Ways to Make Money from Home + Side Hustles

Whether you are looking for a career change, wanting to add extra income for your family, or stuck at home due to our current situation, there are quite a few work from home options out there. Having tried a handful of them myself, I’m sharing with you today ways to make money from home (plus a few out-of-the-house side hustles too!)

But first – be sensible

There are countless “opportunities” out there to make money quickly. But trust me, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Don’t ever pay money to make money. Don’t cash checks for people who say they will give you a portion. And don’t give your personal or banking information to anyone unless you’ve verified that they are a legitimate business.

A quick Google search of any company name will usually let you know if they are trustworthy or not. With that said, here’s my list:

Amanda using laptop to make money working from home

Make money from home selling stuff

You may think you don’t have anything worth selling, but I promise you people will buy ALL KINDS OF STUFF. I’ve offloaded so many things on Facebook Marketplace (including a barely played-with toy that I sold for $30 yesterday). There are also apps and other online options for selling your stuff:

Mercari – I’ve personally made over $400 in the past 2 months selling our things on Mercari. Kids’ clothes, my clothes, a coffee mug, an unused coloring book (really), a video game, and whatnots that were just collecting dust. It’s pretty easy to get started and it has helped me make some extra money while cleaning out the house!

Poshmark – Similar to Mercari, you can sell clothes, accessories, home items, seasonal decor, etc. Many people even thrift popular brands to resell on these apps and make a decent profit. I haven’t sold on Poshmark yet, but I have bought a few things.

thredUP – They send you a giant shipping bag with a prepaid label. You stuff it full of your clothes and send it back to them. They pay you for things that they determine are “sellable” and will either donate what’s left or will send your things back for a fee. They don’t pay much, but it’s pretty hassle-free. (You can also shop name brand clothes at great prices and get $10 off your first order!)

eBay – I used to sell things on eBay back in the day, but it’s been a while since I’ve been active here. It’s still a very popular site for buying and selling both new and used items – even cars!

Etsy – You don’t have to be a super crafty person to sell on Etsy! While there are plenty of small shops that make handmade clothing, there are also other things that people sell: decorative tumblers and glasses, wooden signs, vinyl shirts, and even printables. Use whatever skill you have and put it out there for people to see!

Teach/tutor online

If you have a background in education (or even if you don’t), there are a few opportunities to earn money teaching or tutoring others virtually.

VIPKid – You’ve probably heard of VIPKid by now, and for good reason. It’s a very popular way to teach English online, and only need a bachelor’s degree (not necessarily a teaching degree). My friend Stephanie (that’s her affiliate link, btw) has been with VIPKid for 3 years and loves the flexibility of being able to work as much or as little as she wants while she stays at home with her kids. With a range of $15-22 an hour, it’s a great way to add some extra income!

Pearson – I worked for Pearson a few years back, scoring tests at home. Teachers in certain states can learn to score essays that kids write as part of their state testing. This one is specifically for educators, but can really help supplement a teacher’s salary. It isn’t an “easy” job by any means, but was worth my time.

Kaplan – Current online teaching opportunities here include instructors for real estate, engineering, and tax accounting, just to name a few. Kaplan is a well-known name in the education industry, and hires remote instructors all over the US.

K12 – This online learning company hires a variety of educators, including special education teachers and educational support staff. They have in-person positions too!

Rosetta Stone – Fluent in a second language? Teach it online! Experience and teaching certifications are preferred, but not always necessary.

Higher Education – Various colleges and universities use remote faculty positions. Check into Johns Hopkins University, Southern New Hampshire University, University of Phoenix, and other schools in your area.

You may also check into local moms’ groups on Facebook or Nextdoor. Many moms look for local tutors to help their kids in certain subjects. This may be an option if a child can come to your house for an hour, or possibly could work via a web call.

Freelancing work

If you have a particular set of skills…. then show them off and get paid! Not sure where to look? There are a couple of sites where you can advertise what you are able to offer, or look for jobs that people need done and apply for them.

I know many people who turn to Fiverr when looking for freelance work or for outsourcing work. Another well-known site is Upwork.

Whether creating graphics, writing blog posts, creating a website or putting together video… or any other number of projects, you are totally your own boss when freelancing.

Have experience and want to help others improve their businesses virtually? Become a consultant and teach others what they need to know.

Love taking photos? Sell your pictures to sites that use them as stock photos and get paid! Or become a freelance photographer and take photos of families, pets, weddings, or births.

Transcription jobs from home

I used to think those work from home transcription jobs were a bunch of fluff. That is, until I realized they were really for real! Even my mother-in-law has done transcription work from home, although in her case it was for a local attorney.

Rev – Rev hires freelance transcriptionists and captioners, with no limit to the number of projects you can claim. If you know a foreign language, you can earn even more by translating subtitles.

TranscribeMe – Another company that provides transcription and translation services, very similar to Rev.

Be a blogger or influencer

While I’m far from a millionaire after blogging for the past 7 years (especially considering I was clueless for the first 5 years), there’s definitely a way to make money with blogging and social media marketing. I kinda hate the term influencer, but it is what it is.

There are networks that help to connect influencers with brands that will pay for sponsored posts. You can read about some of my favorite influencer networks here.

There are also some great resources out there on how to get started with blogging. Check out Traci Fobes’ website for some excellent info and courses (some are free!).

Other work at home opportunities

There are various other work opportunities that don’t really fall into any of the other categories, but are still legit sites worth mentioning:

Lionbridge – I worked for Lionbridge in 2012-2013 when I was living in a very small town for a year (yay for nomadic Army life!) and it didn’t make sense for me to work outside of the home. Tasks pop up, such as evaluating search results, and you grab the tasks and complete them for a small amount of pay. While each task doesn’t pay much, doing many tasks over the course of the day adds up.

Appen – Previously known as Leapforce, Appen is a website that has tasks similar to Lionbridge. They also have jobs available for translators, transcriptionists, and other virtual employees.

MTurk – Amazon Mechanical Turk is a crowdsourcing marketplace that outsources small jobs for workers to complete virtually. Pay varies from very low to average and competition here can be pretty high.

Call Center and Chat Support – There are openings all the time for customer service reps, both phone based and chat support. Because these fluctuate constantly, you may want to check Indeed or Glassdoor for current job openings across the US (or in your country). Some businesses that frequently have openings are Amazon (you can even be an Alexa support associate!), Apple, and Home Shopping Network.

Make sure you have a quiet space and good quality headset for any phone-based jobs!

talking on phone while working from home

Shop and complete surveys at home

While these definitely aren’t jobs, they are ways you can either make a little money when you’re bored or earn rebates on things you buy.

I used to spend my free time completing surveys at home while watching TV. I actually received real checks in the mail (back when checks were a thing and PayPal wasn’t as popular), and also received products to test a few times! Oh to get free toilet paper in the mail again…

A few popular survey sites are:

I also have earned quite a bit of money through rebates and cash back on things that I already buy – both online and in stores! I’m talking hundreds of dollars. Check them out for yourself:

Rakuten (formerly eBates, get a percentage back when shopping online)
Ibotta (get cash back for groceries and other shopping)

Flexible jobs that aren’t home-based

Some jobs require you to leave your house, but are a great side-hustle option if you want to bring in extra money and set your own hours.

Delivering groceries or food from restaurants, driving travelers in your car, or running errands for people are all options that are available in many places these days. Right now, grocery delivery drivers in the Atlanta area are making around $1000 per week!

Check to see which services are available in your area:

Doordash
Grubhub
Uber Eats
Postmates
Uber
Lyft
TaskRabbit
Instacart (get the app and sign up with my code ASEGHETTI151B4 )
Shipt
Amazon Flex (make $18-25/hour!)

Other options are pet sitting with apps like Rover, or providing babysitting services through Care.com or Bambino.

I’ve also made some extra money as a secret shopper (or mystery shopper, as they are sometimes called). When Hunter was little, she thought it was cool to do “secret spy work” with her mom! Make sure to thoroughly check out any secret shopping companies before signing up, but there are plenty of legit ones with jobs everywhere! Even my aunt has found great opportunities in her small town.

Here are a few I know of and trust:

MPSA is a great resource for learning more about mystery shopping and finding legit businesses to work for.

Are there any opportunities to make money working from home that I’ve left out? Leave me a comment and let me know so I can add them to my list!