WiseStockBuyer

You’ve heard it a million times – you have to live “beneath your means” if you want to establish the positive cash flow that allows you to save. It doesn’t matter if you want to save for retirement, college education, or a vacation to Disney World. If you’re living hand-to-mouth and constantly playing catch up with your debts, then you’re never going to make it happen.

I know how hard it can be to do this, though, especially if you’re trapped in a mortgage after being laid off. The job market is in the toilet, and many people have been forced to take on jobs that pay less than what they were making when they took on their current lifestyle. While paying down (and completely eliminating) your debts is an important part of any successful financial strategy, increasing your income can have an equally positive effect.

I’ve put together a collection of methods you could use to generate some extra income on the side, without having to quit your day job. They’re not all suitable for every reader, but there’s something here for everyone.

Make Extra Cash without Leaving Home

All of these suggestions require a computer and an internet connection. Seeing as you’re already reading this post, you’ve got them covered.

Collect Interest from a High Yield Savings Account

If you’re not stashing your spare cash in a savings account that pulls in at least 1% interest, then you’re not making as much money as you can. Of course, putting your money in a high yield savings account isn’t the best way to grow your nest egg, it provides far more liquidity than most other investments, and there’s usually no minimum to open an account. You could also consider banks that offer interest-bearing checking accounts.

Freelance Writing

Thanks to sites like Hubstaff Talent, Media Piston, and Demand Studios, it’s easier than ever to start making money as a freelance writer. Heck, you don’t even have to be that good (I’ve seen some of the work that comes out of these places, and some of it is just god-awful!). The rate of pay can be miniscule, especially if you’re not a fast typist – but it won’t cost you anything to get started, and you could realistically earn some money today.

Sell Your Old Junk on eBay

This is, of course, an old-school, tried and true method to make some extra cash. Of course, if you don’t know what you’re doing, you could end up wasting a lot of money on fees. Before you delve into the world of buy-it-now auctions and featured listings, check out eBay’s very own guide to successfully using their service.

Crowdsourcing Sites

I hesitate to recommend this method, because it really doesn’t provide a solid financial return for your invested time, but it’s super easy. Sites like Amazon’s Mechanic Turk provide “micro jobs” that can usually be completed in just a few minutes.

Some jobs only pay a penny, and others may pay a few dollars. They range from performing simple searches on Google and sending in screenshots of the results, to verifying someone’s address and phone number. Check out Reddit.com’s Beer Money forum for similar opportunities to make money with crowdsourcing.

Freelance Design

If you have even the most rudimentary graphic design skills, you may be able to make some money providing them as a service. You can search sites like Elance.com or oDesk.com for available gigs. You could also turn to sites like 99designs, where clients make a request and designers compete by submitting mockups, sketches, or even finished products for the client to choose from. It’s a competitive field, but if you have some skills you could make a lot of cash. 99designs tends to pay out around $1.5 million each month. Wowza!

Freelance Web Development

It can be very tough to find people to pay for this service, but if you know how to set up a website by installing a content management system (like WordPress), then you could charge a few bucks for a few minutes of work. If you convince your clients to sign up for hosting through an affiliate link, such as that provided by HostGator.com, you could even start to build a solid stream of recurring monthly revenue that doesn’t require you to do a single thing.

And, if you’re a good graphic designer, you could combine those talents and really start bringing in some serious cash.

Virtual Assistant Services

If you don’t have any particularly useful skills, but know how to work your way around the computer and internet reasonably well, you could offer your services as a virtual assistant. VA’s handle all sorts of tasks. You can find these opportunities on sites like eLance.com, oDesk.com, and plenty more.

Start a Blog

If you have a hobby or interest that you’re absolutely passionate about, you could start a blog and eventually start making some money from it. It takes time, lots of research, and plenty of skills that you might not have right now – but some exceptional bloggers can earn tens of thousands of dollars a month.

Become an Amazon Affiliate

You don’t need a blog to make money from the Amazon.com affiliate program. If you’re looking for an easy way to start saving for a vacation, retirement, or even to help put your kids through college, you can sign up and have all of your family members buy the things they’re already buying through your affiliate account.

If you have a blog, you could make even more money by promoting your affiliate links there.

Create and Sell an Information Product

Sites like ClickBank.com serve as retail marketplaces for digital products. If you have any level of expertise in a hobby or profession that someone else might be interested in, you could create an e-book and start selling it. The good news is that other people will actually market your book for free in exchange for a commission. The bad news is that it’s a competitive marketplace, and you’ll have to work hard to get others to start promoting your product.

Fiverr.com

Can you help others with small projects? Do you have talents as an artist? Can you sing happy birthday while wearing a Minnie Mouse costume? Maybe you’re willing to hand out flyers at the local community college. All of these things have been done on Fiverr.com in exchange for a five spot. Well, actually a four spot, because Fiverr.com takes $1 from every gig you receive. It can be low-paying and grueling work – but if you can identify something that you can create quickly, or sell over and over again, you might be able to make some fast, easy money.

Make Extra Money Around the Neighborhood

All of these methods require you to actually get out there and start soliciting your friends, family members, or neighbors to hire you. The savviest among us will actually figure out how to market these services and could grow them into a full-time business.

It’s a good idea to look into your local legislation before embarking too far on any of these journeys, though, as you could get yourself into hot water pretty quickly – especially if you’re not insured.

Babysitting

Remember when you were a teenager and you wanted to make some extra money? Babysitting was often one of the only gigs you could get. Thankfully, as an adult, you’re far more trustworthy (and able to make more per hour). The good news is that you don’t need any licensing to babysit one or two kids in most areas, and you could easily make an extra $20 to $50 a night keeping an eye on the little ones while mom and dad go out for a date.

If you’re particularly enterprising, you’ll find people who work third shift and watch their kids overnight. You could make $100 to $200 a week just for keeping an eye on the brats while they snooze.

Handyman Services

If you know how to nail things to the wall, install curtain rods, caulk the bath tub, or do any of the other stuff that little-old ladies can’t do for themselves, then you’re about ready to go into business. It’s not just granny that needs your help, though. Anyone who isn’t comfortable handling these tasks on their own could use your help, and you could be charging $20 to $40 an hour, depending on where you live.

IT Support / Computer Repair

You don’t need to be a guru to make some money helping others out with their technology. You could offer your services as a computer tutor, setting up peripherals (like printers and digital cameras), or fixing minor issues. Once you develop a reputation, you’ll start being referred to new customers, and you’ll be able to make plenty of extra cash.

Here’s an article that will teach you how to turn a single visit into a recurring monthly appointment. It focuses on computer repair businesses, but could be applied to plenty of other service-oriented companies, too.

Pet Sitting and Dog Walking

Don’t like kids, but love critters? Then you could lend your services as a pet sitter or dog walker. Kennels can be expensive, charging $20 to $50 a day. Let your neighbors know that you’re available for both services and you could find yourself making some extra money pretty quickly.

Tutoring

If you have a college degree, you could start tutoring students in your area. Don’t just limit yourself to tutoring people who need help with your major, though, as you might find that you’re able to help plenty of other people. Craigslist can help you find a few jobs to get started, and there are also sites like Care.com.

Grow and Sell Organic Vegetables

If you’re already doing this, then you might as well start selling the extra vegetables you’re growing instead of giving them away. It’s also a great way for you to start saving money on your groceries, which will help to improve your cash flow situation (which is really the purpose of this article).

Even if you’re not already doing it, you could get started as long as you have some space for gardening. It can be a fun and rewarding hobby, too.

Install Christmas Decorations

You might not think it’s possible to make serious money putting up Christmas lights for people in your area. The good news is that if they’re willing to pay you to do it this year, they’re almost guaranteed to pay you to do it again next year. Some people are earning a six figure income with just three months of work. There are more details about how to do it on the Savingadvice.com forums.

Tailoring and Sewing

A good friend of my mother has been offering her services as a seamstress for years. She doesn’t make a ton of extra money – last time we talked, she told me she was making about $100 a week from it – but she loves doing it. You don’t have to be a tailor to get into this gig, either. Simple hemming, sewing buttons, and patching up old jeans all fall under her area of expertise, and plenty of people are thrilled to pay her to do them.

Start Cleaning Houses and Offices

I have two close friends that make a decent amount of money providing cleaning services. One only handles small, residential jobs. The other started out the same way, but eventually found her way into cleaning doctor’s offices. She conferred to me that her average contract is worth about $25,000 per year – and only takes three to four hours of work each week.

Haul Away Junk

If you have a pickup truck, cargo van, or something bigger, you can start offering your services as a junk hauler. Your primary customer base is going to be real estate agents that focus on foreclosures, but there are plenty of other people who need this service, too. If you pick up a small trailer, you might even be able to haul away old cars and make some cash by selling them to local scrap yards.

Direct Sales

Avon. Mary Kay. Team Beachbody. Amway. Herbalife. Regardless of how those companies make you feel, the reality is that every year their independent direct sales agents bank millions (if not billions) of dollars. If you can get involved and figure out how to position yourself as a go-to person for what they supply, then you can start generating easy money on the side.

Bring Home Extra Bacon with Part Time Jobs

We’re not all interested in starting a business, and many of us just need a little extra money to help us pay off a bit of debt or to hit a savings goal. Some of us are looking to supplement our income from self-employment while receiving benefits. If that’s you, you might want to consider grabbing one of these part time jobs.

Deliver Pizzas

Did you know that some pizza delivery companies reimburse their drivers $2 for each pizza they deliver? Did you know that most customers who order pizza will tip their delivery person $1 to $5? When you add the minimum hourly wage, you might be surprised to learn that some pizza delivery drivers make as much as $50 an hour. Sure, that’s in the higher range of the spectrum, but even pulling in an extra $25 an hour with a part time job is a good start.

Become a Bartender

While you might need some experience to get the best bartending gigs in your town, it’s possible to bring home some serious coinage serving drinks. Consider the fact that the average tip is $1 or $2, and you could see how a bartender could make a few hundred bucks on a busy Friday night.

Wait Tables

Noticing a trend? The best part time jobs for anyone hoping to make some real money are those that involve collecting tips. It’s easy to get a job waiting tables, but it’s not so easy to do so at a restaurant that’s likely to generate serious amounts of tip money. Even at your local Longhorn Steakhouse, though, you should expect to make $10 to $30 an hour in tips.

Deliver the Newspaper

I really hesitated to make this recommendation, as it requires a lot of time and effort to make any substantial amount of money delivering the paper – but I know a few people who are doing it. You’ll have to pick up a large route for it to make sense, and that will require you to use your vehicle. Make sure you do the math and make sure it’s worth it.

The good news is, you’re likely to be the most reliable applicant for the position, considering the fact that the majority of your competition is 14 years old.

Work at Starbucks, Barnes and Nobles, Wegmans, Costco, or Whole Foods

It can be incredibly difficult to get a job at one of these places – and there’s a good reason for that. Most of them start offering benefits, (401k eligibility, paid sick days, and health insurance), as long as you work at least 20 hours a week. They also generally pay more than minimum wage for those starting out, and some even offer substantial employee discounts.

What Are Your Thoughts?

If you have any experience with any of these methods for making some extra money, we’d love to hear from you in the comments below. If you have other ideas that have worked for you in the past, share, those, too!

I’ve seen plenty of articles written on ways to save money. I’ve got a few problems with the average “X ways to save money” list, though. First, a lot of the suggestions are just down-right disgusting. I’m sorry, but no matter how badly I want to save a little bit of extra money this month, I don’t want to switch to reusable diapers.

Second, most of the lists provide the same, boring tips, over and over again. While many of those tips are valid, they’re rarely presented in a way that actually helps you understand how to implement them effectively. Which brings me to my third point – few of them are actionable, and even fewer are designed to help you track your improvements and inch towards true progress.

Sure, if you’ve read articles like this before you’ll find that I’ve got a number of similar suggestions to those you’ve already read. But I’m going to present them in a logical, actionable order. I suggest you print this list out and cross each one off as you implement it.

That won’t work for all of the items, though – like packing your lunch, drinking water, or making sure you keep your tank full.

So, here’s how to use this guide the most efficiently:

• Start with the “things you can do today” and implement them.
• Move on to “things you can do this week” and implement those, too
• Go through all of the “things you can do this month” and put them into practice
• Cross off anything that’s “once and done” such as cancelling newspaper subscriptions, magazine subscriptions, and cable
• Proceed to the sections “spend now, save later” and “lifestyle changes” – prioritize anything that you can afford to take care of right away, and plan on implementing anything else that might require some time and effort
• Review the list weekly, making sure that you’re staying on course and maintaining good habits.

If you do this, it’s virtually guaranteed that you’ll start saving anywhere from $100 to $2,500 a month (or more, although that would surprise even me!).

1. Cancel your newspaper subscriptions – newspaper subscriptions are entirely unnecessary. You have the internet, and the same articles and features are probably available for free.
2. Cancel your magazine subscriptions – just like newspapers, this stuff is available online. You might have to find new, web-based publications to replace hobbyist and niche publications, but they’re out there. There’s even a forum dedicated to being a pizza delivery guy.
3. Stop paying for cable – the cost of cable is just absolutely insane. With sites like YouTube, Hulu, and Crackle, you can get your mind-numbing entertainment for free on your computer. With Hulu+, or Netflix, you can stream an unlimited amount of movies and TV shows for as little as $8 a month.
4. Say no to Starbucks – I hate to say it, but you should know better. If you’re buying a $5 drink every day, you’re spending a lot of money. Even $1.25 is too much for coffee. Just make your own and bring it to work in a thermos. Folgers really isn’t that bad.
5. Pack your lunch – if you’re buying lunch every day at work, you’re spending a lot of money. Just start packing your lunch, and you’ll cut your expenses down drastically.
6. Drink water – if you’re used to buying gallons of iced tea, sweet drinks, or juice, you’re used to spending a ton of money at the grocery store. They’re even more expensive at restaurants. Learn to love drinking water and you’ll not only save a few bucks, but you’ll improve your health, too.
7. Ask for a discount wherever you go – I used to know a guy who sold cars. He joked that people don’t negotiate when buying a gallon of milk, so why should they negotiate when buying a car? I “negotiated” on the next gallon of milk I bought. The clerk checked their circular and found a coupon. Ask for a discount wherever you are and no matter what you’re purchasing, and it will add up.
8. Stop carrying excessive amounts of cash – I can’t tell you how much money you’re going to save when you stop carrying cash (and credit cards and debit cards). You’ll prevent yourself from making impulse purchases, which could add up.
9. Loose change pickle jars – I also can’t tell you how much money you’ll save by keeping a jar near the front door and emptying your spare change into it when you get home. After a month or two, you should have at least $20, though.
10. Stop paying the idiot tax – if you play the lottery, you’re throwing your money away. Sure, it’s fun once in a while, but if you make a habit out of it you’re spending at least $15 a month, and probably a lot more.
11. Always search for coupon, discount, or promo codes when shopping online – you’ll save a ton of money if you stop before completing your order and search the internet for discount codes. For instance, if you’re buying something on Amazon.com, stop and search Google for “Amazon.com coupon codes” – right now I see about ten, ranging from $5 off to 10% off your entire order.

Things You Can Do This Week

1. Shop your insurance rates – If you haven’t shopped your insurance providers for a while, you’re probably overpaying. Your provider isn’t motivated to tell you when you qualify for new discounts, and many have policies that prevent you from taking advantage of the best discounts without opening a new policy. The same is true for homeowners insurance, renters insurance, and plenty of others. Get on the phone (or online) and start shopping your rates this week.
2. Reduce your insurance coverage – what’s your deductible? What kind of coverage do you actually have? Do you even need all of it? Make sure you adjust your coverage amounts to what you really need, and you’ll save big time.
3. Negotiate your cell phone bill – This will only work if you aren’t locked into a two year contract. Get on the phone with your cell phone provider either way, though. Even if you can’t negotiate the rate, you can reduce the level of service you receive and save some serious change.
4. Negotiate your internet bill – you might have to tell them you’re going to cancel your program, and they’re going to play hardball, but if you spend enough time working at it you could have your rate reduced. In some cases, they may even throw in a month or two of free service.
5. Negotiate interest rates on credit cards and loans – How much are you spending on interest every month? Are you making all of your credit card and loan payments on time? If so, get on the horn and ask for lower rates. If they tell you it’s not possible, tell them you’ll just pay the whole balance off in full – that’s not what they want! They need you to keep paying interest in order to profit.
6. Stop paying for bottled water – If you drink water regularly, you should stop buying bottled water. You can pick up a self-filtering bottle, or get a filter on your tap at home and save plenty of money.
7. Stop buying paper towels ($10 to $50 per month) – the larger your family is, the more money you’re spending on paper towels, and they’re expensive! Save the environment and your cash by replacing them with towels. You can pick up a few for the same cost as a month’s worth of paper towels.
8. Use powdered drink mixes – depending on how many gallons of juice or tea you’re drinking, you could save a lot of money by mixing your own.
9. Maximize employee matches to retirement funds – this isn’t going to give you more liquid cash every month, but if you’re not making contributions to the point where you’re maximizing employer matches, you’re leaving money on the table.
10. Plan efficient routes for necessary errands – you won’t waste as much gas. Load up Google maps and plan the most efficient route possible.
11. Keep your tank full – Fill your tank before it hits half-full. You’ll save in two ways: your fuel pump works more efficiently when your tank is full, helping you get more MPGs. It’s also less likely to die from being overworked. Don’t forget to keep your tires properly inflated, too.

Things You Can Do This Month

1. Refinance your auto loan – this is especially appropriate if you had bad credit when you got the loan. Credit unions offer the best rates.
2. Refinance your mortgage – this works for the same reasons listed above.
3. Learn to check sites like craigslist.org or freecycle.org before buying things – anything that you could buy second hand could be available on craigslist.org or freecycle.org for free. If not, you can probably find it much cheaper.
4.  Use your online banks automatic bill pay to avoid late fees – paying late fees is just crazy. Even if you have the money, though, you might just forget (I’m notorious for procrastinating). With automatic bill pay, you’ll never pay another late fee again.

Spend Now, Save Later

1. Upgrade to a tankless water heater – also known as “on demand” water heaters. They reduce the energy expenses associated with keeping a full tank of water heated, and as an added bonus, ensure you always have hot water.
2. Switch to CFL or LED light bulbs – they’re super efficient. LED bulbs last the longest and are the most expensive. CFL’s are a nice middle ground, providing similar savings to LED’s with a lower up-front investment.
3. Install motion sensors instead of light switches – instead of remembering to turn lights off as you go from room to room, install motion sensors that can do the job for you.
4. Upgrade your thermostat – switch to a learning thermostat that can automatically adjust the temperature based on when you’re home, and you’ll save big money. Also, stop keeping it so hot in the winter and just throw on a sweater.
5. Upgrade your insulation – when was the insulation in your home installed? What’s the u-factor on your windows? They could be inefficient, allowing hot and cold air to escape your home, increasing your utility expenses.
6. Buy gifts year round – instead of buying gifts when you need to, keep your eye open for sales on things that would make great gifts. This is especially helpful if you have children in your life.

Lifestyle Changes

1. Assess the true cost of childcare – while many of the items on this list would make for good articles, this is the one that would benefit from it the most. If you’re living with your partner and both of you work, take a good long look at how much you’re bringing home after paying for childcare. You may find that it makes sense for one of you to quit your job and ditch the childcare.
2. Ditch the car payment – if you’re stuck with a car payment now, you’ll have to wait to implement this one. Buy used cars with cash and ride them until the wheels fall off. Put some of the money you save into a “future car fund” and only pay in cash to avoid interest fees on loans. Hondas and Toyotas are commonly recognized as the most reliable vehicles on the road.
3. No more pets – if you have a pet now, this won’t help that much. Commit to having no more pets and you’ll save a ton of money on food and vet fees.
4. Learn to make your own household cleaning products – vinegar is an amazing resource and can serve as an all-purpose cleaner. There are plenty of other cleaners you can replace with home-made alternatives, too.
5. Get a roommate (or rent a room to someone else) – if you live by yourself, or have a house that’s big enough to allow you to rent out an extra room, you can reduce your living expenses by a few hundred dollars a month. Split the utilities to maximize your savings.
6. Stop shopping for designer brands – go to the thrift store or by store-brand clothing whenever possible. You’ll save a lot of money.
7. Stop going to big chain grocery stores – they’re overpriced. Aldi’s is an international discount grocery store, and most of their products come from the same plants as the name brands you love. You can feed a family of four with less than $100 a week shopping there.
8. Only go to the grocery store after eating, and with a list – if you’re hungry you’re likely to buy more. If you don’t have a list, you’ll fall victim to impulse buys. Shop after eating dinner and only buy what’s on your list.
9. Shop your cupboards before shopping the store – before you even head out to the grocery store, take inventory. You may have enough at home to provide meals for a few days.
10. Learn to stockpile foodstuffs – whenever you find great sales stock up. This will reduce trips to the grocery store (saving you time and fuel) and also maximize your savings.
11. Switch to generic brands whenever possible – I like Digiorno pizzas, but I found that Giant has a pizza that’s identical – and about 1/3^rd of the cost. There are plenty of other examples, but I’m sure I don’t have to list them.
12. Develop a dining menu – know what you’re going to eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day. Know what snacks you plan on eating. Stick to the menu to avoid eating through your stock before scheduled.
13. Reduce your consumption of meat – meat is expensive. Find vegetarian alternatives, and you could save anywhere from $50 to $100 a month.
14. Eat leftovers – a few containers can go a long way when it comes to saving money. Don’t throw food away – it’s like flushing money down the toilet.
15. Never buy another book – go to the library or check project Gutenberg, instead.
16. Buy clothing off-season – need a new coat? By it in the spring. Need a new bathing suit? Buy it in the fall. They’re on sale, because the retailer needs to liquidate their inventory and make room for the next season’s expensive clothing.
17. Stop using credit cards – they enable impulse buys and the interest is too expensive.
18. Learn to love extreme couponing – I’m sure you heard of this before. Some people can buy a week’s worth of groceries for $4. While I can’t imagine being that “extreme” learning how to use coupons efficiently can save a ton of money.
19. Develop a budget and stick to it – know what money is coming in and what needs to go out. Budget a line item for entertainment, and one for an emergency fund. Everything else goes into your savings account.
20. Pay yourself first – budget a line item for paying yourself, first. This guarantees that you build a savings, no matter how long it takes.
21. Stop smoking, drinking coffee, drinking, and doing other drugs – I shouldn’t need to mention this at all, but plenty of people imbibe. Give up these habits and you’ll save a ton of money.
22. Go to bed earlier – instead of keeping the lights on all night, turn them off and get to bed. You’ll save some cash.
23. Cancel your gym memberships – jog or ride a bicycle instead. Gym memberships are almost always overpriced, and most people who have them don’t even use them.
24. Grow your own vegetables – you won’t save a ton of money, but you’ll eat healthier and reduce your produce costs. You can also sell some of the extra vegetables or give them away as gifts.
25. Learn to can your vegetables – canning is popular among homesteaders and frugal-living experts. You can take all of the extra produce your garden produces and save it for a virtually indefinite period of time.
26. Grow your own flowers – they make great gifts, and you won’t have to buy them at the grocery store. This is especially easy to do if you’re already growing your own vegetables.
27. Make your own greeting cards – greeting cards are expensive. You can find free templates online and print them at home for pennies. A similar, less-personal card from the department store is going to run $1 or more.

Perhaps the term ‘prepaid credit card’ is a misnomer, but it is a common one. Many people view prepaid debit cards as credit cards, because they are used so similarly.

The real difference between a credit card and a debit card, of course, is that with the former you are borrowing money and with the latter you are using your own money held within the bank which has issued your card.

A free prepaid debit card is almost a hybrid between the two: it doesn’t have to be issued by your bank, but you must have deposited the funds into the card account in order to be able to use it.

You can withdraw money from an ATM, use the card in stores or to make online purchases, and pay restaurant or even utility bills with it.

Why use free prepaid debit cards?

There are lots of reasons why you might want to open a prepaid card account.

First they are great for budgeting purposes: If you are a little lax with your accounting and find yourself overdrawn every month, then using a prepaid card will stop you from overspending.

A traditional debit card will guarantee spending up to a certain limit on a per sale basis. If this limit on your card is, say, $50, then you could go into 10 stores and spend $50 in each without your card being refused. But you’ll be $500 overdrawn if you didn’t have that money in your account.

When you are spending with a free prepaid card, you can’t go overdrawn. If you max out your spending, your card payment will simply be refused.

This is great if you want to give your card to someone else. How about your child going to college? You can give him, or her, a card to spend your money, knowing that they won’t overspend. It’s a great way of giving but still staying in control, while at the same time teaching your son or daughter about budgeting (often the question “can I have some more money?” is as tough to ask as explaining why your credit card balance is so far out of bounds).

Then there are those people who can’t get a regular banking account, or just don’t want one. Your salary can be paid into your prepaid card account, and you’ll never go overdrawn.

And, of course, if you’re like me, you’ll hate carrying too much cash. It’s not the thought of being mugged that scares me, it’s the idea I might pull out my cash from my pocket and drop a few bills. Carrying a card, and making payments from it, is far more convenient.

Obtaining a prepaid card

Opening an account with a card provider is easy. There’s no credit check, and most providers will clear you and accept your application immediately. Then you simple ‘charge the card up’ by making a deposit, and away you go.

So, there are a lot of benefits of prepaid cards and they are easy to open. Yet some will still charge you. To use your own money! If you’re going to use a prepaid card, make sure you opt for one of the free prepaid debit cards on the market today. Here’s my selection of the best:

Green Dot Prepaid Master Card

There are no bells and whistle attached to this card: it simply does what it says. There are monthly fees, but not if you make 30 purchases or more, or you pay in at least $1,000 to load your card. The online sign up is a simple procedure, and once loaded you can make free withdrawals at ATMs all over the country. There’s also free online bill paying.

American Express Prepaid Card

You wouldn’t expect the king of cards to be absent from the market, and American Express doesn’t disappoint. No fees. Well, almost. You won’t pay any fees on purchases or other transactions, and there is no monthly membership fee. And even though there is a great 24 hour customer service, you won’t be charged for this, either.

You also have protection on all your purchases made with the card, roadside assistance, and plenty other benefits. The only drawback is that ATM withdrawals will cost you $2. But who need cash, anyway? And there is usually a signing up giveaway: at the time of writing it’s a $10 gift card if you sign up with a $50 deposit.

READYdebit Visa Prepaid card

You are guaranteed to be approved for this card, and there will be no credit check. You don’t even have to make a deposit when you sign up for the card, though there is a $9.95 activation fee to use it.

Any transaction you make where you need to sign is free, and there is access to cash through the ATM network. You can make direct deposits or load cash at over 50,000 locations across the nation, as well as pay your bills online.

Pink ACE Elite

The Pink prepaid debit card really is something special. When you sign up, part of the $9.95 fee is paid to breast cancer research charities. And it’s the same with any purchase you make: it’s the card that keeps giving to the National Breast Cancer Foundation.

You can get to your salary or government check a couple of days early, but there are plenty of transaction fees levied: to avoid these, sign up for the $5 per month plan, though you’ll have to deposit $500 each month, too. Cash withdrawals from ATMs are free.

In summary

Free prepaid debit cards are a great way of carrying the security of plastic without the temptation. Many give extra benefits, such as purchase insurance and roadside assistance, and others give to worthwhile causes. If you want to make sure your child’s college allowance is not overspent, then this could be a way of doing so.

But be warned, not all prepaid debit cards are free. Do a little research, consider how you spend and what you want from a card, and you’ll find the best one for you – some will even allow you to personalize them with your own photo. A free prepaid card, no fees, and an identity card all in one: available in 30 seconds online, anywhere.

Online accounts are a part of everyday life for savings needs of many of us – they offer better rates of interest and are more easily managed. Deposits can be made electronically, and regular deposits can be set up from one account to another.

Becoming more common now, and following on from the popularity of online savings accounts, are online checking accounts. They give us much that a bank cannot. You can review your transactions and account balance at any time, even when you are on the move, make bill payments online, and have no need to stand in line at an overcrowded branch or conduct your business at ATMs in the view of prying eyes.

You save on time, gas, and stress.

But the one big drawback that many have with online checking accounts is the difficulty of paying ion cash and checks. Your monthly salary doesn’t cause much of a problem: it can be paid into your online account just as easily as a branch account.

Contrary to many misconceptions, though, most online banks now accept deposited checks, and offer several ways for you to make those deposits. Even though the fine details of how each banks runs their particular deposit system, the methods follow one of a small number of general methods

Here are the ways that the main online banks accept checks as deposits:

Ally Bank

When you open an online account with Ally Bank, it will send you a number of postage paid deposit envelopes. All you have to do is send in your check and the deposit will be processed. However, Ally also allows you to scan a check and then send them the image online, and accepts this as the deposited amount.

Capital One

Similarly, Capital One lets its 360 account customers deposit checks using a mobile deposit feature that does the same job as Ally’s scanning facility. If you really want one, you can also have a check book to make payments from, too.

EverBank

EverBank has taken a step or three further than Ally and Capital One. Like Ally, it offers postage paid envelopes for you to send your checks in. And like both, you can scan and email checks, though you do have to enrol in its online check deposit system first. Over and above these methods, however, it’s also possible to make a check deposit into your EverBank online account through an ATM. However, this is a limited service across the country, so you may have to check online first to see if there’s an ATM near you that will allow you to do this.

FNBO

FNBO is probably the most primitive of the online banks in terms of accepting check deposits. They’ll only accept them by post, and you have to supply the envelope and pay the postage.

PerkStreet

Again, PerkStreet accepts postal deposits of checks, and you’ll get a bunch of their envelopes when you sign up for your account. You can also use UPS free of charge, and this means you benefit from next day delivery.

Scanning your check

The method for scanning and sending your check is fairly similar across all online banks:

1)      Sign the back of the check, and scan both sides

2)      Create a jpeg image of the check

3)      Sign in to the bank’s system

4)      Upload the check images

5)      Enter the amount of deposit and your account details

6)      Keep hold of the check until you have confirmation of deposit, and it shows on your account

In summary

There’s no reason to not benefit from using an online checking account. It saves time, effort and money. The time you can use to spend with your family rather than at the bank.

Online banking offers you greater flexibility of use, more privacy, and you can make payments and deposits in the comfort of your own home. Of course, the online banks won’t accept cash, but you wouldn’t send that through the post anyway, would you? If you do have cash to deposit, then you’ll need to deposit it into a branch based account and then wire the funds through to your online account.

It may not be long before checks are a thing of the past, but while they are still with us it’s good to know that they can be deposited into your online checking account. While scanning and sending may seem awkward at first, it’s actually simple and means the money hits your account balance quicker.

However, if you have receive regular payments by check – for example from a particular customer – it may be worth pointing out the benefits of making a direct deposit, in exactly the same way that an employer would do.

Whatever method you choose, isn’t it good to know that you no longer need to stand in line at the bank and all your banking can now be conducted in the privacy of your own home?