Better Off, Better You Part 4: Earning Extra
Welcome to the final part of Better Off, Better You, looking at how to get your finances in order for the year and hopefully, take a load off your mind. Here, we’ll be going through some ideas on how to make some extra money.
So far, we’ve looked at getting your budget sorted, ways to cut your bills and even how to make changes to your lifestyle.
Perhaps, even after finishing all the above, you’ve found yourself short of cash each month. Or maybe, you have some dreams that are a little unaffordable at the moment. Well, we’re going to look at some ideas for making some extra income.
Below, I’m going to share with you a mixture of ideas. Some are part-time that you can do from home, whilst others have the potential to be full-time jobs. It’s really up to you and depends on how much you want to earn.
Let’s start with some simple ways first that require little effort. They won’t make you a fortune but could certainly see you on the way to making several hundred pounds per year.
Sell
No doubt, you have plenty of stuff lying around your home that you no longer use. But instead of leaving it to gather dust until you eventually take it to the tip, why not sell it? You’ll be surprised by how one person’s rubbish is considered as treasure by somebody else. And not only that, you’ll clear a bit of room too.
You could try and sell at an online marketplace, but this will usually charge you a fee. But there are plenty of alternatives to eBay with thousands of potential customers. Just list what you want to get rid of on Facebook Marketplace or Gumtree, include a couple of photos, an accurate description, and an asking price, and wait for any offers. You could have a buyer collecting within the hour.
The main difficulty is finding exactly how much something is worth, so look around for similar items to get a rough idea. When you have a price in mind, list your item for around 10% more than you want. You’re bound to get people wanting to haggle, so they’re more willing to buy if they think you’re giving them a discount.
Some items sell better than others, with electronics and toys often going quickly but clothes being a little harder to shift. And if you can’t sell, you can always reduce the asking price.
Scan your receipts
This is a way to make extra money from shopping which requires little effort. There are companies out there that are interested in people’s shopping habits and there’s no better way than looking at your receipts. All you need to do is download a receipt app to your phone, take a photo, and upload it and you’ll receive points. These can then be converted into vouchers or cash. Some of the best scanning apps are:
- Shoppix
- Storewards
- SnapMyEats
- HuYu
- Shopprize
Take a look at my full review of best the receipt apps to find out how much you can expect to earn.
Cashback credit card
Did you know that there are cards that pay you to use them? Although this is only in the region of around 0.5%, over a year, this can soon add up. The issue is you need to make sure that you clear the balance every month. If you don’t, you could find that you’re paying far more in interest than you make in cashback.
My favourite card comes from Amazon, which will also give you a free gift card when you sign up. But there are several alternatives on the market.
If you don’t fancy a credit card, there is a bank account that offers 1% cashback on select purchases. Chase is new to the UK market and the account also has several other benefits. However, the cashback is only available for the 1st year of joining.
Bank account cashback
Banks are keen to have you as a customer. Not because they care about you but because they hope to make money. They offer all sorts of incentives and one of these is cashback.
To qualify, you usually have to pay a small monthly fee. Then, you’ll earn money by taking specific actions, such as receiving a cash payment or paying a direct debit.
In all honesty, these generally won’t earn you much more than a few pounds per month, but it is money for nothing. And it’s always nice to get a little something back.
Take a look at some of the best cashback bank accounts.
Change your bank
As I said, banks are keen to attract new customers. And if they don’t offer a cashback account, they may offer a switching incentive. How much you earn varies, but you can often take home £100-£150 just by closing your old account and swapping to the new one.
Most people are a little worried about the process, but by using the Switch Guarantee, everything is done for you. All of your direct debits and standing orders are moved and any payments into your old account will be automatically forwarded for the following year. Overall, it shouldn’t take you much more than 15 minutes.
And nothing is stopping you from making multiple switches in a year. I have earned over £500 from doing this in under 12 months.
Part-time earnings
If you fancy earning something a little more substantial, several part-time options are available.
Surveys
This is one of my favourite ways to boost an income. The main benefit is the fact that you can dip in as much or as little as you like. If you have 10 minutes to spare at lunch, it’s enough time to complete a survey or two, or you can spend an hour in front of the TV in the evening. Some sites even allow you to test products or participate in focus groups, which can pay up to £100.
Some of the sites you should look at are:
Why not look at my list of the best paid survey sites? The more sites you join, the more chances you earn.
Mystery shopping
This takes a little more commitment than survey sites, but it does pay more. Most mystery shopping jobs require you to go into certain stores, buy an item and then write a report. They can pay anywhere between £5 and £20. Usually, they take a maximum of 30 minutes. You’ll also receive the money you pay for the item.
But, some jobs will pay you far more. I had a smart meter fitted at my home and earned £60. I have also had opportunities to apply for a mortgage (which I didn’t have to go through with) that paid £150. Although it sounds like a lot of effort, it’s usually only a few hours of work at most.
Some mystery shopping sites are quite simple and require you to download an app and answer a few questions. The sites that pay more usually require you to take a short training course and answer a few comprehension questions before they allow you to work.
Look at how to become a mystery shopper and some of the best sites to join.
Online focus groups
If the idea of earning more appeals but you don’t want to leave your house, online focus groups and interviews might be the way forward.
They operate similarly to surveys, as they are just after your opinion. The only difference is you’ll have an interviewer asking you more specific questions. Rather than you just ticking a box on a sheet, they want to dig into what you think. Although it sounds scary, it’s very easy to do.
Depending on the site you join, a one-hour interview will earn you between £40 and £60. In some cases, it can be as much as £100. Payment will be made in cash or Amazon vouchers. But work can be a little sketchy at times. Some weeks I can have three interviews and then nothing for the rest of the month.
See some of the best online interview panels and focus groups.
Work as an extra
This is a little different from the usual way to make money. Not only does it pay quite well but you may also have the chance to meet some big stars.
How much you earn does depend partly on whether you’re filming a movie or TV show and if you’re bringing some particular skills with you or you’re just asked to stand in the background. But you can usually expect in the region of £100+ per day.
You will need to join a casting agency to get started, which may also require a small fee. Work is a little irregular, so you can’t consider it a full-time living. Sometimes, you can spend most of a month working and then not have anything else for three months.
Find out how much I earned working as an extra and some casting agencies you can join.
Full-time earnings
If you’re looking for something a little more substantial and part-time work just won’t cut it, then there are a few full-time options you could look into.
Childminding
If you don’t like children, then this probably isn’t the job for you. Otherwise, if you want to work from home and do something around school hours, then childminding is ideal.
You won’t need to complete any long courses to get started, although you will be subject to some checks beforehand. Childminders usually charge around £5 per child (depending on location). This might not sound like much, but if you have four children at a time, that’s a decent wage.
You can earn more if you provide meals and work weekends.
I have written a post about how much childminders earn and how you can start.
Transcribing
If you’re looking for a job from home that doesn’t involve children, then take a look at transcribing. This involves you changing the spoken word into a written one. Most commonly, you’ll need to do this for creating subtitles for videos, but there are other reasons why somebody may want something transcribed.
You’ll need to be a good listener with a good command of the English language. New transcribers probably start at around £8 per hour. But as you get used to it and become more efficient, this could reach more than £20 per hour. And if you speak multiple languages, you could earn even more.
There are several transcribing sites, and you can see how I got on with Rev.
Delivery driver
If you can drive, then you can deliver. It’s not actually compulsory that you need to drive. In some of the major cities around the UK, some delivery companies will take you on if you have a bicycle.
But with the increase in popularity of online shopping and the fact that we seem to be becoming a little more obsessed with fast food (myself included), there are more and more delivery jobs available.
And whether you want to work full-time as a driver for companies like Amazon, Yodel or Parcel Force, or you want to do it occasionally for the likes of Uber Eats or your local takeaway, it’s totally up to you.
Of course, if you decide to go full-time, you’ll get extra benefits such as holiday pay, sick pay and a guarantee for the number of hours you can work each week (usually).
If it appeals to you, take a look at how to become a delivery driver.
These are only a few ideas to get you started earning extra. If none of the above appeals to you or you want to see other ways to earn, look at my post on the best side hustles.
Don’t forget the tax…
Now the bad news. If you’re earning extra, you must declare your added income to HMRC through self-assessment and pay any tax due. Booo. But there is a glimmer of good news. You can earn an extra £1,000 yearly from a side income without needing to declare it.
You’re not on your own
Well, I hope you have found Better Off, Better You helpful. But the unfortunate truth is, no matter how hard you work, sometimes debt can still get on top of you. And although I have tried to cover as much as possible in this guide, it’s more of a general overview and not tailored towards individual circumstances.
If you find yourself struggling, there are some wonderful resources out there that will give you more specific advice. And it won’t cost you a thing.
Take a look at StepChange, National Debtline or Citizens Advice for further information and guidance.
But be careful. Companies out there also offer ‘advice’, but they charge for the service. If you’re trying to clear debt, the last thing you want to do is throw more money at it.
And finally, don’t do what I did. I thought I was protecting my wife when I didn’t share the stress of my debt problems. But if I had spoken to her, we could have worked through the problems together rather than me dealing with them on my own. You would want to know if your loved one was suffering from stress.
