40 Ways To Earn Extra Christmas Money Quick

The most wonderful time of the year is almost upon us again, which means we need to raise more Christmas money.

After all, we use that Christmas money for fancy meals, get-togethers, trips to see loved ones, and of course, presents.

Others may be thinking of getting extra cash to donate to charity or buy food for food banks.

Whatever the purpose, you’re probably looking to earn some money in these months before the holidays.

Look no further! Here are 30 proven ways to earn extra cash for Christmas this year.

40 Ways To Earn Christmas Money

I’ve broken down the categories into various ways you can make money online and off.

Go Online

If you’re looking to score some cash fast, doing quick tasks online may be the simplest way to get started. Here are some suggestions on how to make money for Christmas online.

1. Answer surveys.

You can answer surveys in a matter of minutes and get paid within hours; that is, if you choose the right survey sites.

Branded Surveys, Survey Junkie, Swagbucks, and Inbox Dollars are just a few legit sites you can sign up.

More survey sites to join can be found in this blog post.

2. Complete online microjobs.

Microjobs are those that take minutes to complete.

For example, signing up to websites, sharing Facebook posts or retweeting, or researching topics online.

Some of the reputable sites that offer microjobs include Amazon Mechanical Turk, Clickworker, and Fiverr.

3. Test websites.

Web designers and SEO companies want to ensure that the website they’re building is user-friendly and results in a positive experience.

They pay website-tester companies that in turn recruit and pay website testers to go to their websites, review the on-page elements and pages, and then provide feedback.

Respondent, User Testing, and IntelliZoom are some of the sites you can check out (you can find more in this list).

The typical pay is $10 for 15 minutes of testing, but the amount and frequency of the payout may vary.

4. Transcribe audio or video.

If you have superb listening skills, fast and accurate typing skills, and impeccable spelling and grammar, there are plenty of transcription companies that could use your services.

The sheer volume of audio and video content being produced by individuals and businesses that need to be converted into text almost guarantees that you’ll find transcription jobs whenever you need them.

Wondering where to start? Websites such as TranscribeMe and Rev require no specialized software and no prior experience; you have to pass an exam, though.

5. Listen to music online.

Listening to music seems too mundane an activity for anyone to ever make money from it.

But you can actually make some Christmas money from listening to new music and giving your ratings and feedback, tuning in to internet radio and getting paid to subscribe and listen to ads, or letting market research companies know what type of music you like.

While you mostly earn cents per song you listen to, it adds up quickly if you’re the type to listen to music all day.

Here are just some of the ways you can get paid to listen to music.

6. Download apps that pay you in cash fast.

If your eyes and fingers are welded to your smartphone like more and more people nowadays, why not download apps on your smartphone that’ll make you some money.

There are apps that allow you to answer surveys, sell pictures, and do other mindless tasks on your phone and earn you some change.

Here are a few of these money-making apps to consider downloading.

Run Errands

A few years ago—okay, fine decades—if I wanted extra cash from my parents aside from my allowance, I had to do extra errands around the house.

The grown-up version of that would be doing errands for other people to make some quick Christmas money.

7. Deliver groceries.

You can do this on a freelance basis for individual clients that will pay you to do their grocery shopping for them, or you can join a company like Instacart, Shipt, or Walmart Grocery and deliver groceries for many different clients in your area.

8. Deliver food.

Food delivery services have been on the rise in recent years, serving those who don’t know how to cook, have a craving for a certain kind of food, or who simply don’t have the time.

Sign up to deliver food for services like DoorDash, UberEats, and Grubhub.

They’re mostly flexible in terms of time and means of transportation, as long as you satisfy your customers’ needs.

9. Deliver drinks.

Parties and get-togethers with adults almost always feature some kind of alcoholic drink, especially around the holidays.

When they run out, that’s when you come in.

Apply to be a delivery driver for services like Drizly or Saucey; they get their drinks without anyone having to do a liquor run, and you get to earn to take the drinks to their party.

10. Drive your car.

In the flurry of activity in the holiday season—parties, shopping trips, and more parties—you can help drive people around by signing up on Uber and Lyft.

This is also a time when thousands of packages need to be delivered. Sign up for services like Roadie and Amazon Flex and get paid to pick up and deliver packages.

11. Take up babysitting or housesitting.

Babysitting is a classic way to earn some extra income, and babysitters become more in demand during the holidays, due to the break when kids are out of school and all the holiday gatherings and errands that the adults have to do.

Housesitting for a family who’s going out of town for the holidays is another way to earn extra income over Christmas. It’s basically a paid temporary relocation.

Here are some places to find paid house sitting jobs.

12. Assist the elderly.

Seniors, especially sick or infirm ones living at home, would need to have other people do errands, such as picking up groceries and cooking for them, going to the post office, cleaning their house, and many other everyday tasks.

Look at websites like Care.com or Caring Senior Service to see if you have elderly neighbors who need your help.

13. Walk other people’s dogs.

Love spending time with dogs? Why not turn your love of dogs into an opportunity to make some money for Christmas?

Dog walking sounds like a student gig, but it’s a great side cash opportunity for anyone who genuinely loves dogs and has free time.

Advertise your services on Craigslist, or sign up on apps like Rover, Wag!, and Barkly Pets.

14. Cleaning and Organizing other People’s Homes.

Many people are busy with work and other day-to-day activities that cleaning their homes are on the lower scale of their priorities.

If you’re in need of a part-time job and isn’t picky, you’ll be able to find these gigs everywhere. These jobs pay around $15 per hour.

Organizers tend to take home higher pay (from $15 to $25/hour) depending on location and client base.

15. Doing other people’s Yard work.

Doing yardwork can be such a fulfilling job, since many people are unable to take care of their lawns. Whether you’re helping the elderly, disabled, or the busy single parent, this job can be done without any special skills. Just hard labor of taking care of shrubs, trimming trees, and maintaining lawns.

Some people even record their yard work, edit them into a time-lapse and use it for YouTube content – and earn passively from the videos too!

Of course, you can always go by traditional services and get paid per day.

16. Handyman jobs.

If you’re good with house upkeep, carpentry, a bit of plumbing, and other maintenance, you’ll be able to find plenty of one-off jobs even within your neighborhood.

What’s great about handyman jobs is that they help people out significantly. It can be as easy as installing fixtures or performing general maintenance tasks, or a big more complex such as home repairs.

Other people even require help for furniture assembly. I’d LOVE to do this myself, especially since I’m a fan of building Legos and assembling flat-pack furniture like IKEA’s stuff.

17. Lining up on behalf of other people

Did you know that people would rather pay others to stand in line on their behalf?

Yes, join apps like TaskRabbit or InLine4You and look for gigs as a line stander.

Make sure you watch out for Black Friday, DMV, launch of the newest iPhone and other in-demand items. This is when a lot of people get the help of line standers and pay starting $25 an hour (or more) depending on the conditions of the “event.”

Use Your Skills

You likely have some specialized skills that you can use to make some money for the holidays.

Take advantage of these skills.

17. Teach English.

Most online jobs teaching English to non-native speakers require an ESL certification or at least a university teaching degree.

However, there are some mobile apps that only require you to speak excellent English.

Apps to check out include italki, VIPKID, and TeachAway.

18. Write for other people’s blogs.

Plenty of blog owners are willing to pay for your time, experience, and added knowledge, so writing one-off articles for blogs can make you some quick cash.

If you already own a blog, this has the added benefit of promoting your own blog to a new audience.

To start looking for blogs that pay for articles, search for topics you’re interested in writing about and then include “write for us” enclosed in double quotes in your search query. For instance, you can search for [parenting “write for us”] and come up with parenting blogs that accept paid submissions.

19. Wrap presents.

Receiving a present is awesome, but the experience is enhanced when you get a beautifully wrapped one.

But gift wrapping can be tedious and requires skill.

If you have a knack for choosing the right paper and bows, knowing how to treat certain presents differently, and making neat folds and perfectly curled bows, people will pay you to do it.

Retail stores and department stores are likely to be looking for gift wrappers around the holidays.

You can also offer your services yourself as a freelancer.

20. Make and send Christmas cards.

Did you learn calligraphy as a hobby or so you can make your journal pretty?

Why not earn from your calligraphy skills, too?

Create generic holiday cards and gift tags and sell them through Etsy.

You can also offer to make custom-made greeting cards, with your clients letting you know what size, color, and message to write.

21. Take holiday photos.

Holiday portraits are going to be in demand this season for , and you can cash in on this demand if you have the photography skills for it.

Let your friends and network know that you’re doing holiday photoshoots, ask permission to use some of their photos in your portfolio, and advertise your services on your local Craigslist and through social media marketing.

22. Party planning

If you’re naturally organized and have loved hosting parties, you’ll also enjoy planning parties for other people.

This job can be as small as a bridal shower or baby gender reveal, or as big as an entire wedding, a 50th anniversary party, and so on.

Planning a party can include everything from finding/hiring suppliers, to ensuring on-the-day services run smoothly.

For some people, this gig can be pretty stress-inducing. But for those who live for the fulfillment of it all.

Plus, pay can be rewarding (from $21/hour for beginners to up to $33/hour if you already have a name).

23. Catering

The best thing about catering is you can start small (cater just one entrée that you specialize in) or go all in and cater an entire buffet.

Because you’d have to invest in some equipment before you offer this service, you have to take these into consideration and include such expenses into your costing.

You don’t really earn by the hour this way, but you’d have total control over pricing your catering packages and negotiating with clients.

Work A Seasonal Job

The demand for some jobs increases during the holiday season.

Take this opportunity to earn some quick Christmas cash.

24. Pick up a few shifts in local retail stores.

The months leading up to the holidays are a busy time for retail stores, so they may be hiring temporary workers for extra help during busy times.

25. Be a customer service representative.

Plenty of companies hire temporary phone and chat representatives during the holiday season to answer inquiries and input sales for customers over the phone.

You can do this in an actual call center or from home.

26. Work a food service job.

Aside from shopping, people tend to eat out more and (hopefully) tip better.

Restaurants tend to hire temporary staff for the holidays to handle the demand, so consider picking up shifts at your local restaurant.

27. Work at a resort.

Depending on where you are in the world, people will be likely to visit ski resorts or beach resorts around the holidays.

If you live near a resort community, or if you won’t mind being relocated for a while, there are plenty of opportunities for short-term work in these resorts.

Food and beverage jobs and hospitality jobs are the most obvious ones, but you can also get some work as an instructor, customer service rep, or digital marketing.

28. Host or perform at parties and events.

As the number of parties and events goes up during Christmas, so does the demand for hosts, musicians, and other performers like magicians and comedians rise.

Offer your services to companies for their corporate parties, as well as event venues and restaurants where events are often held.

Sell Your Stuff

The holidays may not be a particularly convenient time to do some Kondo-ing.

But if you can clean out your house and get some Christmas money out of it, then it’s a worthy investment of time and effort.

30. Books

Bookscouter helps you sell your used textbooks and other books to buyback vendors online.

You can also sell books on Amazon, but it may be more trouble than it’s worth.

31. Electronics

Old game consoles and games, DVD players and DVDs, smartphones, and computers can fetch a fair price on Decluttr.

You can also use Best Buy’s Trade-In Program and get Best Buy gift cards in return (which you can then give or use to buy presents).

32. Makeup

Bought the wrong shade, your skin reacted unpleasantly, or do you simply have buyer’s remorse?

Sell your makeup back on GlamBot or Mercari and get a few dollars for makeup you aren’t going to use anyway.

33. Clothes

You may have been giving away your clothes to charity (and don’t get me wrong, the recipients appreciate it), but some of your clothes that are from designer labels or just simply fashionable and in good-as-new condition might make you a profit of a few dollars or even up to tens or hundreds.

Poshmark and thredUP are popular places to sell preloved clothes.

34. Toys

If you have kids, you surely know that young children grow tired of at least some of their toys in a matter of months.

In fact, if they got toys as Christmas presents last year, some of them are probably not being played with by this time.

Toys in good condition can fetch good prices, whether online or in garage sales.

You can try to list them at Swap.com or Toycycle, and don’t hesitate to include old baby clothes and baby gear as well.

35. Collectibles

You may have a neglected baseball card or Pokémon card collection in your attic.

List them on eBay or online card marketplaces so you can make some Christmas money from them.

36. Flipped furniture

Sure, you can sell your own furniture, but if you don’t have any furniture to sell and have at least some money and time to invest, you can flip furniture instead.

Keep your eyes out for any local garage sales or auctions, or hit up your local thrift shops and flea markets for used but serviceable furniture for you to fix up and sell at a markup.

37. Hair

Some people prefer actual human hair for wigs and extensions to synthetic hair, so there’s actually a demand for long, untreated, healthy hair.

Learn more by reading our guide to selling hair.

38. Plasma

If you’re a healthy adult who is not afraid of needles and doesn’t faint at the sight of blood, you may be a good candidate to sell your plasma.

Blood is around 55% plasma, which is a pale yellow liquid made up of water, enzymes, antibodies, clotting factors, proteins, and other life-saving and therapeutic components.

You can make as much as $50 per donation, depending on how much plasma you can donate and which plasma donation center you go to.

39. Breastmilk

If you just gave birth and have been problematic about the massive supply of breastmilk your newborn just can’t consume too fast?

Fret not, because not only can you help other mothers, but also because you can earn up to $2500 per month selling breastmilk.

40. Your pictures

Take pictures of landscapes, cityscapes, and everything else that give you inspiration. Use your your phone camera to take them and sell them for $5 a pop at apps like Foap.

If you have nice-looking feet, you can also focus on them and start showcasing your feet pics on their own profile page. It’s up to you if you want to include your face on these shots, or stick to just-feet instead. Either way, you can get to earn a full-time income doing this.

Check this page for a comprehensive guide about selling feet pics.

Rake in That Christmas Money!

If there’s anything to be learned from today’s blog post, it’s that quick does NOT mean easy.

The good thing is that most of these short-term gigs can go beyond earning you some Christmas money and actually turn into long-term jobs or even your own home-based business.

Need more ideas for quick holiday money? Check out this list of ideas on how to make quick money in one day.

Looking for more long-term ways to earn money from home? Here are some real ways to make money from home.