8 no-cost, low-effort ways to earn extra cash

Earning cashback to help alleviate today's cost of living

At Grow My Money, our goal is to help you pay off your mortgage faster and grow your superannuation savings. Earn cashback from your necessary spending to direct towards your mortgage or super account. You're spending the money anyway - buying appliances, pet food, or booking holidays - so this is about making your money work smarter for you. Spend $1000 at Big W, and Big W will pay $17.50 into your Grow My Money account; we'll then pay that cashback into your nominated mortgage or super account. Ultimately, it's all about easing the cost of living and reducing financial stress.

Frugal February: motivating you to reduce expenses and earn extra cash

Our previous blog post for Frugal February looked at ways you could reduce unnecessary expenses and save money around the home. In this post, we'll look at ways you can earn extra cash in your spare time - again, without compromising on your quality of life. The fact that these tasks require little to no cost to get started certainly fits in with our frugal framework!

Whether you're looking at extra income to help offset the cost of living or because you have some short-term goals, i.e. saving for a car, it pays to think about a few things before you start. These factors will all influence your desire and motivation.

• Are your skills compatible with jobs people are looking to fill?
• How much time per week do you have to spend on these extra tasks? What's your attitude towards this activity?
• How much demand is there for this particular skill?

Suggestions for earning extra money

Now, on to some money-generating suggestions.

We have divided these extra income suggestions into two categories: high-value activities and variable-value activities. Typically, the less effort required from you, the lower or more variable the reward. Let's take a look.

Variable-value

1. Online surveys: lots of platforms offer these, and as a general rule, the longer the survey, the more you're paid. You might want to try Pureprofile, Octopus and Crnrstone as a start.
2. Organising: lots of people have rooms or houses filled with clutter and mess. Or perhaps they're elderly and don't have the capability to sort through it all. If you're part of the NDIS, they offer a decluttering service here. A good way to register your services as an organiser is through any number of online task platforms, particularly The Art of Decluttering or Airtasker.
3. Dog walking: Covid meant we saw record levels of pet ownership, particularly with dogs. And now that COVID has passed, and many of us are back in the physical office, these pooches need walking. You can start by doing a letter-box drop in your street or registering with a local dog-walking business. You'll get fit too!
4. Editing/proofreading: There are many would-be novelists, manuscripts to read, and people looking for a cross-check on their business documents; sometimes, even ChatGPT has limitations. Other than Airtasker, jobs for services like this are often posted on Upwork or Freelancer. This Flexjobs blog has some good ideas on what you'll need as a proofreader. If you're looking for proofreading in specific professions eg accounting or law, you'll likely need training in that field.

High-value

1. Uber driving: Lots of parents probably feel like unpaid Uber drivers...why not monetise all the time spent on the road! Other than Uber, other rideshare services include Didi and Ola; many drivers are registered with at least one of these.
2. Food delivery: Why not? Food delivery isn't about your local restaurants. Even giant retailers such as Menulog, MILKRUN and Nespresso (all available on Grow My Money) are using individuals to pick up and deliver orders.
3. Babysitting: Here's a novel concept for many parents: get paid to look after children that aren't your own! It's safe to say that as a parent, you've had lots of practical hands-on experience. You may also know your way around the kitchen, which is of course, more than the average 18-year-old can say. Good places to register are Find-A-Babysitter or JuggleStreet.
4. Selling hand-made items: love to make jams? How about jewellery made out of recycled items? Or maybe you love to paint in your spare time? Why not monetise it: you can sell your items at local markets, or you can sell online with eBay or any other of the big marketplaces.

Making your extra cash multiply in value

Let's think about these extra cash-generating suggestions through a different lens. You're turning your time into money when you earn extra cash from these activities. Then, when using the money to buy that new dishwasher, you're making your extra cash multiply in its value - by saving mortgage interest or helping your super grow.

My Super

Assumes your “Paid into My Super" amount plus $30 further cashback rewards paid monthly, compounding monthly, 25 years to retirement, a median net return of 7.4%p.a. (over 10 years, balanced fund category to 31 December 2021 (ChantWest)). Source: moneysmart.gov.au

My Home

Assumes your “Paid into My Home" amount plus $30 further cashback rewards paid monthly, a loan amount of $500,000, 30-year term, monthly repayments and annual interest rate of 6% p.a. Source: moneysmart.gov.au

What are you waiting for? Work out which ideas listed above are most compatible with your skills and time, do your research, and then get started. And if you haven't already, don't forget to join Grow My Money in order to help with your mortgage repayments or add to your superannuation savings. You'll earn a $10 bonus when you sign up; this will be paid out to you when you've accumulated $10 of cashback from your spending (T&Cs apply). See? There's more cash for you already!

Grow My Money does not endorse any of the suppliers mentioned.