Editor’s note: This article was first published in December 2016. The whole list reflects the Spanish app market of that month. Several services have since closed, merged or rebranded; Drivy, for example, now operates as Getaround. Fees and terms are from 2016, including Etsy’s 3.5% commission, which Etsy has since raised.
There are many reasons why someone might need to earn some extra money, especially students, homemakers, the unemployed, or anyone who doesn’t know where to start and is unsure about launching their own business right now.
We have already looked at some small-business ideas you can start from home with no investment, as well as 28 realistic ideas for making money online. This time, let’s look at some apps that anyone can download on their smartphone and that, with a little patience and persistence, might help them, perhaps not to get rich, but at least to earn a bit on the side.
Here are 11 apps, with links to download them from Google Play:
1. Heygo
In this app you can find all kinds of professionals, freelancers and individuals offering a service you need, from painting your house or repairing an appliance to yoga or martial arts lessons.
So if you know how to do something, anything at all, and you need to earn money, advertise it. If someone in your area needs what you offer, they will turn to you. If you are good at it and earn good reviews from users, it could be the push you need to turn it into a business.
2. Etsy
If you are good at crafts, making clothes, knitting gloves or woollen hats at home, painting pictures, or making fine or costume jewellery, you can sell your products on Etsy. Aimed both at individuals and at entrepreneurs who already have a physical shop, this app gives you the chance to set up an online shop window and open your own store within the app.
Etsy charges a 3.5% commission on every product you sell through the app.
3. FamiliaFácil
Babysitters, carers for the elderly, private drivers, private cooks, domestic workers… you can find all of them on FamiliaFácil. Create a profile and offer your services. (Spain only; you sign up on their website.)
4. Fiverr
Fiverr bills itself as the world’s largest marketplace for services, and in this app you can offer your professional services to companies from 5 euros. I know for a fact that some people started out offering their services to companies this way, and the company was so delighted with the work that it ended up hiring them as staff.
5. Glovo
The errand boy, now on your phone. If you need someone to do your shopping and bring it to you, if you are ill at home and can’t get to the pharmacy, or if you don’t have time and would rather send someone else to take your car in for its service, this is your app.
If, on the other hand, you want to earn money running these kinds of errands, this is your app too.
6. My Survey
Sign up on their website to take surveys and get paid for it. It isn’t a lot of money, but it’s something. This company joins the ones in our earlier post on 3 companies that really do pay you to answer surveys.
7. Drivy
Drivy is a way to make money through peer-to-peer car rental: you earn money from your car when you aren’t using it. You can rent it out by the hour or by the day, and you can decide not to lend it to certain people if you don’t like the look of their profile or if they have bad reviews.
Insurance is included with each rental transaction in case something happens to the car. I haven’t had the chance to read the small print of that insurance, although at first glance everything seems to be in order. You keep 70% of the money you charge for renting out your car. It can certainly be a good idea if you are going through a rough patch and don’t need to use the car.
8. Wallapop
Probably the best app for buying and selling the things you no longer use. Personally, I have made several purchases on this app that had to be shipped from the other end of Spain, and the sellers delivered without any problems.
If you have things at home you don’t use, you have some extra money. If you come across as trustworthy and give a detailed description of the more complex products, practically everything sells.
9. Vibbo
Vibbo is another of the big names when it comes to selling what we don’t need. Like Wallapop, it uses geolocation to show you what you are looking for near where you are.
10. Airbnb
I think by now Airbnb needs no introduction. If you have a spare room or a whole home, you can rent out the space by the day and earn some extra money from it.
11. Freelancer
Professionals or employers post their job offers, or search directly for the most suitable profile among the listings. You can put yourself forward for the open offers. It is one of the most widely used apps among freelancers and the self-employed, with work ranging from translation jobs to designing a company’s logo, an advert, a video intro and so on.
If there is something you know how to do, someone out there probably needs you.
See also: 38 ideas for making extra money quickly from home
Featured image: FaceMePLS from The Hague, The Netherlands, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
.jpg){kind=link}