Looking to make money as a stay-at-home mom? Here’s a list of things I’ve tried that actually earned real income!
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If you’re a stay-at-home mom chances are you’ve looked for ways to make extra money at some point. Living on a single income with a tight budget can be hard! I’ve been staying home with two littles for the last 2 years while my husband works, and I’ve tried all kinds of ways to earn extra income. Here’s my list of things I’ve tried that actually made money!
Table of Contents
1. In-Home Daycare
This last year, I provided temporary in-home daycare to a baby for about five months. I did this as an unlicensed daycare provider because I provided care to only one family. The legality of this may vary by state (I’m in Minnesota), so make sure you research before jumping in! Becoming a daycare was by far the fastest way to make money from home but also the biggest commitment.
I provided daycare to an infant 5 days a week for $40/day, or $200/week. That’s close to $800/month in extra income income! I say “close to” because I did have certain days off that the parents and I pre-negotiated. To find how much money you could make as a stay-at-home mom daycare, check out the going rates in your county for childcare. You also need to decide what age range you feel you could best handle and decide if you want to do full-time or only part-time care. If you’re thinking about starting an unlicensed in-home daycare I have a post breaking down how I got started, here!
2. Reselling
I started reselling long before I became a stay-at-home mom, but I’ve leaned harder into reselling now that the budget feels extra tight. Originally my husband and I began listing our own items on Facebook Marketplace to make extra money to pay for our wedding. We realized we both enjoyed it so we started finding our niches. I focus on reselling clothing on Poshmark and Mercari while he sells video games, golf clubs, and other collectible items. We still sell off our own items to declutter on Facebook Marketplace but now we hunt for other items to resell. We like to look at garage sales, goodwill outlet bins, and thrift stores for great deals!
How Much Money Can I Make Reselling?
The amount of money you can make reselling depends on:
- Dedication: If you go out to every garage sale and thrift store in your area, clean the items, take great photos, and consistently ship quickly, you’ll make considerably more money than if you were to casually pick up finds and list dirty or damaged items.
- Knowledge: Reselling can be a great way to earn money with very little investment. However, you can easily and accidentally over-invest by buying items that won’t sell. If you want to make money, find one or two things you like to sell and focus mainly on those. Watch YouTube videos on what brands to look for and keep an eye on market changes.
- Location: Your location is a huge factor. If you live in a rural area, chances are you’re going to rarely find items of value. If you live in a larger area with a Goodwill Outlet Store or richer neighborhoods, you’ll find considerably more deals! If you’re willing to invest more money (shipping prices), you can find deals online as well.
- Time: As a stay-at-home mom with small children, it can be difficult to find time to look for deals. Your time may be limited to working only after your husband comes home or they are in bed.
I live in a small town outside of larger areas so I’m able to find a small amount of items. I take the time to steam the clothing, take great photos, and keep my resale platforms up to date so I can usually count on about $100/month. When I was living in a larger city and only had one child at home with me I was making $250/month.
Yes, One nice thing about reselling is that you can easily bring the kids along to look for items. You can also clean and list items from home during whatever hours you choose!
You can easily store most items in totes. I like to store my clothing individually in gallon-sized Ziplock bags with fabric sheets inside plastic totes. The totes make it easy to stack and store in a corner of my own closet.
3. Instacart
Instacart is a grocery delivery service that pays shoppers to find and deliver items to people’s homes. Shoppers can make their own hours by only turning the app on when they’re ready to accept orders. This makes it easy to pick up extra money without committing to a full 8-hour shift job! It’s easy to join and the app is super user-friendly. Instacart is a great side hustle for a stay-at-home mom looking to bring in a little more money!
Your income from Instacart depends mostly on your location and the hours you’re available to shop. Some areas don’t have Instacart available so make sure to check your location for opportunities before getting too excited! When I was living in a larger city, I made more money than I do now in my smaller town because there are fewer orders available. Since moving, I haven’t been shopping as much.
No, Instacart policies state that you cannot bring “anyone along (including minors) who does not have an Instacart Shopper account while providing services on the platform.” This means the money you can make as a stay-at-home mom working for Instacart depends heavily on your husband’s working hours. If he doesn’t get done at work until 7 pm, you won’t have enough time to shop for much before stores close. In those situations, picking up hours on the weekends might be your best option.
4. Part-Time Job
If you’re looking for a steady income you can count on to add to pad your budget, consider a part-time job in your area. If you have a degree, you could look for a job within your field to get the most $/hr. I’ve worked a couple of part-time jobs temporarily since staying home but because most Registered Dietitian jobs are during my husband’s working hours, I’ve only worked lower-paying jobs with short shifts outside of my field.
To look for job opportunities near you, check Indeed or your local newspaper for job availability.
Large stores like Target or Menards have “stocker” jobs listed for 3-4 hours in the early mornings. Bakeries often hire for early hours if your husband starts work late.
If your husband gets done at work early, a waitressing or bartending job at a restaurant might be a good option.
Yes, 3rd shift is an overnight shift that many gas stations hire for. Sometimes group homes will hire people to stay overnight with the residents. These are usually positions you can sleep during, however, you’d still be responsible in an emergency. Because I have small children at home who still wake at night I’ve personally never considered those jobs but they could work well if your kids are older or go to school so you get a nap later in the day!
5. Selling Baked Goods
Okay, this is one I haven’t personally tried, but my husband has. My husband is a terrific baker and at one point, was selling homemade croissants through Facebook to local buyers. He had great profit margins, but one downside to selling locally is that it takes quite a bit of marketing to get consistent income. Ultimately, it took too much time, so he stopped. Baked goods usually only last about 5 days after baking, so he’d have to make sure he baked them only 1 day before each order, but croissants take many hours to make.
I think the key to selling baked goods for money as a stay-at-home mom is choosing a product you love that fits into your daily routine. In addition, selling at craft shows or farmer’s markets would probably make more money and help with self-promotion. Because baked goods typically take very little money to make, it’s easy to price your goods to get a profit.
To start selling baked goods, it’s important that you first get a cottage license to sell legally. These vary by state so check your local requirements here.
Check out your local farmers markets, craft shows, and bakeries to see what the going rates are in your area. Make sure you take into account different sizes or varieties. For example, sourdough will almost always go for more money than a loaf of white bread.
6. Cash-Back Apps
Cash-back apps like Ibotta and Fetch don’t necessarily “make money,” but they put money back in your pocket as a reward for buying products you already need. I’ve made over $500 using Ibotta alone! The benefit of these apps is that they take no extra time out of your day to get money. The downside is they take time to get any significant money back and it can be inconsistent. It’s not helpful as a monthly income to your budget but they can help when saving for something later! If you want to learn more about how to use Ibotta, check out: Is Ibotta Legit? How to Save the Most with Ibotta.
Yes, Fetch and Ibotta are free to use. Ibotta does take a maintenance fee out of your earnings (not out of your bank account) for inactivity after many months. There is no fee removed if you continue to stay an active user.
To withdraw money from your Ibotta account, you must reach a threshold of $20. From there, you can withdraw your earnings to gift cards, Paypal, or directly to a bank account.
Fetch allows you to cash out your rewards into gift cards to most stores. Most gift cards have a minimum of $5
Other Ways to Make Money as a Stay-At-Home Mom
This list above is all the ways I’ve tried to earn money for my family as a stay-at-home mom. I wanted to share options that I was familiar with, so I could provide you with real insight into opportunities you may be interested in. These are certainly not the only ways to make money! Many other stay-at-home moms have tried things like selling products, selling homemade crafts, affiliate marketing, social media influencing, work-from-home online jobs, and many more. I hope you’re able to find a way to bring in the money your family needs while still being home and available! If you’re currently a working mom looking to try and stay home, check out my free stay-at-home mom Budget Guide to help look at what income your family really needs.
What other odd jobs have you tried to make money? What made you stop them?
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These are great ideas! I’ve definitely thought about doing in-home daycare at times!