If you’re seeking ways to make money online, you’ll need to do your research and undertake some groundwork. For those who have planned carefully, the following can be very effective

• Market Trading
• Cryptocurrency
• Blog, Vlog & Podcast
• Coach & Teach
• Buy & Sell
• Online Surveys
• Monetize Your Website
• Data Entry
• “Gig” Sites
• Sell Art
• Enter Competitions
• Sell Images
• Use Cashback Apps
• Create Content
• Social Media Management

Ways to Make Money Online

The internet “side hustle” has become a huge part of many peoples’ lives in recent years.

It’s no wonder that running an online business has been named as the “most popular” side hustle and the leader of the top three highest paying side hustle business models in 2022 (according to Side Hustle magazine).

In the latter stat, the second and third-ranked business models are “Freelancing/Consulting” and “Investing” – both of which are also commonly undertaken online for the most part.

With so many ways to monetize the time you spend on the internet, coupled with the ease of earning from home, it’s no wonder that earning extra money online has become such a common goal among people from all walks of life.

This article introduces the subject of how to make money online for beginners right through to the more experienced.

Whether you’re planning to take on this new enterprise alongside existing work, or you want an entirely fresh start, there are a huge number of options available. Here, we’ll explore just a few.

1. Market Trading

Trading on the stock market is a fairly high-risk activity. However, while to the untrained eye, this approach to online money-making may seem similar to an online casino, real money can be made quite easily if you know what you are doing.

The average stock market return of around 10% (minus inflation) has remained the same for almost a hundred years.

In the world of investing, it is well known that the higher the risk, the higher the potential payout. However, you need to remember that, when making daring choices, there is also an increased chance of significant losses.

For this reason, it’s vitally important that you develop a good amount of knowledge before you commit to trading stocks and shares. You’ll need to follow a clear strategy and understand the risks involved. You must budget carefully, too.

Depending on your availability during the day, the types of shares in which you are interested in investing and your understanding of your own psychology as a trader, you might consider

• Day trading
• Swing trading
• Short term trading
• Long term trading
• Before or after-hours trading

There are also a wide range of asset classes in which you may invest, including

• Equities
• Bonds
• Derivatives
• Commodities
• Unit trusts
• OEICs

As you can see, the world of investing can become very complex very quickly. For this reason, it is best to talk with friends or acquaintances who have experience in trading before you begin yourself.

In 2020, 55% of US adults made some kind of investment in the stock market (Statista Data).

There are a number of excellent platforms or apps that you can use in order to manage your investment portfolio entirely online.

With many offering features that will help you to calculate potential returns, stick to a tight budget and even provide you with “dry run” scenarios in order to practice trading in a no-risk environment, it’s definitely best to compare available resources to find the best tools for you.

If you’re interested in swing trading, consider subscribing to a reliable swing trading alert service for timely market insights and strategies.

You could even cultivate a collection of complementary investment apps to help you manage a range of ventures, such as your portfolio of shares and your fractional investments in real estate.

This form of investment enables you to pay for a square meter or similar portion of a larger property and receive an equity-based return depending on the size of your share.

2. Cryptocurrency

While investing in crypto is considered by many to be one of the easy ways to make money online fast, the practice can be exceptionally volatile.

The good news is, however, that with the rise of Web 3.0, the opportunity to invest in crypto, NFTs and other decentralized resources is likely to remain in place long term.

Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana are “virtual” currencies whose values are not tied to a particular market or economy. They are backed up by blockchain technology – a digital chain of “ledgers” in which data from each transaction is indelibly recorded.

This makes fraud far more difficult to achieve and positions crypto as a secure investment.

Due to a huge variety of factors, from media focus to official regulations to general supply and demand, the value of a cryptocurrency is likely to rise and fall dramatically over very short periods of time.

This can make it a somewhat risky playing field. Often, it is best to venture into the world of crypto only if you have the capacity to “wait it out”.

The old “buy low, sell high” technique can work well, but it’s even better if you have the nerve to watch your crypto fall in value briefly, safe in the understanding that it’s likely to tick upwards again soon. After all, sudden booms are not rare, and you don’t want to miss one.

3. Blog, Vlog & Podcast

If you think you’d be good at holding the attention of an online audience, and if you feel you have a strong grasp of an interesting and unique subject area, you might decide to start a blog, vlog, or podcast.

Ideally, the subject matter on which you focus should be fair “niche”, so that you are not competing in a highly saturated market. You should also have a good enough understanding of it to be considered an expert, or near enough.

You’ll need to stick to your chosen field in all of your content. After all, your growing audience will come to you for a certain thing, and you don’t want to disappoint or confuse them.

Naturally, blog, vlog, and podcast content can take a long time to practice, perfect and produce.

In order to fend off the competition, you’ll need to invest in your production values proper lighting and a good microphone as a vlogger or YouTuber, professional standard recording equipment as a podcaster, and great quality copy and images as a blogger.

Your content can be monetized in a number of ways, from setting up as a YouTube “Partner” to paid ads and sponsorship to merchandising.

It’s worth noting, however, that it takes a great deal of time, effort, and regular posting to cultivate the large fanbase and recognizable profile you’ll need to make real money from your content.

4. Coach & Teach

You can take courses in these subjects online in order to get qualified, and you can arrange regular sessions via conferencing apps to reach clients anywhere in the world.

Alternatively, you might wish to promote yourself as an online personal trainer, dietician, or any other kind of coach. Of course, it’s important that you are knowledgeable, qualified, and experienced in the field you plan to enter.

Ideally, you should get yourself accredited with a relevant body to ensure that you are doing everything properly and that potential clients will trust you to provide them with what they need.

You can also become an online teacher or tutor to help young people or adults to pass examinations or learn a language. Again, there are numerous qualifications you can pursue to allow you to do this – many of which are available online.

5. Buy & Sell

If you want to know how to make fast money online on a one-off basis, you might consider selling belongings on auction sites.

Should you own any items of value that you no longer need or use, selling them online could help you to build up a little cash quickly. Check your spelling, use popular search terms in your listings, and include great images and as much detail as possible to attract relevant users.

There is often the option to list an item at a fixed price or to allow members of the public to bid. Check what similar items have sold in the past in order to make your decision.

Often, bidding wars can push the final price of the item way beyond its market value, but you can’t always count on this. Don’t forget to factor in postage and packaging, too!

A more advanced approach is to seek out valuable items at bargain prices online, or in auction houses or thrift stores. If you know that what you are purchasing is actually worth a great deal more than the price at which you bought it, you may be able to make an excellent return.

To achieve this, it’s usually best to develop an area of expertise and stick to it, as this will help you to quickly excel at recognizing specific items of value within that niche. You could even fix, refurbish or upcycle items.

It’s possible to buy and sell real estate online (via auctions), too. If you have secure access to the right funds, why not browse online property auctions to find homes that are either clearly underpriced or, with simple refurbishment, might gain significant value?

In all cases of buying low and selling for a profit, you need to check the validity and quality of the asset you will be purchasing. When it comes to property, you’ll need to get it properly surveyed and valued before you bid on it in an auction to ensure you are paying the right price.

6. Online Surveys

If you look up “how to make money online for free”, the results are likely to be littered with opportunities to fill out surveys in return for cash.

These tasks often exist to aid in market research being undertaken by various organizations. Sometimes, these sites will payout in electronic funds straight to your PayPal, but other times the remuneration comes in the form of a gift card or coupons.

Survey sites do take a lot of your time in order to generate any kind of return. Depending on the site, you may receive as little as 10 cents per survey – though very long and detailed ones may payout up to $50 (according to Dollar Break).

It’s difficult to make a living wage using this method, which means it’s often used as a small supplement to other work.

7. Monetize Your Website

Perhaps you already have your own website. Even if it’s a hobby site or a means of promoting your professional work by displaying a portfolio or resume online, you may be able to earn some cash from it.

You could sell ad space, display banner ads, engage in affiliate marketing, publish sponsored posts and postpaid reviews of products to name just a few options.

Some of these options may allow you to gain a “passive income” – which means you’ll make money without investing any of your own time or effort in the long run.

8. Data Entry

There are a large number of “clickworker” jobs always available online. Some of these jobs are voluntary, but many pay small amounts to people who undertake “micro-tasks” or routine analysis duties that are outsourced from certain companies.

The tech and science industries often use clickworkers for large data entry tasks that cannot be easily automated. Usually, jobs of this kind are entirely flexible and can be performed around other daily tasks and responsibilities to make a little extra income easily.

9. “Gig” Sites

Why not advertise an existing skill or service online? If you already have a talent for which others could “hire” you, listing yourself on sites like UpWork, Freelancer, and Fiverr may get you more regular – and more lucrative – work.

If you’re already well-established in your field, this may not be the best option. These sites often allow potential customers to get work done for cheap, which may not suit your existing cash flow or pricing structure.

However, if you have a skill and a little time on your hands, these sites may be very handy in showing that you are available for jobs as and when required.

Don’t advertise yourself if your skills aren’t of a professional standard, however, as this will be quickly discovered and – depending on site policy – you may be fined, banned, or both.

10. Sell Art

That’s right, you may be able to sell artwork that you make online. Etsy, of course, is a popular online marketplace for handmade items and similar products.

However, in order to reduce your overheads and offer endless amounts of stock, you may decide to sign up to a print-on-demand site like RedBubble, Teespring, or others.

These sites will outsource the printing of your designs so that you won’t need to have the materials to hand yourself.

They’ll then create a range of products that display your work, often including t-shirts, canvases, posters, tapestries, mugs, coasters, postcards, cushions, keyrings, and much more.

You’ll get paid an agreed amount every time an item sells – and products are usually only printed as and when required to reduce waste.

11. Enter Competitions

This is, as it sounds, a less assured way of making money online, but it often only requires you to fill in a form – so it’s quick and easy. You can even use auto-fill apps to enter multiple competitions in a matter of minutes.

It’s absolutely possible to make thousands of dollars per year entering competitions as long as you’re smart about it and do it regularly.

If you plan to become a pro “comper”, it’s best to set up a separate email address for that purpose, as signing up to so much can often result in a mountain of spam.

You also need to keep a keen eye out for scams. Entering your personal information may be a genuine requirement of a particular competition, but it’s also the hallmark of cybercriminals. Make sure you can trust a competition before you enter it.

12. Sell Images

There are numerous stock photography websites to which you can sell images you’ve created in order to make a little extra cash.

While it’s usually best to be a professional photographer with all of the right equipment in order to achieve the best results, many talented phone camera users can also see their work listed online – and regularly purchased by users.

Usually, your pictures will be used as stock images for websites and marketing materials. On average, they’ll usually earn you between 25 and 45 cents each per month.

Each site will have its own approach to copyright, usage, and royalties, so it’s best to check the small print carefully before signing up.

13. Use Cashback Apps

Those wondering how to earn easy money online with as little effort as possible should look into cashback sites, apps, or browser extensions.

Usually, these resources come into play when you purchase an eligible product online. They are best used for larger ticket items. Most commonly, cashback tools receive advertising commission from certain brands and pass those savings on to the customer.

However, it may be a number of months before you receive the money, so it’s important to carefully balance your cash flow so that you can cope with the delay.

14. Content Creation and Optimization

When it comes to certain professional sectors, it’s very easy to set up as a freelancer online with little more than a laptop.

Working as a copywriter, an SEO executive, a web designer, and in other related fields, you’ll be able to undertake virtually all of your duties remotely.

There is a range of free tools, such as keyword research sites, analytics applications, and online presence management solutions like Google My Business that will help you to create SEO optimized content and control how websites appear on Maps and in search results.

Because freelancers of this kind are always competing for work, it’s important that you hone your skills and get to know the ins and outs of the industry you have chosen before you begin to advertise yourself online.

You will probably need a good portfolio in order to be hired by businesses. Consider attending a training course and investing in the right software, if necessary, before jumping in.

Social media provides an easy platform on which to promote yourself without the expense, and it’s also possible to create a free website via Wix or WordPress.

There are remote business networking events too, to help you grow your pool of potential clients entirely online.

15. PR and Social Media Management

In a similar vein to SEO and content creation, you may be able to earn money online by managing an individual or brand’s social media streams, or by handling various PR outreach tasks.

You can do this freelance, as with the other disciplines, or you may be able to find part-time or full-time remote employment.

Work of this kind may sound straightforward, but coming up with relevant, fresh, high-quality content on a regular basis can be very challenging – as can adding to and maintaining a strong follower base and effectively interacting with other users’ posts.

Again, it is therefore important to have a thorough understanding of the practices involved, and taking an online course or seeking accreditation may serve as a sensible start.

To Conclude

Whatever your skills, preferences, and available time, there is a wide range of ways in which you can make money online.

Maybe you require a small supplement to your income from employment, or it could be that you’re looking to shift entirely to internet-based earning. In any case, the options above provide an insight into just some of the possibilities you might consider.

Of course, at all times, you’ll need to protect yourself with proper cyber security and make sure that you have a thorough understanding of each and every approach you take.

As the online world grows and develops, it is almost without a doubt that more earning possibilities will arise to suit your particular requirements and circumstances.