Top ten ways to make £18 in 30 minutes

Checking your finances and conducting a 30-minute money 'work out' can leave you £18 richer every week. Here are the top ten ways to do it.

Spending just 30 minutes a week looking over your finances and working out a proper budget can apparently save you nearly £1,000 a year, according to research from cashback website Quidco. That's the equivalent of £18 a week, just for half an hour's work.

The main barrier to cashing in on this extra money is apathy and our reluctance to openly discuss money and our finances.

However, our motivation to get to grips with our cash and save money is changing. Before the recession, for example, only 1% of people would consider using a discount voucher, whereas now 89% regularly use them.

So what’s the best way to go about using 30 minutes each week to boost your finances?

1. Discount vouchers

Going to somewhere like Pizza Express and not having a voucher is criminal to me, and luckily there are so many discount voucher websites around that you’ll never be stuck in this situation.

If you get to the restaurant and realise you’ve forgotten to print off the precious voucher, there’s also online codes and apps which can be used to get a discount.

2. Cashback websites

A relatively new phenomenon in the moneysaving world, cashback websites such as Quidco and TopCashBack literally pay you for shopping via them, so if you buy a lot of things online it’s really a no-brainer.

Quidco says you can make £280 a year by using the site and it’s also got a smartphone app which will pay you money (albeit a relatively small amount) just for ‘checking in’ at a participating retailer.

3. Reward points and loyalty schemes

Points certainly do mean prizes and 98% of us are frequent loyalty card and points hoarders. 62% of us use our loyalty points to buy items. Signing up to a shop’s loyalty scheme doesn’t take long and is an easy way to build up points which can be redeemed at a later stage.

With the Tesco Clubcard, for example, for every £1 spent you’ll get one point and for every 150 points you collect you’ll be sent a £1.50 voucher to use in store. If you do a weekly family shop and spend an average of £150, that’s £6 a month you’ll be rewarded with.

4. Selling online

There are lots of websites for selling your old stuff online, such as eBay, Amazon or Gumtree. Before you kick off check out the fees charged and make sure you incorporate postage costs.

Selling online can be a bit hit or miss so make sure you take good, clear photos of your items and list as much detail as possible to have a better chance of selling your stuff.

5. Recycle your old phones

As a classic hoarder, I've got a lot of junk in my flat including several old mobile phones. Instead of leaving them to collect dust, I had a scan last weekend on the mobile phone recyling websites and made myself £100.

When you enter in the details of your old mobile the website will give you an approximate quote for it. If you agree to this price a confirmation letter, along with a padded envelope, will be posted out.

It's then up to you to send off the old models. Once they are delivered to the company you'll get an email confirming the amount which will be deposited in your account.

If you want to make even more money, our piece on the best ways to sell or recyle your old mobile gives you step-by-step instructions on how to maximise your profits.

This works for a range of different objects, including old CDs and DVDs, so if you're having a proper clear out see what you can make, through selling or recyling, before throwing it out or sending to the charity shop.

6. Making your own

Bringing in a packed lunch is an easy way to save money. The average sandwich in Pret comes in at £3 and that’s before you add a drink, crisps or a cheeky cake. Buying a loaf of bread with a few basic ingredients, or bringing in left overs from the night before, should save you around £20 a week.

7. Buying second hand

Charity shops, car boot sales, school fetes and estate sales are all places to pick up some great bargains at greatly reduced prices. It might be harder to find exactly what you’re looking for but head out early, before the other bargain hunters, and try and hit these outlets before the weekend for the best chance of securing something good.

8. Shopping around

Comparing the price of a TV for example in several different shops and areas can help you shave off pounds from the final price. Instead of wasting time travelling to lots of different shops, an app like Red Laser can give you this information instantly.

Budget supermarkets, where 38% of us are now shopping, are also a good way to save money. While you might not be able to find your favourite brands, you’ll save pounds and you may discover a new favourite item. For example, a 400g pack of Chedder cheese from Aldi comes in at £1.99 whereas the same size pack from Sainsbury's is £3.10.

9. Modern technology

Smartphone apps exist for just about anything at the moment but only 14% of us are using them to our advantage.  Used on a monthly basis you can make an average of £110 a month through apps so instead of spending your time trying to finish Words With Friends, dedicate some of it to finding a bargain.

Whether it’s saving money on travel, food, petrol or eating out, you can bet your life there’s an app for it.

10. Reward credit cards

If you had the chance to make money on every purchase you make with your credit card then why wouldn’t you? Well you can do exactly this with either a cashback or a reward credit card. They work as you’d expect – getting either a percentage in cash or discount vouchers every time you spend.

Don’t make the mistake of running into debt just to get the benefits though. Instead use your reward card instead of your debit card and then pay if off each month. Then you’ll get the benefits without having to pay any interest.

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