25 Legit Ways To Make Money Online

It's so easy to allow an inability to make money from betting (at least, betting in its conventional form) to colour your judgement of all ways to make money online - quite simply, everything begins to look like a scam. But there are plenty of legit ways to make money online in the UK.

As easy a trap as it is to fall into to presume it's impossible to make money online beyond a few pennies and pounds here and there, it very much is a trap. The truth is that there are definitely some great ways to add potentially many thousands of pounds to your bank account, with less effort than you might think.

How to Make Money Gambling

To make money gambling online, use a technique such as Matched Betting. Also known as lay betting, and similar to arbing (arbitrage betting), the goal is to place bets that cover all outcomes so that you can unlock free bets and bonuses from the bookmaker without putting your own money at risk. When Matched Betting is done correctly it is generally considered a zero-risk technique to make money gambling online.

It is considered to be quite different from gambling or having a punt because all possibilities are bet on using a betting exchange.

To demonstrate that there really are lots of great cash generation options on the Internet, here are our favourite 25 - yes, you read that correctly, 25 - ways to make money online.

1. Place Matched Bets Online

If you've landed on this page, the chances are that you want to make money from home - who doesn't? - and you have heard that Matched Betting might just be the perfect way to do it.

You've read stories about people earning thousands of pounds in effort-free cash every month, and you just know that there must be a catch somewhere... but for some reason, you just can't find one.

Let's save you a lot of time - there isn't a catch. Even bookmakers themselves have indicated that it's fine to make money from betting in this way. It's completely legal, and the winnings are tax-free.

In a weird way though, the absence of a big catch can actually be to the detriment of the reputation of matched bets, rather than to its favour.

Why? Well, we all know about those 'get-rich-quick' schemes that have proliferated online pretty much since the World Wide Web (WWW) began.

We've all read those articles about 'how to make money online' which start off promisingly, with some genuinely useful suggestions or advice, but which then deteriorate into yet another 'You just HAVE to sign up for my scammy newsletter/seminar/product/spam messages that you'll never be able to unsubscribe from, EVER' kind of thing.

If you're a savvy web user (as many of us are these days), you will probably be well-trained by now in spotting the more obvious scams. But what about those ways to make money online that aren't Matched Betting, but which are nonetheless perfectly legitimate?

Even here at Outplayed, we won't deny that there are many. Becoming a virtual assistant, for example, or reviewing websites and apps for cash. You could also sell your stuff on eBay or Amazon. We've detailed many of those money-making methods below.

There's loads of stuff that you can do to make money online, but if there's one thing that you might have noticed the below methods have in common, it's that they ALL require work.

When I say "work" here, I mean WORK.

No one will take you seriously as a photographer for stock photo sites, for example, unless you can take genuinely compelling and professional-standard photos, and you won't last long as an eBay seller unless you can provide good product descriptions and dispatch goods quickly and safely.

We won't deny that Matched Bets take some work, too. However, you don't need anything like the amount of commitment that most of the following ways of making money online require.

The majority of the below methods actually require that you know something about the subject area, and possess a certain level of prior skill, knowledge and/or experience.

To make money from Matched Bets, you don't need to have ever been on a sports betting website before and you certainly don't need to understand the off-side rule in football or similar. Through our easy-to-use interface in our members' area, we've made it as simple as you like to get involved in Matched Betting and to take advantage of all of the latest and most lucrative offers.

Matched Bets aren't just another way to make money online - they're the 'real deal', offering so many of the advantages of more traditional ways to make money online, with none of the disadvantages.

Matched Betting has been written about in favourable terms by the likes of The Guardian and The Telegraph, and for good reason - it is a genuinely brilliant way to make money online. So, why wait any longer to join Outplayed to discover its lucrative potential for yourself?

2. Sell Your Old Gear On eBay

We've all got all kinds of items that we never use, stowed away in cupboards or gathering dust on shelves. Whether it's an old mobile phone, games console, books, magazines, artwork, furniture or any of a wide range of other random goods, chances are that they'll fetch a fair amount on the world's most popular auction site.

3. Become A Mystery Shopper

You may be surprised by the number of market research companies out there that are eager to pay you to pretend to be the customer of a high street or e-commerce store and gather information relating to the given retailer's products, services and all-around customer experience. We would recommend Market Force, but it's far from the only such site out there.

4. Write Product Reviews

There are consumer opinion sites - such as Toluna - that are willing to pay you for your reviews, although your pieces will naturally need to be of a certain length and not merely padded out with technical specifications - after all, you are being paid for your original opinions. Different product categories may also bring different levels of pay.

Another service to try is Swagbucks, which allows members to earn money by carrying out various simple tasks online.

5. Generate Cash From Your YouTube Videos

All that you need for this one is a video camera and a bit of imagination. Why not create useful 'how-to' guides or interesting product reviews, then enable advertising so that you can earn money every time someone watches your YouTube video? Record something more provocative or controversial, and it may even 'go viral'...

6. Earn Money From Your Website Or Blog

Advertising opportunities and affiliate programmes - whereby you refer people to purchase items online - allow you to easily generate some welcome funds from your website or blog, even if your site isn't based on the most obviously money spinning premise. Remember to base your blog around a theme that you are genuinely passionate about - after all, it'll be hard for you to stay interested in your blog otherwise - but that is also potentially lucrative.

One of the most effective ways of monetising your website is through affiliate marketing.

Sites such as Awin group thousands of retailers and brands, so that bloggers and other website owners can partner up.

7. Invest In Stocks (The Easy Way)

Stocks and shares may seem a dangerous field to jump into if you know nothing about it, and you would be pretty much right. That's why social investment network sites like EasyMarkets, which allow you to observe the trading activity of other, successful users and learn from them by imitation, are such a godsend for those looking to make money online.

8. Answer Paid Surveys

This is a highly rewarding way to make some money on the side if you are the type who always looks forward to questionnaires dropping through your letterbox. Various online networks, such as Swagbucks, give you quick and easy access to the most interesting and profitable surveys. With other popular sites in this category including the likes of Valued Opinions and Toluna there's plenty of opportunity to make money from simply answering questions.

A great way of keeping all your online activity earnings in one place is via Swagbucks.

9. Buy And Sell Domain Names

A domain name is a website's address - for example, in the case of Outplayed, outplayed.com. Now, just imagine if you cheaply bought a domain name bearing the name of a musician who went on to become a world-famous pop star, how much that domain name would be worth by then. There's definitely an art to spotting the right, potentially highly lucrative domain names to buy at the early stage when they are still affordable.

Look for the best domain name deals at GoDaddy, One.com and Names.co.uk

10. Get Into Website 'Flipping'

'Flipping' is the term for the practice of buying or building websites purely to sell them for profit. It's easier to get into than you might think, with many people simply buying existing sites, holding onto them for a while and then selling them on if and when they have increased in value. But of course, you could also tap into your inner online entrepreneur by building up a great site from scratch and only then promoting it to potential buyers.

11. Make Money Searching Online

Yes, even just searching online can give you cash rewards. It's as simple a process as downloading the Qmee app and searching such popular sites as Google, Yahoo, Bing and Amazon in the normal way. Qmee places some of its own search results alongside the natural ones that you would see anyway, and if you happen to take an interest in one of the Qmee results, you can be quids in - just for clicking.

12. Write Your Own eBook

It has never been easier for avid writers to make it big online, thanks to the self-publishing services offered by sites like Amazon. eBook sales are booming, so don't miss out if you have a brilliant book idea. Becoming an eBook author is a great step up if you are already a blogger, and can allow you to start making serious cash - but beware of the pitfalls. Make sure you're writing about a subject that you genuinely care and are knowledgeable about, and remember that you will need to be disciplined, continuing to write your eBook even when you aren't "in the mood" to do so.

13. Take And Sell Photos

Alternatively, you might be an enthusiastic amateur photographer and therefore stand to make a decent amount of money by selling your images to stock photo sites. Don't get too excited about the idea of throwing any old forgotten-about snaps on these sites, however - sites like Shutterstock supply some of the world's leading online publications with high-quality stock images.

14. Flog Your Artwork

If you are more of a hands-on, artsy and craftsy person, meanwhile, consider selling your handmade masterpieces through a suitably creative-oriented platform like Etsy. However, while Etsy will certainly expose your artwork to a highly relevant audience for not much money or effort, there are a lot of other ways to sell your art online, including via your own website or with the help of social media. Get involved in your local art scene, and you will probably uncover further opportunities to sell your art online, such as via the online shop of your nearest printmaking studio.

15. Rent Out Your Online Forum Signature

Do you constantly post on online forums, to such an extent that you are a highly respected member of certain sites? If so, consider giving people the chance to feature their website link or banner in your forum signature. Advertise the opportunity in your signature itself, and see if there are any takers - you have nothing to lose!

16. Rent Out Your Room Or Garden

Many people are familiar with Airbnb as a portal through which they can let out their spare rooms to travellers, but what about also renting out your garden to campers? Admittedly, you will attract a lot more takers if you live in an especially rural or leafy area.

17. Become A Virtual Assistant

There are always people out there, in various parts of the world, who need someone to help them with such tasks as booking flights or sending emails. The many great things about being a virtual assistant include being able to start with pretty much zero experience, as well as - of course - the ability to do it all from the comfort of your own home.

18. Trade In Your Old Books, Music, DVDs and Game

It seems that you can trade in just about anything these days for cash, and the above items are no exception, thanks to the many specialised platforms out there - such as We Buy Books - that take away the hassle of you even having to advertise your old stuff to prospective buyers.

19. Review Music

Register at Slicethepie, and you will be able to literally listen to music and give your verdict for cash. It's a great example of how avid music fans really can make money online doing what they love. Another well-known site in this expanding sector is HitPredictor, which enables you to win gift cards and other prizes.

20. Sell Your Old Disney DVDs

Did you know that Disney deliberately limits the availability of its classic films to keep demand up? This longstanding 'vault' policy could present the perfect opportunity for you to pocket a bit of cash by selling whatever old DVDs you may possess of some of the best-loved Disney films.

21. Enter Competitions (Comping)

Entering competitions for a living isn't the hiding to nothing that you might think - after all, there are thought to be tens of thousands of competitions being held at any one time in the UK. Furthermore, with some prizes being worth over £50,000, if you enter enough of them, you may only need one big win all year to make all of that effort worthwhile.

22. Sell WordPress Themes

If you've got some design flair, you could also pocket some cash creating the interesting WordPress themes that so many website owners cherish as a way of making their site stand out from the rest. Popular online marketplaces through which to sell WordPress themes include Themeforest, MOJO Marketplace and WordPress Eden.

23. Attract Donations

Making money online doesn't always have to involve selling something - if you provide a certain product, service or content that other people appreciate, chances are that you can also get some of them reaching into their pockets in support of you. Just bear in mind that in today's world in which people are often time-poor, it's vital to make a compelling case for people to donate to you, showing your past successes and instilling urgency in prospective donators with compelling appeals.

24. Publish Guest Posts On Your Blog

If you have your own online blog and a steady following, don't be surprised to receive requests from other website or blog owners eager to provide a 'guest post', complete with a link back to their own site. As long as said post is relevant and engaging, why not have it on your blog and generate some profit into the bargain? Neil Patel of Quick Sprout has come up with an interesting guide to the seven rules that guest blog posts on your site should follow.  

25. Develop Your Own Mobile App

You might presume this is one purely for the tech wizards, but there's nothing preventing you hiring a developer to realise your idea and duly realising the profits from direct purchases or in-app advertisements. At the most basic level, your mobile app could take the form of a smartphone-friendly version of your existing site, or you could create a 'native app' to be downloaded from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. There's even an emerging market for 'app makers' that enable you to easily create your own mobile app even if you have no programming knowledge, with some of the best examples including GoodBarber, Shoutem and AppYourself.

As good as these many ways of making money online really are, you would be hard-pressed to find a more profitable one than Matched Betting. While everyone around you fruitlessly tries to make money out of conventional sports betting, why not place the bets that you truly can't lose?

Sign up with Outplayed today to start discovering this reliable, proven and completely legit way to make money online, that could generate you potentially thousands of pounds in extra cash.