45 Creative Ways to Supplement Your Income
Earn extra money with clever ways to spend your time, share your space, and offer your skills.
There are many clever ways you can supplement your income. In fact, everyone should have multiple income streams to help you achieve your goals sooner. Whether you plan to pay off debt, build an emergency fund, or save to retire early, having multiple sources can help you live financially well.
I started learning about side hustles and the gig economy when I began this blog. I needed to find ways to generate income without restricting me to a 9-5 job. Eventually, I learned about the clever ways other bloggers were supplementing their income.
I began selling items on Craigslist and completing online surveys. I did earn enough to pay my bills. You can also check out the financial marketplace to search and filter additional ways to supplement your income.
List of Side Gigs to Supplement Your Income
Side hustles with an asterisk indicate I’ve done those gigs myself.
1. Blog about your ideas and passions
Starting a blog is easy and starts with choosing a hosting provider. I recommend the hosting provider I started with – Bluehost (at $3.95/mo plus free domain you can’t go wrong) or Siteground (my current provider). Read more about how to start a blog and ways to make money.
2. Complete online surveys
Make money by completing online surveys. Use Opinion Outpost, Survey Junkie, and other opportunities to earn money with online surveys.
3. Scan your grocery receipts
Use apps to earn cashback from your shopping. It’s not making money but getting money back. Use apps like Ibotta and Checkout51 for cashback. Fetch Rewards is an ideal and easy app to use to upload your receipts and get points to redeem for gift rewards.
4. Make YouTube videos and tutorials
Millions of people watch YouTube videos not just for entertainment but for educational purposes too. Have a skill or expertise. Share your knowledge through videos. Use your smartphone camera to film your video and upload it. Create a YouTube account and start sharing your creativity to start earning revenues from ads that play.
5. Start a podcast and share insights or interview experts.
Starting a show isn’t difficult but creating a quality podcast can take time. The advice from experts, however, is just to start. And you can do this by recording yourself or the interviews via Skype, using Audacity (free software), and an iPhone ear jack with a microphone. Many podcasters use the Blue Snowball iCE Condensor Microphone or the Audio Technica ATR2005 USB microphone for better sound quality.
6. Be a rideshare driver and help people
Apps like Uber and Lyft can help you earn some serious dollars as a driver. Lyft, for instance, offers incentives and bonuses to get you on the road and make more.*
7. Deliver food for restaurants and fast food places
UberEats helps you earn money by delivering food from any participating restaurant. Other services include Postmates and Doordash. You can use all of them at once to maximize your earning potential.
8. Rent your car to other drivers or travelers
Make money by renting your car to others when not in use. Getaround and Turo are both marketplaces that connect car owners with drivers.* You don’t need to have a fancy car but higher-end vehicles tend to do better. Turn your car into an income-producing asset.
9. Deliver packages and groceries
If you aren’t the type to want anyone in your car or have to make small talk, then delivery packages and groceries maybe your best option. Depending on the location you live in, Amazon Flex could have you delivering packages and groceries using your car and choosing your work hours. Other companies include Instacart and Shipt (a service of Target).
10. Complete errands and tasks for others
With apps like TaskRabbit, you can earn money helping others get tasks done like furniture assembly, data entry, handyman fixes, or moving.
11. Dog walk or pet sit
Wag and Rover connect you to dog owners who need help walking and caring for their furry family members. If you’re the dog lover, then you can supplement your income by walking, boarding, and playing with dogs.
12. Babysit children when parents want a date night
Care.com is a marketplace that connects you with parents needing babysitters.
13. Help senior adults
Care.com connects you with seniors who need help around the house or with completing tasks.
14. Clean other people’s homes
Post an ad on Facebook or Craigslist for your services. Or join marketplaces like TaskRabbit.
15. Complete simple tasks online
Amazon Mechanical Turk service connects you to simple tasks that computers are still not good at completing. Use your computer to perform tasks posted on Amazon’s Mechanical Turk.
16. Design logos and short videos for entrepreneurs
Fiverr is a marketplace that connects those seeking creative work with creators and designers.*
17. Share your city with tourists
Love your city and meeting travelers? Airbnb Experience may be the right site to get paid showing travelers your city at sunset, earn while sharing an experience you’ve crafted, or simply sharing your favorite spots.
18. Write articles for others
Use your writing skills and earn money. Textbroker connects you with online publishers. And if you’ve tried any of these services and want to share your experience, let us know too. We’re always looking for new writing talent to help others live financially well.
19. Become a freelance writer with top brands
Are you a more seasoned writer? Try out Contently.*
20. Support an entrepreneur as a virtual assistant
Have administration skills or handy with a spreadsheet? Earn money as someone’s virtual assistant completing tasks remotely. Find freelance jobs on Upwork.
21. Offer your professional services
Join a marketplace that connects you to customers looking for help in fixing HVAC, unclogging a drain, painting, and other services. TaskRabbit and Thumbtack are great places to start.*
22. Sell your furniture, tools, and appliance
Don’t trash them. Sell them on Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, or eBay.* Or through shopping apps Letgo and OfferUp.
23. Sell your used clothes and items
Poshmark is a good place to sell your designer clothes, accessories, and shoes to shoppers who want your unique style.
24. Sell your books and DVDs
Amazon has been a solid place to sell my library’s worth of books. However, if you just want the books and other media out of the home use a service like Decluttr. They buy your used tech, books, and DVDs. This approach keeps you from having to post and respond to buyers.
25. Sell your smartphone
Make money from your old phone through the website Gazelle, which buys the phone from you without the need to deal with buyers.* Compared to competitors I’ve found Gazelle to be a bit more competitive. But you’ll still get more money from selling your phone directly to a buyer using Facebook Marketplace, Letgo, and OfferUp.
26. Sell your photos
Whether you’re a professional or amateur photographer, you can turn those photos you’ve taken into some dollars by selling to photo repositories. Start making money from your photos using Shutterstock. You can also sell directly on Esty but takes a bit more work.
27. Sell your smartphone photos
Foap marketplace knows smartphones have come a long way in taking great photos. You can earn money selling your photos taken from your iOS or Android smartphones.
28. Sell your handmade craft or artwork
Many shoppers are looking for unique crafts or designs Etsy makes this possible for you to create your own store selling printables or handicrafts.
29. Sell your designs on t-shirts, hats, and mugs
Use Cafepress or Printful to start your on-demand customized print store. There is no need to carry inventory. All you’ll have to do is share your online store or create ads on Facebook to reach your target audience.
30. Do secret shops and audits
With your smartphone, you can complete retail audits by snapping photos or conducting customer service shops. Gigwalk and FieldAgent are apps that help you do exactly that.* Check out the marketplace for more opportunities.
31. Use a different browser or shopping apps
Start using Swagbucks to do your online searches and you’ll earn points redeemable for gift cards. Additionally, you can earn back your money using rebate shopping portals or apps like Rakuten and Ibotta. It’s not new money but cash back for purchases.
32. Take photos of help wanted signs you find
Indeed, one of the largest job boards has an app that lets users snap photos of help wanted signs with an app called Jobspotter.
33. Rent your space
Using Airbnb, you can rent your home, second bedroom or spare room to travelers seeking a more home feel during their travels.*
34. Rent your driveway or parking spot.
If you live downtown or near points of interest (like stadiums, venus, etc) rent your driveway or parking spot. Spothero enables you to list your space and they’ll manage it all for you.
35. Rent your boat or RV
Don’t have your RV and boat just sitting around collecting dust. These recreational vehicles are expensive to maintain. Unlock its earning potential when not in use. Boatsetter, for instance, makes it easy for you to list your boat in their marketplace.
36. Become an instructor
Many people want to learn specific skills. With Udemy, you can teach an online course on any subject with a dedicated community of learners.
37. Create a course online
Teachable makes it easy for you to share your knowledge with others through a compelling online platform. Share your knowledge and make recurring income. If you plan to make money blogging, then offering a course can help increase your revenues.
38. Teach English or a foreign language
Rosetta Stone and iTalki connect you with people all over the world trying to learn new languages. Just spending a few hours per week can help you turn your language skills into money.
39. Be a tutor to a college student
Through Chegg, you can earn money tutoring students in a variety of subjects.
40. Teach people through a book you’ve written
Self-publish your novel and sell directly on Amazon. I self-published a crowdfunding book a few years ago. It still passively makes me a few dollars per month.
41. Cash through a clinical trial
Join a study and make money from pharmaceutical companies conducting human drug trials. Check the website: www.ClinicalTrials.gov
42. Donate your plasma
Find a plasma center near you and make money donating your plasma for medical use to treat some rare diseases. You could end up actually helping others through their medical conditions. Check the website: www.DonatingPlasma.org
43. Fund the loans of others
Through Prosper and LendingClub, you make money investing in personal loans from approved borrowers. These companies are called peer-to-peer marketplaces that connect investors with borrowers. Most investors use these P2P marketplaces to diversify their investments.
44. Create an interest group
Do you have a fondness for SciFi movies or outdoor hikes? Start a group on Meetup and create paid activities.
45. Get cashback from your gas purchases
GetUpside shows you the cheapest gas in your area and lets you scan your receipt and get money back.
Check our financial marketplace for additional opportunities to supplement your income. You’ll be able to search, filter, and choose the right opportunities for you.
Have any other ideas to supplement income?
I used to make decent extra cash with PineCone. I’d just fill out the surveys when I had some down time at work. Great list!
Thanks. PineCone was my first too. I remember testing out the stuff they’ve sent. Always wondered if they ever went to market.
Some people make pretty good money on youtube. I found some new sources on this list. Thanks for sharing.
I make a few dollars from my videos in Youtube I posted on my travels.
Some affordable ideas to generate extra income, some more practical than others. What I find interesting is that some of my entrepreneurial friends started out with looking to supplement their income through some sort of activity. In the end, their supplemental income became their main income and grew into a small business.
There are definitely some that are much more easier to do than others.
very good list found some very easy and interesting ways that i will try to boost my income
Yes, there are many ways to boost income/
It’s really interesting that the idea of sharing items (cars, books, boats, etc) is really taking off in our day and age. Though the idea itself is as old as the world, it’s really getting a second life. Want to rent a room or a house? No problem. AirBNB is the way to go. Want to rent a boat. Same thing. Just check out https://www.boatsetter.com/ and you can use any kind of boat before you know it.
Thanks for point us out to Boatsetter. We’ve been familiar with Boatbound and will check that out too.
I can vouch that AirBNB has SUBSTANTIALLY supplemented my income. It’s doubled my annual take home salary. Also, even though it’s not an income supplement, I think it’s worth noting that whenever you choose to shop online, you can get money back with ebates! I love getting those checks in the mail.
That’s true. Any which way to earn cash back from purchases that are loves and needs.