Jasmine Birtles
Your money-making expert. Financial journalist, TV and radio personality.
Make Money Without Leaving the House
Moneymagpie Team
17th Nov 2020
Lockdown is getting to all of us – but there are ways you can make money without leaving the house, so now’s the time to try them! Here are our top ways to make money while you’re sat on the sofa, surfing the net, or trying to fill your furlough time.
- Use Lottery Syndicates
- Make Money on Social Media
- Test Websites
- Sell Your Stuff
- More Ways to Make Money
Use Lottery Syndicates
The cost of lottery tickets has risen a lot in recent years – and the chances of winning have gone down! However, lottery syndicates like Lotto Social are a good way to maximise your chances of winning without spending as much money – indeed 1 in 5 lottery wins are won by a syndicate!
Syndicates might be run by friends, or colleagues in a workplace – but it can take the fun of playing and could potentially lead to disagreements, especially if there’s a big win! Using an official syndicate is much simpler and ensures you receive your fair share of the winnings.
How does it work?
You pool your money with the syndicate – which means you get more tickets for far less expense. Syndicate providers like Lotto Social can give you 10 lines for as little as £1 and then enter you into one of their syndicates which holds up to 49 people. That definitely beats the normal price of 1 line for £2.50. Then, when the ticket wins, you share the prize proportionately with others in the syndicate. So, this does mean if you win small, like a tenner, you won’t see huge returns, but then you’ll win these smaller amounts more often. Plus having part of a ticket – and many more of them – significantly increases your chances of being in a group with a big win. You could even win the jackpot!
Give to charity at the same time
Using syndicate providers like Lotto Social also means you can help support local charities and nominate charities close to you heart. For example, if you put in £5 you’ll get five Euromillions tickets and £3 of your cash goes to charity. Plus, playing the National Lottery through syndicates means your cash is also going towards the National Lottery charity funds, too!
Make Money on Social Media
This takes more time, but when done right it’ll set you up with an ongoing passive income that makes plenty of cash over time! It’s a great way to make money without leaving the house – especially as the passive revenue (once you’re set up)
There are lots of ways to make money on social media. You could, for example, become a vlogger about a very niche subject (it’s easier to build a following in a niche than as a general lifestyle vlogger, because there are already so many of them!). Or, become an affiliate marketer to make money from partner links when someone uses your link to buy something.
Sell your own crafts and products
If you’re a maker, social media is the perfect place to set up shop. Sell your homemade items online for extra money – places like Etsy and Shopify make it easy to create an online shop. Use social media to promote your items and make cash.
Test Websites and Apps
Did you know that people will pay you to surf the web? There are a few ways to do this.
First, you could opt in to Nielson and/or Ipsos Mori – they pay you to act just as you normally would! Surf the net on any device and earn cash for doing so. It’s really that simple! The cash isn’t hugely plentiful – but you can earn £10 a month on average. Put that into a Lotto Social syndicate and you’re playing the lottery for free – with potentially huge returns!
Test Websites for Cash
Other places will pay you to test out websites and apps. These could be existing sites that need usability testing completed, to improve the user experience. Or, they might be brand new sites that haven’t yet launched. Brands put a lot of effort into making sure their website is set up in a way that maximises sales for them, so they’re willing to pay testers for feedback.
The best thing about testing sites and apps is you won’t need to take a lot of time over it. Some tests are longer – and therefore pay more – but you can pick the ones you want to do, in the time you’ve got available. Read our guide to testing websites for cash to learn more!
Sell Your Stuff
You’d be surprised what people will pay for! As we’ve all got a bit more time on our hands at the moment, it’s a great opportunity to clear out your clutter. Whether you’ve got empty designer boxes or perfume bottles, broken tech, or vintage clothes – there’s an opportunity to make cash.
We’ve got an entire section dedicated to Selling Your Stuff online to help you work out what you already own that could be of value. Sorting through your stuff is great catharsis – something we all need these days – and helps you clear clutter to make your home easier to manage, reducing stress. Plus, the extra cash is always handy!
Where to Sell Your Stuff
There are so many online marketplaces it’s important to make sure you’re using the best one for your type of item. The classics – eBay, Gumtree – are a good shout for general items. If, however, you have specialist things like vintage toys, it could be worth seeking out a collector or dealership to make sure you get a fair price for them. Other apps, like Facebook, Spock and NextDoor, help you find a local audience for your items.
We’ve also started the MoneyMagpie Marketplace – it’s still in beta mode, so if you have any feedback we can use to develop it, let us know!
More Ways to Make Money
We’re big fans of finding unique ways to make money without leaving the house in various ways. Check out these articles next for inspiration!
- Make Money on Your Doorstep with Shepper
- Where to Find Genuine Work From Home Jobs
- Have a Tech Spring Clean to Make Cash
- How to Make Money Flipping Thrift Items
I’ve been taking paid online surveys during the last year or two and have made quite a lot of PayPal cash and gift cards (Amazon, Tesco).
Nectar Canvass is a good one if you have a Nectar card, as they pay points for taking surveys. Even if you don’t complete the survey you get 2 points (1p).
I sell books / CDs / DVDs online using websites such as Music Magpie, Ziffit etc.
I also use receipt scanning apps (Shoppix) and cashback sites such as Quidco.
I’m always looking for new ways to earn extra money online.
Hi Dan,
Try Discogs for selling CD’s etc if you havent already
Some great money making ideas.