With soaring rents, extortionate beer prices, and overall higher costs of living, London is one of the most expensive cities in the world to live in. It’s no wonder that people are searching for ways to earn extra money in London.
With key workers like police and nurses, and others earning average salaries struggling to keep their heads above water in mind, we’ve compiled a list of 12 ways to earn extra money in London.
There are opportunities to supplement your income everywhere. Some Londoners are getting particularly creative when it comes to earning a bit of cash on the side.
Here are our Top 12 ways to Earn Extra Money in London
Earn Extra Money in London 1: Sub letting
Don’t limit yourself to looking for one-bedroom flats and bedsits. Space is at a premium in London. If you’re willing to take the risk, you can rent a larger property and sub-let the rooms. If you pick the right property, you can rent the rooms for a higher price to offset your rent.
People have been doing this for years. Just be sure to check your tenancy agreement, or check with your prospective landlord, in case there are any restrictions.
Earn Extra Money in London 2: Rent a room or even a garden
Many Londoner’s rent out their rooms using Airbnb when they’re on holiday, squeezing every last bit of un-utilised rent back.
Don’t have a spare room? If you have a garden, campers will even rent your space to pitch their tent for a night or two!
Earn Extra Money in London 3: Hang out with a dog
Heaven for some, hell for others. Yes, you really can get paid to hang out with a dog.
Dog owners seeking an alternative to putting their beloved dogs in kennels are paired with hosts to look after their canine companions.
The money isn’t going to afford you that Mayfair penthouse, but it is still cash for hanging out with a dog. You can sign up as a host on various dog sitting websites, and dog sitting can be done flexibly according to your schedule.
Earn Extra Money in London 4: Film Extra
Rates vary but start at between £75 and £90 per day for the most basic background parts.
We haven’t tested any of the casting agencies, but these come up regularly on search, so why not sign up to all of them?
www.2020casting.com/
Earn Extra Money in London 5: Be a media Case Study
Every day press agencies, newspapers and magazines are looking for content to fill the pages of the national newspapers. They are continually on the hunt for case studies to give their opinions and tell their stories.
You can earn cash from being a case-study, giving your opinion, being a talking-head, or telling your story.
You can subscribe to a service called CaseStudyLink.co.uk for around £2 per week to receive daily press requests directly from the main newspapers, magazines and TV production companies.
Earn Extra Money in London 6: Sell Photos or Videos
Amateur photographer? Sites like iStock or Fotolia may be happy to take your snaps from you, sending you a small commission every time one of your photos sells. This can be a good way to rack up money without too much effort, and the photos don’t even need to be super professional, amazing shots.
However, if your story is newsworthy, you can make good money selling it to the newspapers. Perhaps you’ve just filmed an unfolding drama, or something crazy, or caught an astonishing event on camera? Don’t hesitate, send it to the press and you can earn hundreds or even thousands.
SellUsYourPhoto.com and SellUsYourVideo.com are run by the UK’s largest independent press agency. They will distribute your images or video clips to the entire world media, and you’ll get paid every time they are used.
The have a live tracking system so you can see who has used your material, and how much you’re being paid for it.
Earn Extra Money in London 7: Sell your story
Go one step further – If you have a newsworthy story to sell to the national press, magazines and newspapers will pay you hundreds, even thousands, for sharing your story.
Something unique, sensitive, funny or even bonkers.
If you’re not sure, you can get your story ideas valued on SellUsYourStory.com which is run by the largest independent press agency in the UK. They provide a free, no obligation service to write and distribute your story. Similar services are run by TalkToThePress.co.uk and FamousFeatures.co.uk
Earn Extra Money in London 8: Online surveys
If you’re working in an office job that doesn’t require complete focus one hundred per cent of the time, why not supplement your income with more mind numbing work?
You can earn money completing online surveys about all sorts of random subjects, from your favourite cakes to the worst films you’ve ever watched.
Signup with the UK’s leading polling company here: members.onepoll.com/sign-up
Earn Extra Money in London 9: Restaurant reviewer
OK, this won’t put cash in your pocket, but it does mean you’ll save money, and you can go out and eat tasty meals for free.
Mystery Guests are volunteers offering their time to complete reviews of a restaurant, hotel or pub experience, and being reimbursed the cost (or at least most of it) in return.
You can complete as many or as few reviews as you’d like and only choose what’s convenient for you.
Here’s just one company that you can signup with (look for others online): https://assessors.mysterydining.net/Apply/diners-apply2.aspx
Earn Extra Money in London 10: Cashback as you spend
You make have heard about cashback credit cards, where you get given cash for spending money on your card. There are also cashback current accounts (although these frequently come with a monthly fee so do the maths).
However, if you happen to order lots online, sites like topcashback.co.uk and quidco give you cashback for spending most major websites.
We tested out Quidco which gave us cashback when booking flights, airport parking, and many other online purchases.
You still order from your usual website, but you go through Quidco first. Overall the system is brilliant, but check before you buy. In a few cases we found the price slightly higher going through Quidco. You need to calculate if the cashback you’ll receive makes it worth paying a tiny bit more.
Earn Extra Money in London 11: Rent out a parking space
Parking has become a valuable commodity in modern life. If you are lucky enough to have an allocated space in London, why not rent it out to a commuter, or for the days or weekends that you’re not home?
If you’re going on holiday it’s a great way to make the most of your space (and make potential burglars think someone’s at home).
Websites such as www.yourparkingspace.co.uk allow you to rent out your space with relative ease.
Earn Extra Money in London 12: Take tourists sightseeing
If you have ‘the knowledge’ or, any knowledge of London. Put it to good use. Whether you’re a kick-ass shopper or know all of the best boozers in the West End, you can get paid for showing tourists around.
Vayable offer unique city tours so you can get to know an area with local knowledge. You can offer tours based on your speciality. You can offer any type of tour that you have an interest in. There’s even a loo tour showing you how to find the best free toilets in London. Almost no topic is off limits!
Do you have any other ingenious ways to earn extra money in London? Let us know below and we’ll add it to the list!