Are you looking for a packing job that you can do from home? Make sure you read this post to protect yourself from dubious opportunities.
There are lots of ways to easily make money from home. But are these opportunities and jobs legit? One of the most common remote jobs you’ll hear about is packing, shipping, and assembly work.
At-home packaging jobs are typically advertised as jobs where you get paid to stuff envelopes or assemble products from kits. If this sounds too good to be true, that’s because it often is.
Here’s what you need to know about at-home packing jobs, why it might be a scam, and what you should do instead.
1. Packing in an envelope
A job stuffing envelopes from home is advertised with a headline like this:
Earn $5,000 a week stuffing envelopes from home!
or
Get paid to mail letters from home
These jobs usually don’t involve stuffing envelopes at all. Instead, you’re asked to send money as an upfront fee to receive more information, then repost the exact same envelope stuffing scam ad on other websites to recruit more people.
Unfortunately, this is a common scam that many people fall for. Luckily, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Better Business Bureau both have warnings on their websites about this illegal job opportunity.
Every year new envelope stuffing companies pop up, but there are still no positive reports from people who have signed up. If you think about it, stuffing envelopes for the extra money doesn’t make much sense. Many companies handle the packaging in-house, trying to protect the mailing information of their customers and prospects. It is highly unlikely that a company will outsource this simple task.
2. Shipping and Delivery of Packages
Another common work from home scam to watch out for is shipping packages. Scammers will use stolen or stolen credit cards to send illegally obtained goods and give you instructions on where to send the package. The payout is usually listed as a fixed price per package. However, here is a Reddit account of an individual who fell for this scam and thought they could make $2,200 a week, or $40 per package.
When you apply for one of these jobs, the scammers send you the job details and a package. You unknowingly mail the package to its intended destination without receiving any payment for your service, which leaves you with no shipping costs to pay and you end up helping transport stolen goods.
According to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, these home-packing scams are common and sophisticated. Stolen packages are often traced to people who thought they were working legitimately from home. Then, when they try to get paid, the fake company can’t be contacted, or they avoid paying workers by claiming the packages were never delivered.
3. Assembly work
Another similar job to at-home packing jobs that you should be aware of is assembly work. With at-home assembly jobs, workers pay up front for the initial materials and kits. The kits contain the items needed for assembly and instructions.
The tricky part is that no matter how well you assemble it, once you send it back to the company you don’t get paid. There is always a problem with the assembly method. The assembly process itself is often very time consuming. Some workers have reported that it took them over 30 minutes to assemble a single bracelet. What these illegal companies are essentially doing is making money from the start-up kits they sell, with no intention of ever paying for the product they assemble.
4. Sending letters to companies
You’ve probably heard about a side hustle that claims you can make thousands of dollars just by writing and mailing letters to companies on TikTok. While it’s not a total scam, it’s not a smart way to spend your time making money.
First, here’s how it works:
According to The Game Day, online casinos must legally offer a way for players to receive free Sweeps coins, and they do this through offers sent by mail: Consumers can visit these online gambling sites and write a letter with very specific details to request free casino play coins (usually between $5 and $10).
To get started, you will need to purchase envelopes, size #10, stamps (currently $0.73), and blank 4×6 unlined note cards. Then you will need to spend time handwriting these letters and sending them out. Once you receive your credits (not cash), you will need to use them to play online casino games, which can be very addictive.
How much money can you actually make?
For example, say you get a $5 credit at the casino and then cash it out after a few spins on the slot machine. You’ve already lost $0.80 on envelopes, stamps, and note cards, and you’ve lost another $1.50 in time playing. So you’ve only made $2.70 for your time. Now, to make $1,000 a week, you’d have to send an average of 370 letters each week.
While some people may be making money from online gambling, let’s be realistic. Casinos are in business to make money. According to Investopedia, “Some of the games played in casinos have a statistically low chance of winning, making gambling a poor option for people looking to boost their income.”
Also, many of the people advertising this as a lucrative side hustle tend to sell you online courses that will teach you how to make money this way, so you end up losing even more money if you buy the course. It’s best to skip this and focus on opportunities that won’t cost you more money to make big bucks or waste your time trying to hit a jackpot.
How to avoid work-from-home packing job scams
Work-from-home scams are common, but they’re not impossible to spot. In fact, there are some clues or red flags that can warn you of illegal work-from-home jobs. Keep these in mind as you consider remote work opportunities to avoid wasting unnecessary time and money up front.
Ads that claim to make a lot of money quickly
One person who fell for a home packing job scam was told they could make $1,500 a week. This sounds a little too good to be true. When a job promises you a large amount of money for completing a simple task, such as packing and mailing packages, you should ask yourself why or how you could afford to pay someone to do such a job.
Ambiguous job descriptions
When reading a job ad, it’s important to know what the job entails. If the language used strays from the main purpose of the job and how you’ll actually make money, it’s probably not worth taking the job.
No website or bad reviews
Stay away from job ads that don’t direct you to a genuine website, and even if the company’s website looks professional, search for reviews online to see if it’s a legitimate opportunity.
Initial cost
Generally, you don’t have to pay a fee to start working. This is true even for work-from-home jobs. If you’re asked to pay a fee or buy a startup kit, that’s a red flag. Some legitimate companies may charge you for things like criminal background checks. Read this article to learn more about fees and what is and isn’t legitimate.
Hiring others is a must
In a MLM business opportunity, you not only sell products but also recruit others to join your team, but there is nothing like that in an envelope stuffing scam. The only way to make money is to recruit others for the same scam, and this job is completely illegal. Sure, there are jobs out there where you can earn a commission by recruiting others, but this should not be the only way to make money.
Legitimate work-from-home jobs to consider instead
It’s fair to say that at-home packing is not a legitimate opportunity or worth your time.
But what if you’re still looking for a similar way to make money from home?
Earn a little extra money
There are plenty of legitimate ways to make extra money in your spare time. Short-term task jobs like Byron, Gigwalk, Rev, and DataAnnotation Tech might not make you a ton of money, but the work is relatively easy and flexible.
You can also fill out surveys or participate in focus groups. Many of these side hustles can be done from your mobile phone. These tasks won’t make you rich, but they’re an interesting way to make some extra money in your spare time. Check out these platforms: ProlificSwagbucks, InboxDollars, Survey Junkie, Branded Surveys, Respondent, and more to start with.
Get a full-time work-from-home job
If you’re looking for full-time work from home with a competitive salary and health benefits, there are plenty of remote job openings in a variety of roles, including customer service, data entry, and administrative services. Companies like Apple, American Express, U-Haul, and Williams Sonoma offer individuals the opportunity to earn a steady income while working from home. Check out this master list for legitimate companies hiring now.
Make and sell arts and crafts
Consider creating your own crafts or digital products and selling them on Etsy. Etsy takes a small commission on each sale, but the site already has a built-in customer base, gives you a virtual storefront, and makes it easy to collect payments. If you’d rather sell products rather than create them, consider joining a direct selling company.
Ship Amazon products
While this is not a remote job, Amazon is always hiring people to sort items and pack orders at their local fulfillment centers. Amazon fulfillment centers are popping up in different areas. Check the website to see if there are openings at a center near you. Schedules are flexible and pay is around $20 per hour.
Final words about at-home packing jobs
Finally, a word about at-home packing jobs: if you come across a remote job that seems suspicious, don’t ever apply or pay for it. Check the reviews and look out for red flags. If you take a few minutes to research, you’ll find negative reviews from others who have been scammed.
Instead, stick to carefully vetted, legitimate work-from-home jobs like those we’ve featured in our other posts. Subscribe here to get bi-weekly remote job offers sent directly to your inbox.
Originally published on September 8, 2021. Content updated September 2024.
