If the pandemic has taught us anything about our job economy, you should never put all your eggs in one basket. Whether you don’t have job security in your current employment, or you simply aren’t making enough money, a side hustle has never been a better idea. So if you find yourself some free hours every week with nothing to do, it might be time to start your own small business.
Side Business Ideas to Start Now
When people think of starting their own business, what usually scares them is the idea of investing and taking risks. While that is true, and we commend you for your caution, we firmly believe that you and everyone else should have a small business on the side. You don’t need to hand in your job resignation letter the following day or invest all your savings. Just take out a small portion of your wealth and work a few hours on the weekends, to begin with at least.
Worst case, your business idea doesn’t work. But, because it was a small side business, you don’t lose anything, and you still have your job to fall back on. This way, you can learn from your mistakes and give them another shot.
Another misconception people have is that the risk involved is not worth it. To this, we say it’s simply not the case! A 9-to-5 job may be a comfortable way of life, but you are your boss in a business. That means you not only get a larger share of the profit, but you can also adjust the timings to suit you. Besides, there’s nothing more satisfying than seeing your small business blossom and grow.
Accounting
Whether it’s an educational institute or a big firm, there is a massive demand for accountants. If this is your forte, and you have the required skills and licensing, you can work as a part-time accountant.
The biggest market you could get your hands on are freelancers who usually have specific demands for whatever niche they are working in. If you think you can whip up a solution for them, you can be earning as much as 300 dollars per hour!
Antique refurbishing
Antique refurbishing refers to the process of bringing worn-out, faded, or damaged antiques back to prime shape. While this process requires a very specific and complex skillset, this also means there are few people with who you are competing to get the work.
So if you know your way around materials and what they react favorably to, then this is among the best small business ideas for you!
Assisting senior citizens
We understand that some of the options on this list may be outside of most people’s skillset, but this side job only calls for friendliness and basic tasks. You can find many families who are looking for someone to live with their elderly and do basic tasks like cooking, grocery, or simply giving the company.
Auto detailing
Auto detailing involves washing, waxing, and overall cleaning a client’s car. This is one of those small side business ideas that doesn’t cost you a lot of overhead since you just need some cleaning equipment and you’re ready to go.
Contrary to popular belief, this isn’t a low-paying business, and you can negotiate higher hourly rates with your client.
Babysitting
Babysitting is another alternative to niche skill tasks, similar to caretaking for the elderly. You can either go to people’s houses on a timely basis and charge them hourly, or you can have the kid dropped off at your home.
If you find yourself getting many bookings and the business is booming, you can even expand and make your home a daycare center. This not only makes it logistically easier for you, but the newer parents also prefer leaving their kids at a daycare with other children.
Business or life coaching
As a business and life coach, your job description is essentially to supplement people’s ideas and help them direct their efforts and resources. Most importantly, you will be pushing people to make the best out of the things they already have and draw up plans with them. Like a coach, you are overseeing their progress and bringing out the best from your clients.
While this job seems easy enough, you need to be a proficient and effective communicator to be able to move people and influence them.
Cake baking
Cake baking is one of the best small side business ideas for a bunch of reasons. Firstly, it’s fun. If you have a knack for decorating and cooking, then you will absolutely love it. Secondly, there’s a large market for it. From birthdays to weddings, every celebration needs a cake! Thirdly, the initial investment is incredibly low; all you need is an oven and baking ingredients. And lastly, if things go well, you can quickly expand to a home bakery and get orders from an online Instagram presence.
Computer troubleshooting
If you are good with computers and know your way around the common errors, you are sitting on a golden egg opportunity: Computer troubleshooting. The skill you may be taking for granted, others struggle with a lot.
You can start a computer/tech support business and offer home services to help out people who are stuck on a virtual obstacle. You’ll be surprised to see how many frustrated users call you for help every day!
Creating custom T-shirts
Digital design is a rapidly growing field, and the market demand for things like custom t-shirts is following in its tracks. If you know your way around the basic design apps and have a strong creative side, you should start milking your skills immediately! Invest in a screen printing machine and start a social media page. If you play your cards right, you can be making big bucks pretty soon!
Creating smartphone apps
Making apps is no longer a thing only high-end software developers can do. With a quick online course, a language like SwiftUI, and a strong enough will, you too can bring to life an app idea. If your app starts attracting some attention, you can invest more time in it, fix bugs, etc.
Delivery driving
Delivery driving is a great safe option for anyone looking to make some quick extra cash. Whether you are a student looking to cover overhead expenses or someone with a job and extra hours in a week -delivery driving is a pretty flexible option.
Event coordinating
Events can be hectic for a lot of people. Many get overwhelmed by the work that goes into managing a wedding or even a birthday party. From figuring out the venue and calling all the vendors to come up with plan B’s last minute, this job is not for the weak-willed. But with high pressure comes high pay.
To become an event coordinator, you need willpower as much as you need creativity.
Event DJing
Becoming a DJ might sound like a blissful job; after all, you get to play music for a living. But it’s not simple as most people think. A misconception people have is that being a DJ means having a good taste in music -but it couldn’t be farther from the truth. Being a DJ is instead about knowing your crowd and understanding what the event calls for. What works for a bar party is probably not going to work for a wedding. This also means that you need to have a large pool of knowledge about different genres of music and be familiar with the work of all kinds of artists -not just your favorites.
Furniture making
If you’re good with wood, metal, and glasswork, you should undoubtedly put those skills to use and do some freelance furniture making! You can get orders online and work out timing that suits you. While you do your regular job on the weekdays, you can spend your weekends working on individual projects. This is both a cathartic and lucrative business idea.
Growing produce to sell
If you have a large garden space, you can put it to good use and start making products to sell. There are many farmers who are looking for a good produce seller to buy from.
Handyman services
Handyman services are an umbrella term for all kinds of repair tasks around the house. Whether it’s plumbing or electrician services, you can sign up for this type of work on Thumbtack.
House or business cleaning
If you’re looking to make a quick buck, you can start offering cleaning services as an independent worker. This basically allows you to offer individualized services to clients at a lower rate than any business because you’re saving on the costs of a middleman.
Interior decorating
If you have an interior design degree lying around, then this is a perfect side job for you. If you don’t have a degree but possess a good taste for home arrangements, you can still join this business. You might have to start with lower rates until you eventually have enough works to build an impressive portfolio. Then you can start using this portfolio to attract people who have little taste in interior design.
Jewelry making
Small jewelry-making businesses are popping up everywhere on the internet. There are numerous Instagram pages dedicated to homemade jewelry products that are actually pretty lucrative. It might seem like a task that is out of your reach, but with a sense of creativity, some affordable equipment, and help from youtube guides, you can enter the jewelry-making market.
Knitting, crocheting, or quilting
This is one of those activities that you can do in the middle of tasks and make a decent amount of money from. If you aren’t familiar with knitting sweaters or quilting, you can easily figure it out online from Youtube tutorials. After that, it’s just you’re creativity, knitting equipment, and a fun sitcom to make money!
Making soap and spa products for resale
Another group of homemade products that people love to get is soaps and spa products. The process of making these isn’t very complicated, and you can find most of the ingredients online very quickly. In addition, you can get creative with the molding process, for instance, bunny-shaped soap bars.
However, some ingredients may be harmful to the skin. So you need to do your research before you sell your product. Also, be mindful of checking out your state’s restrictions and regulations on the sale of such products.
Meal-to-go preparing
In the realm of food making, this one is a pretty easy option to go for. You basically prepare ready-to-eat meals, and the quantity depends on your customer’s needs and requirements. Many people have very busy schedules, and that’s the market for these on-the-go meals. You can also prepare half-cooked frozen meals that your customers just need to warm up.
Miniature painting
This option is for the artsy ones that love painting and, more specifically, the ones who find detailed paintings fun. Miniature painting can be a very lucrative side business, depending on how fine your details are and how clean your finished product is.
You can paint everything from miniature replicas of classic paintings to tabletop cartoon figures. You can get a lot of work done on the weekends, and the best part about this whole process is that it never gets boring, and the end product is always rewarding.
Pet grooming
Everybody loves having a pet, but people don’t always realize the work that goes into maintaining and grooming their pet. There’s a huge market of pet owners who are struggling to properly groom their pet either because they don’t know how or simply can’t seem to find the time.
If you’re a pet lover yourself, you can get into the pet grooming business. You can charge varying rates for your clients depending on how much work you had to do. This is one of our personal favorites among the small side business ideas because who doesn’t want to earn money by grooming loveable animals!
Photography
If you know your way around a camera, photography doesn’t need to be a hobby anymore. You might need to invest in a high-end camera, lenses, and a tripod for starters, but you’ll be making a lot of money in no time.
There’s simply a very high demand for photographers out there. Some of the most common gigs you’ll be booking are wedding events, birthday parties, and shoots for modeling agencies. So make sure you watch and practice these shots beforehand and build a good portfolio.
Public speaking/teaching
Public speaking and speech proficiency has been significantly undermined skill for a long time. But people increasingly realize how important the power of words and tone is today. Whether politicians give speeches to rally votes or a presentation you have to offer at work, public speaking is a fundamental skill.
If you are confident in your speaking skills, such as your ability to convince people and grab the attention of an audience, then you can make money off of teaching that skill to stage-shy people.
Resume writing
Resumes are much more than just a listing of someone’s achievements. There’s an art and skill to writing the perfect resume. What categories to make, what order to list things in, which achievements to mention (and which ones to not), and how to describe someone’s skill are things people aren’t proficient in. You can offer your services as a resume writer online.
Scrapbook-making
This job is relatively simple: you get a set of pictures and memorabilia from your client. Then you use your creative skills to form an appealing scrapbook album out of those and charge a fee for your services.
Snowplowing
If you live in an area where it snows a lot, investing in a snow plowing machine could be profitable. From parking areas to porches, there’s a lot of people who would want your services.
Social media managing
Businesses are increasingly shifting to social media pages because a presence there is the best way to connect to today’s generation. This means there is a demand for people who can manage their accounts. This is not an intensive job, but it involves researching hashtags and post timings.
Teaching a musical instrument
If you know a musical instrument like a violin or the piano, you can make money off it that skill by giving individualized or group classes.
Teaching exercise classes
Everyone wants to be in fit physical shape, but it can be hard to find the motivation to do that. Instead, you can teach exercise classes either in a public park or even online over zoom meetings.
Translating
Knowing multiple languages is not only an impressive skill but also one that can get you that extra cash. Translation jobs range from assisting a tourist in your country to translating official legal documents for foreigners.
Website Designing
Much like a social media presence, businesses are also on the lookout for people who can design their websites. A cool and engaging website can make a big difference for a company, so you can expect to make a lot of money if you do a good job.
Wedding planning
Wedding planning is a very lucrative business, but you need a combination of creative and problem-solving skills and the ability to work under pressure.
Writing ebooks
If you love story writing and have some amateur writing experience under your belt, such as writing short stories for online websites like Wattpad, then this might be the next step for you. You can spend a few weeks writing an ebook alongside work and then publish it online on Kindle. Then you just make money from every sale.
At Home Day Care
If you’re good with kids and have some experience babysitting them, then setting up an at-home daycare is a great option. There are many working parents who will pay good money to keep their kids at your daycare while they work.
Become a Child Life Coach
Children are a blank slate, which means they need a lot of attention when it comes to building strong, healthy values. If a parent feels like they don’t have the time or the skill to coach their child, then they might be looking for a child life coach to do that.
Become a Delivery Driver
With a vehicle and a license, you can make quick money as a delivery driver. This is a great option for people working multiple jobs or students as they can work according to their own schedules.
Become a Freelance Writer
Freelance writing is a great option if you enjoy writing blogs etc. You can find these jobs online from places like Fiverr.
Become a Swing Trader
If you know your way around equities markets, then you can learn advanced trading strategies like swing trading. This research can make you big money, but we would caution you from investing too much. Along with this strategy, you should consider reading more resources on the basics and best indicators for swing trading to get the most out of your investments.
Become a Tutor
What you studied in college or high school might not be what you are doing in life at the moment. But if you were great at it in school, you can make money by tutoring children on the course material.
Become a Virtual Assistant
According to NanoGlobals, the virtual assistant job market grew by about 41% more in 2020 than it did the year before. This is actually not that surprising when you consider the pandemic and how it shifted everything online. A virtual assistant does the tasks of a normal assistant like scheduling appointments, just virtually.
Cater Events
Catering for events that happen on the weekends can work well with your job on weekdays. However, this side hustle does require decent food preparation and planning skills.
Drive for Uber or Lyft
Just like delivery driving, working as an Uber or Lyft driver is a good option if you have a vehicle and extra time on your hands.
Editing and Proofreading
If you are good with grammar rules and phrasings, then you can edit and proofread people’s work online from websites like Fiverr.
Egg Donor
Egg donations can be a very lucrative side business. You can earn up to 6000 dollars from healthy and fertile eggs.
Invest in Real Estate
Real estate investment might be a big investment, but rest assured that your money will be safe. You might not earn a whole lot (worst case), but the business is fairly stable. Besides, you don’t really have to do anything.
Landscaping and Lawn Maintenance
If pulling weeds and mowing lawns doesn’t sound like a chore to you, then you can make some money off of doing this work for people. Gardening work is therapeutic for some while tedious for others.
Natural House Cleaning
There are many big cleaning businesses out there that can advertise their services to people better than you can. But offering a natural house cleaning service can be the edge you get over these big companies because people are becoming increasingly skeptical about the chemicals used in cleaning.
Personal Chef
If cooking is your forte, then you can put up ads for personal chef services. Of course, anyone hiring a personal chef is likely to give you a hefty salary.
Rent with Airbnb
If you have a house in or near a favorite tourist site, then you can make a lot of money doing nothing by just renting it out with Airbnb.
Rent Your RV
Like an Airbnb rental, you can also rent out your RV to onlooking campers at a nightly rate and earn money doing nothing.
Seasonal Decorator
Like interior designing, if you have a good inkling for design and decor, you can connect with local businesses and homeowners to do their home decor for seasonal events like Christmas.
Sell Items on eBay
Selling items that you don’t use a lot on eBay is a win-win situation. You not only get extra cash but also free up space.
Sell Your Creativity
From graphic design stickers to printed sweatshirts, you can find ways to string your creative inkling into cash.
Sewing or Tailoring
Sewing and tailoring are another set of skills not everyone has. Therefore you can offer sewing services for rates that depend on the type and size of the garment.
Start a Blog
Blogging is a pretty amazing option for people who love writing about things. But there’s no reason you shouldn’t make money off of something you enjoy doing!
Start a Pooper Scooper Business
This is exactly what it sounds like: you’ll be cleaning pet waste from people’s lawns. The money you charge will depend on the number of dogs the client has.
Start a YouTube Channel
Online entertainment is one of the most rapidly growing industries out there. It’s about time you jumped on that bandwagon and started uploading content for whatever you enjoy watching.
Start a Senior Care Business
A senior care business caters to a large number of families who have elderly they can’t cater to by themselves. All you have to do is help them with basic tasks like cooking and cleaning.
Walk Dogs or Pet Sit
Another favorite for pet lovers is walking and sitting pets. You can connect with a lot of busy pet owners online and offer a few hours of your week to walk their pets.
Growing produce to sell
If you have a large garden space, you can put it to good use and start making products to sell. For instance, you can start a mushroom growing business. They have a very short crop cycle, and you can easily grow them in a tight space. Moreover, you don’t even need expensive equipment to get a good yield. Many farmers are looking for a good produce seller to buy from. Whatever produce you decide to sell, do proper research before starting the business.
Handyman services
If you are good at DIY tasks, perhaps you can start a community handyman service. Handyman services are an umbrella term for all kinds of repair tasks around the house. Whether it’s plumbing, fixing stuff around, or electrician services, you can sign up for this type of work on websites and apps like Thumbtack. Word of mouth spreads fast in such a business, and there’s always some stuff to fix. Therefore, you will never run out of business.
House or business cleaning
Believe it or not, most people find cleaning their homes tedious and stressful. There’s always demand for house-cleaning services. So, if you’re looking to make a quick buck, you can start offering cleaning services as an independent worker. This basically allows you to offer individualized services to clients at a lower rate than any business because you’re saving on the costs of a middleman. At the same time, you can tap into the enormous potential this business offers.
Snowplowing
According to SmallBizTrends, Snowplowing is a $19 billion business in the United States alone. If you live in an area where it snows a lot, investing in a snow plowing machine can be highly profitable. From parking areas to porches, there are a lot of people who would want your services. Depending on the season, you can earn anywhere from $175 to $400 with one machine and the right strategies.
Social media managing
Businesses are increasingly shifting to social media pages because a presence there is the best way to connect to today’s generation. This means there is a demand for people who can manage their social media business handles. This is not a time and efforts intensive job at all. But it involves researching the right hashtags and keeping track of the post timings to garner the most engagements. You can find many good online courses that can teach you social media management in less than an hour.
Teaching a musical instrument
If you know a musical instrument like a violin or the piano, you can make money off it that skill by giving individualized or group classes. You can do so in person or sign up for websites like Takelessons, Teacheron, lessonface, etc. With these websites, you can teach lessons online. You can also start your own course on Udemy and Coursera and earn a handsome amount by imparting your knowledge.
Teaching exercise classes
Everyone wants to be in good physical shape, but it can be hard to find the motivation to do that. This forces some people to go for group exercise classes, as it requires them to be punctual and follow a routine. So, if you know about exercises, fitness routines, and staying fit, you can teach the same to others. What’s more, you can teach exercise classes either in a public park or even online over zoom meetings.
Translating
Knowing multiple languages is not only an impressive skill but also one that can get you that extra cash. This is because language skills are in demand all over the world. From the retail sector to the medical community, every business uses translator services every once in a while. So it can turn into a nice side hustle. Translation jobs range from assisting a tourist in your country to translating official documents for foreigners.
Website designing
Much like a social media presence, businesses are also looking for people who can design their websites. A cool and engaging website can make a big difference for a company, so you can expect to make a lot of money if you do a good job. It can be a great side hustle because there’s plenty of work, and you can easily learn the skills. So, you can get a good hourly rate with the potential to upgrade your business.
Become a Child Life Coach
Children are a blank slate, which means they need attention to build strong, healthy values. If a parent feels like they don’t have the time or the skills to coach their child, then they might be looking for a child life coach to do that. However, you need proper Kids life coach certification to be qualified for the job.
Become a Delivery Driver
You can make quick money as a delivery driver with a vehicle and a license. Most businesses in the delivery space allow you to set your own working hours. This makes it a great option for people working multiple jobs or students as they can work according to their own schedules. Delivery services like Doordash, Instacart, and Stickr can be a great place to start.
Become a Freelance Writer
Freelance writing is a great option if you enjoy writing blogs etc. It just requires a working laptop and an internet connection. Sit down anywhere you like and start typing your thoughts. You can find these jobs online from places like Fiverr or Upwork. Just make sure you take some time to learn Search Engine Optimized (SEO) writing, as SEO writing is the most in-demand skill these days.
Cater Events
Catering for events on the weekends can work well with your job on weekdays. They are needed everywhere – from big cities to rural areas and colleges. However, this side hustle does require decent food preparation and planning skills. So, if you are not a good planner, we suggest looking at other jobs on this list instead.
Drive for Uber or Lyft
Just like delivery driving, working as an Uber or Lyft driver is a good option if you have a vehicle and extra time on your hands. You just have to pick up and drop off the passengers. Just make sure to take care of your rating on these services. A bad rating can lead to bad business.
Editing and Proofreading
If you are good with grammar rules and phrasings, you can edit and proofread people’s work online from websites like Fiverr or Upwork. However, you cannot become a good editor in a day. You have to be a good writer to become a good editor and proofreader.
Egg Donor
Egg donations can be a very lucrative side business. If you are a healthy female, you can start your own egg donation service. There are no prior requirements or learning curves. And you can earn up to 6000 dollars from healthy and fertile eggs per cycle. No jokes! However, it can be physically and emotionally tolling.
Final Word
Getting a side job in this economy is a great way to stay financially stable and secure. A business is even better because you can work to your strengths, potentially make a lot more money, and set your own schedule.
