If you’re wondering how to make extra cash fast, you’re in the right place.
These are the top 8 ideas that I have personally used to make a few extra dollars when I need it the most. Note, some of these methods involve financial risk, but most do not. Any idea that involves the potential loss of capital is explained as such.
1. Complete Online Surveys for Cash
Only a few years ago, completing online surveys in exchange for cash was an inefficient way to make money online. However, in 2018, with more companies operating online than ever before, top companies are willing to pay out big bucks to learn what other users think.
Survey Junkie is a totally free program than collects all of the most valuable online surveys and organizes them in for you to complete in your account. Signing up takes 30 seconds and you’ll get about $1.50 just for filling out the initial signup survey that takes 2 minutes!
2. Start Freelancing Online
In a previous post, I noted how I made $62,000 in one year by freelancing for no more than 15 hours a week. Although it may take a day or two to get your profile up and running, freelancing is a fantastic risk-free way to make extra cash fast.
Some of the most popular niches are writing, graphic design, programming, website design, and manual tasks/data entry. It’s definitely not as fun as completing surveys, but it’s worth a shot.
3. Open an High-Yield Money Market Account
With a high-yield money market account, there is absolutely no risk of losing your money. Money market accounts are the same thing as traditional savings accounts, but they can pay as high as 1% on all balances just for holding your cash!
The highest yielding money market account 2018 is CIT Bank, which pays 1.75% on all balances with daily compounding interest! There are never any hidden fees or account maintenance fees, and signing up is completely free. This is a proven method of generating a reasonable rate of return with no risk.
4. Trade Bitcoin – RISKY
I made $2,321.99 trading bitcoin futures in one day, which I documented in this post viewable here. Although this method is highly risky, it’s also highly rewarding. Currently, the best way to buy bitcoins is with Coinmama, because any necessary ID verification is done within the hour.
Note, I only started with $300, and I was able to make $2k+ by trading bitcoin futures with Deribit. Bitcoin is a very volatile asset and is not for those with weak stomachs, but it is a legit way to make extra cash with little to no effort.
5. Use Free Online Brokerage Signup Bonuses
If you have enough cash to deposit, you can earn a cash bonus just for signing up for an brokerage account and depositing the minimum required amount. For 2018, the most valuable online brokerage promotion is this one form Ally Invest: Up to $3,500 cash bonus + commission free trades for new accounts.
It’s always free to maintain an account with Ally Invest, and there are never any hidden fees or minimum requirements. There’s also no obligation to buy any stocks, so it’s already a great deal, and it’s an even better deal if you do plan on trading stocks because you’ll also get free trades.
6. Sell Your Unused Items on Craigslist
Selling items on craigslist is a great way to make extra money. I’ve sold everything from 10-speed bicycles to washing machines on craigslist, each time without issue.
In my experience, bicycles, furniture, unused electronics equipment (like Amazon Kindles and GoPros) sell the best. Although the transaction will necessitate exchanging the goods for cash in person, this is a solid choice for fast cash.
7. Exchange Bitcoins for Gift Cards of Higher Value
This method sounds a little tricky, but it’s actually very simple. After I made over $2,000 from trading bitcoin (again, the proof is viewable here) I used Local Bitcoins to exchange my newly minted bitcoins for Apple and Amazon gift cards for a huge profit. At the time I did my trades, bitcoin was trading at $9,800, but I was able to trade my bitcoin for an Amazon gift card at an exchange rate of $14,400. Someone didn’t want their Amazon gift card and wanted bitcoin instead!
LocalBitcoins says that gift cards are considered high-risk, because they can be reversed, but I never experienced this and I only transacted with users who had thousands of transactions and 100% positive feedback. It worked out really well, and I made an automatic 30% on everything that I bought on Amazon.
8. Trade Stock or Futures Options – RISKY
There is an extremely high degree of risk with trading stock or futures options. With that said, just like with trading bitcoin, trading stock or futures options can be very lucrative if your timing is right, and it doesn’t require a lot of initial capital to start. Not only does Ally Invest offer the best promotional signup bonuses for new accounts, but they also have the lowest options and futures commissions in the industry.
I made $24,558.62 trading futures options on the E-Mini S&P 500 Index, the benchmark stock market index. It’s definitely possible to make a lot of cash trading derivatives, but it is also highly risky, so be warned.
Final Thoughts on How to Make Extra Cash
Making extra money on the side, in addition to your regular income is possible, you just have to be willing to either put in a little bit of work or take a little bit of risk.
With doing tasks like completing online surveys, the only risk is your time. Although you likely won’t make thousands of dollars in a day completing surveys, some surveys pay as much as $40 per completion, and completing three in a day can yield a pretty decent profit.