1) Selling Online
You don’t have to be a professional retailer to sell online as a profitable side hustle. In fact, many people make selling on eBay or Amazon
On eBay, it’s easy to get started selling your unwanted items. This will help you learn the process. Then you might decide to start sourcing products from yard sales, local buy/sell groups, charity shops or even overseas suppliers specifically to sell.
2) Basic Online Freelancing
Can you write coherently or know how to setup and manage blogging platforms like WordPress, edit video, translate between languages, or have another skill or creative talent? Then you can make money online freelancing in your spare time.
Sites like Upwork easily allow you to register a freelancer account, write a profile and choose the services you offer. You can then bid on jobs or wait for clients to come to you. This happens more often if you take some of the Upwork tests, which offer proof of your abilities.
3) Completing Online Surveys
If you have ever Googled “make money online” you will have likely heard about getting paid to complete online surveys, probably assuming the process is misleading or a scam. While you will never make a lot of money simply sitting on a computer answering questions, there are many survey platforms that really do pay out.
Some of the most popular include Survey Junkie, Survey Spot, and Opinion Outpost. Other platforms like Swagbucks and MyPoints offer rewards and gift cards rather than cold hard cash.
Just remember to use a a separate email address specifically for surveys, as you’re certain to get a ton of spam.
4) User Testing
When people develop websites, apps and other online services they often want feedback from the public before going live. This is called user testing and you can get paid for doing it.
One of the simplest platforms for user testing is UserTesting.com, which pays you $10 for visiting a website or app and completing a 20-minute task as outlined by the developer. The task usually involves browsing the site or app and using its features, while recording your feedback in audio form.
User testing requires genuine feedback and this will be checked, so don’t be tempted just to say anything in order to get paid.
5) Clinical Trials
Clinical trials involve studies and experiments on human participants. While some are voluntary, others will pay you quite well for your time.
Many people will have heard of ‘drug trials’ where you are required to take a drug to test its safety and effects, but there are also trials based on psychology and behavior and the testing of devices and procedures.
Drug trials often get a bad rap, and although there is always some risk, they are heavily regulated and the likelihood of being harmed is kept measurably low.
6) Being a Virtual Assistant
As the name suggests, a virtual assistant is an assistant role online. You may be required to answer and respond to emails, help run websites and social media accounts, write blog posts, carry out data entry, and anything else a web professional or internet entrepreneur might require.
These tasks are usually the simpler and more tedious things that the client wants to delegate so they can spend more time on other aspects of their business.
7) Tutoring
Do you speak a foreign language, play an instrument, have the ability to educate children and young people, or have another sought-after skill? Then you could make some side money tutoring.
You can charge per hour or session and there are now websites that connect tutors and customers for an online session via email, webcam etc.
Tutoring tends to be informal but you will need to demonstrate some kind of proof that you are qualified for the role- for example, you’re unlikely to get very far tutoring high school math if you haven’t done the math yourself since high school.
8) Handyman
As long as there are things to build, walls to paint, grass to cut, yards to clear, things to fix and install, and maintenance to carry out – there’s a side hustle for a handyman of all skill levels (though the average person should probably stick to manual labor and leave the carpentry and electrical work to the pros).
Start with your neighbors, friends, and family, and you’ll soon be able to get referrals. Why not set up a Facebook page to market your handyman services?
9) Dog Walking
If you love animals, dog walking is the perfect side hustle – it keeps you active and basically lets you have fun with dogs.
If you have friends or family members with a pet dog, who they can’t walk enough because of their work commitments or medical restrictions, that’s the perfect place to start.
Just remember that pet owners will have certain rules, such as not getting their dog dirty or feeding them treats etc.
10) Driving or ‘Ubering’
If you can drive you can make extra money, especially if you have a van or a vehicle with many seats. For example, you can pick up and deliver larger items like furniture or go the private hire route and take people to airports or on trips.
If you’re really serious you might consider becoming an Uber driver or making use of similar app-based driver platforms. While you will be able to use your own car, there are certain requirements that it must meet.
11) Donating Blood
You won’t get rich and it would probably be a bit unethical if you could, but you can get a small payment for donating your blood (plasma) at a local blood bank.
Of course, there are certain requirements. These generally include being in good health, at least 17 years old, weighing at least 110lbs, and being willing to share your health and medical history.
12) Renting Your Driveway
If you live in a city or fairly populous area you can easily make money renting your driveway when you aren’t personally using it. Websites and apps now exist that do all of the hard work for you – simply give your location, drive size, the hours or days you’d like to make it available and users that need to park their car will soon be in touch.
Hopefully, now you’ve got some great ideas to get started with your side hustle! Got a simple idea that’s already making you money? Let us know in the comments below!
