Is it possible to make $500 online from your home as fast as possible? Well, the answer may vary, but the short answer is, “Yes, yes you can”. Although it’s harder than most websites make it sound like, it’s not impossible and it all depends on the kind of jobs you’re willing to take and the skills you have.
Once upon a time, I was in need of $500. I had to pay my rent quickly, and the fridge was almost empty. I took on the streets, asking for a job position in almost any store, resturant, fast-food, and whatever else that I could find. Unfortunately, back then Greece was in an economic crisis, and everyone was looking desperately for a job, making it harder and harder to find anything that could pay fast.
While I was looking for a position, I was also searching for anything remote-related that I could do to quickly make a few bucks, and thankfully, I was able to quickly make money by only using my laptop.
Years later, a friend of mine had the same problem, and she asked me if I could find her a remote job so she could pay her rent, buy food, and yeah, you get the point. I was able to find her a job within the first 24 hours, and I’d like to show you how I did that if you’re in the same position.
To avoid wasting your time, since you’ve probably already read numerous articles and watched countless videos on how to make quick money from home, let’s get straight to the point: There are ways to make $500 online fast, but few people have managed to do it in reality. It’s all about what you’ll choose to do to make that amount, and if you’re willing to work in any kind of a job.
With all that in mind, below I’ll mention only the methods I’ve personally seen work and generate a substantial amount of money in short periods. Some of these methods have earned me money, and I still use some of them and recommend them to this very moment.
1. Apply for positions on job listing websites
I know that many will look for alternatives, such as side gigs or side hustles, but those usually take time and for people who’re in a hurry to make some bucks, they’re not ideal. Getting hired by a company or employee will pay you faster, and there are many remote opportunities that pay daily or weekly, and provide health care, and they’re ideal if you want to make more than $500 per month.
Benefits: There are thousands of available job positions that are 100% remote, and based on your skills, you can literally work from anywhere, as long as you have a laptop and an internet connection. The good news is that those job listing websites tend to get updated very often, meaning that you’ll see new available positions almost every few hours.
There are plenty of available remote work positions, such as writing articles for websites, conducting market research for companies, translating, providing customer support, managing online stores, submitting and managing products, and so much more.
Where to look: There are some popular websites that include hundreds of job listings all around the world, and most of those listings are all about working remotely. Those websites are very easy to use and straightforward when it comes to applying for a position, and they usually let you apply without registering for an account, saving you lots of precious time.
- WeWorkRemotely.com: This is by far one of my favorite job listing websites and one that I always recommend. On their home page you’ll find the most recent job listings posted during the last 7 days, and by going to their menu and hovering to “Jobs” you can browse job listings based on your preferences and skills. No sign-up is needed and you can apply for a job by sending an email or visiting the company’s job application form. Over 1000 new positions are posted every month on the website, so there are many opportunities awaiting.
- RemoteOK.com: A simple-to-use and straightforward search engine with hundreds of job positions that you can apply to. You won’t have to sign up for an account and the website gets updated daily with new positions, but as the name suggests, it’s focused on remote working. Simply find the positions that you’re interested in and click on “Apply”. The website will redirect you to the employee’s job application form.
- Indeed.com: This is one of the most popular websites in the world for finding job work both remotely and in your local area. The website is currently providing job listings for 62 countries and it has also been translated for each one, making it one of the best in its field.
Many of those job listing websites also provide full-time and part-time work that’s not remote and may be located somewhere close to you, so don’t take the “100% remote work” seriously, you can always find more traditional jobs in physical places in your local area.
You can find even more job listing websites in the following article:
2. Start promoting affiliate products and services (if you already have an audience)
I’ll agree with anyone saying that affiliate marketing is hard, and way harder than it was a decade ago – but it’s still an option that many can benefit from. There’s no need for a starter budget, and you can sign up for various affiliate programs quite easily and fast.
Benefits: Since affiliate marketing allows you to earn your first money almost instantly, theoretically, anyone could earn $500 quickly or even within a day – given they know which products or services to promote, how to do it, and where. Affiliate marketing is also particularly easy for beginners and you can start completely free, but it’s extremely hard to begin with if you don’t already have an audience to share those links to.
If you already have built an audience somewhere, whether that’s on a social media page that you manage, a blog, podcast, or a YouTube channel, you can use affiliate marketing to promote products and subscription-based services. You earn once someone clicks on your affiliate links and completes an order. You can also do exact same thing for a family member, a close friend, or even a colleague who wants to buy a specific product or get a subscription to a service. Simply look it up and see if there’s an affiliate program that you can join, get the affiliate link, and send it to them.
The problem: Unfortunately, most affiliate programs will not let you withdraw your money right away, as most of them come with their own “money-back guarantees” that basically let their customers ask for a full refund if they’re not happy with what they got. Some companies offer a 7-day money-back guarantee, while others may provide 15 or 30 days, so make sure you’ve looked that up.
Where to look: There are many affiliate platforms and programs that you can sign up within minutes and start promoting affiliate products and services. Some of the most popular ones include Impact, AWIN, ShareASale, TravelPayouts, Booking.com, Rakuten Advertising, Surfshark VPN, NordVPN, just to name a few.
You can find even more affiliate programs and platforms here.
Once a brand approves your application, you’ll have access to its creatives, including unique affiliate links to share on various websites, social networks, forums, and descriptions of your videos or podcast episodes.
3. Put your skills in use: Offer your services as freelancer and work remotely
This may sound like the first section of the article, but it’s not. Instead of applying for a job in company or an emploeey, you can sign up on various freelance services and marketplaces that already have a huge community of emploeeys, companies, and individuals that looking to hire freelancers.
Benefits: This is a great way not only to make $500 online fast, but to build a professional online presence and start getting new clients on a daily basis. Those freelance services and marketplaces are pretty straightforward: You create an account, start designign your professional profile with your portfolio and previous works, testimonials, and whatever else you can find that may help you gain more clients, and then wait for offers.
The problem: As you’ve already guessed, those freelance services and marketplaces usually already have thousands of freelancers who have tons of positive reviews, and people who are willing to work very cheaply. It’s all about providing great services and having a strong portfolio that showcases your true skills. Thankfullt, it’s not all bad, as they’re free to use and start, and having an online presence there is better than not having one.
Where to look: Well-known platforms like Freelancer.com, Fiverr.com, and UpWork.com allow you to create an account and start listing the services you provide as a freelancer. Whether you know how to build websites and apps, edit videos or podcasts, are good at writing, are a coach, or even want to translate texts, record voiceovers, design logos, or anything else, you’ll be able to list it online.
4. Get a personal loan from a digital banking app or from a stranger on Reddit
Well, if anything fails and you’re in a hurry, another way is to get a personal loan from a digital banking app or by borrowing money from a stranger on Reddit. The second may sound crazy, but it actually works and it’s very legit. Whatever you choose from those two options, it’s important to make sure that you’re only taking the money if you can actually affort to pay them back at the right time.
Benefits: You can usually get a personal loan within 24 hours after you submit it, and if you are already employed you’ll get easily. There are a few great options when it comes to doing that, including by using some of the world’s most popular digital banking apps, some of which can give you from $100 to $500 easily. If you are uneployed, you’re best bet is Reddit, and more specifically the /r/borrow subreddit, which consists of people who helped many strangers by borrowing them money.
The problem: When it comes to digital banking apps, you’ll have to be employed in order to get a loan, and based on your monthly or yearly income, they’ll give you a reasonable amount of money. When it comes to Reddit, on the other hand, the same goes for there too, as borrowing money to strangers is, of couse, a risk. They’ll typically ask for crucial information in order to know who you are and that they’ll be able to find you if you don’t return the loan back, and most of them are sending the money through PayPal as it gives them more security.
Where to look: I have already mentioned the best digital banking apps that give personal loans, even for new users, and I have already provided lots of information when it comes to borrowing money from Redditors, and you can read all about them in the following article:
5. Look for odd jobs, microtasks, and even pet sitting and dog walking
If none of above methods works for you, then you can go one step further and start searching for odd jobs, microtasks, or even pet sitting and walking. Let me exaplain a bit more about those three ways:
1. Odd jobs
Those are the jobs that usually invole doing various tasks mostly in your local area such as moving things, working on yards, assembling furnitures, home repairs and maintance, house cleaning, assisting with any anything, and you basically get the point.
Some people even tutoring or teching, setting up and tearing down events like parties, weddings, or corporate functions, or doing other small and odd jobs that they find from various websites such as TaskRabbit.com, Craigslist.org, and local community boards. You can even use social media groups such in Facebook to see if anyone’s need help somewhere close to you.
2. Microtasks
Microtasks are small, simple tasks that you can complete online or in person for a small fee. They usually don’t require a lot of time or specialized skills, making them a convenient way to earn money on the side.
Some of them may include completing surveys and polls, playing games to earn a few bucks, entering data into spreadsheets, moderating content, testing websites and apps, testing products and services, translating, converting audio files to written text, and so much more. When it comes to microtasks, you can find many opportunities on platforms such as ClickWorker.com and Amazon Mechanical Turk.
If you like converting audo files to written text, Rev.com and TranscribeMe.com are among the best choices.
3. Pet sitting or dog walking
If you love spending time with animals, there are many people out there who are currently looking for trusted people to take care their pets, including watching their cats, taking their dogs for walks, and basically making sure that they’re taking care of.
Feeding them and providing fresh water, admninistrating medication if needed, cleaning them, playing with them, and ensuring the pet’s overall well-being and comfort is usually the priorities. You can start by checking platforms like TaskRabbit.com, Rover.com, WagWalking.com, and Care.com.
Conclusion
Although there are a few realistic ways that you can use to make $500 or more online within a few days, it all depends on the skills that you have and how willing you are at working in different fields and grabing each opportunity that comes to you. By using multiple different ways you can increase the chances and make even more money, but that’s totally up to you.
Applying for a traditional or remote job is most usually the easiest and fastest way to earn $500 or more, while odd jobs and microtasks can be very beneficial for many. I would avoid getting a personal loan or borrowing money, and I wouldn’t use affiliate marketing if I was in a hurry to make money, but you have nothing to lose by trying them both – just make sure you can actually pay back the digital bank or the borrower if you decide to go with a personal loan.
Have you tried any of the ways mentioned above? And if so, did you make any money and how much time did it take you? If you know more ways that people can make $500 or more fast, take the time and recommend them in the comments section down below, as you may help other people who are in need for a few bucks.
