How to Turn Spring Cleaning into Cash

It’s springtime! The gentle breezes and longer daylight hours inspire a wave of deep cleaning and decluttering — and it’s time you joined in or ramped up your efforts.

This spring, don’t just clean. Make money off your junk by selling your unwanted stuff via online selling sites and apps.

Sell old clothing on ThredUp

As you clean out your closets and start weeding out all the stuff that’s hopelessly out of style or you’ll never fit into it again, make a pile of your nicer things that are still in great condition to sell on ThredUp. The site is geared toward better secondhand clothing, and everything you try to sell will have to meet its standards.

If you’re ready to sell on ThredUp, let the site managers know, and they’ll send you a “Closet Cleanout Bag” to pack it all up. If your clothing is worth less than $60, they’ll pay you for it as soon as they’ve processed it in their warehouse. If you have some designer clothing worth more than $60, you’ll be reimbursed when the item is sold through the company’s site. Use the money you make on ThredUp to shop on the site, or have ThredUp send you cash through PayPal.

Sell unwanted jewelry on Worthy.com

Whether it’s your clunky old jewelry you can’t stand any longer or holdovers from a past marriage, there’s a way to get rid of it all and earn some good money while you’re at it. Worthy.com will sell your old rings, bracelets, necklaces and earrings made from gold or platinum, with or without diamonds.

To sell on Worthy, you’ll have to send the company an image and description of the jewelry you want to sell, and it will evaluate it based on your description. Mail the piece with a prepaid shipping label, and Worthy will clean and photograph the piece, and then set a fair price for the item. Your jewelry will then be set up for auction on Worthy.com. If a bid you’re happy with is reached, the site will sell the jewelry and transfer the funds to you. If the bidding stays low and fails to reach the price you were hoping for, you can change your mind and ask to have your item back. There are rules you’ll need to follow with Worthy, so see the full breakdown here.

Make good money off your unwanted furniture through Chairish

Your dated dinette set might be an eyesore to you, but there’s someone out there who will be thrilled to pay you for the honor of taking it off your hands. Chairish.com is an online public marketplace that specializes in used and vintage furniture in excellent condition. There is no price to list your items, and you’ll get to keep up to 80 percent of the selling price. You’ll set your own “reserve price,” or the minimum amount you’re willing to accept, which buyers won’t be privy to. Once a buyer makes an offer that matches this price or beats it, the offer will automatically be accepted.

Why not let your ancient furniture make someone else happy while earning you good money?

Sell or swap your gift cards on Gift Card Granny

As you work your way through the clutter in your home, you might find one or more gift cards for shops and retailers you never frequent. Sell or exchange them on Giftcardgranny.com for up to 92 percent of their value.

Sell kids clothing and toys to Kid to Kid

Kids can outgrow their clothing and toys almost faster than you can buy them. Kid to Kid is a secondhand shop with locations all over the country that will give you cash or store credit for your child’s old clothing, toys, shoes, books, movies, costumes and school uniforms. You can even sell your maternity clothing and baby gear you no longer use, like strollers, high chairs, bassinets and changing tables.

Sell kids and baby wear on Swap

If you can’t find a brick-and-mortar consignment shop near you, you can sell your outgrown baby and kids wear on Swap.com. Let the company know that you’re interested in selling, and it will send you a pre-paid shipping label to stick onto a box that you fill with your unwanted stuff. According to the site, sellers earn an average of $150 per box.

Sell or trade unused sports equipment on Swap Me Sports

Sports equipment can cost a lot of money — especially when it’s for a game your child loses interest in after just one season. Make some of that money back by selling or trading your child’s unused sports gear at SwapMeSports.com. You’ll have to pay $5 to join the site for 30 days, but if you have decent stuff to sell, you should earn that money back several times over before the month is up. You can also buy gently used gear for your child’s current sports interest or donate your unused equipment to less-fortunate folks who can’t afford to purchase new or used gear.

How did you turn your spring cleaning into money? Share your tips with us in the comments.