If you have a computer or smartphone, there are many ways you can earn some extra cash. Some are quickly completed with earning immediately credited while others are slower and take a bit more patience before you receive the reward. You can earn money for watching videos, performing searches on Google, making your own YouTube clips and more.
Several of sites will pay you cash and others will give you gift cards to Amazon or stores such as Targets, M & S and others. If you utilize more than one of these methods, organize your time based on when tasks and jobs are available. Then fill in extra time with work that can be done any time. If you are careful about scheduling your time, it’s possible to earn quite a bit of money with online opportunities.
Even if you only use these sites occasionally, you can earn regular pocket money to supplement other income streams without too much effort. I have included sites that require no special skills and have attempted to choose sites that have work in multiple countries though for some you might be limited to a region such as the UK or single country. The sites included in this article are legitimate earnings opportunities, that I have looked into and some for which I have worked. If you know of others that have good reputations, please include them in the comments below.
Before I discuss the sites, there are several tips that I know firsthand can help you maximize your earnings and minimize the time you put into online earning programs. Many of these tips I have learned firsthand through trial and error. I am including them here, so you don’t have to go through the difficulties I already have, and can learn from my mistakes. The most important thing to keep in mind is that although most of these sites only pay small amounts, if you participate in several you can earn a tidy sum. It is also good to participate in those tasks and programs that are fun for you. That way, the money you are making is not the only focus, and you will enjoy what you are doing.
Tips to Maximize Online Earning
Don’t leave money in online-earning accounts. An early mistake I made was letting money accrue in online accounts so when I cashed out it was a larger amount. I learned my lesson when one company shut down without warning taking a rather hefty amount of my money with it. These companies aren’t financial institutions and they don’t have to follow rules that such institutions are required to follow. This means that there is no protection for your earnings should the company go under. Withdraw your cash when you meet the minimum payout amount, so you can minimize risk to your earnings.
Set up a dedicated email address. If you are like me, your main email account is flooded with legitimate emails, spam, offers from sites I signed up with just to get something else, advertisements and all manner of other types of communications. Setting up a dedicated email account will let you quickly see new opportunities and messages about tasks you may have completed that you may need to address. When it comes free options, Gmail is one of the best as it organizes all emails related to the same conversation in a single linear series keeping them all together.
Be patient, and don’t expect to earn a fortune. With some of these sites, it may take a while to earn enough to be able to cash out. If you get frustrated and give up that means the work you did up to that point you did for free. If you work consistently and remain patient, you will be able to earn at least a small amount regularly and possible a good deal more.
Spend gift vouchers as soon as possible. When I first started completing tasks for these types of companies, I earned a bunch of gift cards and vouchers. Over the course of the year, I forgot about some of them which had expired by the time I remembered them, had several become worthless due to the companies or stores shutting down or changing hands. Spending vouchers quickly reduces your chances of being left with invalid vouchers or losing them if they are paper copies.
Don’t forget taxes. Before you start spending your earnings, remember that this type of earning is taxable like other income. Tax laws will differ based on the country you live in so make sure to consult an expert who can help you determine how much you will owe.
1. Roamler
The free app Roamler operates in countries in Europe, Scandinavia, South America and the Middle East. You can use it to earn money for easy tasks such as counting stock in shops, taking pictures of menus in restaurants and even buying a beer to monitor how the beverage is served. Roamler uses people in a variety of countries to satisfy the simple market needs of companies. When businesses need basic market research done, the information is sent out through the Roamler app and those using the app can pick up the tasks as they choose. Payment usually amounts to around £5 per task, but it ranges between £3 and £12.
2. YouSpotProperty
This UK company rewards people for reporting empty or derelict property in various UK counties with a £20 Amazon or M & S voucher for reporting it to YouSpotProperty. Additionally, if the company buys the property, they will pay you 1 percent of the purchase price. While this may sound unlikely, news reports described several people who earned thousands of pounds through the site. One woman was reported to have earned £3,500 for reporting one empty house and another £6,500 for reporting an empty house in a different county. The highest payout for a single property was £10,000.
There are a few conditions that apply. The program currently only works with people in the UK. You must be the first one to report the house to qualify for the payment. The house must also meet certain criteria which include the house being privately owned, not being currently up for sale and there being no planning permission that has been applied for recently.
The company also donates £500 to a charity located in the county as each property it buys. While only about 50 people have benefited from the 1 percent cut offered for properties bought, over 3000 people have received vouchers for reporting properties.
3. Achievement App
Although this app only works in the U.S. to date, I am including it because it is a great health and fitness related app. If you are like me, sometimes you simply don’t have the motivation to work out. Okay, as far as I’m concerned, it’s probably more like often I don’t have the motivation to work out. I have tried all types of systems from rewarding myself to trying to work out with friends. Not much helped. Then I found the Achievement App.
The Achievement App lets you earn money for working out and other health related behaviors which you monitor with over 30 health apps. This can includs walking, running, biking, hiking, and climbing among others. Every time you log an activity the app rewards you with points. You also earn points for activities such as drinking water, measuring your heart rate, counting calories, tweeting health thoughts and even sleeping.
There are more than 40 apps you can synch to which will allow you to earn points such UnderArmour Fitness suite, Garmin Connect, Samsung Health, Jawbone, Fitbit, Apple Health, Foursquare, Twitter, among others. When you reach 10,000 points you earn $10. There’s also a bonus when you sign up. I have been using this app for about a week and have earned a little over 5000 points so far but as it is a typical Chicago winter aside from walking around my apartment and walking to the subway I have not been exercising. Some say it takes a long time to earn the $10 but I think it depends on how active you are and how many activities you monitor. Though thirty points a night just for sleeping seems like something I definitely can get behind.
4. Qmee
Qmee makes it possible to make money just for searching the web. You will need to download their add-on for your browser. Then whenever you search it brings up extra ads as a sidebar for which companies pay. It you are interested in an ad and click on it you earn a small amount, but you also earn revenue share just for allowing the extra results to appear on the side of your search.
Search as you normally would on Google, Amazon, eBay, Yahoo, Bing and Tesco. Additionally, you can earn money for completing surveys, shopping and using coupons. There is no minimum amount for cashing the payout. While this opportunity may seem like another that takes a long time to earn anything on, after using it for about a week just for internet services I have earned almost $10. The service is available to those residing in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada or Australia.
5. GiftHulk
GiftHulk lets you earn money for several web activities such as watching videos, completing surveys and searching using its site. You get paid in Hulk Coins, which you can redeem for rewards including Amazon vouchers. Special codes found in the GiftHulk website forum earn extra points daily. Extra points are also given for referrals.
Once you reach a certain number of points you can level up and earn other bonuses for special tasks. These include creating blog posts, forum threads or YouTube videos about the site. There are also sweepstakes you can enter and guessing games to win.
Support services are available to help with all aspects of the program. Rewards are sent out within seven days of being redeemed. They state they have paid out more than $1,000,000 in rewards since 2011. You must live in the U.S. to use this site.
