Earning money by playing video games is a great way to make some extra cash when you’re free. We’ve got different ideas, from easy ways to make money at home to making gaming your full-time job. You don’t have to be an expert gamer to earn – but if you are, some tips will help you more! You’ll find an idea that fits what you’re looking for to make some money.
How To Get Paid To Play Video Games:
1. PLAY GAMES ON SWAGBUCKS TO EARN
Swagbucks is a cool website and app where you can earn money by playing games, doing surveys, watching videos, and more. When you do these things, you earn SB points. The more tasks you do, the more points you get. These points can be turned into gift cards or real money through PayPal. If you want to know more about how Swagbucks works, you can read a review about it.
On Swagbucks, there are lots of games to play. But remember, it’s best to avoid games where you need to spend money to have a chance to win, like casino or bingo games. However, there are games on Swagbucks that don’t need any money to play.
Before you start playing a game, check how you can earn SB points. Sometimes, you might need to download an app, reach a certain level, or finish the game in a set time.
There are free online games that you can play without downloading, but it’s important to know that you might not earn SB points every time you play them.
The good news is, if you’re new to Swagbucks and sign up using a special link, you can get a bonus when you join. This is a nice perk for new users.
2. STREAM GAMES ON TWITCH
Twitch is a website where people show themselves playing video games. If you’re a Twitch streamer, you might be able to earn money by doing this. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but for those interested, it can be a way to make some extra cash in your free time.
To get people to follow you, you’ve got to keep posting new and interesting stuff regularly. If it’s just videos of you silently playing a game, it might not keep people watching – and they won’t pay to see your streams.
If you’re excited to try, there are many ways to make money on Twitch. Some ways include getting bits (which is Twitch’s own money), joining special Twitch programs, and doing affiliate marketing.
How much streamers earn changes a lot. Some of the biggest Twitch stars make a ton of money, but not everyone earns that much. We talk about all of this and more in our complete guide about making money on Twitch. It has lots of details that can help you understand better.
3. BECOME A VIDEO GAME TUTOR
Interested in sharing your gaming skills and making money? You might consider working as a gaming tutor. It’s a flexible job that can easily fit around your university schedule.
One good way to start is by putting yourself out there on platforms like Fiverr and Superprof. Look around these sites to see what other gaming tutors are charging and what games they specialize in. It helps to know the market.
When choosing the games to teach, think about the ones popular in big competitions. This could make you more appealing to people who dream of becoming pro gamers.
If your own dream is to become a pro gamer, there’s more to explore in the next tip.
4. COMPLETE GAMING TOURNAMENTS TO WIN CASH PRIZES
To make money as a pro esports gamer, you need to be really good at playing games. Some competitions give out big cash prizes. For instance, in 2022, Dota 2 had a prize pool of around £27 million!
But these big tournaments are super competitive. Even if you practice a lot, there’s no guarantee you’ll win any money.
Sometimes, you might have to pay to enter these game tournaments. So, if you want a steady income as a student, a part-time job might be a safer choice.
But if you’re lucky and get an esports scholarship, it could help cover your competition costs.
5. APPLYING FOR ESPORTS SCHOLARSHIP
Esports scholarships are quite rare, but they do exist. Take the University of Roehampton, for instance. They give £2,000 per year to some talented student gamers through their esports scholarships. Plus, they have a special scholarship for women in esports. You can learn more about these on the University of Roehampton’s website.
But not all universities have these kinds of scholarships. So, if you’re already in university, it might be hard to find one. However, if you’re applying to university and esports is your thing, it’s worth checking if they offer such scholarships. It could be something to think about when picking a university.
6. BECOME A GAMES TESTER
Playing games and getting paid might seem like a dream, but for game testers, it’s their job. When game companies create new games, they hire testers to make sure the games work well. Testers play the games to check if everything runs smoothly and to find and fix any problems.
You might test games on different devices like consoles, phones, or computers. After playing, you’d write a report about what you found.
Having a degree in something related to games, like games programming, can help you get a testing job. You can find full-time testing jobs on websites like CV-Library or Indeed.
If you prefer working freelance, websites like Fiverr also have game testing gigs.
7. BECOME A SOCIAL MEDIA GAMER
Combining your love for video games and social media can actually earn you money as a gaming influencer. This job isn’t for everyone. You’ll need to be okay with regularly sharing stuff on social media and good at gathering a bunch of followers online.
It’s a bit like what we talked about earlier with making money on Twitch. If you like the idea of showing your gaming experiences to others, this could be your thing.
You can earn money from TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube by sharing gaming stuff online. It could be game tips or funny videos that gamers would find relatable, or a mix of both.
Starting out, it’s smart to see what other gaming influencers are doing on these social media platforms. This will give you a good idea about what kind of content works best.
If you want to know how to make money from your content, our guide about making money from social media has some useful tips.
8. WRITE REVIEWS FOR VIDEO GAMES TO EARN
Working as a video games journalist is an awesome way to bring together your gaming skills and writing abilities to earn money doing something you love. There are two main ways to make money in this field: freelancing or working full-time.
But, just starting out, it might be tough to make money, especially from writing reviews.
Starting a video games blog can be a great idea. You can talk about your favorite games, share thoughts on the latest news, and events in the gaming world. Once people start reading your blog, you can find ways to make money from it.
When you have a blog, it can help you when you want to write for magazines or newspapers, or when you’re applying for journalism jobs. It shows off your writing skills and your genuine passion for gaming.
If you’re eager to learn more about making money by writing reviews, you should check out our guide on making money from writing. It has lots of helpful tips.
Writing about games can be a lot of fun, and it’s great when you can make money doing what you enjoy. There might be some challenges at the start, but if you keep at it, your love for gaming and writing could turn into a job that pays.
9. DESIGN VIDEO GAMES
Designing your own game is a cool idea. If you have a game plan and know how to make a website or an app, it can be a way to make money. Plus, it’ll make your resume look awesome. Even though this isn’t exactly about making money by playing games, being good at playing games can really help when you’re creating one.
Making the game will take some time, but once it’s ready, you can start making money from it. You can charge people to buy it, have stuff to buy inside the game, or put ads in it.
To figure out how to make money from your game, check out other games like yours. See if they cost money to play, if they have ads, and how they make money. This will help you decide what might work best for your game.