13 Legit Ways to Make Money Online

Thanks to the internet, you no longer need to commute and clock in at a part-time job to earn some extra money on the side.

If you’re looking to pad your pockets with a little extra cash, there’s a range of options for earning money online in your spare time. Some require more dedication than others, but all are legitimate forms of supplemental income.

Watch videos online

If you already spend time watching movie trailers or other entertaining videos online, you could be getting rewarded for your viewing. To start earning money watching videos online, give a site like Swagbucks a try, which offers cash for watching different types of videos through its platform.

Initially, you’ll earn points for your viewing activity (they call them Swagbucks), which can then be redeemed for gift cards to your favorite retailers or for cash via PayPal.

Learn more in our full Swagbucks review.

Take surveys

Ever wonder how brands get all that market research data? Among other methods, brands pay survey sites for customer insights and pass some of the cash on to survey takers.

The best survey sites offer a range of surveys that you can qualify for based on a variety of criteria. You won’t make much money answering surveys, but the extra cash adds up if you spend a little time each day completing them.

One of my favorite survey sites for making money online is Survey Junkie, a well-reviewed online survey site (read our full Survey Junkie review). Other popular survey sites include:

• Branded Surveys
• InboxDollars
• MyPoints

Teach English online

If you enjoy working with children, you could create your own schedule teaching English from the comfort of your home.

The good news is that you don’t necessarily need to know another language. To teach with popular online teaching platform VIPKid, for example, you need:

• A bachelor’s degree
• Work authorization
• The right technology
• A couple years experience in teaching, coaching, tutoring, or mentoring

VIPKid designs the curriculum for you, so you don’t have to do any work outside of the hours you teach. According to VIPKid, the base rate for each 25-minute class is $7 to $9, which means you could potentially earn $14 to $18 per hour plus potential incentives.

Learn more in our VIPKid review.

Open an online store

Whether you’re a creative artist or just a savvy entrepreneur looking to develop a partially passive income stream, launching an online store could be potentially lucrative.

Etsy is a particularly popular platform for artisans, resellers, and dropshippers alike.

How much you earn selling items through an online platform like Etsy depends on the items you sell, how well you market your products, and the overall demand.

Resell clothing and other items

I love this method of earning money online because it combines your passion for shopping with the ability to make income.

When you resell items, you purchase them at a discount and sell them for a profit. This method takes some work because you must know which categories and items are the hottest and will sell the best.

How much money you make reselling items depends on how often you sell items, what you sell, and the current demand. Like anything else, you could make a few or several thousand dollars if you’re committed to selling popular, high-value items.

We’ve got all you need to learn how to get started as a reseller.

Become a blogger

Blogging has always intrigued me because you can make money doing it in several ways. But it all starts with a large following, so it’s a good fit for anyone with a large social media following or who knows an underserved market where they could provide valuable information that solves their pain points.

To make money blogging, you can use:

• Affiliate marketing: If you add affiliate links to relevant products in your blog and your readers click through to purchase, you’ll earn a commission. ShopStyle Collective is one platform you can use to build affiliate links.
• Targeted advertisements: Use Google AdSense to earn money by placing targeted advertisements on your site.

You’ll likely also need to work on search engine optimization (SEO) to attract more valuable readers to your blog. This can include using keywords to capture a search query or beefing up your content with external links to trustworthy websites.

Start your own YouTube channel

Starting a YouTube channel is similar to blogging, but in video form. Just like bloggers, you need a large following and a great reputation to make your YouTube channel profitable.

The key to making money as a YouTuber is to find an underserved niche and capitalize on their desire for content. Other ways include:

• Selling your own products, such as T-shirts you designed for your channel
• Work directly with companies to offer sponsored posts
• Supplement your YouTube channel with Patreon or a crowdfunding site to get money from your fans

Read our full Patreon review.

Create a podcast

Creating a podcast is similar to blogging or creating a YouTube channel, except it’s only audio content. Like blogging and vlogging, you must find a topic with a large following to focus on.

How much podcasters make varies based on audience size, advertising contracts, and download numbers. According to ZipRecruiter as of February 2025, podcast hosts make an average of $16 an hour, but if you are consistent in your efforts and build a large audience, you may increase your earnings.

Do microtasks in your spare time

Consider completing microtasks like data entry if you’re looking for something brainless to do in your free time. There are also several freelance platforms that can connect you with small data entry projects, Clickworker being one of the most popular microtask sites.

Become a virtual assistant

I love the option to be a virtual assistant because there are so many things you can do. According to ZipRecruiter as of February 2025, you can make an average of $24 an hour. For example, you could get paid to do any of the following:

• Manage email accounts
• Arrange travel plans
• Set up appointments
• Design websites
• Manage blog content
• Manage social media accounts

Offering a range of services is generally a good idea, but you may want to focus on a particular industry or type of client with which you already have experience to help you stand out. Learn more about how to become a virtual assistant.

Earn cash back and gift cards shopping online

One of my absolute favorite ways to make money online is to earn extra cash for shopping. All you have to do is use one of the best cashback credit cards and combine it with one of the best money saving apps.

The sky’s the limit with the amount of cash back or gift cards you earn when shopping. Here are a few quick examples:

• Apply for the Blue Cash Preferred^® Card from American Express to earn 6% cash back on U.S. supermarkets (for first $6,000 per year, after that 1%) and on select U.S. streaming services and link your grocery store loyalty card to your Ibotta account and search for offers before you shop
• Apply for the Citi Double Cash^® Card to earn up to 2% cash back on all purchases and stack that with cash back from Ibotta, Rakuten, or another site.

Rent out space in your home

If you have an extra bedroom, a sofa, a basement, a treehouse, or even a garage, you can rent it out for a decent sum of money. This is especially true if you live in a popular area.

Airbnb is one of the most popular ways to rent out space in your home, and it can be one of the most lucrative gig jobs in the sharing economy. In my experience, it's not out of the question to make $100 a day or more and it’s free to set up a listing.

Don’t have living space to rent out? Don’t give up, if you have any of the following, you can rent space on Neighbor.com:

• Garage
• Basement
• Attic
• Crawlspace
• Parking spot

Do offline tasks on your own terms

If you are more hands-on, you can do in-person tasks like building furniture or cleaning homes. But there are still online tools to help you get business, including:

• HomeAdvisor
• TaskRabbit

These sites allow you to market a variety of services, create your own schedule, and easily get paid for services rendered.

Whether you know how to paint houses, do landscaping, or provide photography or music for events, getting customers is one of the hardest aspects of growing a business. Taking advantage of sites that will bring you leads could make sense, even if you have to pay for them.

FAQs

Bottom line

Whether you’re looking to earn some extra cash for a night out or grow your income to pay for your child’s college education, there are online tools you can use to reach your goals.

Many of the best side hustles involve an online component, making it simple to earn from anywhere that’s got Wi-Fi.