Side hustles are an excellent way to earn extra income while working at your day job. They’re also a great way to learn new skills and develop valuable experience. Your financial goals are completely dependent on the amount of money you bring in. You can only pay off as much debt or save as much money as your income allows. And if you only have a single income from a single job, you may find it difficult to save money, get out of debt, or even make ends meet.
One of the best things about the current era is the infinite number of ways you can make extra cash without having to work overtime, pick up a second job, or start a full-fledged business. Side hustles allow you to make extra money on your own schedule, sometimes even at your own rate.
What is a side hustle?
A side hustle is paid work that you do outside your primary job. Some side hustles can be done right from your home, using a computer or smartphone. Others may require you to leave your home and provide a service for others. Some require no upfront money at all. Nearly all side hustles do require some creativity, patience, and dedication.
Why side hustle?
Picking up a side hustle is a great way to earn more money to build your savings account, pay off debt, fund retirement, save for a vacation, or just have some extra spending money.
There are also people whose side hustles grew enough that they were able to leave their full-time jobs.
Interested yet?
Here’s a list of a variety of side hustle ideas you can start easily to earn extra money.
(1) Sell Things You Already Have
If you have something lying around the house that you no longer use, consider selling it online. You can sell anything from old clothes to books to electronics. Sites like eBay and Amazon make it easy to list items for sale.
If you want to get started with a side hustle, there’s nothing stopping you from selling things you already own. For example, if you have old clothes lying around, why not sell them online? Or, if you have books sitting around, why not turn them into ebooks? The possibilities are endless.
(2) Freelancing
Put those writing, graphic design, or web development skills to use by offering your services as a freelancer.
As a freelancer, you have the ability to take on projects from multiple clients. You can accept the projects you want and set your own rates. You can use a site like Freelance.com, Upwork.com, or Fiverr.com to get started. Then, as you gain more experience, create an online portfolio that you can use to market to other clients.
(3) Post on Social Media for Small Businesses
Startups and small businesses have a lot to gain from having an active social media presence. However, many of them don’t have the time or expertise to effectively manage their social media accounts. If you’re good with certain social media platforms, say Facebook and Instagram, you can offer your services to businesses. You can charge a weekly or monthly fee to post on their pages a certain number of times each day or week.
(4)Become an Airbnb Host
You can earn money from the extra space in your home by listing it on Airbnb.com. This is a great option especially if you live in a city with high tourism. With renters every weekend, you may be able to generate enough side money to pay your mortgage.
(5) Drive For a Ride-Sharing Service
You can sign up with Uber or Lyft and use your free time in the evenings or weekends to drive people around. All you have to do is let the app know where you’re going and it will show you riders along your route. You have the option of accepting only the riders that fit your route.
(6) Sell on Amazon
By signing up for Amazon’s FBA (fulfilled by Amazon) program, you can make money by selling bargains you’ve uncovered in your everyday shopping. You can open a free Amazon seller account, then download an app to your phone that you use to scan items and see how much profit you’ll make by selling that item. Another option for selling on Amazon is to find private label products that you rebrand as your own and then sell.
(7) Sell on Etsy
If you enjoy making unique hand-crafted goods or you have the inside scoop on supplies for hand-crafted goods, selling on Etsy – an online marketplace – might be a good side hustle for you. With a niche product and great photography, you can set yourself apart from other sellers and make money through your creative passions.
(8) Complete Online Surveys.
Want to make some extra money just providing your opinion? Sign up to do online surveys through a company like Swag Bucks, Survey Junkie, InboxDollars, or CashCrate. You can set up a new email address just for surveys – otherwise, your primary inbox will be cluttered with survey invites. You can complete surveys while you’re watching tv in the evenings or while you’re waiting for an appointment. One of the best things about online surveys is that you don’t need any money to get started.
(9) Become a Virtual Assistant
A virtual assistant helps entrepreneurs and other individuals with things like social media management, email marketing, content creation, updating blog posts, bookkeeping, and other online tasks. They also provide customer service, research projects, data entry, proofreading, transcription, and other services. You don’t need any specialized skills, but a background in sales or marketing may be helpful if you’re pitching to help with social media or email marketing. You can set your own rates and choose your own clients. Look for work on Upwork, People Hour, or Zirtual.com, or set up your own website advertising your services then search for your own clients.
(10) Babysitting
Babysitting is one of the most versatile side hustles and it’s easy to start. You can register with a service like Care.com. Or you can offer your services to family and friends with kids or ask for referrals. You can babysit evenings or weekends. Some parents may even have early morning needs.
Side Hustle Tips
This isn’t an exhaustive list. There are many, many more ways to generate additional income through a side hustle. Even if you didn’t discover your dream side hustle here, hopefully, your creative wheels are turning and you can come up with something that better suits your skills and schedule.
You may not get a pay stub or statement from your side hustle, so it’s up to you to keep track of how much you’ve been paid. You’ll also have to be diligent about how you manage your side hustle income, ensuring you don’t use it as extra spending money.
Note: the money you earn from a side hustle may be taxable. Consult with an accountant or professional tax preparer to find out how you should handle the income from your side hustle.
This is a good list to start and I am always on the lookout for some good side hustles. I have tried a few of these and will explore some more options