20 Side Hustles You Can Do At Home

Speaking from personal experience, I’ve been making money from home for the past seven years. I went from making a couple of hundred dollars a month to supporting my four kids-all from the comfort of my home office.

We’re sharing some great money-making ideas for people with a variety of skills and interests. And all of these ideas are ideas you can start today.

Maybe you want to earn money from home so you can reach a financial goal. Or, maybe you need money due to a job layoff.

Or, maybe you’re just bored at home and want something to do. Whatever the reason, you may as well make good use of your time and earn some cash in the process. Here are some ideas to help get you started.

1. Freelance Writing

If you have good writing skills, there are a few different ways you can earn some cash from home. For instance, there are companies that offer contract remote work for technical writing positions.

Or, you could write articles for blogs or business websites. More and more companies are hiring independent, freelance writers for their writing needs.

This is because hiring independent contractors saves companies a lot of money. Company managers don’t have to worry about paying benefits or tracking payroll. Instead, they just cut you a check when you complete a writing assignment.

You can look online at sites like Upwork for freelance writing jobs. Or, you can take Holly Johnson’s Earn More Writing Course.

Holly is a longtime freelance writer that earns over $100k a year freelance writing. Her Earn More Writing course will show you everything you need to know to become a successful freelance writer–including where to find work.

✒️ If you have expertise (and especially if you have credentials and certifications) but don’t want to go the full “freelance writer” route – you can share your expertise on JustAnswer. JustAnswer lets you answer questions, tutor, and more – with the best opportunities for those in higher expertise areas and a willingness to share that online. Our JustAnswer review goes into more detail to see if it’s a good fit for you.

2. Start a Blog

Do you have a story to tell? Or information to share? If so, why not start a blog? With Bluehost, you can get a blog up and running in about ten minutes for as little as $2.95 per month.

To earn money blogging your readers need to click on your blog ads or purchase products or services through affiliate links in your articles. Of course, it helps to gain enough readers so you have higher click-throughs from your blog.

And Ashley Barnett’s Hit Publish course can show you how to create captivating content so you can maximize the chance of your blog gaining the traffic it needs to earn some serious cash.

If you like the idea of talking with the world, this could be a great side hustle idea for you.

3. Proofreading

Another popular work-from-home side hustle is proofreading. Companies such as transcription companies hire proofreaders to ensure their copy is grammatically correct.

If you have a gift for spotting grammatical and spelling errors and are very detail-oriented, this could be the perfect side hustle for you. And if you want to maximize your proofreading skills, you could take Proofreading Launchpad. 

This course will teach you what you need to learn to become an online proofreader. And it will share where you can look for proofreading jobs as well.

4. Transcription Work

If you have fast and accurate typing skills, and if you’re a good listener, you could earn money as a transcriptionist. Transcriptionists transcribe audio into written documents.

There are three common types of transcription jobs available: General, Legal, and Medical. Legal and Medical transcriptionists need specialized training.

However, general transcription jobs are available for beginner and experienced transcriptionists alike. Each company pays differently for transcription work. Some pay per minute of audio transcribed, others pay by the word or by the document.

As you’re starting out doing beginner transcription jobs, it wouldn’t hurt to take a course like Transcribe Anywhere to polish your skills.

The better you are at transcription work, the more money you’ll get paid for the work you do.

5. Sell or Flip Items Online

This is a side hustle idea where you can start earning money almost immediately. If you’ve got items you no longer need or want, why not sell them on Craigslist or a similar site?

If it’s electronics, give SellCell a look.

Today’s selling apps make selling online very easy. And if you want to go beyond selling your own stuff, you could look for great deals on eBay, Craigslist and other sites, and resell them at a higher price to earn a profit for yourself.

6. Rent Out a Room

If you’ve got some extra space in your home, you could rent out a spare room using a site such as Airbnb or VRBO. Travelers and business people use Airbnb and similar sites to save money when they have to travel.

Depending on where you live, it’s not uncommon to earn $65-$85 a night when renting out a room on Airbnb.

7. Sell Services on Fiverr

Fiverr is a site where people sell services for five dollars –  and often for more than that. Some common services people sell on Fiverr include:

• Artist skills
• Singing skills
• Writing skills
• Voiceover talents
• Graphic design skills
• Web designer skills

Fiverr has over 200 categories of services they sell, so they probably have something for you. With Fiverr you can sell services that will take you a really short time to complete, or you can sell more comprehensive services to earn a higher rate of pay.

8. Become a Tutor / Virtual Instructor

There are several companies that hire online tutors to work from home. As an online tutor, you can teach a variety of subjects to students of nearly any age.

For instance, with VIPKid, you teach English as a second language to Chinese students. And you don’t need to know Chinese to work in this capacity.

Other companies, such as Course Hero look for tutors in a wide variety of subjects. Note that some companies do require tutors to have a degree, but many don’t. Instead, they might require you take a proficiency test in the subject you wish to tutor.

If you like the idea of teaching others from home, you should check out online tutor websites like the ones mentioned here.

9. Work as a Virtual Assistant

A Virtual Assistant works like an Administrative Assistant, only in an online capacity. As a Virtual Assistant, you might work for a business owner, blog owner, or simply for a person with a really busy schedule.

Some of the tasks you might be responsible for as a Virtual Assistant include:

• Social media marketing
• Website or blog management
• Research tasks
• Managing a social or business calendar
• Organize your boss’s schedule
• Screen and answer emails or phone calls

And other tasks. This could be a great side hustle for those who work well in a helpmeet capacity. Find jobs on traditional job sites or sites such as Upwork.

There are courses available, such as Kayla Sloan’s 10KVA, that will help you learn the skills you need to be successful. 

10. Sell Designs on CafePress or Redbubble

My 20-year-old daughter has been selling her designs on Redbubble for over four years. And she gets a tidy little “passive income” check every month because of it.

Here’s how sites like Redbubble work: You start by uploading your graphic designs to the site you choose.

Your designs can be anything from a funny or encouraging saying to a cool or funny picture. Once you’ve uploaded your design you can sell it on a variety of items such as t-shirts, pillows, coffee mugs, and more.

The site handles all production, shipping, and customer service. When someone buys a product with your design on it, the company sends you a commission check.

11. Sell Downloadable Printables on Etsy

Another work from home job is to sell items such as downloadable printables on sites like Etsy. You’d start by creating and designing an Etsy shop based on your idea for printable items.

Market your great ideas and take your shop from “unknown” to “making some decent cash”. Etsy will also help you sell handmade items, vintage items and craft supplies.

To learn more about this side hustle you can take this e-printables side hustle course from Gold City Ventures. 

12. Become a Resume Writer

Do you have a gift for writing engaging resumes? Resume writing is a service people pay good money for. It’s not uncommon to be able to charge $100, $200 or more for your resume writing services.

Advertise on sites like Fiverr, on Facebook Marketplace, or on college campuses.

13. Rent Your Car Out

Do you have a car that you don’t need to use every day? You could list it for rent on a site like Turo. This can be an especially popular income source if you live in a highly-populated area.

Turo screens car renters and also provides insurance for your vehicle. You earn a commission every time someone rents your car.

14. Offer Pet or Child Care in Your Home

If you enjoy children or pets, you could offer pet care or child care in your home. Sites like Care.com and Rover let you post a profile to get child care or pet care jobs.

The great thing about this side hustle is that you can choose the days you’re available, and choose not to care for pets or kids on the days you don’t want to work.

15. Computer Repair Service

Do you have a gift for computer repair? How about starting a computer repair business in your home? People who need their PCs or laptops repaired can drop them off at your house and pick them up when you’re finished with the repairs.

You can advertise your services on sites like Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace.

16. Work Remotely as a Customer Service Rep

Several companies hire people to work from home as customer service representatives. If you have a PC or laptop with a microphone and a solid internet connection, you might like this side hustle idea.

Of course, being great at customer service is important if you want to work in this field. There are companies that do direct hire remote customer service reps, such as Amazon and UHaul.

There are also outsourcing companies that hire remote customer service reps on behalf of other companies. Some of these outsourcing companies include TTEC, Sykes, and Concentrix.

17. Website Design or Maintenance

If you know your way around the back end of websites, you could find some side hustle work as a website designer or maintenance person. Personally, I own a couple of blog sites.

Since I’m not a techy person, I always hire out for any site maintenance I might need. If you’re good at website maintenance or design, it’s not uncommon to earn $50 an hour or more.

Advertise your skills on sites such as Upwork.

18. Social Media Marketer

We talked a little bit about side hustling your social media skills in the Virtual Assistant section. But if you’ve really got a gift for marketing, you may want to focus solely on helping people market their businesses on social media.

Business owners everywhere are looking to increase their company’s exposure and sales. A good social media marketer could help them accomplish that mission – and earn some cash in the process.

19. Voiceover Work

Do you have an engaging voice? Are you great at doing voice impressions? If so, you might be able to work from home as a voiceover artist. Companies such as Voices.com help people find work in the voiceover industry.

As a voiceover artist, you might earn income creating audio books, talking in commercials, or taking on a role in an animated movie. The voiceover company you work with will show you exactly how to get started.

To get started, you may want to consider a course like Carrie Olsen’s Voiceover Success Intensive. 

20. Stock Photography

If you’ve got great photography skills, you might enjoy earning cash selling your stock photos. Websites such as iStockphoto let you share your great photos on their website.

Business owners and managers use stock photos when they are publishing information on their websites or in print. Each time someone uses your photo, you earn a small commission.

The best selling stock photos often include people in authentic settings (think at the dinner table or doctor’s office), specified niches (cooking, gardening), and current trends.

Suffice to say there are dozens and dozens of ideas for earning money at home. Find the right ideas for you by making a list of things you’re good at and things you like to do.

From there, write down ideas about how you can use those talents and interests to bring some extra money into your bank account. You never know: You might just make a new career out of your efforts!

Conclusion

As you can see, there is no end to the side hustles you can do at home. The hard part is choosing which one fits you best. Try one and if it doesn’t work out you can always try a different one. Or even do more than one. That’s the beauty of a side hustle – it’s not a commitment you can’t change your mind on.  Plus you get so many benefits besides money. I think everyone should have a side hustle.

And, while you’re at it, make sure you open a bank account for your side hustles so you can better manage your finances. Even if you are a sole proprietor (or I should really say, especially if you are a sole proprietor), a separate bank account is crucial from both a simplicity and liability perspective. Lili is a good option but there are many other business bank account options to consider as well.

Have you tried a side hustle from home? How did it go?