You’ve probably heard that blogging is a great way to make money online or have come across several part-time home-based jobs. But these opportunities, while awesome in their own right, take up a lot of time and require a huge commitment.

But don’t worry! You don’t have to spend tons of time, energy or effort to make extra money online. With these 15 extra money ideas you can easily add to your income each month.

1. Usability Testing

This is one of my favorite, if not the favorite, of all the extra money ideas out there. As a user tester, you get paid to perform tasks while visiting a website or using an app. It’s really that simple.

There are a number of companies that actively hire usability testers. Although each company is a bit different, you can expect an average test to last about 10-20 minutes and pay between $8-$15.

My personal favorite usability testing company is User Testing.

I’ve been a tester for several years and can make a couple hundred dollars each month.

All you have to do is sign up and complete a practice test to be accepted. From there, you can start taking paid tests.

2. Writing

You don’t have to start a freelance writing career to make extra money as a writer. If you sign up at a so-called content mill, like Textbroker, you can get paid to write short and simple articles — some assignments may be just 50 words and can be done in just a matter of minutes.

Granted, you won’t make a lot of money per article but as far as extra money ideas, this one is pretty simple. Plus, there’s usually plenty of work to go around. So, when you’re in a tight spot, you can usually turn to writing to make a quick buck.

Another bonus is that content mills often pay quickly — usually within a week. In those months that you need money, like yesterday, it’s nice to have accounts at different content mills to get cash fast.

3. Forum Posting

If you spend any amount of time online, you’ve probably made your way through a forum or two. You may even be a regular contributor on a couple of your favorites. But did you know you can actually get paid to post on forums?

When someone starts a blog, message board or forum, it can be a little slow going at first. That’s where you come in. New forums will actually pay users to visit their sites and start discussions. This gives the illusion of activity and encourages organic participation.

Getting started is super simple. Just head over to one of the companies that hires paid forum participants, sign up, complete some sample posts, and you can start getting paid to post!

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4. Music Reviewing

One of the most fun (and super easy!) extra money ideas I know of can be found over at Slice the Pie where you can get paid to review music. All you have to do is listen to at least 90 seconds of a song and then write an honest review.

You can also review fashion, videos and earn extra cash when you refer friends to sign up as a reviewer. The amount you can make here varies quite a bit. A lot of it depends on what your star rating is (the better your reviews, the more you’ll make for each one!)

I love using Slice the Pie to make a little extra cash here and there. It’s an especially useful site for those nights you’re bored or when you just have a few minutes to spare.

5. Vindale

Not all survey sites are created equal. If you want to actually be paid with cash rather than points, then sign up at Vindale Research.

At Vindale, there are a number of ways to earn extra money. Reading emails, testing products, and participating in market research studies are just a few of the ways to rack up payouts quickly. Plus, you can also earn $5 for each friend you refer to Vindale — and those referrals can add up fast!

As far as extra money ideas, Vindale is known for their readily available surveys and higher-than-average pay-rate per survey.There’s also plenty of ways to earn bonus payments — even get an extra $2 after you sign up and complete your profile — how’s that for easy?

6. Transcription

You don’t need a ton of experience to make extra money from home as a transcriptionist. In fact, quite a few transcription companies will hire candidates with no prior experience.

Keep in mind, transcribing isn’t for everyone. However, if you’ve got a good command of English (including grammar and spelling) and can type reasonably fast, transcribing may be worth exploring.

There’s plenty of work out there and it’s usually pretty flexible, too. Although transcribing is one of the most available extra money ideas out there, many people earn a full-time living as a typist.

7. Call Reviewing

You know when you call a business and you hear that recording say, “Call may be recorded for quality assurance purposes” Well, you could be the person reviewing calls for “quality assurance purposes.”

Businesses want to know they are providing exceptional customer service and are not missing any sales opportunities (when appropriate). They also like to keep tabs on things like how long callers are on hold and if a question/concern was resolved.

That’s where you can come in. Two companies, Humanatic and Reynolds and Reynolds frequently bring on call reviewers. You listen to calls and score them based on a number of criteria. That’s it.

8. Search Engine Evaluation

If you’re looking for temporary extra money ideas, search engine evaluation might be perfect for you. As contract positions, they usually last just a few months. However, if you perform well, you may be given additional contracts.

You can earn up to $15 an hour when you work from home as a search engine evaluator. So, it’s definitely one of the better paying ways to earn extra money from home.

Some projects you might expect to work on involve improving Google and Bing search results.  Sometimes you may be asked to work on social media or ad evaluation projects, too.

9. Telephone Mystery Shopping

When’s the last time someone paid you to make a phone call? If you become a telephone mystery shopper, you can make as much as $5 for each call you place!

This is one of the simplest extra money ideas. Sign up as a mystery shopper at Call Center QA, complete shops, and earn five bucks. That’s it.

This is a great way to make extra money — but some phone mystery shoppers claim to make as much as $90 per day making phone calls.

10. Fancy Hands

I’ve turned to Fancy Hands before to make extra money online. In fact, I was able to make a part-time income just by completing small tasks at Fancy Hands!

But if you’re just looking for extra money ideas, you could certainly use Fancy Hands to make a little extra here and there. It’s basically a crowdsourced virtual assistant company. You can complete 15-20 minute tasks and earn anywhere from $3.oo to $7.00 for each.

There’s a short application process. But once you get approved, you can immediately start earning. What I love most about Fancy Hands is the fact you can login in 24/7 and almost always find work available. So, if you have an unconventional schedule or just happen to be a night owl looking to make an extra buck, Fancy Hands is a great place to find work.

11. Needle

I know a lot of people like the idea of working from home as a chat agent. But these positions aren’t always flexible, extra money-makers. Instead, you’re expected to work a set shift that ties you down to your computer.

However, if you become a Brand Advocate for Needle, you get to set your own schedule as a chat agent. Needle partners with several internet retailers. As a Brand Advocate, you’ll help shoppers find the perfect product on these sites.

It only takes 10-15 minutes to apply. Needle reviews your profile and will approve you if you seem like a good fit. Then you’ll earn cash as well as points just by chatting online with customers!

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12. Video Captioning

REV is a translation, transcription and captioning company. They have plenty of work available for freelancers looking to make extra money. One of their most popular and readily available extra money ideas is video captioning.

As a captioner, you watch videos and type what’s being said. Afterwards, you’ll need to sync the captions to the audio so the right words appear on the screen at the right time. It takes a little practice at first, but once you get a feel for it, it’s quite easy work.

Payments are made weekly through PayPal. The average captioner at REV makes $240 a month. The highest earners take home more than $1,500 monthly — not too bad for an extra money idea!

13. Micro Jobs

When you only have a few minutes to spare, micro jobs and short task sites can be the perfect place to make some money. You never know what you may come across but some common tasks on these popular sites include image tagging, description writing, and internet research.

The largest micro jobs platform is Amazon’s Mechanical Turk. There are usually thousands of HITs (human intelligence tasks) posted here at any given time. While Mechanical Turk is a great source of extra money tasks, some people have figured out how to make much more and actually earn a decent amount each day.

14. Data Entry

A lot of people want to earn a living from home doing data entry. But the truth is, there’s not a whole lot of (legitimate) opportunities out there. However, if you’d like to make a few bucks here and there, you can find data entry work.

One of the easiest ways to get started is by joining The Smart Crowd. The Smart Crowd has a number of different tasks available you can complete. But the most popular of their extra money ideas is data entry.

There’s not always a lot of work available. And when there is, don’t expect to make a ton in one sitting. But if you make it a habit to login and work when you have a free minute, you can definitely build up your account!

15. Teach Conversational English

You don’t need previous teaching experience or any kind of certification to teach English online at Cambly. What you do need is patience, good speaking skills and a webcam.

This is very flexible work that can earn you as much as $10.20 per hour just for having a conversation with someone.

As a conversational English tutor at Cambly, you can sign up for shifts or login whenever you have free time. When a student wants to speak with someone, the “tutoring dashboard” will ring. If you want to work, you can answer. If not, no big deal.

Easy Home-based Extra Money Ideas

Thanks to all these different sites, it’s never been easier to make extra money from home. If you’re looking for a little more, check out this list of 40+ Ways to Earn Extra Money from Home from the Work at Home Woman — there’s a lot of great ideas for earning for doing things you probably already do online like shopping, surveys, and video watching.

Don’t forget to ‘like’ Work from Home Happiness on Facebook for your daily dose of extra money-making ideas!

Know of an easy way to earn from home? Share your thoughts in the comments below. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at ashlee(at)workfromhomehappines(dot)com.

Psst: This post contains affiliate links. Check out my disclosure statement to learn more! 

The post 15 Easy Extra Money Ideas You Can Do from Home appeared first on Work from Home Happiness.

The answer isn’t always easy to come by. The opportunities available to someone in the States will be different than someone in Nigeria. Even within the U.S. location matters! Some companies hire only in select states.

That’s why it’s hard, if not impossible, to come up with a list of worldwide work from home jobs. The truth is, there are companies that hire in many different countries, but not all.

So, I’ve set out to come up with this super MEGA list of 175+ international work from home jobs. I’ve also included websites that can be used for extra cash here and there like survey sites and usability testing.

But I need your help. Please let me know in the comments if a link is broken or you find a company does or does not hire where you are. Together, we can come up with a bigger, better, more accurate list of international work from home jobs. Go teamwork!

International Work From Home Jobs with Distributed Workforces

The first logical place to look for international work from home jobs are distributed workforces. These are companies where all (or most) employees work remotely. This means the CEO can be in Japan while a designer lives in Costa Rica and a dozen of customer service reps are scattered throughout the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.

Remember: These companies may or may not hire in your specific region. Although they are distributed, not all companies hire in every single country.

10up https://10up.com/careers/

18F https://18f.gsa.gov/join/

45Royale http://45royale.com/careers/

Acquia https://www.acquia.com/careers/open-positions

Aha! http://www.aha.io/company/careers/current-openings

Anexus http://www.anexusit.com/careers

Anomali https://www.anomali.com/company/careers

Apartment Therapy http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/jobs

Appstractor https://www.appstractor.com/careers/

Arkency http://blog.arkency.com/join-our-team/

Articulate https://articulate.com/company/careers

Audiense https://audiense.com/careers/

Auth0 https://auth0.com/jobs

Automattic https://automattic.com/work-with-us/

Axelerant https://www.axelerant.com/careers

Bandcamp https://bandcamp.com/jobs

Bandzoogle https://bandzoogle.com/jobs

Baremetrics https://baremetrics.com/jobs

Basecamp https://basecamp.com/about/team

Basho http://basho.com/careers/

BeBanjo http://bebanjo.com/careers/

Betable https://corp.betable.com/careers#jobs

Big Cartel https://www.bigcartel.com/jobs/

Bitovi https://www.bitovi.com/jobs

Black Pixel https://blackpixel.com/careers/

Bloc https://www.bloc.io/about

Bluespark https://www.bluespark.com/join-bluespark-team

Buffer https://buffer.com/journey

Canonical https://www.canonical.com/careers

Carbon Black https://lifeatcb.carbonblack.com

CareMessage https://caremessage.org/careers/

Chef https://www.chef.io/careers/

CircleCI https://jobs.lever.co/circleci/

Citrusbyte https://citrusbyte.com/careers

Clevertech https://clevertech.biz/careers

Close.io https://jobs.lever.co/close.io/

Codeship https://codeship.com/jobs

Collabora https://www.collabora.com/careers.html

Compose https://www.compose.com/jobs

Continu https://www.continu.co/careers/

CoreOS https://coreos.com/careers

Corgibytes http://corgibytes.com/careers/

Crew https://crew.co/hiring/

Customer https://customer.io/careers/

Datica https://datica.com/careers/

DataStax http://www.datastax.com/company/careers

Delighted https://delighted.com/jobs

Dgraph https://dgraph.io/careers.html

DigitalOcen https://www.digitalocean.com/company/careers/

Doist https://doist.com/jobs/

Edgar https://meetedgar.com/careers/

Elastic https://www.elastic.co/about/careers

Engine Yard https://www.engineyard.com/company/careers

Envato https://envato.com/careers/

EVELO https://evelo.workable.com

Eyeo https://eyeo.com/en/jobs/

Fastly https://www.fastly.com/about/careers

Fire Engine Red http://fire-engine-red.com/about/#careers

Fog Creek https://www.fogcreek.com/careers

Formstack https://www.formstack.com/careers

Four Kitchens https://www.fourkitchens.com/careers/

Full Fabric https://fullfabric.com/careers

Ghost https://ghost.org/about/

GitHub https://github.com/about/careers

GitLab https://about.gitlab.com/jobs/

GoHiring http://www.gohiring.com/jobs.html

Gridium https://gridium.com/about/working-at-gridium/

Groupon https://jobs.groupon.com

Hanno https://hanno.co/jobs/

Hashicorp https://www.hashicorp.com/jobs/

Heap Analytics https://heapanalytics.com/jobs

Help Scout https://www.helpscout.net/careers/

Heroku https://www.heroku.com/careers

Hudl https://www.hudl.com/jobs

Hypothesis https://hypothes.is/jobs/

Incsub http://incsub.com/careers/

InfluxData https://www.influxdata.com/careers/

InQuicker https://inquicker.com/about/careers/

InVision https://www.invisionapp.com/company#jobs

Jackson River https://www.jacksonriver.com/about/jobs

Khan Academy https://www.khanacademy.org/careers

LaterPay https://www.laterpay.net/about#careers

Let’s Encrypt https://letsencrypt.org/jobs/

Lightbend http://www.lightbend.com/company/careers

Linaro https://www.linaro.org/careers/

Litmus https://litmus.com/careers

Lullabot https://www.lullabot.com/jobs

Mapbox https://www.mapbox.com/jobs/

Mediacurrent https://www.mediacurrent.com/about/careers

Mokriya http://mokriya.com/careers

Mozilla https://careers.mozilla.org

MySQL https://www.mysql.com/about/jobs/

Netguru https://www.netguru.co/career

Netsparker https://www.netsparker.com/jobs/

NodeSource https://nodesource.com/careers

Olark https://www.olark.com/jobs

Particular https://particular.net/careers/work-culture

PeopleDoc http://www.people-doc.com/company/careers

Persona https://www.percona.com/about-percona/careers#edit-submit-jobvite-careers

PhishMe https://phishme.com/company/careers

Platform https://platform.sh/company/jobs/

PrecisionNutrition http://www.precisionnutrition.com/careers

ReactiveOps https://www.reactiveops.com/careers/site-reliability-engineer/

Real HQ https://realhq.com/jobs/

Research Square https://www.researchsquare.com/company/careers

Right Scale http://www.rightscale.com/jobs

Rocana https://www.rocana.com/careers

Sawhorse Media http://sawhorsemedia.com/jobs/

Scrapinghub https://scrapinghub.com/jobs/

Seed https://seed.co/jobs/

SignEasy https://getsigneasy.com/jobs

Simple https://www.simple.com/careers

SimpleTexting https://simpletexting.com/sms-marketing-careers-with-simple-texting/

Stack Overflow http://stackoverflow.com/company/work-here

Stripe https://stripe.com/jobs

Surevine https://www.surevine.com/jobs/

SweetRush https://www.sweetrush.com/join-us/

Sysdig http://sysdig.com/jobs/

TeamSnap https://www.teamsnap.com/about/careers

TED https://www.ted.com/about/our-organization/jobs-at-ted

Teleport https://teleport.org/jobs/

Tenable http://www.tenable.com/careers

The Wirecutter http://thewirecutter.com/jobs/

Toggl https://jobs.toggl.com

Toptal https://www.toptal.com/careers#remote-team

Tower/FourNova https://www.fournova.com/jobs

Transloadit https://transloadit.com/jobs/#working-remotely

Travis CI https://travisci.workable.com

Treehouse https://teamtreehouse.com/jobs

Trello https://trello.com/jobs

Twin Technologies http://twintechs.com/careers/

Udacity https://www.udacity.com/jobs

Upworthy https://www.upworthy.com/jobs

Vox Media https://www.voxmedia.com/pages/careers-jobs

WellMatch https://www.wellmatchhealth.com/join_us

Wildbit https://wildbit.com/jobs

Wolfram http://www.wolfram.com/company/careers/?source=nav

X-Team https://x-team.com/join/

YouCanBook.Me https://youcanbook.me/jobs/

Zapier https://zapier.com/about/

Freelance Websites for International Work From Home Jobs

No matter where you live, you can be a freelancer! That’s why I’m always quick to recommend various freelance websites to jump-start a remote-friendly career. If you haven’t had any luck finding international work from home jobs elsewhere, it may be time to give freelancing a try.

And, before you say you don’t know how to freelance or simply don’t have the skills to freelance, know you’re wrong. You can become a freelancer and find your profitable skill to sell (using what you already know!)

99designs

A great platform for designers, whether you want to design logos, websites or even tattoos!

Crossover

Work with the top 1% of worldwide talent for long-terms and steady freelance opportunities.

CloudPeeps

Expand your freelance business in a super support (and awesomely cool) freelance community

FreeeUp

Love all things ecommerce? You’ll fit right in as a freelancer here.

Upwork

This is the Mecca of freelance marketplaces, giving you a chance to earn wherever you live.

TopTal

Think you have what it takes to join the world’s top freelancers? This is the site for you.

Freelancer

Another freelance marketplace filled with gigs and even competitions you can win for extra work!

Guru

Get started as a freelancer in just 30 seconds, and find a variety of jobs posted (no matter your skillset!)

PeoplePerHour

A curated talent pool or freelancers, like you, with plenty of options to find international work from home jobs.

Fiverr

Instead of pitching your services, set up shop and sell gigs directly to clients.

Survey Sites for Worldwide Extra Cash

Let’s be honest, you’re not going to get rich from survey sites. But you can certainly earn some extra cash each month. The best part? There are a number of survey sites that offer opportunities to earn money online for people outside the United States! For a more comprehensive list (especially for those in the U.S.), check out my 20+ legitimate survey sites that pay each month.

Swagbucks

Sign up and earn extra cash for market research, video watching, and (of course) surveys. Serviceable areas include Australia, Canada, Ireland, UK, and U.S.

Global Test Market 

As the name suggests, Global Test Market is a market research company with a worldwide presence. Currently, they accept survey takers throughout 49 countries:

Toluna

As I type this, Toluna accepts registration from users in approximately 46 different countries. You’ll be able to see whether or not yours makes the list on the sign up page.

Harris Poll 

While there seem to be more survey opportunities available to U.S. residents on Harris Poll, there are chances for international survey takers too! To date, Harris Poll has members answering surveys in more than 30 countries!

Micro Jobs & Short Task Sites for International Work From Home Gigs

Like survey sites, you likely won’t make a full-time income from home with micro jobs and short task sites. Nonetheless, they can be used for steady sources of extra cash month after month. Your best bet to make the most is to sign up for as many that are available to you. The more sites you belong to, the greater your chances are to earn.

Mechanical Turk 

This mega marketplace of micro jobs, referred to as HITs, is brought to you by Amazon. That’s right, the world’s largest online retailer can also be a source of extra income each month. U.S. residents will have to register with Amazon Payments for tax purposes. Non-U.S. residents will have to provide tax information in order to receive payments.

ClickWorker 

ClickWorker is always looking for worldwide users to work on a number of different short tasks. Projects include everything from surveys to data categorization and even web research. You can choose to get paid weekly or on a monthly basis. To get started, you’ll have to go through assessments to show your skills.

CrowdFlower 

CrowdFlower contributors work on tasks from around the world. The better your work, the more you’ll earn. In fact, you can gain access to advanced tasks by becoming a skilled contributor!

OneSpace 

At OneSpace, you’ll gain access to hundreds of tasks that can range in complexity from simple QA to in-depth writing assignments. You’ll create a workstation, and claim projects on a freelance basis. The best part? You can receive payments for approved work the very next day via PayPal!

International Work From Home Transcription Jobs

A good ear and fast typing skills can lead to steady work as  a transcriptionist. You can start your own transcription business from scratch or sign up with one of the many companies that pay you to type from home.

How much you earn depends on the hourly rate of pay. Transcriptionists are typically paid by audio hour, that is for each hour of recording they transcribe (not the number of hours it takes them to transcribe it). So, let’s say you’re paid $20 per audio hour and it takes you 4 hours to transcribe a one-hour recording, you’d end up making $5/hour. Keep this in mind as you accept work as a transcriptionist!

AccuTran Global

Based out of Canada, AccuTran Global is always looking to contract with new typists. Assignments include general transcription, realtime stenographers, and voice writers.

CrowdSurf

CrowdSurf transcription tasks are claimed through Mechanical Turk. All tasks are short videos (15-35 seconds)  that need to be transcribed verbatim.

Transcribe Team

The average worker earns $132/month at Transcribe Team, but top earners can exceed $2,000 monthly. You can work as much or little as you’d like, so your earnings depend on you.

Rev

Video captions and transcription are the two main tasks available for worldwide workers at Rev. Read my full review of this remote-friendly company here.

Quicktate

QuickTate has projects ranging from short voicemail messages to long conference calls. The application process can be lengthy, but can lead to steady work via QuickTate and their iDictate platform.

TranscribeMe

Want to monetize your downtime? TranscribeMe can help you do just that. You’ll have to pass the exam before you can accept any paid tasks.

Scribie

Files are typically kept to under 6 minutes — perfect if you want to earn money in your free time. To date, there are more than 16,000 transcriptions from around the world working for Scribie!

Speechpad

At Speechpad, you get to select the projects you work on, and there’s never any minimum to claim each month.

CastingWords

All work is accepted and completed through Amazon Mechanical Turk. Each task comes with instructions on how it should be formatted. Make sure to follow these guidelines!

International Usability Testing Jobs From Home

Earn money just for speaking your thoughts out loud! I’ve used several usability testing sites over the years to make extra money online month after month. And, the good news is, many of these companies are open to testers from around the world!

UserTest.io

UserTest.io accepts testers in countries from Africa, Asia Pacific, The Americas, and Europe. All you need to do is record your thoughts as you’re browsing a website. That’s it. Accepted reviews will earn you $10 each.

UserTesting

Earn $10 for every 20-minute video you complete. Payments are issued via PayPal exactly one week after they’re completed. Users located in Africa, Middle East, India, Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America, Caribbean, U.S., Canada, and Greenland are encouraged to sign-up and get testing!

WhatUsersDo

In as little as five minutes, you can get through the application process so you can start getting paid for your thoughts. You’ll receive an email invitation every time as test is available to take. You can expect 3-5 tests on average each month.

uTest

You never know what kind of usability tests will come up at uTest. A recent project called for cricket enthusiasts in India, South Africa, and Australia! The only way to discover the tests available to you is to sign up.

Userlytics 

The tests available to you depend on your demographics. The clients who submit usability tests can request specific testers based on their location, age, gender, etc.

International Search Engine Evaluation Jobs from Home

As a search engine evaluator you’re tasked with rating ads, search results, or even social media. To learn more about what a search engine evaluator does and how you can be a successful one, read my get-started guide for beginners.

Appen

Appen has a global network of workers that work on search engine evaluation projects. You could be their newest recruit! They’re not always hiring in all countries, but do have opportunities available worldwide and in more than 100 languages.

Leapforce

There are opportunities for global workers to take on search engine evaluation tasks at Leapforce. To get started, you select your country and language to see the positions available for you.

iSoftStone

All tasks are crowdsourced at iSoftStone. And there are often tasks available for international candidates. Check their hiring page frequently to see available opportunities in your country.

International Work From Home Jobs

Remember, just because a company is on this list doesn’t mean they absolutely hire in your country. The companies found here are known to hire internationally, that is you don’t necessarily have to be a U.S. resident to find work. Be sure to double-check whether or not they are hiring where you live.

But, if you’ve been looking for international work from home jobs and worldwide ways to earn money online, these companies should give you a head start in your search.

Do you know of a company with international work from home jobs? Have a lead you’d like to share? Please leave it in the comments below.

The post International Work From Home Jobs and Websites For Extra Cash appeared first on Work from Home Happiness.

While you may dream of ditching your 9 to 5 in favor of more flexible work, quitting your day job isn’t always practical. But just because you can’t go all in as a an out-of-the-cubicle thinker right out the gate, doesn’t mean you should abandon your flex work pursuits entirely.

Instead, start a side hustle that lets you hold onto your office job as you build a business that lets you work on your own terms.

Hosting

A successful side hustle starts with a strong online presence. In many cases, this means an eye-catching website that sells your services or showcases your goods for sale. And behind every great site is a hosting company that keeps your website ‘live’ so that customers and clients can actually find you online.

For newbies, I always recommend BlueHost for all your hosting needs. With 24/7 support, a free domain name, and monthly hosting that costs less than a latte, you receive a ton of value for your buck. There’s also one-click WordPress install that makes it super easy to get a beautiful site up in a matter of minutes.

As an added bonus, BlueHost offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. If you’re not happy, they’ll make it right or give you a refund. No questions asked.

Productivity

Although your day job likely requires you to show up in office, your side hustle allows you to work where you’re happiest. If you’re like me, your happy place is your home. And having the ability to work from home comes with a lot of perks. Coworker cats, no commutes, and a comfy wardrobe all come to mind. But as an at-home worker, productivity can sometimes take a backseat to other daily responsibilities.

To keep your side hustle on track, use a productivity tool. From online activity trackers to website blockers that keep social media at bay, there are a number of free productivity tools that help you make the most of the limited time you have to grow your side hustle.  

Expenses

When you start a side hustle — whether you’re a freelance writer, blogger, virtual assistant, photographer or anything in between — there are going to be business related expenses that get intertwined with personal finances. And, don’t forget about invoices that need to be sent out to customers, clients, or even advertisers. How do you keep your side hustle finances on track?

Invoice tracking software! By using invoice tracking software you can send out professional invoices, accept a number of payment methods, bill clients per project or by the hour, and even set reminders to follow up on any unpaid balances!

Think of invoice tracking software as your personal virtual bookkeeper that keeps your business and personal expenses separate so you can keep your side hustle on point.

Project Management

It doesn’t matter what kind of side hustle you have, everyone from bloggers to boutique owners will juggle multiple projects at once to stay in business. And if you’re a freelancer working with clients, you’ll absolutely need a way to manage your day to day activities so you hit your deadlines every time — no exceptions!

An easy way to make sure all the moving parts of your side hustle are headed in the right direction is to use a project management tool. Handy apps like Asana or Trello give you a chance to organize the many aspects of your side hustle and prioritize tasks. You can even create project to-do lists to see what needs to be done to get from Point A to Point B.

Some people swear by Asana. Others prefer Trello. You’ll likely find you favor one over the other. Whichever you choose, make sure to put it to good use as you work to build momentum in your side hustle.

Organization

Your computer will quickly get bogged down by all the downloads and projects you’re working on as a side hustler. This can quickly lead to a cluttered desktop and items getting ‘lost’ in the shuffle!

Instead of storing everything locally on your computer, put your side hustle work on the cloud. Not only does it keep your computer super organized, it helps you stay in business in the event of a computer catastrophe like coffee being spilled on your laptop or a PC that suddenly goes rogue. With cloud storage, you won’t lose any work (or money) because everything you’ve done is safely tucked away and easily retrieved from any computer.

You may already have access to plenty of free cloud storage without realizing it. If you’re an Amazon prime member you receive complimentary cloud storage with your membership. If not, Try Amazon Prime 30-Day Free Trial. 

Amazon isn’t the only place to find free storage for your side hustle. Dropbox offers a free plan that provides enough space to get your going. Whenever you need more, no problem, you can upgrade to a paid plan anytime.

Email Management

The average person receives 120 emails daily. Every. Single. Day. When you’re trying to balance a side hustle with your day job, you can quickly get buried by your inbox. Instead of letting your inbox dictate your to-do list, why not turn your inbox into your to-do list?

Now you can with the Inbox by Gmail App. With Inbox, you can turn emails into individual to-do tasks, pin important emails to the top, and ‘pause’ emails until you need them. Plus, you can create new tasks to go along with emails so you’re actually working alongside your inbox and not against it!

Of course, Inbox is exclusive to Gmail and G Suite accounts. If you’re not a gmail user (and don’t plan on switching), consider one of these 16 email apps to gain control of your inbox, once and for all!

Social Media Management

Social media networking helps deliver customers and clients to your virtual doors. But it also happens to be a major time suck. If your side hustle has you pinning, posting, tweeting, and updating on a daily basis in the name of marketing, you can end up losing precious hours that may be better spent completing projects.

To free up your time and give you a chance to step away from your computer, use a social media automation tool. When you take advantage of automation, you can sit down once a week instead of every day to schedule all of your social updates.

There are plenty of social media management tools to choose from. And the one(s) you end up choosing greatly depends on the social sites you use. For example, if you’re active mostly on Pinterest, you can’t go wrong with Tailwind. If your focus is Facebook and Twitter, Buffer is a great option!

Whichever social media automation tool you use, you can rest assured that you’ll spend less hours manually updating social sites and more time growing your side hustle.

Outsource Options

When in doubt, don’t be afraid to outsource! Balancing a side hustle with your 9 to 5 can be exhausting at times, and there’s only so much a single person can do in any given day. So, when your to-do list is a mile long and you feel like for every item you check off ten more are added, call in backup!

Today, you can send out a virtual SOS without breaking the bank. Outsource sites, like Fiverr, give you a chance to catch up on little things without spending a fortune. You can also join a monthly VA service, like Fancy Hands, to have a VA at your disposal whenever menial tasks rear their ugly heads. 

A virtual assistant can be used even for a few hours to help you hack through your overgrown inbox or simply tackle the little things that seem to take up way too much of your valuable time.

Get Started

The saying getting started is the hardest part is so true when it comes to launching a side hustle. Fortunately, when you have tools in place, like the ones listed here, you can launch with confidence already knowing you’ve got what it takes to get the job done.

So, what are you waiting for? Go ahead and set a goal and get started — anywhere. Just get started. Once you launch, you can organically grow your side hustle to a point where you can finally kick your cubicle to the curb — for good!

The post 7 Must-Have Tools to Balance a Side Hustle with Your 9 to 5 appeared first on Work from Home Happiness.

Sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it? Well, the truth is, these jobs do exist.

For starters, freelancers get the opportunity to work on the projects of their choosing and for whom. They also get to set their own rates and work anytime, day or night. Independent contractors also have a lot of freedom in when they work, as long as they meet deadlines. You could even start your own online business that brings in a full-time income working part-time.

Come to think of it, just about every work from home job outside of employee-based positions come with complete flexibility and autonomy — how’s that for awesomeness?

But, getting up and started as an online business owner or solopreneur can take some time. Don’t get me wrong, it’s probably the most sustainable way to earn a living online, and gives you a chance to make a scalable income. But, if you’d rather test out the work-from-home waters, so to speak, consider one of these gigs first.

The benefits?

Every type of position listed below gives you the opportunity to work whenever you want. Plus, I’ve tried them all at some point in time and can say, with certainty, that these are beginner-friendly ways to piece together an income while working on your own schedule. Plus, it gives you a sneak-peek into what it’s like to earn a living online before jumping in and going solo — definitely a bonus.

1. Search Engine Evaluation

Search engines use highly sophisticated algorithms to give you the best results when you type something into Google or Bing. But since computers aren’t perfect (at least not yet, anyway) humans are needed to rate the relevancy of ads and search results based on queries.

That’s where Search Engine Evaluators come into play. Most of these gigs pay between $11-$15/hour and, you guessed it, are super flexible, allowing you to login anytime, day or night, to complete assignments.

• Appen
• iSoftStone
• Leapforce
• Lionbridge

If you are up-to-date on pop culture, comfortable navigating websites, and don’t mind repetitive work — search engine evaluation might be perfect for you. I’ve worked on smaller projects for both Appen and iSoftStone. And, honestly, I have nothing bad to say. The work was monotonous but, as promised, was flexible enough to allow me to work around my busy schedule — exactly what I needed!

2. Writing

There are a lot of ways to get started as a writer, even if you have no experience. Perhaps one of the easiest way to get going is to join what’s called a ‘content mill.’

Keep in mind, you don’t have to write for a content mill forever. I like to think of them as paid writing internships — you get to earn money while refining your skills. My favorite content mill is Textbroker because it pays once a week, provides feedback that helps you improve, and gives you a chance to work on higher-paying projects and team assignments. You can even work your way up to an online editing job.

But, I’d also recommend any of these content mills to jumpstart your writing career quickly:

• BKA
• Scripted
• Love to Know

Although I started out writing for content mills, I quickly outgrew them and started freelancing on marketplaces and sourcing my own clients — and that’s where the real money comes in! At my highest, I was earning about $5,000/month writing content for lawyers all while working my own schedule that revolved around raising a little one.

Freelance Writing Training

My blogger buddy, Elna Cain, has the best advice around for launching a freelance writing hustle. In fact, through her e-course, she’ll show you how to make your first $1,000 with your freelance writing side gig. If you’re serious about side hustling as a writer (and hope to go full-time), check it out.

3. Virtual Assistant

Typically, virtual assistant (VA) jobs aren’t that flexible. After all, most VAs help out busy professionals and solopreneurs, so being available during standard business hours is a must. However, there are two notable exceptions.

First up, Fancy Hands. I worked for Fancy Hands for six months. And, I definitely would do it again if I had to. But not all former Fancy Hands Assistants share my neutral point of view.

You’ll find some former VAs, like me, who don’t have anything bad to say. But, there’s others who weren’t so thrilled with their experience as a Fancy Hands VA.

Remember It’s a Side Hustle

Honestly, I think it boils down to how you use Fancy Hands to earn. If you’re hoping it will become a full-time job, you’re going to be disappointed. If you look at Fancy Hands as a super-flexible way to make money 24/7 — then I think you’ll be okay. There’s work almost always available, and you get paid every two weeks. I was able to make a part-time income consistently (between $200-$300/weekly).

The only way to know for sure is to give it a try. There’s no commitment, and you don’t ever have to take a minimum number of tasks per week. You can learn more about the position and get started on your application here.

Another flexible VA company is a company called Time Etc. This isn’t as flexible as Fancy Hands, but it only requires a minimum commitment of 3-4 hours a week. So, if you’d like to give virtual assisting a try, you might want to consider applying at Time Etc — you may be able to bump up your hours, if you like it and they need the extra help.

Virtual Assistant Training

While many of the companies you can contract with as a VA don’t always offer tons of flexibility, starting your own VA side hustle does. But, as a beginner, the thought of starting from scratch might be a little intimidating. Gina Horkey gets that. In her 30 Days or Less to Virtual Assistant Course, she shows you how to build a scalable virtual assistant side hustle when you have no idea where to start.

4. Phone Mystery Shopping

Of all the flexible gigs I’ve held over the years in order to cobble together a living, phone mystery shopping was probably the most interesting.

The concept is super simple: You place a call to a business, ask some questions, document your experience and, bam, quick cash. I did shops with Perception Strategies. These were all medical-related. For example, I’d have to call a hospital under the premise I was bringing a friend in for a procedure in a few days. I’d have certain questions to ask like:

• “Where should I park?”
• “How long should we expect to be there?”
• “Do we need to bring anything in particular?”

And, while on the phone, I’d have to take notes about everything right down to the number of rings before someone answered and how long I was on hold, the names of people I spoke with, and even their tone.

At first, I was really into this gig. Each ‘shop’ would pay near $20 and would take, maybe, 20 minutes to complete — and while there wasn’t a ton of work to go around, I was getting a decent number of assignments each week.

But, I burned out after awhile because, quite frankly, I felt like a jerk calling in and pretending to be someone I wasn’t. And, more often than not, people on the other end of the line were often frustrated with me for calling into the hospital and asking a lot of questions and always pressing them for more answers, even if they said they didn’t know.

If you have a thick skin, you’ll probably find it no problem to keep up with the calls

In addition to Perception Strategies (who isn’t always hiring), you should check out:

• Call Center QA
• Intellicheck
• ARC

Phone mystery shopping is flexible, as long as you can make calls during business hours. And, if you have kids in your care or loud neighbors, no problem. These gigs don’t require complete silence.

5. Transcription

A lot of people use transcriptionists — authors, marketers, insurance agencies, doctors — to help put recordings into permanent written documents. It goes without saying transcription is a hugely in-demand service. If you can type fast, have a strong grasp of grammar, and an eye for the written word, you might just make a great typist (and can find plenty of work to keep you busy!).

There are a number of companies that routinely hire transcriptionists to work from home. And, since most of these openings are independent contractor jobs, you get the flexiblity to work when you want. Many times you can even choose how much you work!

Transcription Training

While contracting with a company that hires transcriptionists is an easy way to gain experience, it often comes with a much lower pay rate than if you struck out on your own. If you’re intimidated by how to go about starting a transcription hustle from scratch, you can’t go wrong with a step-by-step ecourse. My two favorite free mini courses include:

• General Transcription 
• Legal Transcription

Both of the mini courses are offered through Transcribe Anywhere and will give you a good idea if transcribing is right for you, before you jump in!

Side Hustle to Start

If you’re not sure yet what your work from home goals are try side hustling to start. I truly believe everyone should have a side hustle to contribute extra income, stash money for a rainy day or help pay down existing debt. And, when you’re new to the world of work from home, side hustling is a much easier (and less intimidating) way to get started! And these simple side hustles are a great way to try your hand at earning an online income. Once you get comfortable with this new way to work, you can always scale to full-time!

For even more extra money making ideas, don’t forget to check out my list of 101+ ways to earn extra money online!

Happily,

P.S. This post contains affiliate links. What are they and how do I use them? Read my disclosure statement for more details! 

P.S.S. Sign up below to gain access to the remote workers’ library where you gain access to exclusive freebies for out-of-the-cubicle thinkers, like you!

The post 5 Online Side Hustles I’ve Tried Over The Years (And You Can Too) appeared first on Work from Home Happiness.

We’ve all been there.

But getting a second job outside the home isn’t always practical. If you have little ones at home, working day and night doesn’t make sense. If your day job is demanding enough as is, adding another structured job to the workweek wouldn’t, well, work.

So, if you need more money, like yesterday, what do you do?

Turn your attention online.

Benefits of an Online Job

Sure, an online job means you get to work in your PJs, but there’s a lot of other perks too. And if you’re goal is to supplement your current 9 to 5, you’ll especially appreciate these added benefits.

Flexibility

Granted, not all online jobs come with extreme flexibility. But if you opt to freelance or set up your own side hustle, you get to set your own schedule and work as much (or little) as you’d like.

Even a more traditional contract or employee-based online job can come with great flexibility. These companies often hire workers as moonlighters. This means you can keep a hold of that day job of yours while working flexibly on nights and weekends to make ends meet.

Autonomy

If you’ve ever been micromanaged, you’ll definitely enjoy the autonomy that comes with working remotely. When you’re in your home office, the only one lurking over your shoulder is your cat (or kid).

Of course this doesn’t mean you can sit idly and still collect a paycheck. But it does mean you don’t have to worry about contending with a manager or boss who always seems to be breathing down your neck.

Money & Time Saved

There are few things I like more than making money. But saving time and money come pretty darn close. When you take on a second job from inside the house, you immediately eliminate a long and costly commute. So instead of spending money on gas and wasting time driving to work, you can simply take the 10-second commute to your home office and start earning.

Where to Look for Second Jobs from Home

Where you look for a second job depends on what kind of second job you’re after. There are several ways you can go about this:

• Employee
• Freelance
• Independent Contractor
• Solopreneurship

Each of these options comes with pros and cons. And what may work for me, might not work for you. So before jumping in, carefully consider the benefits and drawbacks of each.

Employee Positions

Though difficult to find, there are companies that have flexible online jobs that come with employee benefits. Some of the pros of working an online job as an employee include:

• Set schedules
• Stability
• Potential perks (like benefits, discounts, PTO)

But the reliable pay and stable schedules come at a cost: Flexibility. Often, these online second jobs will require you to commit to a certain schedule well in advance. And it may even mean working mandatory hours — an impossible feat for those with kids or demanding day jobs.

Where to Find Work

Your best bet to find employee jobs is through Indeed. In just a few clicks, you can find dozens of real remote jobs, many of which will offer enough flexibility to work around your already jampacked schedule. Try it for yourself, simply type “remote” in the “where” box below:

what	where
job title, keywords or company	city, state or zip jobs by

Freelance

Freelancing is a surefire way to fit money making into just about any schedule. And the good news is, anyone can freelance. From writing to marketing and social media management, there are certainly no shortages of in-demand freelance services you can sell to top off your income every single month.

Some added pros of freelancing include:

• Setting your own schedule
• Picking the projects you work on
• Working as much or little as you’d like
• Choosing your own hourly (or per project) pay rate

But, like anything, freelancing also comes with its own set of cons. For starters, there’s no guarantee you’ll find any work. And, as a freelancer, you’ll have to track down your own leads and pitch to clients to secure gigs — something that can be time consuming!

Where to Find Work as a Freelancer

There are so many ways to secure work as a freelancer. You can use popular freelance marketplaces to track down leads. Or you could use email outreach to pitch your services. Heck, you can even start your own freelance website and start marketing yourself on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, etc.

Really, there is no right or wrong way to freelance — do what makes sense for you!

Contract Jobs

There’s often a lot of confusion about contract jobs. A question I frequently get is, “Isn’t a contract job the same as freelancing?”

Nope.

Freelancing and contract gigs have some things in common (like being responsible for your own taxes). But where they greatly differ is how you get work.

As a contractor, you’re assigned work. As a freelancer, you source it on your own.

For example, let’s say you decide to get a second job online as a transcriptionist. You end up contracting with The World’s Great Transcription Company (TWGTC). As a contractor, TWGTC will assign you work and give you a due date, i.e., you’re assigned work every Monday that is due back Thursday morning. How you get the work done is up to you — as long as you turn it in on time, you’re good to go.

Where to Find Work as an Independent Contractor

Indeed and Craigslist can be really good sources of independent contractor gigs. But there are also a lot of companies that routinely hire contractors to work on a per project basis:

• Metaverse
• Wonder
• Fancy Hands
• Babbletype

Plus, a lot of online professions tend to be IC-friendly like:

• Proofreading and Editing
• Transcription
• Virtual Assisting
• Search Engine Evaluation

Keep in mind, some IC positions may only last for a certain time period — say a few months to a year. That means, once the contract is up, you’ve got to find another side job from home!

Solopreneurship

Of all the ways to hold down a second job from home, solopreneurship offers the greatest flexibility. Why? Because you’re in charge! Some undeniable benefits of starting your own second job from home include:

• Being your own boss
• Ability to scale your business (if you want)
• Opportunity for passive income
• Work when you want, where you want, as much as you want!

Of course, your success will be greatly determined by how much you put into your online side business. And, if you’re pressed for time, you may not be able to put as much into it at first. But you can grow your online second job on your own terms and at the right pace for you — it’s entirely up to you.

Guides to Help You Create Your Own Second Job from Home

• Start a Blog
• Launch a Niche Job Board
• Create Designs Online
• Write an Ebook
• Sell Your Knowledge as an Infopreneur
• Become a Jewelry Merchandiser

Seriously, there are a lot of ways to go solo and start your own second job from home — from scratch. I may be slightly biased, but this is hands-down my favorite way to earn.

Picking the Right Online Second Job for You

Before jumping in, take a minute to consider which of these jobs is right for you. For some, the stability of an employee job makes sense. For others, extreme flexibility that comes with freelancing may be key. And still some may thrive as an online entrepreneur.

Make sure to carefully consider the pros and cons of each and, when ready, start your search. As always, if you have any questions, let me know in the comments below. I’m here to help.

The post Online Second Job Ideas (and How to Pick the Right One for You) appeared first on Work from Home Happiness.