I Spent $250 AUD on AI Tools to Try Making Extra Money — Here’s What Happened in 30 Days

A month ago I decided to run an experiment. I had $250 saved up, some free time in the evenings, and a lot of curiosity after reading dozens of stories about people “making money with AI.” I wanted to know if it was real, so I decided to spend the money myself and report exactly what happened.

Important note: this is my personal experience, not a guarantee of results.

The starting point

I’m not a programmer and had no prior marketing experience. I work part-time and wanted to see if I could generate extra income using existing AI tools. My rule: spend a maximum of $250 on subscriptions and use that first month to try to land real freelance clients on Fiverr and local small-business Facebook groups.

Where the $250 went

• ChatGPT Plus — $30 AUD/month, for writing and client proposals
• Copy.ai (Pro plan) — $60 AUD/month, for ad copy and social posts
• Canva Pro — $17 AUD/month, for visual packs and thumbnails
• ElevenLabs (Starter plan) — $8 AUD/month, to test AI voiceovers

Week 1: trial and error

Just practice — comparing ChatGPT and Copy.ai. No money made this week.

Week 2: the first replies

I reached out to about fifteen small local businesses. Two replied. One became my first client: an online craft shop needing twenty product descriptions. I charged $120 AUD, delivered in a day and a half.

Week 3: finding my niche

A second client asked me to manage their Instagram for a month: $190 AUD using Copy.ai and Canva. I also tried ElevenLabs to narrate a short video — unpaid, but a useful portfolio piece.

Week 4: the tally

Job	Tools used	Income
Product descriptions	ChatGPT	$120
Social media management (1 month)	Copy.ai + Canva	$190
Voiceover sample (unpaid)	ElevenLabs	$0
Total		$310 AUD

I spent around $250 AUD on subscriptions and recovered more than that in the first month. Not “easy money” — but I covered the initial spend and set up two repeat clients.

What I learned

No tool did the work for me — they removed the slowest parts. What made the real difference was time spent learning the tools and actively finding clients.

Would I do it again?

Yes, and I’m continuing into month two. If you’re thinking of trying it, start with the free versions of ChatGPT and Canva before paying for anything.

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The results described are a personal experience and do not constitute a guarantee of income.