Many lucrative side hustles require little to no previous training to do, and some require extensive education and even certifications. Based on the skills you already have, they can make a quick buck or be something you build over time. When picking a side hustle try to remember what you’re good at. Here are 14 ideas to get you started.
1. Start Dropshipping
Right now, dropshipping is a great option for a side hustle. You can sell products directly to consumers without having to buy and hold inventory. This keeps your startup costs and risks very low, so you don’t have to worry about breaking the bank just to try it out.
Your priorities should be marketing and excellent service – the only things that will make you stand out here. If you have a knack for marketing, or have a more entrepreneurial mindset, this may be the side hustle for you.
Another great thing about dropshipping is that it’s easy to focus on something you already have an interest in. Like tech? Sell cool gadgets and accessories. Consider yourself a fashionista? Focus on selling apparel. Know a lot about makeup? Consider this an “in” to the beauty industry. The sky is the limit here, you can dropship just about any type of product you can imagine.
2. Write Articles For Other People
If you’re a creative type and enjoy writing, consider doing some freelance work. Since you’re essentially trading time for money here you’ll be limited in how much you make, but it can be a very reliable source of income as long as you aren’t expecting to replace your primary job with it.
Just remember, charge appropriately for the value you bring. If you charge too much, nobody will hire you, and if you charge too little you’ll be flooded with work and still not have a lot to show for it.
3. Start A Blog
Blogging, in my opinion, is one of the best side hustles you can do if you value flexibility in your work. You’re building your own platform and maintaining full creative control in the process. Even better, you can just write about your interests. You can write about business, finance, cosmetics, video games, or anything else you like, and you’ll naturally develop a community that shares your interests too. Over the first year of running my blog, I learned a lot of things that have helped me grow exponentially since. It’s really not rocket science!
To monetize, you can include some advertisements on your site, add affiliate links, write sponsored posts, or add a storefront with your own products – they can be other things you created or wrote, or even a dropshipped product.
The issue with blogging is that it takes time to get results. Often, you’ll hear stories of people making next to nothing their first year or so, but just as frequently you’ll hear about how those who stuck it out making a great source of income for their household!
4. Become a Photographer
Enjoy taking pictures? Know how to edit pictures? If so, doing some photography might be a great side hustle!
If you like taking pictures of scenery, whether that’s nature or suburbia, you may be able to sell that to local stores, news outlets, and even blogs. You can also sell your photos online, you’d be surprised at how many people are willing to pay for a high quality photo of the most ordinary things. Alternatively, you can get your pictures printed on another product (like a t-shirt) and sell that too.
Once you build up a bit of a portfolio, you can even get paid to take photos at events. If you can handle the stress that goes with working on parties, graduations, weddings, and other special occasions, this can be a great way to bring in a lot of extra cash.
5. Work Part-Time
This may seem a bit obvious, and less than ideal, but if you want more consistent money this may be the best bet for you. This can range from something as simple as being a cashier for a nearby store to taking a temp job in your field. For example, if you work in technology and a company needs tech support for the evening shift, that can make more than minimum wage and still fit into your current schedule.
Another thing you can try is working more odd jobs, like babysitting or dog walking. These may be ideal if your time is very limited, and they are well paid considering the work required. Unfortunately, the cash you can make from this is severely limited, so it may be better if you only need cash in the near-future.
6. Drive An Uber
As a side hustle that is always growing in popularity, I can certainly see why. It is incredibly flexible and makes a solid amount for the time put into it. If you do this, make sure you have reliable transportation and a customer service mindset!
7. Tutor High-School Or College Students
If you have a degree or expertise in any subject matter, you can get paid a lot per hour to tutor advanced subjects. Many college students (or more specifically, their parents) are willing to pay an arm and a leg if it gets them help in passing their rigorous courses. If you don’t feel comfortable tutoring at the collegiate level, you can also help high-schoolers with general coursework and SAT/ACT prep. That will still net you a nice hourly rate as a tutor, unfortunately it may be restricted by the time of year.
If you like the idea of tutoring, but need more flexibility, you can also teach English to non-native speakers online. What is evening for you may be the morning or afternoon for them (so fitting it into your schedule should be easy), but be sure you have access to a good camera and microphone before your first session!
8. Flip Something
Whether you work with cars, appliances, or furniture, this can be a lucrative side hustle. While this generally requires a greater investment than most side hustles, if you’re fairly handy this can turn into one of the most profitable ventures. Of course, make sure you know about what you’re buying – if you can’t improve or fix it before you resell, it’ll be hard to make a large profit.
9. Create Merchandise
Maybe you have a knack for crafts or just like creating tangible products, either way there are a lot of good ways to make money off these kinds of skills.
Woodworking, clothes, jewelry, stationery – anything you create or give a custom touch can be sold locally or through an online shop. If you can produce quality handmade items, other people will surely want to buy them.
10. Be A Mover
If you have a truck and aren’t afraid of some rigorous manual labor, this can bring in a lot of money. People always need help moving, especially during the summer, and are willing to pay high rates for reliable work. Be careful though, make sure you’re covered regarding liability if anything breaks in transit.
11. Be A Handyman
If you’re good with your hands, and have experience working around the house, you may enjoy this. For complicated tasks, most people are willing to pay for help with assembly or installation and even more for repairs. If this sounds like you, try reaching out to people near you – this type of work is always in demand.
12. Become A Translator
If you’re already fluent in more than one language, this could be a good idea to do in your free time. Companies and individuals across the world will hire you to translate websites as well as medical, technical, and legal documents. Once you pick up a few projects and gain a good reputation, work will come more frequently. Better yet, if you really enjoy this, you could make it your full-time job!
13. Create A Course Online
Most people find learning new things intimidating and challenging. It can often require a lot of time and money to get themselves where they want to be. Also, you likely already have at least one of these skills people are trying so hard to gain. If you can create a course that explains the subject in way that’s easy to understand, people will flock to it.
The best part is your course isn’t really limited by how much time you can put into it. In a way, it is like creating a product and selling it (without dealing with manufacturing and shipping costs). If you think you have a knack for designing courses, don’t be afraid of trying this out.
14. Bake & Sell Sweets
We all know that people loving eating sweets. For those of you who are good at baking, there will always be people willing to buy (and eat) what you make. An easy way to start is by baking for a friend or family member, and letting the news travel by word-of-mouth. With the use of some social media too, you’ll have a steady supply of customers who will keep your pockets full.
Conclusion
What are you waiting for? Getting started making extra money doing something you enjoy! If you have any other recommendations for good side hustles to try, leave them in the comments. For more content like this, and a free budgeting template and financial goals worksheet, be sure to sign up for the Bitter to Richer newsletter.
