Make up to £1,000 by Christmas: We show you how

The festive season is always an expensive time of year, with giftgiving, parties and meals out. The last thing we want to do is spoil the most wonderful holiday festivities by worrying about money. Blogger Emma Drew* says, ‘I’ve created a 10-week challeng

1 ONLINE SURVEYS Did you know that you can earn money by providing your opinions on a wide range of topics, from politics to new products? Completing online surveys, like Prolific Academic and OnePoll, won’t make you rich, but they’re one of the easiest ways to earn extra cash. You can complete them on your commute, or even from your living room.

2 MYSTERY SHOPPING Getting paid to shop sounds like a dream come true – for most of us – and companies such as Market Force really do employ mystery shoppers to go and assess the quality of services, or products in stores or restaurants. You’ll get your purchase reimbursed and a fee for going.

3 DECLUTTER YOUR HOME December is the perfect time of year for a good old clearout to tidy up and make room for family visits and new gifts over the festive season. Find items that you and your family no longer use or want, and sell them on eBay, Facebook selling groups, apps like Depop, Mercari or Gumtree. You’ll be surprised at what sells, too – even old VHS players do well!

4 FREE LOTTERIES There are a handful of websites that offer free cash prizes every day just for logging on to their pages. You simply sign up and visit every day to see if you have won. These websites are funded by adverts, so it’s important that you visit daily. The prize pots vary from £5 to £800 per day. Some popular free daily lottery websites are Free Postcode Lottery and Badger The Button.

5 MOBILE MONEY Making money from your smartphone is easier than you think. Simply upload a photo of your receipts to Receipt Hog to get points, which can be converted to PayPal cash or Amazon gift cards. Or play SnatchHQ, a virtual treasure hunt where you win anything from Now TV passes to cash.