20 Side Gigs you Can Do to Earn Money for Christmas

Are you looking for a way to earn some extra cash during the holiday season?

Holiday expenses can definitely add up fast. Between holiday gifts, holiday meals, parties, and other events, having some extra income could drastically reduce your stress level.

20 Side Gigs you Can Do to Earn Money for Christmas

You probably don’t want to commit to a extra job long-term though. Fortunately, you still have a lot of options to earn extra money for Christmas without saying goodbye to all of your spare time. If you want to pay for Christmas without killing your budget, you need a side gig.

We’ve come up with some of our favorite ways to earn extra money during the holidays. Check out our list below.

Drive for Uber. You can get set up as an Uber driver fairy quickly and you aren’t locked into set hours so you only drive when you want to. They pay weekly so it can be a great way to earn some extra cash fast. I tried it out to see what it would be like as a woman driving for Uber and it was kind of fun. Check out my experience driving for Uber here.
Rent out your Spare Room. Do you have a spare room in your house that isn’t being used? Consider renting out space in your house to earn some extra holiday cash. Sites like HomeStay.com and Airbnb will help you find people to rent your space.
Deliver holiday packages. Delivery drivers stay very busy during the holiday season and many companies are looking for holiday help. If you want something consistent (possibly with the opportunity to stay on after the holidays) look at some of the larger companies like UPS. If you want a bit more flexibility, see if Amazon Flex is in your area. You can set your own schedule delivering packages in your local area. Planning a holiday trip? Consider a service like Roadie.com that lets you hook up with people who need items delivered to your destination.
Offer babysitting services. As a mom, you know how hard it can be to run errands with kids. Offer babysitting services to families in your community who need a chance to shop without kids, attend a holiday party, or catch up on their holiday to-do list.
Sell homemade gifts on Etsy. Are you crafty? Consider making homemade gifts to sell on Etsy or at a local craft fair.
Join Swagbucks. Have you used Swagbucks? Swagbucks is a service that will let you earn points that are redeemable for gift cards. You can earn points by using their search engine, printing coupons, watching videos, taking surveys and more. One year I nearly paid for all of our holiday gifts using Amazon cards I earned through Swagbucks. Sign up for Swagbucks HERE.
Sell things from around your house. Most of us could fund Christmas just by selling things we no longer use. Sort through your stuff and sell on Facebook sale groups, Craigslist, eBay, or even host a garage sale if the weather is warm where you live. I once made $700 in one weekend just decluttering my home.
Use Cashback sites when you shop. If you are planning on doing any of your holiday shopping online, be sure and use cashback sites to earn extra money on things you are buying. My favorite is Ebates because they have so many options. FreeShipping.com is a paid option but they offer higher percentages back, which may be worth it if you are doing a lot of online shopping.
Do sales through an MLM. MLMs get a bad rap but I know several moms who make a great income selling through them. The benefit to these is you can jump right in and get started. You don’t have to worry about creating a product, building a website, or most of the other issues that you deal with when starting a company. There usually is a start-up fee but if you find a product that you love, you can make some great sales commissions during the holiday season when people are looking for gift ideas. Before joining any company though, be sure and read these tips for how NOT to work an MLM, because it can be done very badly. I sell doTerra (their products make GREAT gifts) on the side and have loved it as a way to earn extra cash.
Become a petsitter. With so many families heading out of town for the holidays, many of them will need a reliable petsitter. This is a great short-term gig that can be fun to do together as a family. You can find pet sitting jobs on Care.com and Rover.com – (Here’s $20 to try it out!).
Install Christmas lights. Are you brave enough to climb a few ladders (or send your husband up one)? You can make good money installing Christmas lights. Create a flyer and pass it around your neighborhood. You’ll probably be turning down business before you know it.
Be a Personal Shopper. Shopping and holiday errands can be time-consuming. Offer your services as a personal shopper and simplify life for other moms.
Do seasonal online customer service. With call centers increasing their volume during the holiday season, many hire seasonal workers to help with online customer service. You can do these jobs from home (although you may still need childcare so you can focus). A few that routinely hire seasonal customer service workers include 1-800 Flowers, Apple At Home, Amazon and Williams-Sonoma.
Offer house cleaning service. With family coming in from out of town, holiday parties, and just general holiday craziness, I don’t know a mom who couldn’t use some help cleaning her home. Offer holiday house cleaning services and set your schedule to fit your holiday plans.
Offer catering services. Are you a great cook? Consider offering catering services. Out of town guests, holiday parties, and other events mean there are plenty of opportunities for you to put your cooking skills to work.
Sell Amazon FBA. Did you know you can buy products at a discount and ship them off for Amazon to do all the work? Amazon FBA (a.k.a. fulfilled by Amazon) will warehouse your product and ship them off when they are sold. They do take a fee but if you are good at deal hunting you can make some good money this way. Entrepreneur Girl is a great resource if you want to get started with this. Shop for holiday deals and ship them off to Amazon to sell for a profit.
Be a website tester. There are quite a few companies that will pay you to test out websites. Pay is anywhere from $8-20 per test which usually takes around 10-20 minutes. This is a great list of places that will pay you to test websites. User Testing is another popular option. This gig is completely flexible so you can do it in your spare time during the holidays.
Sell stock photos. Are you a photographer? You can sell stock images for some extra cash. iStockPhoto buys stock images but they are just one of many options out there. Most sites require you to submit some work samples before you are approved so be sure to have samples ready to go.
Get a job as a seasonal retail worker. Many retail stores need extra employees during the holiday season. Retail hours go beyond regular 9-5 hours so you can request schedules that fit what you need (although you may have to be a bit flexible). As a bonus, you’ll often receive a store discount so you may be able to save on holiday gifts.
Take contract work. Do you have a skill that you could put go use for contract positions? There are some great short-term gigs out there that you can do to earn extra money for the holidays. Check out PeoplePerHour and Freelancer.com to find jobs. For smaller jobs, check out Fiverr (even small jobs can add up to a good amount of cash).