The 10+ Best Side Hustles For Busy Professionals
Let's face it: figuring out ways to make money on the side with a full time job can be pretty tough.
The thing is, a 9-5 job isn't really just 9-5. Between commuting, running errands, and prepping for the work week, it can be difficult to find free time.
However, if you're ever in a crunch for cash or are simply looking for some part time side hustles, a full time job doesn't put you out of the running.
In fact, you can still find plenty of opportunities to earn extra money that don't completely ruin your social life or day job.
So, today we're covering some of the best side hustles for busy professionals that you can use to make money while still holding down your career.
Looking for other quick & flexible ways to make extra money? Checkout:
- Branded Surveys – Share your opinion to earn free PayPal money and gift cards!
- Ipsos iSay – Another fun way to get gift cards and PayPal cash!
The Best Side Hustles For Busy Professionals
I've been making money online or with various gig apps for years. And when I started out, I had to balance work, college, and making extra money in my schedule.
I'm not alone. In fact, about 45% of Americans also have a side hustle according to 2022 data from Zippia.
However, it can be difficult to juggle everything, especially if you're working 40+ hours a week. But that's why I'm covering the best side jobs for busy professionals that meet the following requirements:
- Have no contractual obligation or offer a very flexible schedule.
- Only require a few hours a week at the most to start earning income.
- Don't require a lot of skills or qualifications to start.
It's truly important to have control over your schedule here. Plus, you also want to choose a side gig that actually pays enough for it to be worth your time.
That being said, let's examine some of the best side jobs for busy people you can use to boost your income!
1. Food Delivery Apps
One of the best side hustles for busy professionals that you can make quick money with are food delivery gigs.
These apps are ideal for working professionals since they let you work the hours you want. And, signing up is easy and free, so you don't have to jump through hoops to start earnings.
In my post on delivering for DoorDash versus Uber Eats, I was able to interview one of my good friends to learn how much money he makes by delivering food in Toronto.
My friend is able to make upwards of $20 an hour by delivering during dinner rushes or late night bar hours. He also avoided putting mileage or wear and tear on his car by making money with his bike.
Plus, there's several popular food delivery companies you can work for, including:
- DoorDash – Deliver food in your city and make money on your own schedule!
- Postmates – Deliver food and everyday essentials to people in your city, with earnings comparable to DoorDash or even higher.
- Instacart – Make money on the side by delivering groceries to people and earn around $15 to $20+ per hour!
- Uber Eats – Become a delivery driver for Uber Eats and hustle on the side to earn extra cash like DoorDash.
- Cornershop – Another popular job like Instacart that pays you to shop for people's groceries.
- Shipt – One more grocery delivery gig that also pays $15 to $20+ per hour on average.
As you can see in the screenshot above, some people make amazing money delivering for DoorDash or similar food delivery apps.
Granted, if you're only going to deliver for a few hours per week after work, you won't be making thousands of dollars per month. However, even if it's $200 a month or some other amount, I think food delivery jobs are one of the best side gigs for busy people.
If you want to make money on the side, get some exercise, and work 100% on your own schedule, I'd highly suggest checking out some popular food delivery companies in your area.
Extra Reading – DoorDash Driver Tips & Tricks To Earn More Money.
2. Charge Scooters For Money
Another unique side hustle for busy people that you can test out is charging scooters for money.
If you live in a major city that has electric scooter rentals available from companies like Bird, you can actually start a decent part time side hustle by keeping these scooters charged.
As a scooter charger, you scoop scooters off of the street, charge them at your home or office, and then return the scooters to a central hub once they are fully charged.
Payment per scooter varies on how long it's been since a scooter was charged. Additionally, it only takes around $0.25-$0.40 in electricity costs to fully charge a scooter.
According to Kevin from Financial Panther, both Bird and Lime pay between $3-$5 per scooter charge.
Kevin is able to pick several scooters up during his commute, enabling him to earn anywhere from $10-$30 a day if conditions are right.
Kevin currently earns anywhere from $150-$1,000 a month just by charging scooters, which is pretty insane. So if you live near a Lime or Bird hub, this could be a very lucrative part time side hustle to consider!
3. Use Paid Survey Sites
If you want an easy way to make money with a laptop or phone, you can always use survey sites that pay you cash.
This is also a decent side hustle for busy people since you can answer surveys in your spare time when watching TV or relaxing around the house. I've also used plenty of GPT sites and apps since my phone farming days in college, so I know they're legit and pay out.
Some of the most popular platforms you can use include:
- Branded Surveys: A leading platform that lets you cash out at just $5 for PayPal cash and gift cards.
- Survey Junkie: Another popular survey site with a low $5 cash out requirement.
- Swagbucks: This site lets you make money with paid surveys, trivia games for cash, watching ads, and downloading apps.
- Grindabuck: One of my favorite get-paid-to websites where I've earned over $120.
- Kashkick: A newer survey site that lets you earn free PayPal cash for answering surveys.
Using sites like Branded Surveys and other similar sites isn't going to replace your day job. But again, these are flexible side hustles for working professionals that can make a bit of extra beermoney on the side.
4. Start A Blog
Another one of my favorite side hustles for working people is to make money with a blog. And this also a very personal example for me since blogging is now how I make most of my income, but it wasn't alway like this.
I started WebMonkey while I was a full-time student and working 20 hours a week at Starbucks.
And, what started out as a college side hustle gradually grew from grocery money into something more serious.
Take a look at the first few months of my blogging income:
I was elated when WebMonkey was earning $200 to $300 a month. But, fast forward a few years, and I made $22,000 blogging in 2020. Then, in 2021, WebMonkey made $92,000.
Most of my blogging income comes from affiliate marketing and running display advertising with Mediavine, a premium ad network.
In fact, Mediavine can make $500 a day or more in advertisement income alone. And affiliate income then makes up the rest.
It also took a long time to get here, but I held down full-time jobs the entire time.
So, I think starting a blog is a viable side job for busy people because you can do it on your own schedule and the growth potential is immense.
Plus, blogging can help you branch out into other online income ideas, like selling eBooks, online coaching, or even making money on YouTube.
If you want to get started with blogging, it doesn't have to be expensive. You can purchase a domain name and basic WordPress hosting with a company like Namecheap for less than a cup of coffee per month.
5. Play Games For Money
Do you like playing video games after work? If so, another side hustle for working professionals you can try is to use various paid gaming apps.
There are numerous apps and websites that pay you with PayPal money and gift cards for playing new games. This makes it easy to start an easy video game side hustle that you can enjoy before or after work.
Several paid gaming apps I've used and recommend include:
- Cash Giraffe: My new favorite cash game that lets you redeem PayPal money and gift cards.
- Mistplay. Play new Android games and earn free gift cards with this gaming loyalty program.
- Rewarded Play: This app like Mistplay also lets you earn gift cards for trying different Android games.
- Gamehag. Play premium PC games and earn points, which are redeemable for free Steam games, gift cards, cash, and other prizes.
- AppStation: Another popular gaming app for iOS and Android devices with plenty of gift card rewards.
Like survey sites, these gaming apps aren't going to make you $100 a day or anything even close to that.
But they're a flexible, fun side hustle you can use to earn some freebies after a busy work day.
6. Walk Dogs & Pet Sit
If you're an animal lover, dog walking or pet sitting can be a great way to make extra money while working a full time job.
Companies like Rover and Wag have created marketplaces where dog and pet owners can pay to have someone walk or look after their beloved furry friend.
Taking care of pets or walking dogs is a decent side job for a few reasons.
Firstly, companies like Rover allow you to set your own schedule and pay rate, and there is no minimum monthly requirement for how active you need to be.
Secondly, all pet sitters and walkers get insurance under companies like Rover, so you are protected while doing your work. Considering that you can make upwards of $19/hour walking dogs with Rover and even more by pet sitting, there's definitely money on the table (especially if you live in a major city).
7. Flip Items On eBay
In another one of my Young Money interviews, I got to hear from Nathan of Millionaire Dojo on how he makes hundreds of dollars every month flipping items on his eBay store.
If you're willing to put in some time on the occasional weekend or two and invest in a modest amount of inventory, you can start to earn extra income every month and diversify your income.
The proof is in the pudding.
Nathan earns more than $500 from flipping on eBay every month, and he also interviews other successful sellers on his blog while documenting his own progress.
If you enjoy thrifting and can find a few hours a month to buy inventory, this might be a viable side job for additional income.
You can also sell stuff on other local marketplaces like the Facebook Marketplace or even by pawning stuff for cash.
Extra Reading – Best Ways To Make Money With A Pickup Truck.
8. Do Micro Jobs For Money
If you want to make money online as a beginner, another side hustle you can try are micro job sites.
Micro job sites pay you for completing short online tasks like:
- Data entry
- Image annotation
- Social media moderation
- Transcription
Clickworker is one of the most popular micro job sites out there. And you can sign up for free and then complete short tasks to earn bits of PayPal money.
Realistically, you can probably earn an extra $50-$200 per month if you take a bit of free time to complete short tasks online. And you can potentially earn a bit more if you can get a job with websites like Appen or Lionbridge.
However, this category of side jobs for working professionals is pretty straightforward since you choose whenever you want to make money online.
9. Referee Sports
Refereeing soccer matches is how many of my friends made money as teenagers. But I also know several adults who have been refereeing matches for as long as I have been playing.
Becoming a referee generally requires completing a course and having some understanding of the sport you're officiating, and you don't set your own hours. However, if you can find a gig officiating a summer game every now and again, it's pretty decent money.
Refs can easily get paid $50+ per game, or even more if you make it to higher levels/age groups of play.
Besides, who doesn't want to get paid to enjoy some outdoor weather and a sports game? If you don't mind angry parents yelling at you, it's an absolute walk in the park!
If you're looking for even more creative side job ideas, you can also checkout one of my YouTube videos on other side hustle ideas:
10. Rent Out Assets For Money
I've already written a post on ways you can rent out your assets for cash. And, this would probably be my go-to for extra money right now since I'm pretty swamped with freelance writing and blogging.
There are also plenty of creative ways to earn money on autopilot by renting things out, including:
- Renting out a spare room on a website like Airbnb or VRBO
- Renting out your storage space with Neighbor
- Renting out electronics and other expensive gear on a marketplace like Fat Llama
- Renting out your vehicle with Getaround
This is a nifty source of passive income, and in terms of side hustles for busy people, it's by far the least intensive option.
Living in a major city will probably make this side gig more viable. But I still think it is worth exploring if you want to earn extra money alongside your full time job.
11. Contractless Gig Jobs
Thanks to the power of the gig economy, it's never been easier to make money on the side whenever you find some free time and motivation.
Just take a look at some of these popular gigs as an example:
- TaskRabbit or Thumbtack – Get paid to assemble furniture, do yard work, help with moving, or complete other odd jobs as you see fit.
- Handy – Make money assembling furniture or cleaning.
- Bellhops or Dolly – Help people with their move for some side cash.
- HelloTech – Get paid to help people with their tech problems and installations.
- Uber & Lyft – Make money as a rideshare driver in your city.
- Amazon Flex – Earn $18 to $25 with this driving gig by delivering packages for Amazon.
You can also make some serious money here: just checkout this screenshot from a weekend of working for Handy:
These gigs all let you set your own schedule and accept the shifts/gigs you want, which is important for busy professionals.
And the hourly rates for many of these gigs can reach $15 to $25+ per hour if you work quickly and get a bit lucky with tips.
Extra Reading – 9 Apps Like TaskRabbit To Start A Side Hustle.
12. Start Investing
One final side hustle for busy professionals that you can consider is to begin investing.
This isn't a classic side hustle in the sense that you don't have to go out and hustle with a gig app. But learning how to make your money work for you still takes time and attention.
However, there are plenty of ways to begin investing for income if you want to put some of the income from your day job to work, including:
- Investing in real estate with crowdfunding companies like Arrived (U.S. only)
- Investing with a robo-advisor
- Investing in various stocks and ETFs with a commission-free broker like M1
- Investing in bonds, CDs, and other fixed-income securities
- Opening a high-yield savings account
- Using micro investing apps like Acorns to gradually invest and build good habits
There's no single ‘correct' formula for how to invest. And you should always consider speaking with a certified financial professional if you need specific advice for your personal situation.
Personally, I'm sticking with dividend stocks and ETFs for the most part these days. But you should do your own research online and think about your overall investing goals and what's best for you.
Final Thoughts
I hope this guide on the best side hustles for busy professionals gives you a few ideas on how to make money while holding down a busy schedule.
I know from experience that life can get hectic. But if you work smart, I firmly believe it's possible to hustle while still focusing on your career.
And starting out small is absolutely fine. So, don't be afraid to make a few deliveries with DoorDash, answer some surveys with Branded Surveys, or to start your own freelancing hustle or blog.
It might take some time, but the rewards are always worth it in the long run. Just never forget to also enjoy life and to live a little!
That's all for this one! I hope this list of the best side jobs for busy professionals helps you to earn a bit of extra income in addition to any full time job you might have.
Catch you guys in the next one.
Want extra ways to boost your income? Checkout:
DoorDash Disclaimer: Actual earnings may differ and depend on factors like number of deliveries completed, time of day, location, and expenses. Dash now subject to background check and availability.
