If you spend a lot of time travelling, then it can feel that you spend a lot of your time stuck on trains and planes unable to do useful work. There’s no need for that to be the case, with wifi now available on an increasing number of trains and planes, there’s no need to be unproductive when you’re on the move. We’ve put together a list of things you can do to generate a little extra cash when you’re on the move.

Market trading

A word of warning before we start here. You should only get into the world of trading using money that you can afford to use. It’s important to be aware of the risks that you might be taking as part of your investment and remember that in some cases, your losses can exceed your initial deposit.

You can start trading with a relatively low amount of money by using a service like CMC markets. These websites cut out the middle-man and allow you to buy and sell shares, bonds and other assets directly. You’ll be in direct control of everything you buy and sale and most transactions will be carried out almost instantly after you send the instruction. The days of waiting hours for your orders to be executed are now gone. Ultimately, with a little research, you can trade the market successfully. It wouldn’t hurt to know how to use a tax calculator though as any newly generated revenue will have to be reported.

Thanks to the success of BitCoin and other cryptocurrencies in recent years, many people are starting to look at investing in other, non-traditional assets. It’s well worth remembering that this can carry even more risk than other types of investments. There is little regulation in these areas and you can have little recourse if something goes wrong. However, if the risk suits you, then it’s easy to get involved in this type of trading online.

Take online surveys

You’re not going to become rich by taking online surveys but it can be an interesting way of passing time and making a few extra pounds every month. There’s a huge range of survey sites out there, all of which offer slightly different incentives and rewards. Some will pay out in cash, others will offer gift cards or loyalty currencies like British Airways Avios. Most surveys taken between around 15 and 40 minutes, so it’s easy to get through a few during a plane or train journey of a few hours. Taking multiple surveys can get a bit tedious as the topics don’t tend to change much. You’ll find you get asked a lot of questions about alcoholic drinks, business IT purchasing decisions and your travel patterns. Nevertheless, it’s a good way of keeping yourself occupied whilst you’re out and about.

The things to avoid

We’ve all seen articles online about how people can make thousands of dollars a day by working online. You’ll probably not be that surprised to discover that these articles hardly ever tell the whole truth. The individual case mentioned might be true in itself, but it’s often because the person in question got involved in a pyramid scheme or something else that’s generally regarded as non-savoury at the right time. Be very wary of any scheme that requires you to invest or put a certain amount of money down before you can get started. Whilst you may not be risking a large amount of money, these systems often rely on a large number of people losing a relatively small sum and not bothering to complain about what’s happened to them. Stick to the old mantra ‘if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is’ and you’ll keep yourself safe. Make sure that you are careful with any financial details that you hand over. Your bank will generally cover you if you’re caught in an online scam but that covers sometimes does not apply if the bank decides that you haven’t taken enough care.

Hopefully, we’ve demonstrated a few ways that you can make money online when you’re out and about and given you the confidence that you require to get started. You’re not going to become super rich with any of these suggestions but it’s a good way to generate a little extra cash to spend on Christmas, birthdays and other treats for yourself.