20 Ways to Make an Extra $1,000

How to Make an Extra $1,000 or More. Do all 20 and Make an Extra $20,000!

What would you do with an extra $1,000?

How about an extra $20,000?

Ever since I was a kid, I looked for ways to make and save money.

From babysitting and washing cars to working as a dental assistant on my day off when I was doing my hairdressing apprenticeship.

Some ways to make money generate more than others and many can be done at the same time as each other, increasing your earning potential.

The amounts below are based on what I have made from each one in a year or how long it takes to make $1,000.

Disclosure – this post may contain affiliate links for products or services I use. This was written 2021, updated in 2023.

1. Online Surveys – $6,500 in a year

In the last 12 months, I have made $6,500 with online surveys.

Generally, I do them when waiting for something else e.g the doctor or school pick-up.

Since I was pregnant last year and spent 2 weeks in quarantine when we repatriated, I had more time to do them.

All the best online survey sites are listed here.

My top earners are Octopus Group, PrizeRebel and Swagbucks.

Others find Pureprofile to be good although I find they take longer.

2. Reselling – $10,000 in a month

I made $10,000 in a month when I did it actively in Melbourne and regularly make $50+ in profit per item I sell.

Finding great items at super low prices takes practice but there are a few ways to do it.

Look for free items on the street and Facebook.

Check op shop sales and shop accordingly. Many have a $2 rack too.

Shop clearance sections, warehouse sales and look at garage sales.

When looking for items to resell, I look for things I know about and can check easily.

I’ve had great success with rockabilly clothing, Lego, jewellery, travel gear and similar.

Listing only takes us 3 minutes, including photos then packing and posting 5 minutes.

All up, one item might take me 10 minutes to sell and send.

Items that will have a profit over $50 are preferred because you sometimes have to answer questions and spend more time on an item.

It isn’t worth the time to me to sell items that are only $5, especially once you take out fees.

How much you make will depend on what you resell, where you resell it, the market for those items etc.

Some items do better on eBay but the fees are high, others are great on Facebook Marketplace.

Right now, I am selling clothes, mainly on eBay. Brands including Cue, Review and a few rockabilly-specific ones are doing well for me.

Check out my full eBook How to Make Over $10,000 a Month Buying Things to Resell.

It includes everything from what to sell, where to sell it, how to photograph it, postage tips, where to get items and how to know what they are worth.

3. Bank Bonuses – $1,134 in a year

I made $1,134 with bank bonuses in the past year.

This includes mainly signing up for new accounts and some friend referrals.

I didn’t do it with credit cards but the bonuses with them if you are disciplined can be worth heaps.

Up offers $8 (read the review on Up Bank for more information). Ubank has $20 on offer and ING offers $100.

Get a $100 Bonus from ING

Here’s what you need to do:

1. Open an everyday account and put the promo code CNW116 in the promo box (you must use the code to get the $100 bonus) and complete all the steps below in the first month.
2. Deposit $1,000 into the account such as your income or Centrelink payments
3. Make 5 settled transactions
4. Open a Savings Maximiser (current interest rate is 5.5%)
5. Make a deposit into the Savings Maximiser

Then you get your $100 the following month when the promotion is running. Promotion periods vary. The current promotion runs until October 31, 2023.

4. Blogging – $1,000+ in a year

How much you can make with blogging varies a lot.

It’s been a main income for me for years (six figures) but many others have not made anything.

It does take a fair amount of work but once you are set up it is easier.

Plus as you grow, you can hire others to help.

As an absolute base level, I do believe people can make at least $1,000 from their blogs.

When I purchased The Thrifty Issue back in 2014, I made back the purchase price in a week then another $1,000 soon after.

Since then, it has supported my kids and I through a lot.

I’ve also bought and sold other sites. Usually buying them for around $500 and reselling for $5,000 to $20,000.

To get started with blogging check out this post.

Personally, it’s a full-time income I make now in part time hours.

5. Cashback – $1,260 in a year

Last year, as we had to purchase a few items for the home and I did it on special days, we got $1,260 cash back!

I use 3 sites and with them, I compare the cash back offer. By signing up to a few, I can find the best deal with the highest offer.

Cashback Programs I Love

Below are my favourite ones. Your first step needs to be getting the apps and Chrome extensions installed.

They can notify you when you are on a site eligible for cash back and how much you will get.

The ones I use are:

CashRewards: By far my favourite as it usually has the highest cash back offer, the payments are processed easily and customer services has been good.

Simply join CashRewards for free, activate it when you see the cash back offer and get a bonus $20 cash back with your first purchase over $20.

Shopback: Works the same as CashRewards. You can only activate and use one so I compare to see which one is offering me a better deal.

Join Shopback for free and get a bonus after your first purchase through them too.

Honey: Slightly different, Honey offers cash back but also scans for discounts and coupon codes. Join Honey for free here.

Swagbucks: Best known as an online survey site, they also have a cash back program with the cash being awarded in points you accrue and cash out. Join free here.

6. Freelance Writing – $1,000 per contract

The average contract/gig of mine has been $1,000 in the past year (I usually offer from $200USD per article depending on what is required and most clients book more than 1 at a time).

Freelance writing requires skill and some expertise but you can do a course and there are a lot of beginner options.

This is for articles I write for their website, magazine, newsletter or other content.

Not for writing articles on this site or them being featured on here.

Read how to become a freelance writer for all my tips and sites to get paid work.

7. Virtual Assistant – $1,000 a week

Most virtual assistants I know make at least this a week, or more.

Virtual assistants are in demand from business owners, bloggers and even people with busy lives are turning to having someone behind the scenes to do things for them.

It can include anything from administrative tasks such as email and booking appointments through to social media.

The services you offer will depend on your skills.

Read about how to become a virtual assistant for more ideas.

8. Deliver Flyers – $1,000 a month

As a kid, I hated this. However, in 2021, I was amazed to make over $1,000 in a month, walking around areas I like, and delivering flyers.

I found the gigs on Airtasker then after the first job, it was paid directly to my account, avoiding Airtasker fees.

I’d listen to podcasts, make notes of things I liked about different homes in our area and get exercise while getting paid.

The pay isn’t huge, we negotiated and got higher rates doing it directly with companies instead of through a delivery service.

Getting paid to exercise while I was pregnant worked well. Check out Airtasker or Google flyer delivery in your area to find gigs.

9. Airtasker – $1,000 a month

One year I experimented with Airtasker and was pleasantly surprised.

The fees are huge so I was careful about which gigs I selected.

I have an article on how to make money with Airtasker, including my experience and tips.

A lot of what I did was simple such as marketing, flyer delivery, moving some plants etc.

None of it took too long and I was specific about the minimum hourly rate I would accept.

10. Cleaning – $1,000 a week

While I haven’t done it consistently as a career, the area I live in has a huge demand for cleaners, especially Airbnb cleaning for after guests.

Since everything has reopened and there are stricter rules, cleaning takes longer so each job is worth more.

When I have done cleaning, I could easily make $1,000 within 2 days.

My advice is to check the prices in your area, quote per job but be specific.

Cleaning ovens can be charged at a higher rate so check it thoroughly and quote accurately.

You can find jobs on Airtasker, Gumtree or Facebook.

11. Babysitting – $1,000+ in 10 weeks

When I was a teen, I was lucky to make $20 or $50 when I babysat, sometimes for 6 or more hours!

Now, it costs $25 to $35hr in most cities I’ve lived in, with first aid and other qualifications.

Most people don’t want a teenager looking after their kids so there are more opportunities for adults to babysit.

At $25hr and 4 hours a week you will make an extra $1,000 in 10 weeks. $35 hour means you only need to do 3 hours a week to make $1,050 in 10 weeks.

12. Rent Out A Room – $1,000 a month

Whenever I’ve had a border or rented out my place on Airbnb I have easily made $1,000 a month or more.

I have a full guide on how to make money with Airbnb here and if you want to try it, get a $61 bonus here.

Thoroughly vet whoever you rent to, have rules and plans in place in case anything goes wrong.

Personally, I rented to people I knew or friends of friends, that sort of thing. It was much easier for me to do it that way.

13. Rent Out Your Garage – $2,000+ a year

This was one of my favourites because it was so easy.

In Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra, I rented out my garage for various reasons and made $200 a month each time.

I didn’t have to do anything as I didn’t use my garage anyway.

Some people stored items, one mum ran a sewing business from it and another guy stored his spare car.

Spacer was an easy way to do it because they handled the payments and there is a contract in place.

14. Gardening – $1,000+ in a week

$50hr was the average when we did it but if you have all the supplies and are a fast worker, you can quote per job and make a lot more.

Doing this as a side gig for wealthy areas can work quite well.

When I lived in Templestowe (Melbourne) and similar places, almost everyone paid someone to do their yards.

So while you might not pay for it, it is definitely a service in demand.

15. Voiceover Work – $1,000 in a week

A few of my friends have done this over the years, many turning it into a full time job.

We interviewed Brett here about his experience and some tips.

While it’s not a conventional gig, it can work out quite well especially if you speak clearly.

There are also companies paying for people to speak certain sentences to use for AI research.

How much you make will vary depending on how much work you take on and your rates.

16. Transcribing – $1,000 in 6 to 8 hours

If you are a fast and accurate typist, transcribing can work out well.

Doctors, lawyers, podcasters and numerous other occupations require transcribing of their work.

You can typically find work on Upwork, through Facebook groups or LinkedIn and other job sites.

Payment is often based on how long the audio is instead of how long it takes you to type which is why a fast typing speed is important.

17. Market Research – $1,000 in 10 hours

All the market research work I have done has paid $100hr with some going for 2 to 3 hours.

This means, with 10 hours work, you’d have $1,000. Check out this article for more on market research.

In a nutshell, you are paid for your opinion on something.

Sessions are recorded and feedback given to the company based on your responses.

19. Medical Trials – $4,050 for 1 trial

I made $4,050 when I did a medical trial. My experience and tips for how to get paid to do clinical trials can be found here.

It is not something everyone can do and I would be cautious depending on what is being tested.

My group was testing a medication that was the same as something already out plus I had the condition they were testing for.

Our group was also not one of the first so they knew the side effects fairly well. I would never do it as one of the first participants.

20. Teaching/Tutoring

There are so many platforms you can teach on now.

If you want to do regular tutoring, you can through an agency or simply offer your services on Gumtree and similar.

Alternatively, you can create a course on a platform such as Udemy or Coursera where you will get ongoing income from whatever course you create.

For more ways to make and save money follow us on social media:

TheThrifty Issue Facebook Page
The Thrifty Issue Facebook Group
The Thrifty Issue Instagram

Get a $100 Bonus from ING

Here’s what you need to do:

1. Open an everyday account and put the promo code CNW116 in the promo box (you must use the code to get the $100 bonus) and complete all the steps below in the first month.
2. Deposit $1,000 into the account such as your income or Centrelink payments
3. Make 5 settled transactions
4. Open a Savings Maximiser (current interest rate is 5.5%)
5. Make a deposit into the Savings Maximiser

Then you get your $100 the following month when the promotion is running. Promotion periods vary. The current promotion runs until October 31, 2023.