rebates as PayPal cash or gift card. 

Work on Demand

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Another of the best creative ways to make money is to work on demand. This is a catch all term for a variety of jobs. Work on demand provides flexibility, as you can pick and choose when you want to work. However, since the tasks are more formal types of jobs, you can command a decent rate of pay. 

Examples include:

• Part time mover: Moving jobs require that you are physically fit and have access to a suitable vehicle. While this can be hard work, it is possible to earn as much as $50+ per hour. 
• Cleaner: You’ll have responsibility for making sure you clean the home or specific rooms to a high standard. Tasks include vacuuming, dusting, cleaning bathrooms, laundry and wiping kitchen surfaces. You can earn an average rate of $13 per hour. 
• Inspect cars: When people make a claim, insurers need to verify the damage. This is where you can come in. Platforms like OnSource pay you to perform vehicle or property inspections. All you need to do is take pictures or video of the vehicle or accident site. This will typically take 10 minutes. You’ll receive $18 per inspection plus $0.68 for every mile after the 20th as compensation for your travel costs. 
• Mow lawns: If you enjoy the outdoors, you could mow lawns. You can set your own rates, but you should expect to earn $20 per ¼ acre yard. 

Related: 25 Work On Demand Side Hustle Ideas

Rent What You Have

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If you have things that you don’t need to constantly use, but you don’t want to sell, you could rent them out. There are platforms like Fat Llama that allow you to rent out things from a continually expanding list of categories. From tools to camera gear and even cars. You can transform your unused items into cash. You can also rent out spare rooms in your home or even garage space. 

If you don’t like the idea of sharing your items, consider renting out your internet. Honeygain allows you to share your internet connection and earn $0.01 per 10MB of traffic. The company does not track your browsing habits or spy on your computer. Rather it uses your internet connection to conduct market research. 

Related: 36 Things You Can Rent Out for Extra Money

Sell Handmade Items on Etsy

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If you’re a crafty person, why not sell your handmade items on Etsy. This platform makes it easy to open an online store. You can set your own prices and list your items in less than 30 minutes. The platform allows you to charge for shipping or you can factor the cost into your prices. 

The fees for the Etsy platform include:

• Listing fee: $0.20 per item
• Transaction fee: 5% on the full cost including shipping
• Payment processing: 3% + $0.25 if you use Etsy Payment

Etsy allows you to sell handmade, vintage or craft items. 

Related: 23 Easy Crafts to Make and Sell

Become a Mystery Shopper

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If you like shopping, you could become a mystery shopper. Essentially, you’ll work undercover in your local stores. You may need to take notes or pictures, look around the store and check out displays. After each assignment, you’ll need to complete a questionnaire. 

To find gigs, you can sign up with Marketforce. This platform requires that you complete an application form. You’ll also need to pass a review process. The amounts you receive will depend on the assignment. But, you can expect to earn an average of $11 per hour. 

Related: 30 Sites to Find Mystery Shopper Jobs

Drive People Around

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Another of the best creative ways to make money is to drive people around. You’ll need a suitable vehicle with a valid driver’s license and insurance. The most popular platforms are Uber and Lyft. However, be ready to ensure that you meet the stringent platform requirements. These include: 

• At least one year of driving experience in the US (three if you’re under the age of 23)
• Have access to an eligible four door vehicle (it needs to meet the safety standards and be under 15 years old)
• Proving proof of residency in your state, province or city. 

The great thing is that you can get paid as much as $35 per hour. Both platforms will provide access to a driver’s app. This allows you to arrange your rides, manage your earnings and keep track of your lift requests. 

Bear in mind that you will need to cover your driving expenses, including gas, insurance and maintenance costs. 

Freelance

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For those with a marketable skill, you could freelance. There are lots of opportunities for freelancers. Two of the most common are data entry and being a virtual assistant. 

Data entry can involve data categorisation or just copying text into a spreadsheet or document. You can work flexible hours and have the potential to earn up to $15 per hour. 

To be a virtual assistant, you need to be an organized person. In essence, you’ll help professionals to organize their emails, schedules and other admin tasks. It is possible to earn $20 or more per hour. 

There are a number of platforms where you can find freelance jobs. These include:

Related: 9 Ways How to Make Money With a 3D Printer

Become an Online Language Tutor

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With the growing global marketplace, there are lots of people looking to expand their linguistic skills. If you’re bilingual or speak several languages you could become an online language tutor. You can make $15 to $20 per hour. 

Platforms like Italki allows you to create your own rates and list your services. You can schedule classes and Italki will provide you with the tools you need to conduct them in real time. Italki also allows Italian, Spanish, French, Russian and other native speakers to join. 

To join the platform, you’ll need to complete a detailed application. The Italki team will need to approve your application. Once this occurs, you can create your profile and detail the courses you offer. Italki will handle everything else, including scheduling, payments, marketing and more. 

Related: 26 Websites to Teach English Online

Reduce Bills

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Many companies tend to reserve their best deals and preferential rates to attract new customers. So, rather than being taken for granted and sticking with the same company, make some money by switching providers and reducing your bills. 

While this may seem daunting, there are platforms that can help you. For example, Rocket Money is a free sign up service that will compare rates to see where you can make savings. If the Rocket Money team can negotiate savings for you, you’ll pay a 40% commission. But, this only applies once the company secures your savings. So, if the company is unable to save you anything, you won’t pay a fee. 

Create a Course

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If you have a skill or passion for an interesting hobby, you could turn this into a side hustle by creating an online course. There is the potential to generate a superb passive income. 

Whether you can help people to learn a language, build a website or cook vegan food, there is massive potential for online courses. 

After you write your course, there are a number of platforms where you can market and sell the course online. The top instructors on Udemy earn as much as seven figures per year. Another option is Teachable. This platform has different plans that include product support, third party integration and access to unlimited students. The average course creator on Teachable earns $5,400 per course.

 

Blogging

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Blogging is another creative way to make money. There is the potential to earn anywhere from a few dollars to $10,000+ per month. 

You can’t expect an immediate return, as it typically takes up to 18 months before you will see an income. However, it is a flexible way to make money. You can dedicate a couple of hours per day or week, according to your schedule. 

You will need to have a topic that you enjoy and you’ll need to have basic writing skills. Bear in mind that you will need to write about related topics for months or years, so you must have a genuine passion for the niche. 

To earn an income, you can put ads on your blog, sell your own products or get paid affiliate commission for products you review or recommend. 

Sell What You Have

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If you have unwanted items, you can make some spare cash by selling what you have. The most obvious thing is clothing. While there are lots of platforms where you can sell clothing online, if you don’t want the hassle of dealing with each listing, you could use ThredUP. 

ThredUP does not require individual listings. You simply bag up your items and send them to the platform. ThredUp does all the work for you. You’ll receive a cash payout for any items that sell. However, approximately 40% of items that ThredUp receives are rejected. 

Another option is to sell your photos. If you have a flair for photography, this can be one of the most creative ways to make money. You can sell your photos online. There are a number of platforms that allow you to sell stock photos. 

These include:

Related: 70 Places to Sell Stuff

Get Paid to Walk

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Finally, if you like the idea of getting fit and earning cash, you can get paid to walk. There are apps such as Vitality Today, where you can earn points every day to redeem them for rewards. The other option is to sign up for Rover. This will allow you to find dog walking clients and get paid for enjoying fun walks with some furry friends. 

You can set your own prices and hours. Rover does charge a 40% commission. But, there are Rover members who earn $1,000+ per month. 

What Can I Do at Home to Make Money?

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Even if you currently already have a job, you may still need some extra cash to make ends meet. According to statistics, there are 13 million people in the USA that work more than one job.

Fortunately, you don’t necessarily need to leave the house to earn some extra cash.

There are lots of work from home opportunities. From testing websites through to filling in surveys or selling handmade crafts. All you need is an internet connection and a laptop or device. Then you just need to think about where your skills and interests lie.

What is the Easiest Way to Make Money?

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With lots of creative ways to make money, the easiest way will depend on your interests and skills. If you enjoy the outdoors, consider walking dogs or on demand work like mowing lawns. However, if you prefer sharing your opinions, participate in surveys or be a mystery shopper.

There are gigs to suit every interest, so you just need to think about what you like to do in your spare time. You can then find a way to turn this into your side hustle.

Related: 34 Easiest Ways to Make Money

Related: 15 Easy Jobs that Pay Well