My stay-at-home-mom journey began in February 2019 when we welcomed our first daughter, Jolene. I had worked many different jobs full-time for as long as I could remember and was ready to embrace the stay-at-home mom life. The first few months were a blur–as they usually are–learning how to navigate parenthood, feeding a newborn, and figuring out a routine. We were blessed with a good sleeper, and by the time Jolene hit six months, I found myself with extra time on my hands. I quickly realized I could find ways to make extra money for our family in these quiet moments during nap time or after Jolene had gone to bed.
The question was: what can I do that requires minimal effort and I am in control of how much time and energy I put into it? It took some research and patience, but eventually, I found success! These are the five ways I’ve made money as a SAHM.
Teaching Online
Having taught in a classroom as a substitute and full-time teacher, I knew there was a market for online teachers. In September 2019, I started teaching with VIPKID, an online English teaching platform for children in China. After setting up a simple workspace and an online interview, my classroom was ready to go! The only requirement VIPKID asks is you can pass a background check and possess a bachelor’s degree.
The hours were less than ideal since you are teaching at peak times in China. This means getting up at 4:00 a.m. some days and teaching from 5:00 to 7:30 a.m. before the baby wakes up. I was also able to teach on Friday evenings. However, it did pay off! In a short time, I was making upwards of $600 per month at an hourly rate of $18 to $22. And most of the time I was wearing my pajamas!
Since the pandemic hit, teaching online has only continued to grow. There are countless opportunities, and most allow you to make your own schedule. You can work one hour a week or 40! It’s up to you. If you have a knack for teaching or a special skill to share, it is definitely worth looking into.
Poshmark, eBay, Offer Up
Poshmark has been my most recent endeavor, and it was way easier than I thought to get it started! I simply went through our closets and pulled out any good quality, brand name clothes we didn’t use and set them aside. I created a well-lit area in our spare bedroom, put a hook in the wall, and started taking pictures! Within a week I had sold a maternity dress I had never worn for $30!
If you have a good quality smartphone and any gently used clothing, shoes, baby products, electronics, or collectibles, you can quickly and easily sell them on Poshmark, eBay, or Offer Up. USPS will provide you with free shipping boxes and envelopes, and it is easy to print your own mailing labels. I hope to sell more soon!
Sell Digital Resources
Do you have some hidden graphic design talents? Are you a teacher with a pile of resources on your computer? Are you savvy with Photoshop or Canva? If you said yes to any of those questions, you could try selling digital resources online.
My digital resources are modest and limited to teaching resources on a website called Teachers Pay Teachers, but in peak times of the year, I can passively make a couple hundred extra dollars from products I’ve posted ages ago! Once a product exists on a website like TPT, Etsy, or Behance, it is there forever and can always be purchased. This way of making extra cash can be slow to start, but if you have a niche and a good quality product, it might make you the extra money you’re looking for!
Watch Other People’s Children
Are you a stay-at-home mom to school-aged children? Do you have just one kid at home that needs a playmate? You can consider at-home care for other people’s children. I’m not talking about starting a daycare, but simply taking in another child while you are at home all day can really boost your family’s income.
Websites such as care.com have countless postings of parents in need of childcare. In this situation, the ball is in your court! Offer your home, likely already baby-proofed and stocked with everything a kid needs. Someone willing to drop their kid off to you could be an easy way to make that extra cash you’re looking for.
Budget
While this isn’t exactly a way to make money, it is the fastest way to have more money in your family’s pocket. Over the past three years, my husband and I have worked each month to narrow down a budget that works for our family. This is a constant effort, but we’ve found ways to pay less for things, cancel subscriptions we don’t need, and be more mindful of purchases. This could be an entire blog post on its own, but my best suggestion is to follow Dave Ramsey for family budgeting advice.
Simple changes like using only cash for takeout, sharing a budgeting app with your partner, and planning ahead for major expenses are just a few of the ways you can find more money each month.
All in all, side hustling as a stay-at-home mom isn’t for everyone. We each have a unique situation, and some of us have zero extra time on our hands. We welcomed our second daughter six months ago, and I haven’t had as much time to pursue my side hustles as usual. I hope as our schedule becomes more predictable once again, I can keep working hard for our family and make that extra cash!
Do you have a SAHM side hustle? Let me know in the comments below!
Originally published February 2022.
The opinions expressed in this post are those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of ABQ Mom, its executive team, other contributors to the site, its sponsors or partners, or any organizations the aforementioned might be affiliated with.
