Are you struggling with your finances or looking for some extra income from other sources? If yes, the following list of lucrative side hustles can help.
We’ve all heard of that far-off relative or friend who inherited a prodigious estate and is currently having the time of his life. Unfortunately, not everyone is that lucky.
Unless you want to wait out your precious years waiting for luck to strike, the only way you can achieve the lifestyle of your dreams is by increasing your income. It is a simple and straightforward solution to pay off your debts, increase your savings, and create a retirement plan for yourself.
But, how to increase your income if you’re already working a full-time job? We’ve got you covered.
Here’s our list of the most lucrative side hustles to make some extra money and start living the upscale life right away.
Table of Contents
What is a Side Hustle?
If you’re looking to increase your income, you’ve probably grown tired of hearing the phrase ‘side hustle.’ What makes a side hustle different from your typical job? And why should you go for a side hustle?
Well, look at it this way. At the end of the month, you’ve got bills to pay, groceries to buy, and amenities to check upon. After all the dues are paid, you’re only left with a meager amount, that is, if you’re lucky.
People who’ve freshly started their careers have it worse. They barely have enough to make ends meet, even after working a full day job.
Maintaining that, an average 9-5 worker may only get about a few hundred dollars in holiday bonuses and yearly increments. Considering you keep this cycle going for a few years, do you see yourself saving up enough for your own house? Or even your own car?
That’s where side hustles come in. These are part-time jobs you can take up after you’re done with your day job. They might or might not be of the same nature as your full-time job and can be both flexible or time-bound.
Mainly, a side hustle is a solution to unleash your earning potential and generate the finances you need to live your dreams.
What is a Good Side Hustle?
Now that you know what a side hustle is, how do you tell between a good one and a bad one? One thing to remember is that a lucrative side hustle is a good side hustle. Period.
If you’re spending more time than you should while making insignificant amounts of money, you haven’t chosen the right side hustle for yourself.
In a nutshell, a good side hustle should be easy to take up or match your skillset. Similarly, it should be a flexible endeavor or fit into the hours you’re available for.
Most importantly, your side hustle should have the potential to become your primary income, or it shouldn’t hinder your primary career goals.
10 Best Lucrative Side Hustles
All things said, let’s get started with our list of the most lucrative side hustles for you to choose from.
1. Deliver Orders From Restaurants
Delivering food orders from restaurants using online delivery services is one of the easiest side hustles to take up. All you need is a vehicle to take you around the town, and you’re good to get started.
First of all, you’ll need to sign-up for a legit online delivery site. Platforms like Doordash, Postmates, Ubereats, and Grubhub let you become a member quickly.
Once you complete your profile and set your working hours, the app will notify you when there are deliveries available nearby. You’ll get a specified commission rate from the restaurant, and you can keep the tips you get as well.
Adding it all up, you can earn around $30-$50 per hour on the job. While it might not seem like much, you can easily pay for your car fuel if you complete one or two deliveries on your daily commute to work.
Furthermore, you can maximize your earnings by working on weekends or holidays, when most workers are on leave. Not only will this help you use your free time productively, but you’ll also get more tips from your clients.
2. Go Grocery Shopping for Others
Not everybody has enough time to do their groceries themselves. That’s good news for side hustlers like you looking for easy jobs.
You can sign up for online grocery delivery apps like Instacart and Shipt to shop and deliver groceries on order.
If you’re older than 18 and can lift around 50 pounds of groceries, you’re eligible to join. The sites pay you a percentage of your shopping list, and you can keep the tips you get from your clients.
On the downside, you won’t be compensated for gas money. However, once you get accustomed to the job, you can shop for two or more orders at once to cover up your costs and maximize your income.
Most importantly, while working as a grocery shopper, make sure to provide impeccable customer service. Your clients are probably busy people who’re concerned about getting their groceries on time.
Keep them updated about the status of their order and consult them if you need to buy replacements. Amazing customer service can increase your chances of getting good tips and positive reviews.
3. Become a Handyman
If you’re good at assembling furniture or fixing things up around the house, why not do it for someone who needs it in exchange for money?
You can sign up on TaskRabbit and get notified when such tasks are available in your area.
The best part is, most of these tasks don’t take much time and pay well, so if you have the expertise, you shouldn’t miss out on the chance. You can earn around $30 for fixing any plumbing disorders or $60 for assembling a piece of furniture.
Besides that, you can scroll through the app whenever you have time and pick a job to work on. You don’t have to compromise your day job or invest any extra money.
4. Try Pet-Sitting
Pet owners love their furry friends as much as their own offspring. That’s why, if you’re good with animals, many pet owners would love to have you take care of their pets.
You can earn money by walking, grooming, or merely watching pets while their owners are busy. The remuneration is usually around $10-$20 per hour.
It is easy to find pet-care jobs around you by signing up on Rover. Simply register your location, and you’ll be notified about relevant jobs available.
Furthermore, you can spread the word by handing out flyers or circulating word-of-mouth across your neighborhood regarding your availability for the job.
Another great idea is to squeeze the dog-walking job along with your own morning walk, so you can make money without deviating from your daily routine.
5. Sell An Online Course
Whether you’re a graphic designer, writer, or teacher in your day-job, you can create informational resources to sell online. Many people might want to learn the skills you have and pay you in return.
However, this side hustle will require thorough research and hard work. If you don’t produce an informational resource worth paying for, you won’t benefit from it in the long run.
Once you’ve created your online course, you can upload it on sites like Coursera and Udemy. These sites already have a widespread audience, so your course will get the attention it needs, and you’ll be able to pay off your initial time investment quickly.
To make sure your course gains immediate popularity, search for a popular niche. Try to solve the common problems people face regarding your field of expertise.
For example, if you’re a fitness expert, help them pick their own fitness plan or teach them to cook healthy meals at home.
Similarly, if you’re a marketing expert, you can create a course where small businesses can learn how to enhance their social media presence. Provide a solution people need from a person of your expertise, and generate a steady income while helping others.
6. Rent Out A Room
If you don’t feel like hustling in your free time after returning from a long day at work, you can earn some extra income by renting a room in your house.
You can register your room on online platforms such as Airbnb and Vrbo. These sites will advertise your space to people visiting your area.
If you live in a popular tourist hub, you can easily make around $100-$500 per month through these platforms. Most importantly, you can mark your availability on the sites to get the flexibility you need.
7. Earn Free Cashback
Even if you’re pretty busy already, you probably make time to do your groceries or buy necessary items like clothing and appliances. You can easily turn these everyday shopping sessions into a lucrative side hustle by signing up for popular cashback sites.
One of the most popular cashback sites is Rakuten. All you have to do is download the app and process all your purchases through it.
The app will pay you around 1% to 40% cashback on your shopping receipt, depending on the products you buy. It’s partners with more than 2500 brands, including popular ones like Amazon and Target.
This means you can get cash back on almost every shopping session, whether it’s your weekly grocery or holiday gift shopping. Also, you can use platforms like ReceiptHog and TopCashBack to scan your receipts and get cash back on in-store purchases.
8. Invest in Real Estate
Real estate is perhaps one of the most lucrative side hustles that brings you a steady passive income. However, it does require a large initial investment. You can buy a rental property and get a regular monthly income or purchase a property that’ll pay you tenfold in the long run.
But, we know what you’re thinking. How can you invest in rental properties if you don’t have enough resources to pay your bills?
In this case, you can participate in online real estate crowdfunding options. Crowdfunding platforms like Realtymogul and Roofstock let you invest in a property along with lots of other members.
This means you can buy property for as little as $10 and earn monthly returns. The websites conduct thorough due diligence on the stuff you invest in, so you’ll surely get timely returns.
Besides that, these platforms also let you save your earnings to participate in auto-funding programs so you can diversify your portfolio and establish yourself in the real estate market in the long run.
9. Flip Stuff
Flipping stuff is an easy side hustle for people who can find value in the things other people would throw out. You can find cheap things with a high potential value in garage sales and thrift shops.
After you acquire these products for a low price, you can fix them up and sell them for a profit on Amazon and eBay.
For example, college students usually sell out their used books at throw-away prices. However, students who need them might be willing to buy them at higher prices, as brand-new books are back-breakingly expensive.
All you have to do is become a mediator in these situations and make your own profit.
Similarly, you can even flip online products like websites. You can easily acquire run-down websites at cheap rates and revamp them into money-making web portals.
Once you make the website profitable, you can sell it for more than twenty to fifty times its monthly revenue.
10. Start Freelancing
Attributing to the high availability of resources, lots of small businesses are popping up everywhere worldwide.
These businesses usually don’t have the budget to hire in-house experts for services like designing and marketing. That’s where freelancers come in.
No matter which niche you’re working for in your day-job, you can easily find freelance jobs that fit your skillset. Most of these freelancing jobs can be done online, so you can get the flexibility you need from your side hustle.
You can start by signing up on popular freelance platforms like Fiverr and Upwork. Remember, becoming a freelancer is like running your own business. You’ll have to market yourself and pitch clients to create a steady workflow.
If you maintain good ratings and gain credibility in the freelance market, you can even turn the venture into your primary source of income.
Final Words
That concludes our list of the most lucrative side hustles you can start today alongside your full-time job. While most of these side hustles are accessible, non-stop work can easily drain you out and decrease your work efficiency.
If you’re aiming to work on a side hustle consistently, make sure you pick something you enjoy. In case that’s not an option, look for something that fits your schedule and is easy to do.
Similarly, if you choose a lucrative side hustle, it will probably have the potential to become your primary income source.
To work on your own terms for the rest of your life, you should consider investing more time and money into your side hustle once you earn a good profit for a few months.