Side gigs have become increasingly popular in this day and age as a way to make some extra cash or passive income, especially during those times when you’re stuck in a rut or have been unsuccessful at finding a flexible job with instant pay. Here is a list of some of my top suggestions:
- Sell your old electronics, DVDs, textbooks, furniture, antiques, jewelry, or other miscellaneous items – Declutter is best for selling old phones, laptops, or video games. Chegg and Bookscouter are good sites for renting out or selling books. Of course, you can always also sell anything on Craigslist, Ebay, and Amazon.
- Sell old gift cards – for money on websites that pay for that, such as through Cardcash. You can even sell e-GiftCards through Raise.
- Sell your old music mp3 files – You can sell individual songs, or create custom-made CDs for people with requested music in exchange for some cash.
- Rent out a room or other space in your home or apartment – If you have a spare room, why not rent it out for a short period of time to earn some extra cash? As an Airbnb host you can get paid to rent your place to travelers who may be visiting your area with potential of making about $50-$100 per night or more.
- Post personal services you can offer – such as: baby sitting, dog sitting, mowing lawns, doing some kind of maintenance or construction work, repairing electronic software/ hardware issues, cleaning, cash washes, or help with moving. Tasker is one app you can utilize as a resource to get clients who are seeking these types of personal services.
- Apps and sites that pay you to take surveys, watch videos, and play games – TimeBucks, AmazonTurk, Inbox Dollars, Swagbucks, Survey Junkie, and Survey Time are some of the most popular ones. Google Opinion Rewards app is also a very reputable source which will transfer $2 straight into your PayPal account after answering several quick surveys. Similarly, you can write reviews to your favorite brands or other companies you are familiar with through CapTerra and literally get paid for sharing your opinion.
- Apps that pay you to scan and upload your receipts – My favorite apps for this are Fetch Rewards and ReceiptPal. Once you have enough points, you can cash out your earnings for gift cards to a wide variety of your favorite places to shop.
- Meal Delivery – If you want the freedom to create your own schedule, be your own boss, and get paid for something that you already do everyday as a driver, you can join Favor, DoorDash, GrubHub, Uber Eats, Postmates, goPuff, Instacart, or Shopify and deliver food or other miscellaneous items which you will receive high tips for!
- Ride Share – If you have a car or enjoy drive regularly, you can offer ride share services through Lyft, Uber, or Fasten.
- Become a Transcriptionist – transcribe short audio clips for websites such as: Scribe, Rev, CastingWords, Daily Transcription, TranscribeMe, and BabbleType, to name just a few. No prior experience is necessary, and all you really need is to have good English spelling and grammar skills, and a fairly fast typing speed. For some of these, you apply and complete a simple online assessment which you can pass easily by abiding by the Style Guidelines they give you.
- Data Entry Jobs – requires minimal computer skills
- Become a Virtual Assistant – You will be performing tasks such as managing websites, social media, and e-mail accounts for a business or company.
- Remote Customer Service – If you have experience working in retail, your customer service skills will come in handy when applying for literally ANY company that is hiring for this position.
- Resume Writing – Think you’ve mastered this skill or have created a stellar resume for yourself? Why not do it for others and get paid for it too? You can do this for people who are looking for employment and want help creating a resume that will give their potential employers a great first impression of them as an applicant, and higher their chances for an interview
- Freelance Writing – either for websites who will hire you for your content, or advertising yourself and offering your service through sites like Fivver and Upwork. Even if you don’t think you have the time or patience for this, I’m sure you at least have some old writing pieces or essays lying around from a couple of years ago that you submitted for your English class that you can edit and publish online.
- Get Creative – If you are good at graphic design, you can create logos for other companies. If you are experienced with website design, you can do this for businesses who will hire you for this. If you are artistic, sell your artwork! Do you enjoy making jewelry or are you working on a personal arts and crafts project? Consider turning what you already do into a passive source of income.
- Start Blogging – As a starter, you can earn passive income from your blog through affiliate marketing and recommending other brand names, offering personal services, or by turning it into an E-Commerce site and start selling physical or digital products. WordPress is a great website to utilize for this. This is also a great way for you to just put yourself out there and see what happens!
- Affiliate Marketing and Referral Programs – you can partner with other brands and companies to promote them through your own website, and when people purchase through your link, you receive commission for it. Some companies even provide you with a code that you can instantly share with others through text or IM, or even share publicly as a coupon through sites like RetailMeNot.
- Sell T-shirts online – with any kind of slogan or even pre-made templates available of sites like Printful, RedBubble, Merch by Amazon that provide all of the services you need to accomplish this. My favorite thing about this is that it’s super fast, easy, and fun!
- Create your own online shop – put up your handmade arts and crafts work on sites like Etsy or create your own E-Commerce site through Wix, SquareSpace, or Bluehost.
- Teach English as a Second Language (or teach a foreign language) – Another great way to generate revenue is to join online websites which will pair instructors up with students
- Become a Tutor – private tutoring actually pays pretty well, and if it’s not a subject you want to tutor in like math or science, consider doing private tutoring lessons for a musical instrument that you know how to play.
- Make an Online Course – Yep, you can get paid for sharing your great wealth of knowledge or sharing your “How-To” secrets! Udemy is one resource you can utilize for this.
- Sign up for clinical trial studies – Opportunities that pay you for your participation (most last from only a few days to a couple of weeks depending on the study); Pay ranges are usually anywhere between $1,000-$7,000; PPD is a great one to check out in Austin, TX. The only catch with this is that you have to be healthy and maintain a healthy BMI in order to qualify.
- Play games and win real cash money! Try your luck with scratchcards through the Lucktastic app or test your card playing skills by playing against others for cash prizes through Solitaire Cash. You can also try Blackout Blitz with free gambling opportunities for Bingo!
- Invest – Even if you don’t think you know anything about finances or investing, simple apps like Stash or Robinhood allow you to easily invest with as little as $1, with potential to earn thousands over time.
