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The Busy Budgeter

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The 4 Side Jobs That Make Me Over $3,000 a Month as a Stay-at-Home Mom

By The Busy Budgeter | 154 Comments | This post may contain affiliate links

It always surprises people to hear that I make $3,000 a month as a stay at home mom. It's not nearly as hard as people think and I'm not the rare exception that makes money from home.

After 9 years in a well-paying career, I quit my job and replaced my salary with these four side jobs. I wouldn't call it easy, but being able to stay home with my kids and make up my salary was a lot easier than I thought it would be.

Here are the stay at home jobs that I've tried, and which ones really worked.

= This is the BEST LIST I've Found! The 4 ways that I make over $3000 dollars a month as a stay at home mom.... This is the best list of ways to make money as a stay at home mom or for someone that wants to be able to quit and stay home with her kids. I usually hate these lists because they list money saving apps or jobs that most people couldn't do. This was the best article I've read on this (and the comments are even better!!) I needed to know how to make 3000 a month.

  

UPDATE: We had a TON of emails from this article asking about how to start a blog. If you want to start a blog but aren’t sure where to start then I'd love to tell you about a simple and easy resource that worked for me. Bonus points because it’s actually FREE right now. Get the First 10 Steps of a Profitable Blog that walks you through the 10 steps you MUST get right in start and building your blog here.

The 4 Side Jobs That Make Over $3,000 a Month as a Stay-At-Home Mom

I never had plans to be a stay at home mom. In fact, even up to my last day of pregnancy, I planned to come back to work. I took one look in that little baby’s eyes and my entire life literally changed. My perspective changed.

I’ve never wanted anything as much as I wanted to stay home with him.

It was hard for me to even attempt to mentally get back into my career. We had just started our frugal journey at that point and cutting our income in half was just not an option. I was determined, though.

I made myself a promise that I would figure out a way to stay home with him by his first birthday. If I still wanted to. Part of me was wondering if this intense desire was leftover pregnancy hormones.

We really worked our butts off that first year learning how to budget and figuring out how to cut our spending.

We started using free money back apps like Ibotta and Ebates, and we started using freezer meal plans to cut our grocery budget in half.

It wasn’t easy. But it was worth it.

Then I found legitimate side jobs to make money at home.

We did it. My last day at work was our son’s first birthday. I’m now going into my fourth year being at home with him. Though technically I should say “them” since we gave him a sister too.

I went from thinking that it would be impossible, to actually doing it in just one year. If this is what you want to do, if you want to stay at home, then don’t take no for an answer. Find a way.

If you need help making your budget work to stay home, then this free course will walk you through the process step by step. It made a huge difference to us! You can sign up for the free 90 day budget bootcamp here.

The four side jobs that worked…

how to make 3000 a month

These side jobs made it easy to transition from my career to making money from home.

Mystery Shopping 

Mystery shopping is a side job you hear about often being associated with scams. I go through Trend Source, and can tell you that they are a legitimate company. But do your research on any others. This is something you can easily do with the kids since you’re shopping under cover.

Gigs are sporadic (about 6 a month is what I average) but easy. They pay about $10 and take about 30 minutes to complete.

Total: $60/month. (You could make more if you do inspections when your husband is at home to watch the kids).

 

User Testing

I love Usertesting.com! User testing tests the user experience of websites from small to huge. They need real people to log on, perform given tasks and think out loud. The screen recorder captures your voice about how difficult the task is to complete. They pay $10 for a 15-minute test and most of these are really fun.

You get to learn about things you would have never stumbled upon, use features that brands are still working on, and get to voice your frustrations over common website issues. You have 15 minutes after you accept to begin the test.

You’ll need to keep the kids quiet during the test, but they have a pause button so if there is a disruption, you can pause, deal with the issue, and come back to it.

I let my oldest (3) play with the iPad and nurse my infant during tests. The screen recorder just captures screenshots, it doesn’t record you. I make about $100/month although I’ve done much better other months.

Total: $100/month

 

Blogging

If you love to write, this is absolutely something you should look into. You likely won’t see money from this immediately. I went almost 3 years making less than $200/month when I was blogging as a hobby.

Although, considering the amount of work that went into it at that point, $200/month was pretty impressive.

However, if you love to write and like to help people, have fairly thick skin, and are willing to put in many hours for free (MANY, MANY hours!), then this job is for you.

It’s absolutely possible to make a full-time income from home from this. It’s not just for major huge celebrity bloggers. I’m still “new” in the world of blogging, I just started a new site,  but this month I’ve made just under $700, and I’ve been drastically increasing every month since I started a new blog and took it seriously this time.

(Update 8/16/16… Less than two years after writing this, the blog is supporting my entire family… so you should totally learn how to start a blog!)

You don’t have to be spammy or offer things to readers that they don’t need/want. You get paid from ads on your site, affiliate programs of things that you already use and love, products that you create to sell, and sponsored posts from brands you believe in.

A great (and free!) resource if you’re interested in blogging as an income source is this step-by-step tutorial to start a blog (written for people who aren't great with computers).

Blogging is also super cheap to get into. You can start a blog for only $3.49/month. If you can invest more, The class I took is Elite Blog Academy and I credit all of my success to that. You can find out more about the class here. (hint: If the class isn’t currently open, then join the waiting list so you don’t miss out).

If you don't have money to put into blogging, the best free resource is the First 10 Steps to a Profitable Blog Cheat Sheet, which you can get here.

Total: $700/month (Update: Which later turned into its own business making full time income.  Which replaced everything else on this page and is completely nuts. Okay, moving on…)

Childcare

Childcare is a fantastic way to make money as a stay-at-home mom and it doesn’t have to be nearly as complicated as you’re thinking.

While it does add some restrictions to your day (vacations are difficult, it’s more difficult to run errands, and you wouldn’t believe how hard it is to keep your floors clean with four toddlers), I make between $189- $204/week per child depending on age (keep in mind I live in Northern Virginia where rates are high).

Check your local regulations about licensing. It’s not difficult to get a license and insurance if it’s needed.

If you don’t want to spend your whole day watching kids, or if your kids are school age, you should also consider doing before/after school care. Parents would drop kids off at your house, the bus would pick them up and drop them off at your house and then the parents would pick them up from you when they get done with work.

I can tell you from experience that after a while, the kids you care for become your kids and you don’t see them any differently from your own kids.

Total: $2,438/month (to watch 3 kids in addition to my son)

I used the guide, Start and Run Your Own Home Daycare, to create the business step-by-step. It was the best $10 I’ve ever spent. It even came with a CD filled with all of the forms that you’ll need.

Keep in mind, you’ll have to pay taxes on this income. Thankfully the child care tax deductions are INSANELY good so the amount due for taxes isn’t too bad. Just keep really good records and save every receipt. (Don’t let this discourage you! It’s not nearly as hard as it sounds and the book will explain that part too).

The side job that I quit…

eBay Business

I was actually really successful at this, but it took a lot of time and I didn’t enjoy the work so I abandoned it. You may like it more than I did, so I’ll mention it.

While my husband was in training for 9 weeks, I started an Ebay business as a side job where I would buy jeans from the thrift store on 50% off days and resell them on Ebay for 2-3x the price I paid for them.

I bought most of the jeans for $2-$5 and only purchased jeans that I knew would sell (basically the ones that I wore and liked- American Eagle and Gap). I have an iPhone so uploading the photos and listing them were pretty easy with the Ebay App.

You can schedule USPS to drop off free packing materials and then come back to pick up your packages that are ready to ship.

Plenty of people have turned this into full-time gigs, but this side job isn't for me. I made over $1,500 in 9 weeks, so about $170 a week or $731/month.

It's detailed work, but pretty boring. If you need the money, it's worth it though.

You can grab an eBay account here and take a tutorial on how to sell.

 

Other successful side jobs… 

If you STILL haven’t found a side job that interests you, here are a few more ways that I’ve seen work:

how to make 3000 fast

  • Voice-over actor: I have two friends, one of whom does voice-over work for a full-time job and one who does it on the side to make a little extra money. Another friend has a pre-teen daughter that does voiceover work for her college fund. Two of them took this voice-over course to get started and highly recommend it.
  • Proofreader: Proofreading is when you take a document and scan it to fix errors. The most common form of proofreading is for court reporters, but authors and even bloggers also use proofreaders. Proofread Anywhere is currently the best course for learning how to proofread.
  • Freelance Writer: The program, 30 Days or Less to Freelance Writing Success, is the best resource available to train in freelance. This is usually  more professional writing than blogging but you don’t need to wait to build your own readership.
  • Tutor/Online Teacher: While teachers and college students are the obvious choice for this side job, there are also gigs for music and English as a second language that pay pretty well. You can use a site like Tutor.com or start your own business (and do your own marketing).
  • Newspaper Delivery: Call your local paper to find out more about earnings from a paper route and job details.
  • Holidays at a Retail Location: Work evenings and weekends at a store that you love (mine would be Ralph Lauren), during the holiday season. You pick up extra cash and you’ll have the employee discount (up to 50% off at Ralph Lauren- you can clearly see that I’ve thought this through) to help with holiday shopping.
  • Virtual Assistant: Virtual assistants help business owners run their day to day operations. Tasks can be anything from handling emails, scheduling clients, formatting, and scheduling blog posts, handling social media, and processing data. 30 Days to Virtual Assistant Success is the course you’ll want to take to get started.
  • Dog Walker or Pet Sitting: Take advantage of being home while others are at work and start a dog walking or pet sitting business. It can grow quickly by word of mouth, and you (and your kids!) will get the added benefit of sunshine and exercise. Use this book to explain step-by-step how to get started.
  • Etsy Shop: If you’re lucky enough to have a hobby that you can market, look into opening an Etsy shop to supplement your income.
  • Stock Photography: If you have a fancy camera, you can make a pretty penny by selling your photos to stock photography sites. You can find out more here. Keep in mind, they aren’t looking for once in a lifetime Hawaiian sunset shots, but anything and everything from photos of irons, receipts, cash, grocery carts or anything else you have around. I strongly suggest you take a Creative Live stock photographer course first.
  • Couponing: Consider extreme couponing and selling your surplus on Facebook yard sale sites. We have a neighbor that does this and it’s genius! She makes over $1,000 a month and it benefits everyone. She’s paid for the time it takes to coupon and local moms that don’t have the time to coupon benefit with crazy good deals from her. She uses Krazy Coupon Lady’s free coupon database to go and snatch the deals. Genius.

Well, that’s my list of side jobs!

Need more side jobs to make money from home? You can find them here. 

Did I miss any side jobs? Have you tried any of these or do you want to try any of them?

More Ways to Make Extra Money from Home:

Money Making Course Recommendations:

Money Making Apps I Recommend (Cash Back or Savings)

Money Making Survey Apps

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Want to completely transform your finances? You can now join the 90 Day Budget Boot Camp for free! 

Get step by step instructions for how to set up a budget, maintain a budget, and save money. With hundreds of success stories and reviews, this is not an opportunity you want to miss! Join the Budget Boot Camp here. 

Other popular posts…

These are the side jobs that make me over $3,000 a month as a stay at home mom! Our Family’s $70/week meal plan to reduce our grocery budget for a family of four. How to start a budget that’s impossible to screw up. These super easy 15 minute meals from a rotisserie chicken is an easy way to throw together a cheap dinner.

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Comments

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      May 6 at 3:22 pm

      Thanks Toni! I wish more people would consider self employment. It’s a little scary at first, but it opens up so many amazing opportunities to find out what you’re really meant to do.

      Reply

      • Tristan says

        January 21 at 11:36 pm

        How many blogs do you run? I have an auto-immune disorder that is really making it difficult to work a 9to 5bjob on someone elses schedule…is pets and health a good blog to make money with?

        Reply

  3. Tiffany Young says

    May 2 at 5:52 pm

    These are some great suggestions!! I plan on looking in to some of these!! Direct sales are an AWESOME side business!! Work it as much or as little as you want, as life allows!! The key is making sure you are doing something you’re passionate about!!

    Reply

  4. The Busy Budgeter says

    May 6 at 3:18 pm

    It’s pretty fun Julia! There were a few small hoops to jump through but nothing crazy. Plus, you get the best of both worlds, your children stay with you all day, but they’re still socialized.

    Reply

    • diana says

      June 17 at 2:09 pm

      Make sure you get a child care endorsement added to your homeowners insurance. If someone gets hurt in your care, it could wipe you out financially.

      Reply

  5. Ann-Marie says

    May 8 at 6:23 pm

    So I have a funny experience with mystery shopping with TrendSource (totally not their fault!). It ended up costing me WAY more than it was worth. Why? Because one of the jobs I enjoyed taking on was for a pizza company. I’d take the pizza onto my deck to get photos with natural light (photos were required), before my family devoured it. Only, one time, I left my $600 camera outside. And it rained. IT. RAINED. My camera was ruined 🙁
    Ann-Marie recently posted…Blue Bunny Ice Cream Coupon AlertMy Profile

    Reply

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      May 12 at 4:47 pm

      Doh! Oh no! I’m currently saving up for a new camera so I know exactly how much that hurts. That was probbaly the most expensive pizza you’ve ever eaten. 🙁

      Reply

    • Joanie says

      June 14 at 7:44 pm

      I also left my camera out and it rained! I was devastated! I work at a pharmacy and we had been stockpiling dessicants for a while for a project we were going to do. I took them home, put my camera in a ziploc bag full of them and left it there for 3 days. I tried to use it and it still wouldn’t work. I couldn’t seem to part with it just yet, so I put the camera still in the dessicants in my hall closet. Several months later as I was cleaning, I found it and decided to turn it on again. I’m not sure why, I guess I was just hoping for something good. Well, guess what?? It worked!!! I was and still am so happy!!! Sometimes it’s good to be a bit of a hoarder who can never throw anything away 🙂

      Reply

      • The Busy Budgeter says

        June 17 at 8:28 pm

        Oooh! Good save! My husband has saved 2 iPhones that I dropped in water for me like that. The hardest part for me is waiting so long without touching it!

        Reply

        • Bronwyn says

          July 19 at 2:03 pm

          We had a fire in our kitchen 6 months ago, and my husband was messing with our $300 camera when the fire broke out. He has no idea what he did with it when he ran to the kitchen to help me. It is gone. GONE. Disappeared. It still baffles me as to what happened to that thing.

          Reply

  6. The Busy Budgeter says

    May 12 at 4:43 pm

    Haha. Weirdly, my favorite part of it, is the $1.50 they give you (in addition to compensation) to purchase something (to prove you went to the correct store). I love scouting out the clearance bins and finding the best deal for my extra $1.50!

    Reply

  8. Jen says

    May 20 at 2:00 pm

    These are great! I am a freelance writer, but I also work for a catering company during the summer and fall months. I work about every other Saturday, when my husband is off work. It’s mostly weddings, of course. The paycheck and tips are nice, and it’s extremely flexible. They offer an event and I either say yes or no. There are no repercussions for turning down work, except that you might get offered fewer if you almost always say no…but if I find myself wanting more, I can let them know and they will offer them to me. It’s a great gig that runs 6-7 months of the year, a few times per month, and gives me some time out of the house AND a little paycheck that helps chip away at those student loans.

    Reply

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      May 22 at 5:38 pm

      What a fantastic idea! I’ve never thought of that. And OMG, you had me at “some time out of the house”. I get giddy going to Target on my own right now.

      Reply

    • Wendi says

      May 1 at 12:24 pm

      Love your ideas! They are truly legitimate ways to earn money! I’ve been using swag bucks for about 2 years and with their apps, i manage to earn about $800/year. It’s not much, but because I have their apps to auto run, it doesn’t take any effort or time. I just find the shortest short clip on the app, click it to “favorites” and run favorites. When that one is done, I turn on the next one and do the same thing. I sometimes “play” swagasaurus run for the extra ten points a day. My hubby does the same and we use our earnings for Amazon gift cards for Christmas or for gas cards for our annual road trip. I would definitely check it out. If you invite people to join, you can earn 10% of what they do also.

      Reply

  11. Carrie says

    June 10 at 7:31 pm

    Thank you for this. It makes me feel like working from home, which is a dream of mine, is really possibe. 🙂

    Reply

  12. Meaghan | Cook. Craft. Love. says

    June 14 at 4:12 am

    I don’t want to be a stay at home mom I just want to work for myself! I started a Fiverr account but don’t get much business there at all. Hopefully it’ll pick up soon! I’m a blogger too and finally starting to make more income after a year although not up to $700 a month yet. I’m also in direct sales. Just hoping it all takes off soon so I can stay away from a “real job”
    Meaghan | Cook. Craft. Love. recently posted…Beach Ball Cookies {with tutorial!}My Profile

    Reply

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      June 17 at 8:32 pm

      Stick with it! The blog grew slowly then took off. My income from that has more than doubled since I wrote this. It’s a labor of love, but so worth it.

      Reply

  14. The Busy Budgeter says

    June 22 at 5:58 pm

    Thanks for letting me know Juanita! I’ll look into it and maybe do an article in the future. I’m always ont eh look out for side jobs that people can do at night to pay off debt or boost up savings.

    Reply

  15. Erica says

    July 4 at 11:44 am

    Great post. As a recent single mom of 4, I’m always looking for new ways to make money. My blog has definitely become my passsion – as writing and inspiration are two things I have always loved. Would love you to to stop by!

    Reply

  16. Chandra says

    July 10 at 2:25 pm

    Thanks for the inspiration! I need to get my butt in gear! I just opened an Etsy shop in hopes to start making enough money to be a SAHM. I also love ebay selling!

    Reply

  17. Jessica says

    July 10 at 7:50 pm

    i have always wanted to try blogging but I have no clue what sites to use to start a blog! Any suggestions?

    Reply

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      July 22 at 3:33 am

      I’m actually putting together a resource guide for that reason alone Jessica. Stay tuned. It should launch next Monday. Sign up for my newsletter if you want a reminder in your inbox.

      Reply

  18. Melissa says

    July 11 at 2:08 am

    It’s free to be a tester! Click on the “get paid to test” on the top right.

    Reply

    • Chantalle says

      May 24 at 2:55 pm

      Does the user testing still work for anyone? I’ve gone on it, and tried doing a couple different emails for a verification to be a tester and never received any email :-\

      Reply

  19. Destiny says

    July 16 at 7:23 pm

    Hi Rosemarie, I stumbled upon this post from Pinterest and fell in love! I’m so inspired! I’ve been wanting to start a blog for quite some time, but I’m pretty unsure as to which blog host to use, any you recommend? I’ve been looking into Blogpress, & I do like using Tumblr, but I don’t get enough traffic for just writing.
    Destiny recently posted…PhotoMy Profile

    Reply

  20. Heidi says

    July 22 at 1:16 am

    I love your drive to earn. However I read over and over about blogging and have no idea how to get started. So many questions like how to decide what to write about or finding your niche, I have used beginner sites and although simple in format I still don’t understand how to really get it goin and into the groove of things, how to reach an audience…..oh I can go on and on haha. Totally lost here

    Reply

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      July 24 at 7:42 pm

      Heidi… 3 (or 4? I can’t remember) years ago, I felt the exact same way. I started blogging as a hobby for fun. I had no idea that people did this as a carrier. In just the last two months since this article posted, I more than tripled my blogging income. I did the really, really slow way. Started on a free (blogger) site, posted when I could and muddles along learning little bits every month. Last September I started over with a brand new self hosted site (that means I own it), and started putting the money that I made on the free site into training. Things like writing classes, blogging classes, graphic design etc. Once I started paying to learn how to do things, the site grew really, really quickly. If you love to write, make this your hobby and just start any way you can. You won’t regret it. Write about the thing that you can’t shut up about. The thing that you could talk about forever. Fashion, parenting, an illness, food, desserts, whatever… Write about what you love.

      Reply

      • MaryEllen says

        September 7 at 8:50 am

        Thank you so much for all you have shared in this wonderful post. Although I’ve seen many references to people making triple digit incomes through blogging, I had no idea what the timeline might be,
        or what expectations might be realistic. Your openness and advice are very generous, and helpful! I am semi retired, and the earn at home idea is appealing to me, too! It’s a huge risk to invest time without much certainty about the potential outcome. This may be the best blog post I’ve ever read!

        Reply

  21. The Busy Budgeter says

    July 22 at 3:23 am

    Hey Sara! User testing definitely doesn’t require payment. You were probably looking at the purchase screen for companies to have their websites tested. I’ll go test the link for trend source now, it may have just been a glitch with their site.

    Reply

  22. The Busy Budgeter says

    July 22 at 3:39 am

    You can totally do this Melissa! One of the most surprising things I’ve found since I came home is how easy it is to come up with ways to support yourself. If you approach the problem from both ways, spending less and making more it’s even easier!

    Reply

  24. Edamame Creations says

    August 7 at 10:11 pm

    These are all fantastic ideas! At one point I made duct tape wallets and purses; I sold purses for $20-ish and wallets for $5-$15 depending on size and type… I made $200 for only about 20 items, some of which I gave away to family, and it took only a little effort and if you can find cheap duct tape with cool patterns (Often at big lots, target, and shopko), it’s really worth it and cheap. 🙂 I have never been to this website before but will definitely be back…

    Reply

  25. The Busy Budgeter says

    August 10 at 6:07 pm

    That drives me INSANE Katie! I know exactly what you’re talking about. Like I’m supposed to pay my mortgage and quit my job with inbox dollars and ibotta:)

    Reply

  26. The Busy Budgeter says

    August 10 at 6:11 pm

    You’re welcome Melissa! I love that you’re working on your dreams! My absolute best advice when it comes to quitting your job is to find a hobby that has the potential to make money and start crafting it. Working on it after work will be no sweat because it’s “fun”. Re-purposing home and furniture pieces is a great idea! 🙂 I seriously hated selling jeans on Ebay… There was no creativity and it was just tedious mind numbing work, but it pays bills and it’s easy. 🙂

    Reply

  27. Julie says

    August 13 at 2:56 pm

    How do you pay for taxes on these side jobs? Do you keep track of it and have to file wit taxes? Or just don’t claim it? I get nervous about that.

    Reply

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      August 13 at 6:26 pm

      Hi Julie!
      You definitely have to pay taxes. For the childcare, the tax breaks are AMAZING. Talk to an accountant (often you can get free consultations), to understand how much you’ll owe. I use Quickbooks self employed and love it. With the day care. I tracked everything myself and by hand… I couldn’t keep it up after the first year though and needed to switch to something that automates a lot of it. The blog income, doesn’t have any tax breaks with it (bummer) so it’s heavily taxed but it’s also really easy to increase your income over time (that’s incredibly difficult to do with day care- you would have to increase the number of kids you have). The others are nominal amounts… I give them to my accountant and she figures it out. If you want to do this, don;t let the fear of taxes keep you from doing it, I’m not saying it’s super easy to figure out… but neither is balancing a long commute, a 40 hour work week, demanding kids, and a house to run. So… it’s a bit of a pain either way. 🙂

      Reply

      • Julie says

        August 14 at 3:59 pm

        Thank you so much!! I’ve thought about at least doing that mystery shopping, but it always intimidated me how to claim it! I am so ready to be a stay at home mom!!

        Reply

  28. Emily says

    August 23 at 10:05 am

    This is a great list but I find it troubling that she is doing these 15 minute computer tests while running her in home daycare. If I was paying someone to watch my kids, I would want her to watch my kids, not let them play on the iPad while she was making money doing computer tests. I understand she might be doing these while nursing as well, but her advice to keep the computer turned up loud so you can hear the ping sounds sad for a daycare provider. Just my thoughts. Otherwise, great ideas!

    Reply

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      August 23 at 3:54 pm

      Hi Emily!
      I should have clarified that. I can’t do user testing during day care hours (it would take a miracle to keep 4 toddlers quiet for 15 minutes haha). I usually leave it up though on weekends and in the evenings. That’s why I only earn $100 from that. (That’s only 1 test every 3 days or so). But, If you don’t run a day care and you stay home- you can easily earn much more than I do.

      Reply

  29. The Busy Budgeter says

    August 23 at 3:55 pm

    Blogging is such a fun way to earn enough to stay home, my blogging income has tripled since I write this and it’s a passion project as well, so you can’t beat that!

    Reply

  32. Marcia Dean says

    September 1 at 12:57 pm

    I just read your post about the 4 ways you earned over $2,000 a month. I have a head injury that prevents me from driving, working. So I’m limited in what I can do. But buying jeans at a thrift store might work for me. What thrift store did you go to? Did they have routine half off days or did you just watch for their sales?
    I appreciate you information and help!
    Marcia

    Reply

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      September 28 at 6:14 pm

      Marcia, I had to go to several thrift stores in my area to find the best deals on jeans. They are all local thrift stores, as the larger chain stores tend to not have the best deals. Most of the time the sales are on a pretty strict schedule, so just just have to figure out what days have the deepest discounts.

      Reply

  33. Jennifer says

    September 4 at 6:42 pm

    Great article! I am currently exploring some of these options to start bringing in some much needed extra income as a SAHM. Question about blogging…how do you get/find opportunities to do a sponsored post?
    Jennifer recently posted…Finding My HappyMy Profile

    Reply

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      September 28 at 6:01 pm

      Finding sponsored post opportunities depends a lot on your blog’s “niche” and your general rules about what you “will” and “will not” do for compensation. For instance: I will not write sponsored posts on products that I haven’t used and love. That said, if someone approaches me for a product I haven’t used before, part of the stipulation is that I get to try the product and if I don’t like it, then I don’t write the post.

      As far as finding posts on my own, that’s a bit easier. I have a specific email format I use when I “pitch” to a company or product developer. I use this email format to contact someone at the company, offer to write a post, and include my “media kit” which contains rates and statistics for my blog. The company usually responds within a day or two and will either say “no thanks” or will schedule a meeting to talk about terms.

      These techniques, email formats, and the media kit design were all things I learned while taking the Elite Blog Academy course from Ruth Soukup at LivingWellSpendingLess.com

      Reply

  35. Lindsey Buffaloe says

    September 26 at 3:15 pm

    Hi there-

    Thanks for this post! Could you elaborate a bit on how one would go about starting an Ebay business? I am considering doing so, but am not sure how to get started with it. Also, how did you get free shipping materials from USPS?

    Thanks!

    Reply

  36. Chiara says

    October 2 at 2:31 pm

    These are some awesome ideas!Thank u and all the best to you!I really admire women who get out of their comfort zone and become creative,inventive,wiser and cooler mums! 😉 I used to babysit when i quit my job.I was home with my 2yr old son,pregnant to my daughter and then started doing nappy cakes and selling through fb!When you are looking for something,opportunities come knocking your door!I looved traveling but couldn’t afford to go anywhere!Now I get paid to travel,been to 19 trips in a year and cant way to show my kids the world! 🙂
    Stay positive,open minded and enjoy motherhood&life to the fullest! Xx

    Reply

      • Mary says

        January 28 at 3:23 pm

        Another NOVA-er… I came to your site after getting addicted to Ibotta and came across this post… It is the best one I have ever read and I have been looking for a long time (I’m a career gal with a SAHD and a mom who has had to follow my dad’s career and not been able to put down roots) Muchas gracias!

        Reply

  41. The Busy Budgeter says

    November 1 at 6:55 pm

    Thanks Laura Beth! I love usertesting!! It’s so simple, the pay is great and I love getting to peek at what the large companies are working on and getting to offer my opinion.

    Reply

  42. The Busy Budgeter says

    November 1 at 6:59 pm

    Hi Danell! The best advice I can give to make a blog into a full time income is to make enough to pay for a blogging class where they teach you how to monetize. I took The Elite Blog Academy and absolutely loved it!

    Reply

  43. Natasha says

    November 3 at 1:50 pm

    Hello. I’m on disability and a senior and really need some way to make money from home. How do you find product testing study’s, mystery shopping and user testing jobs? I live in Frederick, Maryland.

    Reply

  44. Sarah says

    November 10 at 7:51 pm

    Did you gain clientele for the at home daycare before quitting your job or build it after?
    If you built it after, where did you make up for the lapse in income?

    Reply

  46. Julie says

    December 7 at 3:46 pm

    This is great! You’ve inspired me to get my blog moving and to be successful with it! I already subscribed and can’t wait to dive in!

    Reply

  47. Alura says

    December 28 at 1:00 am

    This article has really peaked my interest. I am a single mother who desperately wants to be a SAHM. I do like to write but how do you decide what your blog should be about and get people to read it? I need real remote jobs that can be the main income. Any suggestions would help!
    Thanks 🙂

    Reply

  48. lpc says

    January 4 at 10:08 am

    Always looking for my DD who is a SAHM but most of these are just difficult to do when you live in an itty bitty town and are the largest town for miles around and are up in the mtns where travelling can get dangerous in winter weather ! But I will definitely pass this website on to her !

    Reply

  49. Natalie says

    January 8 at 10:38 pm

    This is the best blog article I’ve read regarding work at home jobs. Thank you for your referrals and ideas. I will definitely be looking into them.

    Reply

  50. Jennifer Penas says

    January 14 at 2:02 pm

    Hi! Just found your post via Pinterest. Great post!! I have done Mystery Shopping in the past and enjoyed it. I also have a blog that I have vowed to be more faithful to this year……I mean it’s about cocktails, I think I can spend some more time “posting”, lol.

    I have a questions about the User Testing. Do they send you a W-2 at the end of the year?

    I look forward to browsing through your site and reading more of your post!

    xoxo,
    Jen

    Reply

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      January 16 at 3:24 pm

      I just started user testing this year and haven’t received a w-2 yet so I’m not sure. I do report the income, I just throw it in with blogging income. You can probably find out more info with a quick call to your accountant (mine answers questions like this for free).

      Reply

  51. Terri says

    January 26 at 3:07 pm

    I contacted usertesting.com, downloaded their software, but it doesn’t work & their “contact us” email also doesn’t work. Please advise.

    Reply

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      February 2 at 2:13 pm

      That sounds like a tech issue with your computer- I’m horrendous at technology (ironic consider I’m a full time blogger). You can call them between 8a-5pm pacific time here: 1 (800) 903‒9493

      Reply

  52. Susan says

    January 28 at 6:16 am

    Thank you for this list, one of the best I’ve seen. Offers a lot of different ideas from the bog standard lists I usually come across when looking for work from home ideas. These options all sound very doable and enjoyable. ?

    Reply

    • The Busy Budgeter says

      February 2 at 2:09 pm

      That because most bloggers make their money… blogging! 🙂 Which, don’t get me wrong is amazing! But I’m a fan of being able to stay home with your kids even if you don’t want to be a blogger.

      Reply

  53. The Busy Budgeter says

    February 2 at 1:18 pm

    Awesome Kym! It’s totally a juggling act but I love that we have control of what we focus on. I’m working hard now to set up a future where I can focus more on my family and less on my business.

    Reply

  54. Carla Radke says

    February 14 at 12:43 pm

    These do look good. I want to retire (am 60) but still need an income. Sounds like your blog is now doing fantastic ($9000/month). How long did it take you to work up to that? Is it all from ads or also sponsored posts? Thanks so much for sharing. Saw your post on Interior Frugalista party.

    Reply

  59. Gina says

    February 20 at 12:09 am

    This is such an awesome post! I’ve tried some of these ways to earn extra money and have succeeded a little at some of them. I’ve done a little user testing, but I didn’t get very into it because the tests don’t pay very much individually. I love those money back apps for when I grocery shop. Thanks for sharing how you make money for your family. I’ll have to look further into some of these jobs.
    Gina recently posted…The Things We Hide: My Battle with Depression and SuicideMy Profile

    Reply

  60. Bridge says

    February 23 at 5:27 pm

    Selling your surplus of coupon bought merchandise is really annoying. I would have loved to buy that 1 bottle of shampoo at the store, but you had to get 50 of them so there were none left. I’m not going to reward someone for that

    Reply

  61. Jess says

    March 13 at 12:48 pm

    This was so inspiring to me. I did a blog years, years ago but let it go, now I want to bring it back and really get good and faithful with it as I just started doing some run coaching on the side. Thank you so much for your help, suggestions and recommendations! I appreciate you sharing your wisdom!!
    Thank you!

    Reply

  62. Tisha says

    April 6 at 7:18 pm

    Hi! I was interested in possibly starting an eBay business similar to what you mentioned and was wondering how so you go about getting free shipping materials and have them pick up your packages that you mentioned?

    Reply

  63. Kelly says

    April 23 at 6:44 am

    I didn’t read all the comments so I’m not sure if selling through consignment sales has been suggested. I’ve been able to stay home with my twins by being in the resale business. I purchase cheap toys, clothes, and baby equipment at garage sales then sell them through twice a year kid consignment sales (JBFSales.com). It takes work to clean up the items, enter them into the online system, print the tags, and attach them to the items, but now that my twins are 5 they can help too.

    Reply

  64. Kelley says

    April 25 at 7:37 am

    Thank you for this information, I am definitely going to check some of these out. My youngest is now a Junior in H.S. but I am unemployed and need to earn an income desparately!

    Reply

  65. Becky Shaver says

    May 1 at 11:14 am

    Oh wow….You would love my thrift store here in WV….I can buy brand name anything for a quarter!!

    Reply

  66. Sarah says

    May 11 at 8:32 pm

    Great Ideas! Stock Photography is a good option, but so is portrait photography in general. Depending on your talent and experience, you can make decent money doing something you love while choosing your own availability. Newborn, Engagement, and Family photos are always in demand.

    Reply

  67. Jpenrod84 says

    May 23 at 7:18 am

    I have some questions regarding your eBay bonus job – would you do a fixed price or auction? What day would you pick to end your listing and how long would it last? Did you offer free shipping? Thanks!

    Reply

  71. Jessica says

    July 11 at 12:34 pm

    I started blogging almost 3 months ago. I have made over $300 in free product and a whole $0.60 in cash..haha. I am working on growing my readership & monetizing now. I also have an Etsy shop for my homemade and farm goods and I babysit 2 children in my home. I can legally babysit 4 children in addition to my own without needing a license so that is very helpful for me. I love reading your posts to help give me a knowledge & motivation boost!
    Jessica recently posted…DIY Dish Detergent TabletsMy Profile

    Reply

  73. Leslie Druschel says

    July 25 at 6:56 pm

    I’m sure God wanted me to stumble on your link. I have been a SAHM for 30 years, and homeschooled along the way. My last child enters PS high school this fall, my hubbie took early retirement and works for himself, and we have downsized . I kept a blog casually for several years, love the thrifty life, am improving my photography, and enjoy shopping on ebay. You made me realize, given my interests, that I have a lot of what it takes to bring in some extra cash, now that I am “retired” too! I see a winter vacation in our budget now!!

    Reply

  74. Sheena says

    August 15 at 9:11 pm

    Awesome list. Especially all the blogging information. I’m been contemplating starting a blog for awhile now. Just a little confused, it says updated 8/16/16 for making $24,000/month but today is the 15th, when was this posted?

    Reply

  75. Helene says

    August 16 at 7:15 am

    I can not fathom a $20,000 a month income. Even after taxes, which are steep at this level, I don’t think I could spend it every month, on normal family living things! Utterly overwhelming to me.

    Reply

  81. Bethany says

    November 13 at 2:49 am

    Love these ideas, thanks so much for sharing! I tried the Trend Source link for mystery shopping and it said page not found…Is there another link for them or a link for another reputable mystery shopping company? Thanks!

    Reply

  83. MUTUAL FUND says

    December 7 at 3:35 pm

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    Reply

  84. Heather says

    January 21 at 11:15 pm

    Thanks so much for these awesome ideas! I just signed up for the Budget Boot Camp and have been a SAHM for the past 3 years. I’m def. going to be trying some of these out!!!

    Reply

  86. sahana says

    February 4 at 5:29 pm

    Such a great and helpful. I would love to try mystery shopping. Thank you for linking with us at #HomeMattersParty . We would love to see you again next week.

    Reply

  87. sahana says

    February 4 at 5:29 pm

    Great and helpful ideas for SAHM. I would love to try mystery shopping. Thank you for linking with us at #HomeMattersParty . We would love to see you again next week.

    Reply

  88. ItalianBelly says

    February 8 at 11:39 am

    Pinning this for later! And huge congrats on having your blog skyrocket. It’s such an inspiration to read about bloggers like you. I’ve been blogging for a year now and am really eager to “take it seriously”. I think I’m taking the right steps but I’m not sure especially with stagnant results. #wonderfulwednesday

    Reply

  91. Janice | MostlyBlogging says

    March 5 at 8:13 pm

    Hi Busy Budgeter,
    You won Inspire Me Monday with this post. I wrote a nice mini-tribute to you. You’ll be featured on my site tomorrow. Congrats!
    Janice, Your Inspire Me Hostess

    Reply

  92. Itali says

    March 6 at 11:52 am

    I had the same goal that you did… to find a way to be a SAHM by the time my baby turned one. I have 2 months to go and still am not earning anything from my blog. But you, still inspire me to keep going. #inspiremelink

    Reply

  93. Susan says

    March 29 at 5:04 pm

    Thanks for all the ideas. My goal is working from home. I just started my own blog, and I hope to turn it into an income source. I’m having to learn a new, unfamiliar world.

    Visiting from Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop

    Reply

  95. Lamora says

    April 4 at 5:35 pm

    This is such an amazing resource. Ever since reading this and one of my mommy friends talks about earning money from home, I point them in this direction. Really wonderful, especially because the ideas don’t rely on the ever popular (but sometimes worthless) MLMs that so many moms get into. Thank you!

    Reply

  96. Michelle says

    April 14 at 9:56 am

    Hi. Selling products purchased with a coupon in the way you’ve described is illegal. KCL explains this clearly and your friend should know better. Look into it – you might wish to retract that part of the blog post.

    Reply

  97. cheryl partridge says

    April 16 at 9:54 pm

    Hi, love this article. Still clicking through the links, and I’m sorry to post, the krazy coupon lady link is coming up error code 404.. Thank you though. I am off off to check out the remaining links.?

    Reply

  98. 143More says

    April 20 at 7:08 pm

    As a Mother to be, I am certainly looking for a good way to make money from home. Ive noticed that it is really easy to sign up for something, only to find out that it was a scam or not what you thought it would be. I recently came across a new way to make money from home (internet marketing) that is turning out to be a major success for me and my family.

    http://intmarketing.launchpad.inboxblueprint.net/

    Reply

  100. Maisy says

    July 28 at 12:36 pm

    Oh wow. That’s honestly one of the most helpful blog posts on side jobs that I’ve read so far. Thank you so much for the detailed listing. This definitely motivated me to take blogging more seriously and invest in a proper domain! Thanks for the tips!! 🙂

    *Maisy

    Reply

  103. Kellie says

    December 5 at 6:36 am

    I am looking for some mystery shopping sites in Quebec/Ontario Canada. Anyone have any ideas.

    Reply

  105. Melissa Perez says

    April 27 at 8:09 pm

    Thank you for these suggestions and tips on making money as a stay at home mom. I would really love to learn more about how to get started as a voice over actor. Is there a website or contact you recommend in addition to the course info you provided? I do have a Bachelor of Arts in Music with an emphasis in vocal performance.
    Thank you,
    Melissa

    Reply

  106. Julie says

    February 27 at 8:31 am

    I really haven’t had much success with those ideas, but if it works for you, go at it all in.

    Reply

  107. Jenn says

    May 6 at 7:38 pm

    Working from home was amazing right from the start, but once I became a caregiver to my dad after his cancer diagnosis it was an absolute game changer. Working from anywhere gave me the freedom and the flexibility to take care of my dad and still be able to feed my family.
    Jenn recently posted…Take Back Your Life From Cancer.My Profile

    Reply

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