The internet is bursting with ways to add to your income – some of them take little to no effort at all.

Personal finance expert Jasmine Birtles from MoneyMagpie is all too aware of the so-called "experts" who consistently push new ideas on us.

But your "best friend when it comes to all things money", MoneyMagpie has tried all of these and, believe us, they work! 

Who is MoneyMagpie? 

Founded by TV personality and money expert Jasmine Birtles (Homes Under the Hammer, GMB, This Morning, BBC News plus many more), MoneyMagpie has been helping millions of people make better financial decisions for over a decade.

With daily deals, investment tips and hacks to save money, plus free money-saving newsletters, the Magpie team will help you with money management, accessing that infamous “side hustle cash”, and provide constant amazing giveaways and competitions – all on MoneyMagpie.com and additional social media channels.   

Here are five top tips to help you increase your income whilst surfing the net.

  1. Cashback  

Put simply – you shouldn’t be spending money online without getting rewarded for doing it.  With cashback schemes, you literally get free money. 

Find a reputable cashback site or app and simply shop through that.

There is often £5 free sign-up money and then you earn money back from every single spend. Some work when shopping on the high street too.

The ones we use are: Hyperjar, Quidco, TopCashback, Jam Doughnut and Curve – each vary in how they work... but each one made us cash returns.  

2. Selling stuff 

Let's just say that we think selling the stuff you don’t want online is a great way to turn trash into cash.  

There are more and more specialist sites around that will help you get a good price for your items.

But if you however just want a quick sale and some fast cash, without travelling to a car boot sale, there are also plenty of safe options online.

For quick cash for books try WeBuyBooks; for selling clothes quickly try Vinted, DePop and sometimes eBay; for larger stuff like furniture or electronics Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree are the best for finding local buyers.

3. Affiliate income  

Affiliate income is the commission that you can earn when people click on particular links on your website or social media and then buy something from the seller they’ve clicked on. 

Whilst you may think this is for influencers only, it is absolutely not.

Once you set yourself up as an affiliate on your chosen website, you can share links with friends, in groups on social media and in any way you can think of.  

We have found that this works best when you find a really good deal.

Set yourself up as an affiliate on their site and you’ll get a unique link to share for people to make a purchase.

Every time someone buys via your link, you get commission.

MoneyMagpie is your best friend when it comes to all things money. MoneyMagpie is your best friend when it comes to all things money. (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

4. Look for Lost Bank Accounts 

This is cheating a bit because it’s not quite making money, although it feels like it.

You may have a nice little stash of cash in an old bank account or savings account – maybe one your gran set up for you back in the day – that you’re completely unaware of.

Go to Mylostaccount.org, fill in your details (for free) and let them do the rest.

They will search bank records and let you know if you have any dormant accounts somewhere that have pots of money in them. 

5. Refer friends 

Did you know that loads of companies offer money to you and to your friend if you refer them to your friend?

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Over 5,000 companies and apps offer referral codes, like Octopus Energy, which offers £50 cashback if you sign up with a referral code and £50 to the person who gave you the code. 

Revolut gives a £70 referral fee, Virgin Media gives up to £60 credit and British Gas gives £50, while Wealthify gives £50.

If you sign up to Referralcodes.com you can create your own page of referral codes then send that page to your friends and followers and make money every time they sign up to something using your codes.