So, you want to move out of the US but you don’t have any money to make your move a reality? Unfortunately, having some savings is kind of important for starting a new life elsewhere, even if you’re just paying for your flight ticket initially.
That being said, there are definitely ways to move out of the US with minimal money. Let’s dive in and find out how you can move away from America without having to save a ton of cash.
8 Ways to Move Out of the US with No Money
1. Move to a Country Nearby
First things first, if you don’t have a ton of money upfront, you’re likely going to be moving to a country that’s nearby. Think Canada, Central America, or the Caribbean. These are all going to have much cheaper flights, and this is a cost you kind of can’t avoid.
With Canada and Central America, you can even road trip across the border to save money, and that way you have transportation in your new home and you can bring more stuff with you than if you were flying.
Unless you can secure a job that includes airfare, like teaching abroad or some summer camps, you’ll want to minimize your search area to keep travel costs down.
2. Find Jobs that Include Accommodation
When you’re moving abroad, one of the biggest costs is your accommodation, so if you can have that included as part of your job, it makes your move a lot cheaper and a lot more viable.
Here are a few of my accommodation-inclusive favorites.
3. Try Workaway or Trusted Housesitters
If you’re looking to get abroad and find a job and accommodation quickly, Workaway is a great place to start. Essentially, it’s a site that allows you to work in return for accommodation and sometimes food.
You can pick from thousands of gigs from construction to language skills to website work to hospitality to farming and more. Sometimes you can find paid gigs on this site as well, they’re not super common though.
Trusted Housesitters is a site where you can stay at someone’s house while they are away in exchange for watching their house or sometimes their pet. It’s a great way to travel the world for free!
4. Find Resort Work & Seasonal Jobs
If you’re looking for something more tourism-focused, resorts are always hiring for the season whether that’s a beach resort, surf camp, ski resort, or more.
Roles include hospitality, sports instructors, kids club assistants, chefs, cleaners, and more. Sometimes you can get accommodation included, and normally the hiring team at the resort will help you with your visa too, which is always a massive bonus.
5. Work at Summer Camps
Similar to resort work, moving abroad for the summer to work in a kids’ camp can be a cost-effective way to experience living overseas. You normally need to apply in September – November of the previous year to get an interview and have enough time for all the paperwork to go through.
Despite the long lead time, you end up with a paid job, including accommodation, visas, and often airfare. It’s a super cheap way to live abroad!
6. Teach Abroad
If you want to live abroad for more than a summer but are good with kids and have English as your native language, you might be able to get a job teaching abroad.
It’s a classic move abroad career for a reason. Depending on the location and school, you can get flights back home every year, a decent salary, teaching materials, accommodation, visas, and even language lessons and social outings with the other teachers.
Get your official TESOL certificate here to help you be more competitive on your resume.
7. Become an Au Pair
Do you have a background in childcare or babysitting? You might be able to work as an Au Pair.
It’s basically working as a nanny, so you live with your host family, looking after the kids, getting them ready for school, events, dinner, bed – all of that kind of stuff.
Depending on the age of the children, you may be expected to help with homework or extracurriculars.
As you’re living with the family, you’re not paying for accommodation or food, and you receive a small salary of around $800 a month. It’s not huge, but you also don’t have a ton of expenses.
8. Work in a Hostel
If you want to save on accommodation costs but don’t want to deal with kids, consider getting a job in a hostel. You can meet travelers from around the world, work shifts that allow you to explore the area, and stay for free.
You might also get reduced rates on food and drink in the local area or staff rates on the tours running out of the hostel. Whether you work at the front desk, as a cleaner, in the bar, or anywhere else, this is a pretty social job.
3 Tips to Move Out of the US with No Money
To wrap up, here are some final tips for moving abroad with next to no money.
1. Bide Your Time for Deals
If you’re looking to move really far from the USA, keep your eye on the flight deals and prices. You can set up alerts for specific routes so that you don’t have to manually keep checking the flights.
Sites like Skyscanner and Kiwi are great for comparing flights and giving you a ton of different options.
2. Be Open to New Experiences
It’s easier to move abroad with limited funds if you’re open to new experiences. Your dream job in your dream location might not be viable just yet, especially if it requires flying halfway around the world.
Living abroad is always a great experience where you can learn a ton.
In my experience, you can leapfrog from different overseas roles and positions once you know what you like and don’t like about a place and a job. Try it all and see what sticks.
3. Flexibility is Key
To save money, flexibility is essential. If you’re tied to a date or specific location, flights can be expensive. For example, traveling on a Tuesday or Wednesday is always going to be cheaper than the weekends or Fridays.
Similarly, school holidays are a no-go. Prices of accommodation and flights all go up during vacation periods.
Some locations have different peak periods. Mountain resorts are often busy in Winter and Summer, but Spring and Autumn are less busy. If you can arrive or leave during the quieter periods, you can save a huge amount of money.
Related Posts:
- Why and Where Are Americans Leaving the United States of America?
- Best Countries for Americans to Move To
Vanessa Wachtmeister
Vanessa Wachtmeister is a travel tech professional and the creator of the wealth & wanderlust platform, Wander Onwards. Vanessa is originally from Los Angeles, California, she is a proud Chicana, and she has been living abroad for the last 9 years. Today, she helps people pursue financial and location independence through her ‘Move Abroad’ Master Class, financial literacy digital products, and career workshops.
