There are numerous ways to earn extra income in retirement. Just because you have retired from your job doesn’t mean you have to stop working altogether. Many people find satisfaction and fulfillment through continuing to work after they’ve officially “retired.” Working for a few hours here or there is easier than some may think, but it’s not without its challenges. In addition to finding clients, many retirees can end up spending more time on this project than anticipated. Here are ten ways senior citizens can earn extra income:
- 1. Freelance Writing
- 2. Tutoring
- 3. Start a Business
- 4. Start a Small Garden
- 5. Become a Dog Walker
- 6. Earn Money from Your Car
- 7. Earn Money From Your Cell Phone Plan
- 8. Earn Money From Your Savings
- 9. Earn Money From Your Online Presence
- 10. Earn Money From Your Home
- 11. Earn Money From Your Pets
- Our #1 Recommendation
- Learn New Skills
- Reasons to Earn More Money in Retirement
- Video: 9 Best Things to Do in Your Retirement
1. Freelance Writing
Freelance writing is an excellent way for seniors who love writing and don’t mind self-promotion to stay busy earning additional money. You might even be able to make a full-time living from it if you become successful. Freelance writing is a perfect choice for older people because they have more experience and knowledge about certain topics. If you enjoy cooking, gardening or crafts, think about sharing your expertise with others through freelance writing.
2. Tutoring
Another way seniors can make extra money is to tutor middle and high school students. In subjects such as English, math, and science during the evenings or on weekends when they’re not working full-time jobs. This will require you to stay open-minded since you might be asked to tutor a student in a subject that’s not necessarily your favorite. And since this type of tutoring involves spending time with teenagers (a demographic most seniors prefer to avoid), you may need extra patience as well. If you’re interested in tutoring, contact local high schools for information on how to get started and what the pay is like.
3. Start a Business
After you have your basic expenses covered, having your own business can be a fun way to earn extra income. To do this, you’ll need some experience running small businesses or an entrepreneurial spirit that won’t take no for an answer. You can start with a small side business if you don’t want to invest all of your retirement savings into it from day one. One of the biggest benefits of starting your own business is not needing to answer to anyone else, You decide when and where the work gets done, and no coworkers are pestering you for not being social enough.
4. Start a Small Garden
If you like gardening and have land where you can grow plants, starting a small garden might be an enjoyable way to make extra money in retirement. For this idea to work, the weather in your area needs to be warm during the growing season because most plants need regular sunlight and water to survive.
Starting with vegetables or flowers is a good option. If you’re new to gardening since it’s less complicated than growing fruit trees or other plants that require more attention and care. Next consider, consider planting foods that taste great but aren’t expensive, such as tomatoes, potatoes, onions, and lettuce.
5. Become a Dog Walker
If you’re an animal lover, this may be the perfect way to earn extra money in retirement! Just be sure you’re okay with being outside for several hours each day. This job requires walking dogs owned by clients or left at your house for daycare after being bathed and fed by the owner.
Earnings can average about $10-$15 per hour depending on where you live. How many hours per week you spend doing it, your experience level, and how many dogs there are to walk.
There might also be opportunities to work with cats, horses, or other types of animals, too. Be sure to check before you say yes to any potential client.
6. Earn Money from Your Car
If you have a car that’s more than 15 years old, you can sell it now and use the money to buy a newer one so that you get better gas mileage. This will help save you money in the long run if you drive at least half as much every month since gasoline prices are rising steadily.
Earnings from any extra miles per gallon should go straight into your bank account. Either way, think about whether or not buying a new vehicle is really something worth spending your retirement savings on before making such an investment. If it is, then do your best to find a great deal on a reliable car so that you can make the most of your money.
7. Earn Money From Your Cell Phone Plan
If you’ve never thought about it before, see whether or not your current cell phone provider has any loyalty rewards programs in place where earnings are concerned. Just be sure to check the fine print so that you don’t waste time going after sign-up bonuses and other offers that aren’t available unless you buy specific phones, change carriers or sign up for things like autopay.
8. Earn Money From Your Savings
If you’re not using your savings account to fund any investments or loans at this time, and you’ve got more than $5,000 sitting around collecting dust, look into opening an online savings account.
Earn 2% on balances of between $0-$10,000 and 1% Earn on all other balances without any monthly fees assessed so that you can earn some extra cash in retirement while also keeping your money. If you don’t want to open up a new savings account, you can also earn money from any CD or interest-bearing investment with similar earnings potential.
9. Earn Money From Your Online Presence
If you don’t mind putting in the extra work needed to make other people’s lives easier, then see whether or not there are ways that earnings could potentially be made online by blogging, writing eBooks, or providing other forms of content on websites.
If nothing else, this will help you earn some credence online and become more well known for your knowledge to maybe one day someone might want to pay you for it. I’ve been lucky enough to have built up a rather large presence on the Internet over the years and earned a few extra earnings from Google’s AdSense program and other affiliate programs.
If you have a blog, website, or list of contacts online, see whether any affiliate earnings are available through the companies that line up with your interests. Use those links whenever possible so that you’ll earn from purchases made by readers/users. This is yet another great way to earn in retirement because it’s passive earnings that can be worked on as time and interest permits.
10. Earn Money From Your Home
If you have any skills or hobbies that can be sold online or offline through workshops or group classes, then you might want to consider earning money directly from your home during retirement .
I’ve earned some money by selling handmade items on Etsy and used items on eBay. If nothing else, this will help you stay busy each day in retirement simply because it will force you to work around your own schedule instead of having to match your schedule up with someone else’s time frame.
11. Earn Money From Your Pets
If you’re into breeding, selling, or training animals for show or even just day-to-day care, then you might want to consider earning money directly from your pets.
Just be sure to check your local laws and regulations so that you’re not breaking any rules, and earn extra income by doing something you already love. Even if it’s just dog walking or pet sitting on the weekends here and there, every little bit helps when saving for retirement.
Our #1 Recommendation
Our number one recommendation for earning online income in retirement is to start a blog. Blogging has been an extremely popular side hustle for decades, and it’s easy to see why.
You don’t need any special skills or qualifications other than the ability to write interesting articles that are relevant to your niche audience. If you already have a website with affiliate links on it from previous work as an entrepreneur, then all you really need is time set aside each day so you can do both things!
The best part about blogging is that once you get started making money every month through advertising revenue or affiliate commissions, there’s no limit to how much more money you could earn by continuing down this path of entrepreneurship.
It’s never too soon to think about how you’ll spend your time once you retire. If that sounds like a scary thought, maybe it just means the subject is overdue for some consideration! You might be thinking “I don’t want to work forever!” but if so, then we recommend exploring our number one recommendation for earning online income in retirement- starting an affiliate marketing business.
Learn New Skills
We have all of the tools and resources available at Wealthy Affiliate University to help make this happen on a tight budget or with no money upfront costs whatsoever. So what are you waiting for? Get started today!
If you want a sure-fire way to earn extra money on the internet without leaving home or spending any time whatsoever of your valuable retirement years trying to figure out how to do it, then we recommend Wealthy Affiliate. It’s free and has helped thousands of people start their own successful online businesses!
If you are willing to learn and put in the hard work, your new online business can earn extra income for many years to come.
“You’re never too old to set another goal or dream a new dream.” Jim Rohn.
Reasons to Earn More Money in Retirement
There are many benefits to earning extra money in retirement. Whether you want to earn extra money for an emergency fund, or because of a certain dream you’d like to pursue, there are benefits that earn money in retirement can help provide.
First and foremost among the reasons earn more money in retirement is it gives you more freedom. If you earn some income from one of the side jobs listed above (and won’t that be fun?), then you can earn extra money in retirement to fulfill a dream or pursue your passions.
It’s also nice to earn extra income during the winter months when life seems a little duller and colder. Although the summer months are great as well, there’s no denying that many of us would rather earn money on our own terms rather than earn a fixed income base.
You can earn extra money in retirement to set yourself up for better health. It’s not as simple as choosing vegetables over burgers and fries, but it is important to earn money while you still have the energy to do so. Holding down any kind of job (and certainly one that offers flexible hours) is a workout in itself! Plus, earn extra money in retirement can earn you some extra benefits at the doctor’s office.