Side Hustle Guide: 60+ Ways to Make Extra Money in 2021

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Last updated July 7, 2021

Are you looking for a side hustle? Then you have come to the right place!

What if you could bring in an extra $100, $500, or $2,000 a month to pay down debt, save more money, or treat yourself a little? Working a little side hustle is one of the best ways to earn extra cash quickly and put you on the fast track to improving your current financial situation.

I’ve been side-hustling since 2010. The extra money helped when I was a poor, single college student, a mom of 2 trying to get my husband through college, and when we were paying off $71k of debt as a family of 5.

Finding the right side hustle for you can be overwhelming. What if you can only work from home because you have little ones, you don’t have the energy to start your own business from scratch, or you don’t want to sell products to your friends on Facebook? I get it! The good news is there are plenty of side hustle opportunities for everyone, no matter what your unique circumstances and preferences are! You just have to know where to find them.

That’s why I spent months researching and compiling this Side Hustle Guide for you! These are great side hustle ideas, and I’ve written out tips on how to land gigs and helpful notes on each one so you can quickly see if it’s a good fit for you! I am confident this guide will help you find the perfect side hustle!

This post has also been updated in 2021 and takes into account changes that have been happening in our country. These side hustles are all still valid!

As you read this guide I hope you are encouraged to take the plunge on a side hustle, or find a new idea you had never thought of before!

Let’s get to making some extra money!

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What kind of side hustle are you most interested in?

Click one of the topics below to go straight to a specific section. Or, keep scrolling to read through them all!

25 Work From Home Side Hustle Ideas

21 Out and About Side Hustle Ideas

6 Part Time Jobs That Make Great Side Hustles

9 Side Hustles That Use Your Unique Skills

25 Work From Home Side Hustle Ideas

1. Babysitting/Nannying (at your house)

This is perfect if you’re a stay-at-home parent and have the ability to take on another kiddo to bring in some extra money! Find babysitting jobs through care.com. It’s free to sign up and create a care provider profile! I scored a nannying job through care.com in 2015 and I’ve used it to find care providers for my own kids before too! It is excellent. You can also find great babysitting jobs through word of mouth.

2. Offer Date Night Babysitting (at your House)

Tell your friends with kids that you are offering date night babysitting at your home! Set a time, price per child, and max amount of kids you can take care of! You can do this whether you have children of your own or not. Let me tell you as a mom of 3 kids who always feels awkward calling a babysitter, if someone offered their time like this because they wanted to make some extra cash I would jump on it! You can also create a provider profile and find really good gigs through care.com.

3. Teach English Online to Kids in China with VIPKid

VIPKid is a company that provides English lessons to kids in China through an online classroom. To become a teacher, you must have a Bachelor’s degree (of any kind), one year of experience working with kids (this is flexible: teaching, camp counselor, nannying, even babysitting), and a computer with WiFi. You don’t need to speak Chinese or any other foreign language, and you don’t need a teaching degree! The hours tend to be funky because you are working with kids in China via video chat, so plan on early mornings and late nights. VIPKid takes care of all the curriculum and gets you set up with teaching sessions.

I have several friends who have done this and loved it!

You can earn $14-$22 per hour, and there are bonuses (like being on time to class, teaching more classes) that will earn you extra money for each class on top of that.

Apply to VIPKid here!

For more detailed information, read my post Work from Home for VIPKid + 5 Tips to Get Hired.

4. Transcribe or Caption with Rev

Are you a good typist? Apply to transcribe or caption for Rev! Here’s how Rev works. Businesses who have video or audio that they need transcribed/captioned can get it done quickly through Rev, and Rev hires freelance people like you to do the transcription typing for them! It’s a win for businesses who need items transcribed quickly, and a win for people like you who would love to make money from home through transcribing the video and audio files! Apply here.

5. Thrifting/Reselling Clothing

Technically this may require you to leave the house to acquire your goods to resell, but it is still a very plausible job for people who need to work mostly from home! Source clothes and goods from local thrift stores like Goodwill, Savers, Salvation Army, or whatever else is local. Look for top brands and good quality items for cheap, and resell them online on eBay, Poshmark, Mercari, and so on for a profit!

6. Flea Market Flipping- Flipping Furniture and Other Items for a Profit

Turn your passion for shopping sales, thrifting, and visiting yard sales into a profitable side hustle! You can flip anything! Buy old worn out furniture, refinish it and give it new life, and sell it for a profit. Source hugely discounted clothing and shoes and resell them on eBay. There are so many things you can flip for a profit!

If you need a little training, the best teachers in this genre are Rob and Melissa from Flea Market Flipper who flip all kinds of items full time. They have a free flipping workshop to go over the basics and determine if flipping would be a good fit for you (they have other free workshops too). If you’re ready to dive in and make money, they also have a more thorough paid course called Flipper University where they teach you everything you need to know to find your niche and start flipping for big profits (and make your money back quickly). 

7. Start a Blog

There’s no doubt that blogging is an incredible job to do from home, and you can definitely make money blogging! It is so fun, creative, personal, and blogging is totally thriving right now with all the time people spend online! Blogging is real work though, and it can take time to build up your blog, social media pages, and other platforms before you actually start making money. This is my current side hustle and I absolutely love it! I am going to write my own dead honest article about starting a blog soon, but until then, here is a good article on starting a blog from a more experienced blogger.

8. Start a YouTube Channel

There are two main ways to make money on Youtube: ad sales, and sponsorships. Neither one will happen overnight, but as you build up your subscribers and views, you’ll make more money through ads and have companies reach out to you about potential sponsorships where they pay you to share their products or services! It’s a pretty fun gig if you like being in front of the camera and have great content to share!

9. Virtual Assistant (VA) for Bloggers

This is such a great option that I wish more people knew about! As blogging and small online business grow, so are their needs to hire out work they can’t handle any longer. Virtual Assisting is a booming business that is easily done from home. There are great training courses you can take to learn how to become a top notch VA and get hired by bloggers (The VA Ninja Course is a great place to start)! Bloggers and small businesses will hire you to do small tasks, bookkeeping, creative work, Pinterest pinning, email writing, and more. You get to decide what service packages you offer, your rates, and who you work for! You don’t have to offer all services, only what you’re skilled at and want to offer. To get started, I recommend taking a simple VA training course like VA Ninja (there are others as well), and then finding work through VA Facebook groups and websites like outsourcingwithlove.com, which is where I found my first VA!

10. Pinterest Virtual Assistant (VA) for Bloggers

This is just like what I mentioned above, only more specific. As a Pinterest Virtual Assistant you will manage Pinterest for bloggers and content creators. You will need to be well versed in how Pinterest works, be able to design and create captivating pins, and know how to use Pinterest scheduler programs like Tailwind. Pinterest can be a tough platform, so believe me, bloggers want to hire this out to experts as quickly as possible.

The great part is, you can train yourself on how to be a Pinterest VA anytime! Just take a course or two to build up your skills (I recommend the Pinterest Ninja and VA Ninja Course together), put together a resume with some samples of pins you’ve created, and start listing your services on Facebook groups and VA finder websites like outsourcingwithlove.com. You can also collaborate with other VAs and ask them to refer clients to you that they don’t have room for in their own schedule. There is another VA course that I recently found that is also incredible and very in depth. It’s expensive, but if you’re serious about becoming a Pinterest VA who makes good money every month it might be worth investing in. Check it out and enroll in the free “Learn How to Become a Pinterest Virtual Assistant” workshop. My current VA took this course and that’s how I found her!

11. Freelance Writing, Editing, Proofreading, Video Editing, and Creative Work

Do you have writing, creative, or editing skills that would be useful to bloggers, small and large businesses, magazines, and more? Fiverr is a freelancing website where you can both hire freelancers and find freelance jobs. So if you are a writer, editor, proofreader, graphic designer, virtual assistant, or have some other skill that can be done digitally, list your services on Fiverr. Be thorough in your bio and skill listing and show you’re a real person (and not a robot) ready to work, and you’re sure to pick up some gigs. Also check out Freelancer.com which is very similar and also amazing!

12. Sell Handmade or Digital Products on Etsy

Do you have an idea for a handmade or digital product? Start selling it on Etsy.com! It’s free to start selling and they only charge you low fees when your products sell, so you have nothing to lose. As an added bonus, people can find your products through the search bar right on Etsy. It’s easy to work, easy to sell, and easy to make money on Etsy. Make sure you take great photos to help invite people to buy your products! I have had a (very simple) Etsy shop for almost 3 years and it has been profitable for me since day one. I still make about $150 a month from it even though I haven’t touched it in months since I have my own website now.

13. Sell Products with the help of Affiliate Marketing through Gumroad

If you have a special skill, talent, or product idea you can create a simple digital or physical product and sell it on Gumroad! Gumroad is a platform that lets you sell products and courses without having your own website. It’s very similar to Etsy, but has some other cool features, like letting you work with affiliates who can help you sell your products. I actually use Gumroad for my own affiliates. Affiliating is when someone else uses a special link to sell your product and they get a cut of every sale. Gumroad is legit. I even bought a cookie making and royal icing decorating course from The Alison Show through Gumroad once! It was just a PDF class, with a couple simple videos. Did I mention that Gumroad is free? Yep! You only pay small fee when your products sell. I still use Gumroad today.

14. Design and Sell a Digital Course

If you have really useful knowledge or skills, there’s never been a better time to share it through an online course! Courses are exploding right now as one of the best ways to make passive income online. You probably have special skills or some treasures of knowledge that others would benefit from. Create a course and sell it online through Teachable! Teachable is much more robust than simpler sites like Gumroad. It’s specifically designed for in-depth courses. Your course will be organized into sections, you can include text and video instruction, attach worksheets that students will work on as they go, you can track student progress, and more. It isn’t free, but if you have a willing audience you can make your money back pretty quickly with your course.

15. Write an E-Book

If you have great knowledge on an important topic, you should write an e-book! You may think, yeah, but everyone and their dog is writing e-books. Why do you think that is? It’s because they sell! You can can sell your e-book through Gumroad, Amazon, or directly on your own website. The sky is really the limit here! If you are interested in writing an e-book but just don’t know how to get started, the E-book Ninja Course is what I recommend.

16. Photography

This is a great side hustle that can totally be built into a small or big business depending on your skill level and determination! While it does require some time away from home to shoot photos, all the scheduling and editing can be done from home! Even with the advent of the iPhone, families are still looking for their special moments to be captured by a professional. Many people have a tight budget and so even if you are a beginner, you can make money with discounted introductory rates. You need to invest in a good starter camera (try Facebook Marketplace), a lens or two, some training, and some editing software, and then you’re ready to go!

17. Pet/Dog Sitting and Boarding

If you have some house space and don’t mind pups for guests, you can run a sweet little pet sitting and boarding side hustle from home. Owners are always looking for loving individuals to watch their pets while they go on vacation or work trips. This could also involve house calls for people who don’t need their pet watched full-time, but just need them to be checked on and fed. The easiest way to get started is to sign up as a pet sitter on Rover.com! It does all the hard work for you and you get paid 2 days after completing a service. You could also set up your own business and advertise through word of mouth, but it will take a little more up-front work.

18. Dog Training

If you love dogs and are interested in a more intense side hustle with potential for great growth, consider dog training. My friend Becca’s family was struggling with low income when they adopted a dog that was out of control. She sought out professional dog training, was amazed and intrigued by the methods, and decided to become a trainer herself. She took a professional training course, started her own business, and in just a couple short years has grown it into a thriving business with a wait list! Her growth has blown my socks off! She professionally boards and trains dogs in Charleston, SC. The best part is, she can work as much or as little as she wants. Check out her Facebook page Almost Heaven K9 Training for a good example.

19. Sell Handmade Baked Goods: Cookies, Cakes, and More

Parents, Grandparents, and even employers are always looking for baked goods for their parties and events! Fancy cakes, customized decorated cookies, and other baked goods are a huge trend right now and are in high demand. If you already have basic pastry or baking skills, practice for a while and then turn it into a side hustle! Offer custom decorated cakes and custom decorated cookies by the dozen for events! Market through word of mouth, business cards placed at local businesses, and a simple Facebook page.

20. Make and Sell Wood Furniture + Decor

The wood sign trend isn’t going anywhere! If you’re crafty, start creating unique wood signs for birthdays, weddings, baby’s rooms, kids rooms, family names, and more! You can hand paint them, use stencils, or if you have a Cricut or Silhouette machine you can print out vinyl decals and stencils in beautiful trendy fonts. Sell locally or ship. These are in high demand!

21. Make and Sell Homemade Gift Baskets for the Holidays 

During the holidays, people are always looking for unique, thoughtful, and easy gifts to give to their loved ones to show they care. If you like to shop, have a good eye for what people like, and are creative, you can put together beautiful gift baskets for the holidays and sell them for a profit! These are perfect for Christmas time where employers are looking for gifts for their employees, and excellent for Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day as well. Market your baskets within your friend and coworker groups, Facebook, Craigslist, etc. For example, make 10 gift baskets for Mother’s Day with a pair of cute socks, a movie, popcorn, local handmade cookies, and local handmade bath soaps. Make them beautiful and desirable and people will be happy to buy a ready made, thoughtful gift!

22. Rent Out Your Spare Room or House on Airbnb

If you have a spare room or travel so often that you’d like to rent your house out, check out Airbnb. Turn your spare room into a cash machine for travelers who are looking for a deal on a place to stay!

23. Participate in Focus Groups and Surveys

You can make extra cash by participating in online and over the phone focus groups and surveys. Big brands reach out to third-party research companies to do market research for them to obtain consumer feedback on their products. They need real feedback and they are willing to pay you for your time! Here are a few reputable survey companies that I recommend:

I recommend registering for all of them and seeing which one you like best and earn the most from.

Click “join now” on their websites and get registered, then follow the directions they give you to get started. They are each a little different in the way they operate and pay out. You won’t be selected for every survey, but if you are selected it’s great quick cash! Some of the surveys are on-location, so you won’t be able to do those ones from home.

24. Work for a Network Marketing Company

You probably know a lot about these already, and maybe you already know they aren’t for you and that’s why you’re reading this list for other options! I get it, but I wanted to put it on here anyway because it is still a legit side hustle idea. Younique, Colorstreet nails, 31 Bags, there are so many Network Marketing companies that will pay you commissions to sell their products for them through multi-level marketing.

The downside is selling to friends and family, which can feel uncomfortable. The upside is a ready-made business, good training and encouragement from mentors, and products people like. My two favorites that I actually purchase from are Rodan + Fields and Usborne Books and More. I am not and never have been a consultant for either one of these companies, or any other MLM, just FYI.

25. Rent Out Storage Space on Your Property with Neighbor

Have you heard of Neighbor? It’s the storage version of Airbnb! If you have extra space in your home, garage, or somewhere else on your property, make extra money by renting the space out for someone else to store their stuff. Storage is hot right now! This has got to be the easiest way ever to make passive income! List your space out and get it rented and you’ll also get a $50 bonus with Neighbor.

21 Out and About Side Hustle Ideas

Most of these side hustles involve being out and about and are not done from home, making them active, fun, and classic! These are perfect for you if you have a little more flexibility on where and what you can do!

26. Mowing Lawns/Yard work

There are a lot of busy families out there who just don’t have time to mow! If you have a truck and a lawnmower (or even a teenager who can walk around the neighborhood with a mower) you can make money mowing lawns! $30-$40 per lawn is the going rate in my city, and you can mow quite a few lawns on a Saturday morning.

27. Babysitting/Nannying (at their house)

Babysitting and nannying gigs are awesome! Most people will want you to watch their kids at their home where they have their own food, belongings, and beds. This is a great side hustle for teens, college-age kids, and stay-at-home parents with 1-2 small kids of their own. Find gigs through word of mouth, Facebook, or my personal favorite, care.com. As I’ve mentioned before, I have actually been hired from care.com (a nanny job I did for about 6 months) and hired someone else through care.com for my own kids. It is a great site for finding care gigs.

28. Date Night Babysitting (at their house)

If you’re able to babysit in the evening hours, date night babysitting is a great way to make extra cash. Trust me, parents are desperate to get out on a date (I am a desperate parent who needs a date). You could set specific nights you’re available and charge a premium price for Friday and Saturday night babysitting, or even overnight babysitting after you build up trust with your clients. You can list your services on care.com and wait for job offers to come to you! Or, spread the word through your own social group!

29. Offer Handyman Services

If you have any handy skills, people will pay you to help them with simple home projects. List your services on Craigslist, Facebook, or on more official websites like TaskRabbit! The only downside to TaskRabbit is it’s not available in all areas yet. I hope they will be expanding this year.

30. Complete Random Tasks for People via TaskRabbit

Find the randomest, but maybe coolest, little gigs on TaskRabbit! TaskRabbit connects people in need of services with Taskers like you to do everything from handyman services, cleaning, heavy lifting, furniture assembly, smoke detector installation, etc. You will need to apply and provide a background check, and then you can list your tasking services! You don’t need to be a pro! People can browse for Taskers and select you to do little projects for them! It’s genius.

31. House Cleaning

This is an awesome side hustle if you like to clean! All you need is a car, a few basic cleaning supplies, and to list your services wherever you interact with people. Many cleaning services require homeowners to provide their own cleaning supplies, so you’ll need some basic tools, but you can use the cleaners your clients provide. List your services on TaskRabbit if you’re not a pro, and Angieslist if you are a pro.

32. Drive for Uber or Lyft

Ridesharing programs like Uber and Lyft are amazing side hustles if you don’t mind driving! You will need to meet the minimum age in your state, have driving experience, and be able to provide proper documentation in order to apply. Once you’ve been accepted as a driver, you just login to the app and tell them when you’re actively available to drive. When nearby users request rides, you’ll get pinged on the app and be able to accept their request. Get more info and sign up to drive for Uber here. Sign up to drive for Lyft here. Which is better? It’s debatable and it might depend on your city, so I’d check out both and decide for yourself!

33. Donate Plasma

Donating plasma is one of the easiest ways to make extra money if you can handle needles and the sight of blood! Plasma centers collect blood plasma which they then sell to healthcare facilities that use it to treat several serious diseases. Learn more at donatingplasma.org and then do a google search for “Plasma center in my area.”

To donate, you have to meet certain health standards and have good iron levels. It takes about 2 hours, and you can make $20-40 per session, straight cash! They often have bonuses if you donate more often, too. In college I used to ride my bike to a plasma center and make some quick cash when things got tight and I needed grocery money. I could study and read while I donated. Getting poked wasn’t the most fun thing ever, but hey, a girl’s gotta eat!

34. Focus Groups and Surveys On-site

I already mentioned participating in focus groups and surveys. Some focus groups and surveys can be done from home, but many require you to go to a location and complete a study. You are more likely to find these options if you live in or near a big city. You have to register on a research study group’s site, and preferably fill out a profile. Then they can send you studies that you might qualify for, and when they email you opportunities, apply for them quick because they fill up. I know several people that do this, and it’s quick cash! One market research company I’ve worked with that does on-site research is Focus Point Global. A couple more I like are Toluna and Survey Junkie. Get your name on their lists to start receiving emails now or play around on their apps looking for available surveys. You can also read the article I wrote about Focus Point Global for more detailed information on how it works.

35. Drive and Deliver Food with DoorDash, UberEats, GrubHub, or Favor

Food delivery apps are popping up like crazy and are a great new side hustle opportunity! People order takeout straight through one of these apps, which hire drivers like you to deliver the takeout orders straight to the purchaser’s doorstep. The apps make it super easy, and most local food places have an agreement with some or all of these app companies to make ordering and picking up orders smooth and fast. Just like being a driver with Uber, you’ll need to provide proper documentation, have a dependable car, and have a clean record. The most popular companies to sign up to drive for are DoorDash, Ubereats, GrubHub, and/or Favor. The best option for you will probably depend on your area, so check them all out. My friend Taylor just started driving for GrubHub after her 9-5 job and is able to make about $40 each night for 2.5 hours of driving, half of that being tips!

35. Work a Part-time Job

They’re not lucrative, but sometimes money is money! Working part-time hours at a fast food joint, grocery store, or retail store is a simple way to make consistent money through a side-hustle. See more part time job ideas below.

36. Deliver Groceries for Instacart or Shipt

Grocery delivery is hot item, and Instacart and Shipt are the gold standards in the business. You register to be a personal shopper directly through their websites. People order their groceries from their favorite local grocery store through Instacart or Shipt to get them delivered straight to their home for a small fee. You pick up the groceries and make the home delivery! The other day I was going into Sam’s Club on a busy day so they were checking membership cards. The woman in front of me entering was an Instacart shopper, and the guy behind me was an Instacart shopper! It’s a hopping side hustle! Shipt advertises that you can make up to $22 an hour, and Instacart is probably similar. Learn more about how Instacart works here. Learn more about Shipt here. The best one for you might depend on the area you live, so check them both out.

37. Dog Walking with Rover.com

Find dog walking gigs on Rover.com! My friend Vee from @veefrugalfox made $500 in October 2019 walking dogs through Rover. Rover connects people in need of pet help with helpers like you. They have everything from dog walking, to pet sitting, to pet boarding, drop-ins, and even house-sitting gigs! It’s a great way to earn real cash if you love dogs. You’ll get paid 2 days after you complete a service!

38. Daily Dog Poop Cleanup for Busy Pet Owners

Maybe ew. But definitely $$$. Think of all the people who come home from a long days work wanting to Netflix and chill, not go in their yard and pick up their dog’s poop from the day! Many people would be willing to pay someone else to do this for them on a regular basis. You’d have to offer your services and market them, but I think you can charge a premium price for this service, because it’s a dirty job, and make bank per hour! I also think this would be a great side hustle for teens. You may be able to find gigs for this on Rover.com.

39. Seasonal Yard Work

Offer your seasonal yard work services wherever you interact with people! Think of all the elderly people, the busy dads who just don’t have time, single moms . . . so many people who don’t want to shovel their own snow in the winter! So many people who won’t want to rake their leaves in the Fall. If you have a strong back and a snow shovel or a rake, offer your services to neighbors with a little flyer and your phone number and see if you get any hits. Tell them if it snows you’ll be there and shovel the snow first thing in the morning and then send them an invoice for your services! You can also land gigs like this through TaskRabbit.

40. House Sitting

If you have a squeaky clean record and impeccable integrity, friends and coworkers will trust you to do house sitting for them. This usually just involved checking in on or staying at someones house while they are away and making sure nothing goes wrong. Owners worry about flooding, fires, and break-ins, which is where you come in! This probably wouldn’t be a consistent side hustle but you could offer it along with other services like pet feeding, yard word, etc. You can find house sitting gigs on Rover.com or HouseSitter.com, Facebook, word of mouth, etc.

41. Become a Secret Shopper

This is a perfect side hustle if you like to shop and eat, and share your experiences! My brother has done this before! Here is a really good blog post I found with more information about mystery shopping and the best companies to work with.

42. Rent Out Your Car on Turo

If you don’t need regular use of your vehicle you can actually rent it out on Turo to make some extra cash! Turo is a car sharing marketplace, basically like Airbnb, but instead of houses, it’s cars! This is perfect if you have an extra vehicle lying around, travel regularly and don’t need your vehicle, don’t drive on the weekends, etc.

43. Entertainment for Kids’ Birthday Parties and Events

I heard the cutest idea the other day, for someone who is really good at braiding to be available for hire for girls birthday parties! Something like this, “For $75/hr I will come to your daughters birthday party and braid her and all her friend’s hair! This is a very cute activity and party favor and the girls and parents love it!” There are so many other creative ways to be hired at kids birthday parties as well. If you have skateboarding skills you can hire out group lessons for birthday parties. The sky is the limit here! Parents want to spoil their kids with great fun and services, and you just have to get the word out about your services!

44. Interior Design Consultation and Shopping

Listen, I have good taste but nothing ever comes together in my house like I think it will! I would love to hire someone who just has good taste and style to do a little consultation on my interior spaces, recommend paint colors, and recommend furniture type and placement to help me pull my house together! If you have a good eye for design, you could totally turn this into a side hustle even without a certification or degree. Starting an Instagram page with style ideas and your services offered would be an awesome idea, because this can be done from home and clients can be long distance!

45. Sell Your Beautiful Photos to Stock Photo Sites

Like photography and have a good camera? Take some great shots and then sell your images online! Both Getty Images and Shutterstock will buy good stock images from you.

6 Part Time Jobs That Make Great Side Hustles

46. Fast Food

It’s not the most glamorous job, but it’s a paycheck and there’s no shame in that! Apply to places like McDonald’s, Chick-Fil-A, Dominos, etc. You don’t have to do any entrepreneur stuff or business building with these. Just show up, work, and get paid.

47. Receptionist at a Doctor’s or Dentist’s Office with Limited Hours

Apply and ask around at local offices to see if anyone is hiring. They will usually be looking for someone steady and consistent, but they may have very reasonable hours that work well with kids’ schedules or college class schedules.

48. Bartend

Must be 21+, but you can earn lots of tips! Remember that you can bartend anywhere from a full on bar to a restaurant that has a bar located within, like Applebees.

49. Waiter/Waitress

You can make great money in tips and usually work night hours so that you can still work a day job, be a stay-at-home parent, or finish up college!

50. Cashier 

Apply to be a cashier at places like Hobby Lobby, Walmart, Target, Costco, Sam’s Club, and so on!

51. Retail During the Holiday Season (November-December)

Apply at places like Target, HomeGoods/TJ Maxx, Walmart, JC Penney, and other places that have increased shoppers during the holidays. They always hire seasonal employees to help with the increase in shoppers! You can usually earn higher pay on holidays, too, if you’re into that!

9 Side Hustles That Use Unique Skills/Training

These are great side hustles but they do require specific skills, training, or certification!

52. Teach an Exercise/Fitness Class

Have a passion for fitness? There are many different qualifications for fitness teaching. Ask the gym that you’re interested in working for what qualifications they require, and then get to work getting qualified! This is such a cool job because you get your own workout in while making money teaching others! You will usually get a free gym membership too, and if you have young kids they can usually hang out in the kids care section while you work!

53. Teach Swimming Lessons

If you are certified, check with your local pool or gym and see if they are hiring swim teachers! If you’re not certified yet, call your local pool and see what they require!

54. Teach Skiing, Surfing, Skating, or Biking lessons 

This would be so much fun, if you have the skills!

55. Running Coach

Are you an avid runner with loads of long-distance races under your belt? Consider becoming a running coach! Similar to a personal trainer, only your experience is your certification. Find clients wherever you make friends, and help teens to adult age men and women prepare for races. Some teens need prep for their high school track team, and some adults just need help so they can be ready for that big race they signed up for. Either way, you can be there for them to help them do their best and also get your runs in along the way!

56. Haircuts and Salon Services from Home

If you went to cosmetology school and are certified, but you just can’t work in the salon setting anymore, consider working out of your home. You can charge more reasonable rates because there is no overhead for renting a building or sharing profits with a salon owner, so your customers will be happy to go to you! 

57. Teach Piano Lessons

If you have a piano and the skills, parents are always looking for piano teachers for their kids! You may need to take a class or read a book on how to teach piano effectively. With a good attitude, fun classes, and consistently offering convenient time slots, parents will be breaking down your door to get their kids lessons from you. Just let your friends know you are available to take new students over Facebook!

58. Teach Music Lessons

If you have other music skills (voice, violin, cello, trumpet, drums, etc) you can offer lessons for these. Parents are always looking for lessons for their kids to help them develop their skills.

59. Private Tutoring

If you feel confident in math, English, or foreign language skills you can make money as a private tutor. Many parents don’t have the skills or time to help their children get the extra help they need in school or with learning a foreign language, and want to spend the time they do have with their kids relaxing. Offer your services and see who is in need! You can tutor right in your home if you have young kids who need looking after, at a public library, or at your client’s home.

60. Clothing Repair and Tailoring

If you have sewing skills and a sewing machine, you can offer in-home tailoring and clothing repair! People who have no sewing skills or tools need a reliable person they can bring their overly long pants and popped buttons to for quick repair. Market through business cards, a Facebook page, and word of mouth! One of the great things about this gig is you’ll usually get repeat clients!

Tips to get started

  • Get the word out! Post on Facebook asking if anyone has ideas or is looking for some work done, tell people you’re looking for opportunities. I found a great gig this way that earned me $500/mo from home for about 2 years!
  • You May have to try something outside your comfort zone, work isn’t always fun or comfortable
  • Be brave and put yourself out there. There are people less qualified than you making money on things you’re better at simply because they decided to go for it. If you try something to get some clients and it doesn’t work, don’t get discouraged! Try again. Rebrand and try again. You are not a failure because something doesn’t work the first time.  You are learning something new and it might take you a bit to figure out how to reach your ideal client.
  • It doesn’t matter what you do, just do something! Try something! What have you got to lose? The only wrong thing is trying nothing! Every little bit of money helps, and who knows, your sides hustle could grow into something more substantial!

Things I have done:

  • Donate plasma 
  • Nannying
  • Babysitting
  • Etsy shop (@easy_budget)
  • Worked for an Appraisal Company from home doing busywork, found the gig by posting on Facebook that I was looking for a work from home job and was ready to start
  • Blogging/own website

None of these ideas sound good to you?

Let me give you a little pep talk!

I am not doing this to sound mean but because if literally none of these ideas stood out to you, you are probably struggling with fear, lack of motivation, or lack of creativity. Work is hard. Making money is hard. Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling something! It takes energy, effort, courage, faith in yourself, sacrifice, and hard work to earn money through a side hustle. You may have to go out of your comfort zone, try something totally new, or work extra hours in the wee hours of the morning or the dark hours of night when you’re already exhausted from your full-time job or from being a parent because it’s all you have time for. Side hustles are just that, hustles. Hustles are work!

I believe in you. Whatever your reason is, if you need some extra cash, roll up your sleeves! You can do this!

Do you have another amazing side hustle idea that should be on this list? Send me a message!

Related reading: 21+ Legit Work From Home Jobs Trending in 2021

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8 Responses

  1. Thank you for this post. I like the way it was organized and I loved the ending note, how you kept it real that work is hard straight up.

  2. I really want to do some side hustles to help pay off debt, I am confused/worried how the tax works on it however, which is my biggest stopping point. Any thoughts on how you save or set aside for taxes on side hustle gigs?

    1. Great question! It depends on a great many factors (if you’re making or losing money, how much money you are making, what kind of deductions you have for your business, etc). A standard rule of thumb is to set aside 30%. That will put you on the safe side! However, I do think that is a little bit high for most small sides hustles.

  3. In college, I tutored math to high schoolers and other students at the college as a side hustle. I used this money to save up for a new car once I graduated and got situated. I had always driven hand-me-downs and it was nice to get a car of my own.

  4. Love this! I work 40+ hours currently, but want to make some extra cash to start paying off our massive debts. I see someone above commented about setting aside money for taxes – does this put you in a category of self-employed though and have to pay quarterly? Do you have any resources that may break down taxes specifically? Thank you!

    1. To be honest I am not entirely sure about that. I wish our U.S. tax code was easier!! For self-employment, you do need to pay quarterly taxes or the IRS charges you interest!! However, if it’s just a side hustle that doesn’t have its own LLC, that rule may not apply. I never paid quarterly taxes when I was just doing a side hustle that wasn’t an LLC (I do have an LLC now), but that doesn’t mean I was doing it correctly. I would call your tax accountant and if you don’t have one, you can usually just call a local tax accountant and they will answer simple questions like that!

  5. Thank you for compiling this extensive list and presenting it in an accessible format. Your effort in researching and gathering these ideas is evident, and it will undoubtedly inspire many individuals to take action and explore new avenues for earning extra money. Well done!

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About the Author

Welcome! My name is Merilee and I’m the creator of Easy Budget. I started this blog to help other families like mine crush debt, budget, manage money, and meal plan like pros!

Everything you find here will be useful, motivating, and always easy. Need to contact me directly? Reach me here!

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