10 Ways To Make Money Online In The UK

When it comes to all the different ways that you can make money online, it often seems like our pals on the other side of the pond have a load more options than we do here in the UK. It’s hugely frustrating to stumble across a side hustle that you think might be perfect for you, only to discover that you can’t get stuck in simply because of where you live.

To make sure that you waste no time with researching the wrong kind of options, I’ve created this guide to the best ways to make money online in the UK.

Whether you need to make a few extra hundred quid a month to help you to pay off a credit card or have a little more spending money in your pocket, or you dream of quitting your 9-5 for good and earning a full-time income online, you’ll find plenty of ideas and inspiration here that will help you to smash your goals.

Before we get into the finer details here though, there’s something that I really want you to know, and to understand…

Regardless of how big or small your ambitions are, it’s absolutely possible for you to achieve them. I know, because I’ve done it. I quit my job eight years ago to make money from home, and I’ve never looked back.

The internet has opened up so many amazing opportunities for us, and it’s simply a case of knowing your options, and having a plan. Picking the ways that you’ll make money online in the UK is your starting point, and it’s no exaggeration to say that it has the power to completely change your life for the better.

All these ways to make extra money have been tried and tested by me personally, or my trusted contacts in the UK blogger community, so you can rest safe in the knowledge that they’re legit, they really do work, and they have some serious earning potential.

So without any further ado, let’s get stuck in…

THE BEST WAYS TO MAKE MONEY ONLINE IN THE UK

1. MATCHED BETTING

Let’s kick things off with this one, because it’s an opportunity to earn money online that’s pretty much exclusive to us here in the UK!

Despite its name, this isn’t gambling in the usual sense. It’s a proven system that allows you to leverage free bets from online bookmakers to create tax-free profits, and if you’re anything like me, then at first glance you’ll think that it’s simply too good to be true, or perhaps even a little bit dodgy.

But it’s completely genuine, 100% legal, and has the potential to earn you some serious cash if you’re prepared to learn the ropes. It did take me a little while to get my head round how it all works – and it’s probably worth noting that I had zero interest in or knowledge of sports – but it was definitely worth it.

Here’s a quick overview of how it works…

Bookies give away free bets to encourage more punters to use their platforms. To qualify for that free bet, you usually need to place what’s known as a ‘qualifying bet’. So you’d place two bets – one for a specific result, and one against that specific result.

Whatever happens during the game or match, you’re covered for all outcomes and you can ensure that you break even and don’t lose any money. Then, you’re given your free bet. You repeat the two-bet process again using your free bet, and as long as you follow the strategy, you’ve created a profit.

This video from Profit Accumulator does a great job of explaining exactly how it works:

Once you’ve learned the system, it really is simple and straightforward. You then rinse and repeat using offers from more bookies, and you continue to earn. My only regret with matched betting is that I didn’t get started sooner. It’s been a fabulous way for me to make money online in the UK, and I’d recommend it to anyone who was serious about earning extra cash.

To find out more, check out these posts that I’ve previously published:

• 15 FAQs About Making Money With Matched Betting
• My Matched Betting Earnings – How I Made £401.76 In Month One
• My Matched Betting Income Report – Month Two
• How Much I Earned In Month Three From Matched Betting Offers
• Matched Betting Mistakes That Could Kill Your Profits

How much can you earn?

During my first three months of matched betting, I made a total of £1,121.57. During this time, I spent just a few hours per week completing the offers. The more time you have available, the bigger your earnings can be.

Making an extra £300-£400 a month is very achievable, and there are plenty of matched bettors on the Profit Accumulator forums who consistently report earning £2,000+ per month.

A common concern that people have is that they think that the once they’ve completed the sign-up offers, the earning potential will disappear. This isn’t true though, and I’ve even created a guide explaining whether you can do matched betting long term.

One of the added bonuses of matched betting is that your earnings aren’t taxable here in the UK. This means that unless you have additional self-employed ventures, you won’t have to register with HMRC or submit any tax returns!

How can you get started?

Profit Accumulator is a great resource that walks you step-by-step through your matched betting journey.

Best of all, it doesn’t cost you anything to get started. Sign up for the free trial, and you can earn up to £45 and decide if it’s right for you!

Though I firmly believe that this is one of the best ways to make money online in the UK, it should be noted that it won’t be right for everyone. It’s not gambling in the traditional sense, but you will be signing up for and using betting website.

As such, if you’ve had gambling problems in the past or you think you may be prone to them, it’s not advisable to try matched betting.

2. EBAY RESELLING BUSINESS

If you’ve ever sold any of your belongings on eBay after having a declutter, then you’ll already know that one man’s trash can be another man’s treasure.

You don’t have to be limited to selling your own items, either – there are plenty of people out there making great money from buying products from charity shops, car boot sales, or wholesalers, and selling them on at higher prices to create profits.

Though you can sell pretty much anything imaginable – from clothing to vintage kids toys to electronics and everything in between – I strongly recommend choosing a niche. This approach will allow you to quickly build up a knowledge of the hottest products within your market, so you’ll know exactly what to look for when you’re sourcing your stock.

In my eBay reselling business, I specialise in women’s clothing. It’s something that I already had a pretty decent knowledge of, and it’s also something that I’m interested in.

If you’re going to build your own business, then you might as well make it as interesting as possible by focusing on something that you’re happy to learn more about!

Here are some additional resources for you to get stuck into:

• Where I Source Items To Resell On eBay
• How I Decide What To Buy To Resell On eBay
• 5 Stages Of Building A Profitable eBay Reselling Business
• Your Complete Guide To Buying Wholesale Vintage To Sell On eBay
• Why Reselling Clothes On eBay Is One Of My Favourite Ways To Make Money Online

How much can you earn?

It’s entirely possible to earn a full-time income from an eBay reselling business, making it a great way to make money online in the UK.

The only limits are the time you have available to source great stock, list it on the platform, and get it shipped out to your buyers, and the space that you have available in your home to store your products.

How can you get started? 

I recommend starting out small on eBay, learning along the way, and then scaling your operations when you feel ready to do so.

A great starting point is to have a really good declutter in your own home. This will get you accustomed to how the site works, how to list your products to maximise your profits, and how you can create a workflow so you’re making the most of your time and developing systems that help you to get stuff done.

Visit this post for a ton of practical advice on creating solid listings, including knowing your fees and being prepared when it comes to postage and packaging!

Once you’ve made a start with selling your own items, you’ll have created some profits that you can reinvest into getting your business off the ground. At this point, it’s time to start sourcing stock.

During my first few months as an eBay seller I also invested in a mannequin and some lighting to improve my photography, which in turn boosted my sales. Though there’s some initial outlay necessary with this kind of business model, it has relatively very low barriers to entry, and you can go as big or as small as you like.

3. FULFILLED BY AMAZON (FBA)

With Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA), you can store your own products in Amazon’s fulfilment centres, and whenever you make a sale, their workers will pick, package, and post your items directly to your buyers. If you’re short of storage space, this might be a more appealing option than reselling on eBay.

As you’ll already know, you can buy almost anything imaginable on Amazon, so the potential in terms of choosing a niche and finding products is absolutely huge.

Most FBA business owners use a method called retail arbitrage. This is quite simply about finding items that you can buy for cheap on the high street (often in stores like Argos, TK Maxx, and Tesco when they’re running sales), and selling on at a higher price.

Another popular avenue for FBA is to buy and sell textbooks. You can often pick these up super cheap in charity shops, and you’d be amazed at how much they can sell for. If you’ve been to university then you’ll know just how expensive textbooks can be, and every academic year, there are students out there who need to grab the core texts!

Finally, there’s also the option to buy wholesale items from China. There’s even a dedicated website – Alibaba – where you can find the right suppliers, get quotes for custom requests, and close deals at the click of a button.

It’s just a matter of doing your research so you know just how profitable your potential purchases will be.

How much can you earn? 

FBA is massively scalable – especially when you consider that you can buy items in bulk, and you don’t have to deal with storing, packaging, and customer service for your individual customers. All that’s taken care of for you by Amazon.

If you want to start small, a few hundred pounds of profit per month is very achievable. At the other end of the scale, the sky is the limit.

Spencer Haws from Niche Pursuits has documented how he sold $40,639.60 of products on FBA in just 30 days – taking home around $14,223 in profit. Though Spencer is based across the pond, the overarching principles and potential still apply when it comes to making money online in the UK.

How can you get started? 

Jessica from The Selling Family has been running an Amazon business for a decade, and she now does FBA full-time with her husband, giving them the freedom to stay at home with their young son.

She’s created an excellent (and totally free!) 7 day training course that will show you exactly how to sell your first product on Amazon.

It’s delivered via a daily email, and you’ll discover:

• The secrets of working out exactly what to sell, so your products fly off the shelves like hotcakes
• How to price your items so you sell lots and make great profits
• Exactly how she buys stock (this is the key that allowed her to scale her sales to 6 figures within her first year as an Amazon seller)
• Recommended tools that will save you a load of time and make your new business as efficient as possible

Plus, so much additional practical advice and wisdom that will gear you up for big success, and shave MONTHS, if not years, off your learning curve.

Click here to sign up for the FREE Amazon seller course.

There’s also a thriving FBA seller community on Instagram, with many successful sellers sharing the behind-the-scenes and lessons learned from their businesses.

Be sure to check out FBAJourney – he’s documenting his journey to £100,000 in sales, and has a ton of practical advice for those getting started, including his recently released ebook, ’50 Rules For A Successful FBA Book Business’.

4. SELLING YOUR SERVICES AS A FREELANCER

The world of work is changing.

More and more people are leaving their full-time jobs to work for themselves on a freelance or contractor basis, and whether you want to follow their path and replace your current income by working for yourself, or you simply want to moonlight to bring in a bit of extra spending money, there has never been so much opportunity right at your fingertips.

UK freelancers contributed a whopping £119billion to the economy in 2016 according to Recruitment International. This is only set to increase over the next few years, so now’s an excellent time to think about how this could work for you.

Freelancing has a special place in my heart, and it’s no exaggeration to say that it completely changed my life for the better. When I first quit my job eight years ago, freelance writing is exactly how I quickly replaced my previous income and started making some really great money online in the UK.

It’s worth mentioning here too that I definitely didn’t have a foot up in the industry from the beginning… I had no professional writing experience, no relevant qualifications, and no contacts to help me out. All I really had was a passion for writing, and determination to make it work. And still, I fairly quickly built a successful freelance writing business. If I can do it, then so can you!

Freelance writing typically involves writing content for business owners such as website copy, blogs, emails, and social media posts, but this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the opportunities that are out there.

To consider the freelancing role that might be best for you, consider your skills, previous experience, and interests. Here’s just a small selection of the services you can offer on a freelance basis:

• General admin tasks (often known as virtual assistance)
• Design
• Website creation and development
• Marketing and sales
• Social media management
• Translation
• Audio transcription
• Photography
• Videography
• Software development

How much can you earn? 

The freelancing market is wide and varied, and the earning potential can be big. According to a study by Upwork, the majority of freelancers (54%, to be precise) made more money from freelancing within their first year than they did in their previous employment.

These days, I’m generally focused on creating more passive and scalable forms of income, and so I only take on a limited number of freelance writing projects. I personally charge a minimum of around £1,500 per project, and it’s very possible for me to complete two of these per month working on a part-time basis.

It’s no surprise then that this is one of my favourite ways to make money online in the UK.

How can you get started? 

The good news here is that there’s no shortage of freelance opportunities online, and it’s very possible for you to secure your first paying client in a matter of weeks.

If you’re interested in going down the writing route and you want to develop a profitable skill, then you might want to consider my writing course.

Check out these posts to help you to build your plan of action (though I mainly talk about freelance writing, the principles apply across multiple disciplines):

• Your 5-Step Guide To Getting Your First Freelance Writing Gig
• 8 Freelance Writing Job Boards For Finding Paying Clients
• 4 Tips For Creating An Awesome Freelance Writing Portfolio
• How To Overcome The Fear Of Pitching For Freelance Writing Gigs
• 10 Mistakes To Avoid As A New Freelance Writer 

5. CREATING AND SELLING ONLINE COURSES

After I’d been freelance writing for a year or two, I realised that I had a bit of a problem on my hands. I’d filled up my diary with plenty of clients and I often had to turn people away or ask them to join a waiting list.

Granted, it was a nice problem to have, but it meant that I’d reached an income ceiling and I was finding it almost impossible to increase my income any further. There just weren’t any more hours in the day, and I didn’t want to get into a position where I was working all the hours under the sun.

This is when I started to look into how I could leverage my knowledge and develop a business model that didn’t cap my earnings. Long story short, I created my very first online course. Instead of developing a content strategy for my clients and doing all the work for them, I taught them how they could do it themselves.

Since then, I’ve launched several online courses, and ongoing monthly subscription programmes for business owners who want to learn how to write their own awesome content.

There’s a market for online courses in almost every industry that you can imagine, so whether you can teach people how to lose weight, how to grow vegetables in their back gardens, how to create a capsule wardrobe, how to invest in the stock market, or anything in between, you may well be able to create a wildly profitable business by packaging your knowledge up into an online course.

You might wonder why people would be willing to pay for a course when there’s so much information available for free online. But I personally regularly invest in online learning, and I’m definitely not alone. In fact, according to Research and Markets, the e-learning industry is expected to be worth an eye-watering $325 billion by 2025.

How much can you earn? 

The beauty of selling online courses, as we’ve already touched on, is that there is no real limit on your earnings. You create your solution just once, and you can sell it over and over again on an automated basis, and in theory earn money whilst you sleep.

There’s a full spectrum of results to look at. Plenty of people have made literally millions of pounds with this business model, and plenty more make a great full-time income. Of course, there are also plenty who have struggled to sell a single copy of their creation. Riches are in no way guaranteed, though there is loads of potential nonetheless.

How can you get started? 

I’m going to include a massive disclaimer here and tell you that though selling online courses has been one of my most profitable ventures, it’s not the fast route to earning millions whilst sipping cocktails on the beach that some people will have you believe.

Developing a profitable idea is a steep learning curve. Creating the course itself and getting it online is a steep learning curve. And that old adage that tells us that we need to simply ‘build it and they will come’ definitely doesn’t apply when it comes to selling your product.

Marketing and selling your course is an ongoing process and the reality is that you’ll need to develop some serious online marketing nous, do a great deal of trialing and testing, and probably also invest some cash into advertising, especially if you don’t already have an engaged audience in your niche.

My best advice here is this… If you’re new to making money online, don’t get started with this option. Sure, keep it mind as part of a longer term strategy, but focus more on the quicker wins that will see you creating profits much faster.

This video from Pat Flynn walks you through three fundamental principles that you need to understand before you embark on this kind of journey:

If the idea of creating a course is floating your boat and you want to delve further into exactly how to do it, check out The Entrepreneur’s Guide To Creating, Selling, & Profiting From An Online Course by Neil Patel. It’s one of the most comprehensive guides you’ll ever find, and walks you through the entire process.

6. COACHING AND CONSULTING

Not quite ready to go down the route of creating an online course, but still keen to make money from sharing your knowledge and expertise? A happy middle ground between offering a service as a freelancer and building an online course empire is to create a coaching or consulting business.

If you already have an engaged audience – perhaps as a blogger – then this is a real low hanging fruit that could quite quickly (and significantly) boost your earnings, without creating a load of upfront work.

It’s also a really appealing option for so many of your potential clients… They might have taken online courses before but struggled to keep up with them or follow though, and they’ll be eager to get some more tailored support so they can get the results they really desire.

So what’s the difference between coaching and consulting? This is a hotly debated question and the answers can be varied and complex. Generally speaking though, a coach fulfils a supportive role, walking alongside a client on their journey, asking the right questions, and giving an individual the confidence they need to succeed on their own. A consultant, on the other hand, typically gives you a process or a roadmap to follow.

The exact model that you choose will depend on your own strengths, and the kind of service you want to provide.

In the UK, you can often get started with coaching and consulting without any qualifications. To practice as a life coach, for example, there are no formal requirements. Though it goes without saying that whatever your specialism, you need to be a genuine expert with the ability to deliver results for your clients if you want to ethically and sustainably make money online in the UK!

How much can you earn? 

Coaches can earn £40-£60 per hour when they’re starting out. Those with experience and credentials can charge £100+ per hour.

Oftentimes though, pricing per package is the best option. Ultimately, your clients aren’t really paying you for the time you spend together – they’re paying for the transformations that you can help them to create.

How can you get started? 

There’s a lot to consider before you get going, including creating an offer that people will want to buy, collecting payments, and scheduling sessions with your clients.

For more information, read How To Start A Coaching Business And Look Like A Pro From The Get-Go, by SmartBlogger.

7. SELLING HANDMADE ITEMS ON ETSY

Are you a creative type? Do you spend your weekends knitting, sewing, embroidering, or getting stuck into other crafty pursuits? If so, then you might be interested to explore the option of selling your creations on Etsy.

It’s a global marketplace for unique and creative goods, and you can sell from everything from art and photography, to jewellery and clothing, and everything in between. Think of it like an online craft fair, that gives you access to millions of potential buyers.

This isn’t a way to make money online that I’ve personally tried – as I’m not the most artistically inclined of people, I know it’s probably not for me – but I love hearing stories of people who’ve made this work for them.

How much can you earn?

Based on the journeys I’ve followed online from other UK bloggers, making a few hundred pounds per month is more than achievable on a part-time basis.

How can you get started?

Laura from Thrifty Londoner recently contributed How Selling Crafts Could Be Your Next Profitable Income Stream, where she documents her story of creating and selling personalised t-shirts, and how you can do the same.

It’s also worth diving into An Introduction To Selling On Etsy, and How To Promote Your Etsy Store using Instagram.

8. BLOGGING

Blogging isn’t something that will make you a fortune overnight. But if you enjoy writing, and you’re willing to put in the time to build up a profitable and sustainable business from home, it could be the long-term opportunity that you’ve been searching for.

I started this blog right here just over a year ago, and though one of my key objectives was to help other people to make money online in the UK and escape a job that they hated, I’m happy to admit that I also wanted to turn it into a successful money-making business. I promised myself that I’d give it a year, and even if I didn’t earn a single penny during that time, I’d stick with it and reassess at the one-year stage.

It took around three months to earn my first small amount of money from the blog, and I’m pleased to report that it’s consistently grown ever since. At the time of writing this post – in the middle of December – I’ve earned over £2,000 this month. I’m super excited to work on growing this further in 2019!

Different bloggers will have different monetisation strategies depending on the niches they operate in and their long term goals, but these are some of the options:

• Affiliate marketing
• Sponsored content
• Adverts
• Product reviews
• Creating digital products for your readers (e.g. e-books or courses)
• Coaching and consulting within your niche

Blogging can also lead to opportunities to become a freelance writer. If you’re consistently creating quality content, businesses will often start to reach out to you to ask about your services.

How much can you earn? 

Making £1,000+ per month is very achievable after a year or so of blogging.

For extra inspiration and a breakdown of what life as a blogger really looks like, it’s worth reading How I Make Over £1,000 Every Month From Blogging from Clare at My Money Cottage.

As with many of these ways to make money online in the UK, the sky is the limit. There are many bloggers out there based in the UK who have earned enough from blogging to quit their jobs, and some even make tens of thousands of pounds each month.

How can you get started?

Starting a money-making blog is almost definitely easier than you imagine, and you can be up and running in a few hours for less than £20.

This comprehensive guide to starting a blog tells you absolutely everything you need to know.

9. AFFILIATE MARKETING ON PINTEREST

Affiliate marketing is a well known monetisation strategy for bloggers. You promote a product or service via a unique link that you’re provided with from the business in question, and you receive a commission every time you make a sale, at no extra cost to the customer.

You don’t need to be a blogger to make this work for you though. You can make money on Pinterest simply by creating pins that link to the products and services that you recommend. All you need is a free Pinterest account, and the ability to create eye-catching images. You can do this using Canva, even if you’ve got no professional design experience.

One of the big reasons why affiliate marketing on Pinterest is such a great way to earn extra money online in the UK is that you can completely tailor it to the things that you’re interested in.

Whether you love fashion, food, or finance, there will be affiliate programmes out there for you to join that you can build a business around.

Another benefit is that you’ll only have yourself to answer to. You’re completely in control of how much or how little you do, and there are no clients waiting for you to send work across. This makes it a great option for students and stay-at-home mums who are looking for something that’s super flexible.

How much can you earn? 

Affiliate marketing takes time to master, and you should be prepared to spend time learning the ropes before you’re consistently earning good money.

Once you’ve built some momentum though, you can be making sales – and commissions – every single day of the week. A few hundred pounds a month is a modest and realistic benchmark to aim for if you have a few spare hours per week.

How can you get started? 

Elise McDowell from House of Brazen is known as the go-to authority on Pinterest affiliate marketing, and what she can’t teach you quite frankly isn’t worth knowing.

Get stuck into How To Start Using Affiliate Links On Pinterest for a crash course in how it works, and how to get started. Though Elise is from New Zealand, her strategies and guidance are equally as applicable here in the UK.

10. SEARCH ENGINE EVALUATION

Search engine evaluation work is one of the lesser known work from home opportunities in the UK. This is likely to be because workers sign a confidentiality agreement when they get started, so there’s not a great deal of information to be found about what exactly the work involves.

Generally speaking though, you’ll be looking at the results that are generated via search engines, and providing feedback on their relevancy. Though computers can do much of this work, they lack the human element, and mistakes can be made. Search engine evaluators make sure that the results are high quality, and that they’re giving people exactly what they’re looking for.

The roles are typically flexible and can be worked around other commitments.

Before you’ve given the job, you’ll have to complete an online testing process.

How much can you earn? 

You’ll typically earn around £10 per hour.

How can you get started? 

The Money Shed forum is the best place in the UK to get the lowdown on what it’s really like to be a search engine evaluator, what the tests involve, and best companies to work for. Just type in ‘search engine evaluator’ and you’ll be able to see the discussions.

There are a few main companies who recruit search engine evaluators in the UK, and you can check out opportunities on their websites:

• Appen
• Lionbridge

Are you ready to make money online in the UK?

As you can see, there are so many unique and exciting ways to make money online in the UK, and the opportunities really are there for the taking.

This is even more true in this post-pandemic era, in which hybrid work models and working from home are normalised. So, the opportunities are really endless! Nonetheless, you should remember that, whether this is a side hustle for you or you are hoping to make a living out of your online job, you still need to get started by learning how to open a business bank account and file your taxes.

The best advice that I can possibly give at this stage is to choose something, and just get started. You can spend weeks or months or even years doing your research and working out all your options, but learning as you go is often the best possible approach – and it’ll also maximise your chances of being profitable as soon as possible!

Which of these ways to make money online in the UK are most appealing to you? And have you had success with other options that you’d like to share? Leave a comment below and share your thoughts – I love hearing about your breakthroughs and the progress that you’re making!