23 Ways Real People Make Money Online

Ways Real People Make Money Online - picture of handsome man on porch talking on phone with laptop in his lap

This article may contain references to some of our advertising partners. Should you click on these links, we may be compensated. For more about our advertising policies, read our full disclosure statement here.

What’s up party people?!? Welcome back!

In the past, we’ve discussed dozens of ways to make extra money. From child care to landscaping, there are endless opportunities to be found. Of course, not everybody has the time or the ability to work a side job outside the home. Luckily, it’s easier than ever to line your pockets and make money online!

Sure, there are oodles of making money scams and pyramid schemes out there…but that doesn’t mean you should throw the baby out with the bath water. There are tons of legit ways to make money online. Some of them pay off immediately, while others take time to build. A few are jobs, some are hobbies, and a handful try to make the most of the money you already have. Dedicate a few hours a week or just a few minutes a day. Try one or mix and match them to make even more.

As you probably know by now, I love lists. In fact, one of the few things I love more than lists is making money. So, I thought to myself, “Greg, how freakin’ awesome would it be if you made a list about ways to make money online?!?” I got so excited, I almost peed myself. #mindblown

BEHOLD: I give you 23 ways real people can make money online! Enjoy!

Become a Personality

Making a long-term investment in yourself could pay huge dividends! Here are a few ideas to make money online using your own personality.

1) Start a Blog – Starting a blog changed our life. We started blogging as a hobby, but now our former side hustle has led to a 6-figure income. Making money blogging isn’t guaranteed and it doesn’t provide quick cash. But, if you stick with it and provide value, your blog could be a great long-term investment. Create your own blog using our 6-step guide here!

2) Freelance Writing – The biggest benefit of our blog hasn’t been the income it produces on its own. More importantly, it’s led to a variety of high-paying opportunities as freelance writers. Starting a blog gave us a forum and a network to make money writing for other websites. Over the years, we’ve grown that into our most profitable income stream. Learn more about how we’ll earn over $200,000 blogging this year!

3) YouTube – Like blogging, you can also make money by becoming a personality on YouTube. Create videos that inspire, instruct, or entertain others and cash in on your talents. Of course, this doesn’t happen overnight. You’ll need to build a following, but it has the potential to payoff with big bucks if you succeed.

Sell Your Opinions and Surf the Web

If you want to make money online fast, taking surveys for cash quick ways to do it. Oh, and if you do decide to sign up (for free), we’d love for you to use our affiliate links. You’ll make money, we’ll make a little money, so we all win!

4) Swagbucks – You’re already online. Why not get paid for it? Become a Swagbucks member and earn gift cards to your favorite stores by taking surveys, watching videos, shopping online, and searching the internet. When you do, you’ll earn points toward $5-$25 gift cards at places like Amazon, Target, Walmart, and more. Click here to learn how you can join for free!

5) Opinion Outpost – Opinion Outpost is a website that pays you for your opinions. Sign up for free, take online surveys, and get paid! You’ll earn cash and other rewards, plus be entered into a $10,000 quarterly prize drawing. Learn more here!

6) Harris Poll Online – At Harris Poll Online, you can earn rewards points for taking surveys. Surveys include topics from tech to politics. Once you earn the points, redeem them at places like Amazon, iTunes, and Starbucks. Join Harris Poll Online here!

7) Pinecone GenPop – Want to get paid $3 for taking a survey? You can at Pinecone GenPop. Here, you’ll get to use and evaluate a variety of products before they even hit the shelves. Redeem the points you earn for cash or other rewards. Click here to join for free!

8) Bing Rewards – Now you can get paid just for surfing the web. Sign up for Bing Rewards, use Bing as your search engine, and start earning points right away. You can redeem those points for gift cards, Microsoft Store credit, or to enter sweepstakes for prizes. Click here to learn more.

9) Digital Voice – Surf the internet with Digital Voice and earn entries into their monthly $10,000 sweepstakes. Powered by the Nielson company (famous for its ratings), just sign up for free and download the app. Then, go online and do whatever it is you normally do. You’ll earn entries into their monthly sweepstakes, and you can win up to $1,000 every month. Find out more here.

10) InboxDollars – Now you can earn money for just about anything you do on the internet through InboxDollars. Search the internet, respond to email ads, take surveys, play games, and shop online and start earning.

11) American Consumer Opinion – Get paid to test products and take surveys with American Consumer Opinion. Each time you take a survey, you’ll earn points. You can then redeem those points for straight cash homey! Click here to learn more.

Sell Products or Services

Need something that pays more than just a few bucks a pop. Make money online by selling products or services!

23 Ways to Make Money Online
Me bringing home the Benjamins.

12) Virtual Assistant – Virtual assistants help businesses and bloggers complete online administrative tasks. Work on single projects or get hired to work long-term. There are tons of people looking for help, and it’s easy to get started! Just head to Odesk and create a profile today.

13) Web Design – Every business needs a website, and they’ll pay you to help them out. Designing basic websites is realtively easy, and you can do it from anywhere in the world. Simply teach yourself some basic skills, and you can get started right away.

14) eBay – One great way to make money online is by reselling items on eBay. Find and buy great deals, then turn around and sell them for a profit. Start a store and sell anything from Legos to antiques. If you know what you’re doing, you could start making money in no time.

15) Etsy – Are you looking for a great place to sell your arts and crafts? Etsy is the place. Whether you’re great with paint or with woodwoorking, Etsy is a thriving marketplace where you can make real money online. Open your own Etsy store and start selling now!

16) Craigslist – Got some extra stuff lying around the house? Sell it on Craigslist. Now, you don’t have to wait for your summer garage sale to make extra money on your used items. Just throw them up on Craigslist, make a few bucks, and save room on storage!

17) VRBO – Don’t let your house or vacation home sit empty! Use sites like VRBO to make money when you’re not there. Put your place up for rent, then cash in on travelers looking for accomodations. Vacation properties work well, but if you live in a popular area, you can rent your own house out too! Click here for details.

Investing and Banking

Making money online isn’t all about finding new jobs. Use online technologies to make even more money off the cash you already have.

18) High Yield Savings Accounts – Because online banks don’t have the same overhead costs as their brick and mortar competitors, they can usually offer higher interest rates. You may be able to earn over 100x more in an online savings account than you can with a traditional bank. Try opening a high-yield savings account, money market account, or certificate of deposit online and start earning more on your money today.

19) Personal Capital – Personal Capital doesn’t just offer the best free money tools around. They’re also an advisory firm that can help you make sound investment decisions. Read our full Personal Capital review here.

20) Wealthfront – Want a hands-off approach to retirement investing? Welathfront is a great place to start. Just complete the personal questionnaire, fund your account, and Wealthfront will take care of the rest. Plus, your first $10,000 is managed for free.

21) Betterment – Betterment is also an excellent option for hands-off retirement investing. They offer an easy to use platform with super low rates. Learn more about Betterment here.

22) Motif Investing – At Motif Investing, you’ll enjoy exposure to 30 different stocks and/or EFTs based around the same theme for the low price of $9.95. They’ll also give you up to $150 to start investing with them. Learn more about Motif Investing here.

23) TradeKing – TradeKing is one of our favorite online brokerage houses. Trades cost an astonishingly low $4.95, plus they’ll give you up to $1,000 in free trade commissions for opening a new account. If you need help with retirement funds, they also offer the TradeKing Advisors program. Read our full TradeKing Review here!

Want to Make Money Online?

So, what do you think? Do you have what it takes to make money online? Of course you do! Just pick one or more of these ideas, and get started right away!

What are your favorite ways to make money online? Let us know in the comments below!

Similar Posts

Disclaimer: Comments, responses, and other user-generated content is not provided or commissioned by this site or our advertisers. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by this website or our advertisers. It is not the responsibility of our advertisers or this website to ensure that all comments and/or questions are answered. Club Thrifty has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Club Thrifty and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.

21 Comments

    1. Absolutely. Freelancing is a great way to make money while you build, or you can build a freelancing career. It’s a really great option for making money online.

  1. Great list, Greg! I’m focused on working to increase my blog income through more ads and affiliates. My online income is mostly through social media consulting and freelance writing right now.

  2. Super helpful list. People always seem astonished that I make money by blogging and freelancing. The internet is at our disposable, so why not use it?!

    1. Right?!? The internet has made it so much easier to make extra money. It’s crazy not to take advantage of that!

  3. Great list, Greg! I’ve used a few of these methods, but so far my most profitable has been ebay over the years. Here’s hoping the blog takes the lead eventally! 🙂

    1. I know lots of people who have had success with online stores and selling on eBay/Etsy/Craigslist, etc. Keep working hard and the blog will eventually catch up 🙂

  4. A fine list, Greg. I appreciate that some of the suggestions are skill-based and others only require effort. You’ve provided an example of an online side-hustle for everyone!

    1. Thank you! If you really want to earn extra money, there really isn’t any reason that you shouldn’t be able to find something to do.

  5. I have used Upwork to help get freelancing work online. There are plenty of low-paying jobs and spam postings, but it’s the best way to get started (IMO) if you do not have an established client base.

    1. Upwork is definitely a good spot to start. I’ve hired off there before and I’ve gotten a few jobs myself.

  6. If I could only get the credit card referral links, then that would be my favorite lol. Seems like the easiest way to earn money through affiliates because it doesn\’t require as big of a decision to invest or refinance something

    1. Credit cards are one way to make money, but they are a ton of upkeep. Lots of competition and even more compliance issues. 🙂

  7. Starting a blog is my favorite! Then, freelance writing and Craiglist. Thanks for the list, Greg.

  8. I also like using the internet to hone other skills. So much knowledge is freely available. It\’s a wondrous time to be alive.

    1. So true. If you haven’t tried an MOOC, definitely try one of those. You can pick up all kinds of knowledge…and it’s all free.

  9. Very easy and creative methods. Thank you for share. I appreciate it.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.