Earning money online is possible. However, it's not easy as it sounds. When I first started, I was baffled by the number of choices and the material that I found on internet. Plus there are lots of people trying to sell you e-books and other material which will apparently make you millionaire withing a few weeks.

Let's be realistic. Yes there are tons of ways of earning money online. You need to know how many ways are there before you can decide which one is for you. So before you buy a package ; read this hub.

Cashback Sites

Cash back sites have become quite a popular way of earning a little bit of extra money. They pay you to shop as well as search and register to free sites. There are numerous cashback sites out there, but you have to be careful and check the site's reputation before you join. I have joined quite a few sites that promised to pay, but decreased the balance as soon as I reached payout.

QuidsCorner.com

QuidsCorner.com is a cashback site for UK, US and Canada. They have a large number of offers and pay users once a month. I have been paid by them quite a few times, and they provide great support too.

Join QuidsCorner.com

ClicksVista.com

ClickVista.com is another cash back site but it only accepts members from US and Canada. I love the design of the site. Their minimum payout is $5 and they pay really quick too.

Join ClicksVista.com

Paid Surveys

Getting paid to take surveys is by far a very popular way of earning money online. Market Research companies hire people to participate in consumer surveys through online panels; and reward the members for their time with either cash or points. These points can be redeemable for cash, vouchers or prizes, depending upon the complexity and length of time it takes to complete the survey. A list of the prizes can be found on the website. Some online panels also send free products for you to test and provide feedback, and you get to keep and use the product for free!

The registration in free in these online panels. Once you sign up with them, you will be asked to fill in your profile details. The details that you provide help them decide whether you are the targetted consumer for a particular survey or not. Depending upon your profile, you will get invitations to participate in surveys through your email address. The email will also tell you what your reward will be for taking the survey.

If you have spare time in your hands, and want to earn some extra money or get free products, you can participate in these online panels. There's no definite number of surveys that you will get, so there's no definite amount that you can earn per month. But if you become an active member of a number of panels, you should be able to earn good amount.

If you decide to earn money through online paid surveys, get a new email address. Since you will become a panel member of lots of online panels, it's good to dedicate an email address to them and make sure you never miss a survey.

The paying survey panels that I use are:

1. Lightspeed ResearchPanel

Panel members are rewarded points which are redeemable for cash! Lots of surveys available and payments are made regularly.

2. QNA Surveys

QNA Surveys pay £5 to £10 worth of Amazon vouchers for taking surveys. They also pay you £5 for referring friends who take their first survey. Surveys are fairly straightforward and you can also opt to donate to charity.

3. Toluna (rewards points for surveys, polls and opinions; points can be redeemed for vouchers e.g. Amazon, Sainsburys and more). I opted for a Sainsbury's voucher.

4. MySurvey: My Survey pays you either nectar points or Amazon vouchers for taking surveys. I normally convert them into nectar and then shop at Argos.

5. Ipoints (Reward site but pays for surveys too; can be redeemed for vouchers: Asda, Boots, Sainsburys)

6. Global Test Market (Panellists earn market points for taking surveys, minimum payout at 1000 market points which are equal to $50 and paid via check).

You can find a complete list of paid survey panels that I use on this squidoo lens: Get Paid to Take Surveys

Get Paid to Write

If you enjoy writing and can write reasonably well, you can earn money for writing about anything or everything. You can sell your content at certain sites (e.g. Associated Content, Constant Content) or simply publish your articles at ad revenue sharing sites (hub pages, squidoo). The ad revenue sites pay you a percentage of profit earned from the advertisements placed around your content. The good thing about using these sites is that they attract a lot of traffic and you're likely to earn more from advertisements.

Get Paid to Review

Again, this is similar to earning money through writing, the difference being that you're giving your unbiased opinion on a product/service in a review. Ciao and Dooyoo are some companies that pay you for writing reviews; the payment again depends upon the product/service reviewed, number of visitors it attracts, and other factors.

One of the biggest online consumer communities is Ciao! Members are paid to share their views regarding products and services as well as paid for taking online surveys. Get Paid to Review with Ciao.

Mystery Shopping

Mystery shopping agencies hire people to shop secretly for them. Mystery shopping is done to evaluate the services of the company/ retail outlet/ showroom. Mystery shoppers evaluate the service and then report back.

Register with the mystery shopping agencies to become a mystery shopper. You will be sent assignments; and get paid to complete them.

Get Paid to Blog

I started blogging as an experiment, without really knowing what a blog was. The experiment turned into a hobby, and I enjoy blogging quite a lot. I have created three blogs and earn through blogging by writing sponsored posts.

Sponsored posts are posts that advertisers want bloggers to write about the service/product they are promoting. For these posts, you earn money. The amount you earn depends upon the popularity and quality of your blog.

Blog advertising networks connect bloggers and advertisers and keep a percentage of your earning for writing the sponsored post. This is a small percentage in most cases. To get your blog approved by the network can be a bit difficult, but once approved, you can take opportunities and begin earning money! The best blog advertising network in my opinion is ReviewMe, but there are many others. Read more about How to Full time income with Blogging.

Get Paid to Advise

Share your expertise to earn money. There are lots of people out there who are looking for advice on a number of subjects. There are websites (bitwine, ether) who connect people looking for answers to experts. Sign up with them and earn money for giving advice.

Get Paid to Refer

Get paid to refer friends to relevant jobs. Yes, recruitment companies pay you to refer friends who you think are best suited to a particular job advertised. If you friend is recruited, you earn good money! The recruitment company JobTonic tops the list.

It is possible to earn money online, that's true. But it takes time and effort. And ofcourse, persistence. It's a long journey, but is it worth it? I will let you decide.