Published 8 Oct 2020

102 Side Hustle Ideas Compared: Make Extra Cash

Claudia Reiners

Need ideas for a side hustle? Whether you’re after something that will earn you cash straight away, or you’re playing the long game, this list of 102 side hustle will help you choose the best one for you.

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While everyone wants something different out of a side hustle, some are better than others. Side hustles are a trending way to build income streams and make extra cash. But before you jump into the gig economy, it’s a great idea to make sure the side hustle you choose suits your life and your goals.

Everyone and their cat has a side hustle. Lists of side hustle ideas abound, rich with the promise of effortlessly generating thousands of extra dollars. But is that the reality? Side hustles are not a get rich quick scheme. There is no magic money fountain. There are, however, several ways to make extra money, some better than others. Not all of which will suit you – but some that will.

What Makes a Great Side Hustle?

The catch is all that all these business ideas require a sacrifice of some kind, with the aim of long-term gain. It’s usually some combination of time, money, or using a hard-earned skill set. Some hustles will only require one, such as hours of your time, or upfront monetary investment. Some side jobs will demand all three. Some hustles start you earning straight away. Some lucrative side hustles take years to pay off, but when they do, they pay big bucks and can even be scaled from part-time side gig into a full-time job.

So, in the end, the answer is: whatever works with the resources you have, and achieves the outcome you want.

Looking for something you can do from home? Find the best ways to make extra money online.

Your Guide to the Best Side Hustles in Australia: Make an Extra $1000 a Month

Keen to join the millions of people running a side hustle? Here are the best ideas for starting your side job, reviewed by real people – so you can find out which is the best choice for you.

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102 Side Hustles: Comparison Table

Tap to Expand Table

Top	Hustle	Type	Time	Asset	Skill	Fast	Scalable	Online
–	Blogging	Creating content	✔	–	✔	–	–	✔
–	Podcast	Creating content	✔	–	✔	–	–	✔
–	Create Ebooks	Creating content	–	–	✔	–	✔	✔
–	Become a Brand Ambassador	Creating content	✔	–	✔	–	✔	–
–	Create Software	Creating content	✔	–	✔	–	✔	–
–	License Stock Music	Creating content	–	✔	✔	–	✔	–
✔	Youtube Channel	Creating content	✔	–	✔	–	✔	–
✔	Affiliate Marketing	Creating content	✔	✔	–	–	✔	✔
–	Sell Your Old Stuff	Easy side hustles	–	✔	–	✔	–	✔
–	Marketing Focus Groups	Easy side hustles	✔	–	–	–	–	✔
–	Online Surveys	Easy side hustles	✔	–	–	✔	–	✔
–	Swagbucks	Easy side hustles	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Amazon Mechanical Turk	Easy side hustles	✔	–	–	✔	–	✔
–	Dropshipping	Ecommerce	✔	–	–	–	✔	✔
–	eBay Store	Ecommerce	✔	–	–	–	✔	✔
–	Amazon Store	Ecommerce	–	✔	–	✔	–	✔
–	Print T-Shirts	Ecommerce	–	–	✔	–	✔	✔
–	Online Nursery Delivery Service	Ecommerce	✔	✔	–	–	–	–
✔	Sell Handmade Things (Etsy)	Ecommerce	✔	–	–	–	–	✔
–	Sell Digital Templates	Ecommerce	–	–	✔	–	✔	✔
–	Flipping Cars	Flipping	✔	✔	–	–	✔	–
–	Bidding On Abandoned Storage Lockers	Flipping	✔	✔	–	–	–	–
–	Flipping Bicycles	Flipping	✔	✔	✔	✔	–	–
–	Flipping Campervans	Flipping	✔	✔	–	✔	✔	–
–	Flipping Vintage Furniture	Flipping	✔	✔	–	–	–	–
–	Delivery	Gig economy	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Host Airbnb Food Tour	Gig economy	✔	–	✔	✔	✔	–
–	Help People Move House/Furniture	Gig economy	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Help People Grocery Shop	Gig economy	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Dating	Gig economy	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Human Billboard	Gig economy	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Customer Service	Gig economy	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Graphic Design	Gig economy	✔	–	✔	✔	✔	–
–	Rent a Friend	Gig economy	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Snuggling	Gig economy	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Mystery Shopping	Gig economy	✔	–	–		–	–
–	Domain Flipping	Investing	–	✔	–	–	✔	✔
–	Vending Machines	Investing	–	✔	–	–	✔	–
–	Dividend Investing	Investing	–	✔	–	–	✔	–
–	Real Estate Investing	Investing	✔	✔	–	–	✔	–
–	Invest In Shares	Investments	–	✔	–	–	–	✔
–	Babysitting	Service	✔	–	–	✔	✔	–
✔	Virtual Assistant	Service	✔	–	–	✔	✔	✔
✔	Freelancing	Service	✔	–	✔	–	✔	✔
–	Dog Walking	Service	✔	–	–	–	✔	–
–	Tour Guide	Service	✔	–	–	–	–	–
–	Private Chef	Service	✔	–	✔	✔	–	–
–	Babysitting	Service	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Housekeeping	Service	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Personal Shopper Service	Service	✔	–	✔	–	✔	–
–	Write Resumes	Service	✔	–	✔	✔	–	✔
–	Become An Extra	Service	✔	–	–	–	✔	–
–	Freelance Writing	Service	✔	–	✔	✔	✔	✔
–	Personal Training	Service	✔	–	✔	✔	✔	✔
–	Clothing Alterations	Service	✔	–	✔	✔	–	–
–	Recycling Business	Service	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Event DJ	Service	✔	–	✔	✔	✔	–
–	Ironing Service	Service	✔	–	–	–	✔	–
–	Distribute Flyers	Service	✔	–	–	–	✔	–
–	Stock Photo Modeling	Service	–	–	✔	–	✔	–
–	Pet Grooming	Service	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Baking	Service	✔	–	✔	–	✔	–
–	Pet Sitting	Service	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Proofreading	Service	✔	–	✔	–	✔	–
–	Child Care	Service	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Building Niche Websites	Service	✔	–	✔	✔	–	–
–	Car Washing	Service	✔	–	–	✔	–	–
–	Carpet Cleaning	Service	✔	✔	–	✔	–	–
–	Catering	Service	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	–
–	Coaching	Service	✔	–	✔	✔	✔	–
–	Small Business Marketing	Service	✔	–	✔	–	✔	–
–	Interior Decorating	Service	✔	–	✔	✔	✔	–
–	Translation Service	Service	✔	–	✔	✔	✔	–
–	Travel Agent	Service	✔	–	–	✔	✔	–
–	Voiceover Acting	Service	✔	–	✔	–	✔	–
–	Window Cleaning	Service	✔	–	–	✔	✔	–
–	Yard Work	Service	✔	–	–	✔	✔	–
–	Pooper Scooper	Service	✔	–	–	✔	✔	–
–	Cleaning Business	Service	✔	✔	–	–	✔	–
–	Computer Repair	Service	✔	–	✔	✔	–	–
✔	Digital Marketing	Service	✔	–	–	–	✔	✔
–	Handyman Services	Service	✔	–	✔	–	–	–
–	Photographer	Service	✔	✔	✔	✔	–	–
–	Kids Birthday Parties Business	Service	✔	✔	–	–	✔	–
–	Rideshare Driving (Uber)	Sharing economy	✔	✔	–	✔	–	–
–	Airbnb	Sharing economy	–	✔	–	✔	–	–
✔	Rent Your Car	Sharing economy	–	✔	–	✔	–	–
–	Rent Out Garage Or Driveway	Sharing economy	–	✔	–	✔	–	✔
–	Vehicle Advertising	Sharing economy	–	✔	–	✔	–	–
–	Rent Out Clothes	Sharing economy	–	✔	–	✔	–	–
–	Create an Online Course or Tutorial	Teaching	–	–	✔	–	–	✔
–	Tutoring (e.g. English, Music)	Teaching	✔	–	✔	✔	–	✔
–	Teach People To Cook	Teaching	✔	–	✔	–	–	–
–	Teach People Arts And Crafts	Teaching	✔	–	✔	✔	–	–
–	Music Lessons	Teaching	✔	–	✔	✔	–	–
–	Teach A Language	Teaching	✔	–	–	✔	✔	✔
–	Coach Sports	Teaching	✔	–	✔	✔	–	–
–	Teach Yoga	Teaching	✔	–	✔	✔	–	–
–	Teach Computer Skills	Teaching	✔	–	✔	✔	–	–
–	Marking CPA Exam Papers Online	Teaching	✔	–	✔	✔	–	✔
–	Bookkeeping	Service	✔	–	✔	✔	–	✔

How to Find Your Perfect Side Hustle

We all have different life situations and needs, so we’re all looking for something different out of a side hustle: enjoyment and satisfaction, a new source of income, career capital. But simple lists don’t often do much to clarify your options, which is why we’ve created a comparison table. Follow these steps to find the perfect side hustle for you.

What Do You Have More Of?
First, you decide what resources you have at your disposal: Spare time? Savings? A rare skill?
Long or Short Term?
Then, identify whether you’d rather have lower short-term gains or higher long-term gains. Do you want to build a passive income stream, or replace your full-time job?
Find Ideas That Match Those Criteria
Your next step is to identify the ideas that fulfil your criteria on the table. We’ve marked the best side hustle ideas – ways to make cash that have the right balance between effort and payoff.

Best?	Hustle	Type	Time?	Upfront investment?	Asset?	Skill?	Quick turnaround?	Growth potential?	Online?
–	Blogging	Creating content	✓	–	–	✓	–	–	✓
–	Podcast	Creating content	✓	–	–	✓	–	–	✓
–	Create Ebooks	Creating content	–	–	–	✓	–	✓	✓
–	Become A Brand Ambassador	Creating content	✓	–	–	✓	–	✓	–
–	Create Software	Creating content	✓	–	–	✓	–	✓	–
–	License Stock Music	Creating content	–	–	–	✓	–	✓	–
✓	Youtube Channel	Creating content	✓	–	–	✓	–	✓	–
✓	Affiliate Marketing	Creating content	✓	✓	–	–	–	✓	✓
–	Sell Your Old Stuff	Easy side hustles	–	–	✓	–	✓	–	✓
–	Marketing Focus Groups	Easy side hustles	✓	–	–	–	–	–	✓
–	Online Surveys	Easy side hustles	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	✓
–	Swagbucks	Easy side hustles	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Amazon Mechanical Turk	Easy side hustles	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	✓
–	Dropshipping	Ecommerce	✓	–	–	–	–	✓	✓
–	eBay Store	Ecommerce	✓	–	–	–	–	✓	✓
–	Amazon Store	Ecommerce	–	✓	–	–	✓	–	✓
–	Print T-Shirts	Ecommerce	–	–	–	✓	–	✓	✓
–	Online Nursery Delivery Service	Ecommerce	✓	✓	–	–	–	–	–
✓	Sell Handmade Things (Etsy)	Ecommerce	✓	–	–	–	–	–	✓
–	Sell Digital Templates	Ecommerce	–	–	–	✓	–	✓	✓
–	Flipping Cars	Flipping	✓	✓	–	–	–	✓	–
–	Bidding On Abandoned Storage Lockers	Flipping	✓	✓	–	–	–	–	–
–	Flipping Bicycles	Flipping	✓	✓	–	✓	✓	–	–
–	Flipping Campervans	Flipping	✓	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–
–	Flipping Vintage Furniture	Flipping	✓	✓	–	–	–	–	–
–	Delivery	Gig economy	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Host Airbnb Food Tour	Gig economy	✓	–	–	✓	✓	✓	–
–	Help People Move House/Furniture	Gig economy	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Help People Grocery Shop	Gig economy	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Dating	Gig economy	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Human Billboard	Gig economy	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Customer Service	Gig economy	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Graphic Design	Gig economy	✓	–	–	✓	✓	✓	–
–	Rent a Friend	Gig economy	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Snuggling	Gig economy	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Mystery Shopping	Gig economy	✓	–	–	–		–	–
–	Domain Flipping	Investing	–	✓	–	–	–	✓	✓
–	Vending Machines	Investing	–	✓	–	–	–	✓	–
–	Dividend Investing	Investing	–	✓	–	–	–	✓	–
–	Real Estate Investing	Investing	✓	✓	–	–	–	✓	–
–	Invest In Shares	Investments	–	✓	–	–	–	–	✓
–	Babysitting	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	✓	–
✓	Virtual Assistant	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	✓	✓
✓	Freelancing	Service	✓	–	–	✓	–	✓	✓
–	Dog Walking	Service	✓	–	–	–	–	✓	–
–	Tour Guide	Service	✓	–	–	–	–	–	–
–	Private Chef	Service	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	–
–	Babysitting	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Housekeeping	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Personal Shopper Service	Service	✓	–	–	✓	–	✓	–
–	Write Resumes	Service	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	✓
–	Become An Extra	Service	✓	–	–	–	–	✓	–
–	Freelance Writing	Service	✓	–	–	✓	✓	✓	✓
–	Personal Training	Service	✓	–	–	✓	✓	✓	✓
–	Clothing Alterations	Service	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	–
–	Recycling Business	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Event DJ	Service	✓	–	–	✓	✓	✓	–
–	Ironing Service	Service	✓	–	–	–	–	✓	–
–	Distribute Flyers	Service	✓	–	–	–	–	✓	–
–	Stock Photo Modeling	Service	–	–	–	✓	–	✓	–
–	Pet Grooming	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Baking	Service	✓	–	–	✓	–	✓	–
–	Pet Sitting	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Proofreading	Service	✓	–	–	✓	–	✓	–
–	Child Care	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Building Niche Websites	Service	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	–
–	Car Washing	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Carpet Cleaning	Service	✓	✓	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Catering	Service	✓	✓	–	✓	✓	✓	–
–	Coaching	Service	✓	–	–	✓	✓	✓	–
–	Small Business Marketing	Service	✓	–	–	✓	–	✓	–
–	Interior Decorating	Service	✓	–	–	✓	✓	✓	–
–	Translation Service	Service	✓	–	–	✓	✓	✓	–
–	Travel Agent	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	✓	–
–	Voiceover Acting	Service	✓	–	–	✓	–	✓	–
–	Window Cleaning	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	✓	–
–	Yard Work	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	✓	–
–	Pooper Scooper	Service	✓	–	–	–	✓	✓	–
–	Cleaning Business	Service	✓	✓	–	–	–	✓	–
–	Computer Repair	Service	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	–
✓	Digital Marketing	Service	✓	–	–	–	–	✓	✓
–	Handyman Services	Service	✓	–	–	✓	–	–	–
–	Photographer	Service	✓	✓	–	✓	✓	–	–
–	Kids Birthday Parties Business	Service	✓	✓	–	–	–	✓	–
–	Rideshare Driving (Uber)	Sharing economy	✓	✓	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Airbnb	Sharing economy	–	–	✓	–	✓	–	–
✓	Rent Your Car	Sharing economy	–	–	✓	–	✓	–	–
–	Rent Out Garage Or Driveway	Sharing economy	–	–	✓	–	✓	–	✓
–	Vehicle Advertising	Sharing economy	–	–	✓	–	✓	–	–
–	Rent Out Clothes	Sharing economy	–	✓	–	–	✓	–	–
–	Create an Online Course or Tutorial	Teaching	–	–	–	✓	–	–	✓
–	Tutoring (eg English, Music)	Teaching	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	✓
–	Teach People To Cook	Teaching	✓	–	–	✓	–	–	–
–	Teach People Arts And Crafts	Teaching	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	–
–	Music Lessons	Teaching	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	–
–	Teach A Language	Teaching	✓	–	–	–	✓	✓	✓
–	Coach Sports	Teaching	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	–
–	Teach Yoga	Teaching	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	–
–	Teach Computer Skills	Teaching	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	–
–	Marking CPA Exam Papers Online	Teaching	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	✓
–	Bookkeeping	Service	✓	–	–	✓	✓	–	✓

A side hustle can help you achieve your financial or career goals, but it’s a good idea to make sure it fits in with your life and your interests first. If one of these ideas has caught your eye, why not investigate further with a small business course?

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