Side hustle ideas from people who actually run them
Real side businesses, described by their owners. Filter by cost, time and how they earn.
- Ideas
- 651 ideas
- Publications
- 14 publications and shows
- Categories
- 8 categories
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- Files sold online: templates, printables, ebooks, stock photos, fonts, presets, plugins, recorded courses
- A web app, SaaS, mobile app, browser extension, bot or API that people pay for or that earns from ads
- A blog, niche website, newsletter, YouTube channel, podcast or social account that earns from ads, affiliate links or sponsors
- Making, printing or reselling physical goods, online or in person
- Doing work for clients for a fee: freelance, consulting, done-for-you services, repairs, local services
- Earning from something you own: renting property, rooms, equipment, vehicles, parking, vending machines, domains
- A job board, listings site, directory or marketplace that connects buyers and sellers
- Live tutoring, lessons, workshops, coaching or cohort classes
Matching ideas
About the data22 ideas
- Content and mediaA simple website that helps people learn Excel through exercises. The founder built it with very little effort and grew it as a dead-simple, boring niche site.Hands-offOnlineStarter Story, 2026
- Content and mediaA group of free sudoku websites that earn steady income from minimal ads.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2024
- Content and mediaA blog that earns from ads and Patreon support, covering hosting costs and a bit more.OnlineHacker News, 2022
- Content and mediaStarted a price comparison website for college textbooks that earns affiliate commissions, mostly from search traffic.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2019
- Content and mediaBuilt a search tool that ranks Amazon products by ratings and review volume, grouped by price range. Money comes from affiliate links.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2016
- Content and mediaA website comparing prices for domain extensions across registrars. Earns through registrar affiliate commissions and paid data downloads.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2016
- Content and mediaA website with a searchable product catalog that earns from Amazon affiliate links.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2016
- Content and mediaA network of automated accounts that gather tech meetups and conferences for each city and tweet them, plus a weekly mailing list. Money comes from affiliate fees for conferences and workshops and from ad blocks in the newsletter.OnlineHacker News, 2016
- Content and mediaRuns a website that interviews developers and entrepreneurs about how they earn from their projects. Revenue comes mainly from sponsors.OnlineHacker News, 2016
- Content and mediaBuilt a site that forces Google Maps links into a chosen language. Ad revenue covers its hosting.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Content and mediaHosts a forum and website for a nonprofit, in exchange for placing ads that cover the hosting costs.OnlineHacker News, 2014
- Content and mediaA logo design gallery where designers submit work, earning from ads and ad network placements.OnlineHacker News, 2014
- Content and mediaA website that helps users assemble PCs, earning from affiliate links and ads.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Content and mediaRuns a couple of sites for language learners that cover living expenses.OnlineHacker News, 2014
- Content and mediaA jobs site that earns from affiliate links and AdSense, being rolled out as a network.OnlineHacker News, 2014
- Content and mediaBuilt a rhyming dictionary site where an ad unit covers the hosting costs.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Content and mediaA site of tax and finance calculators that earns from AdSense and affiliate income, needing only occasional upkeep.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Content and mediaA site that tells you where to buy tracks heard in DJ tracklists, earning small affiliate commissions that cover its hosting.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2011
- Content and mediaA search site for books that earns small amounts from affiliate sales.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2011
- Content and mediaRuns several user-submitted humor sites and earns from them plus licensing for a paid iPhone app tied to one site.OnlineHacker News, 2011
- Content and mediaBuilt a Sudoku website that now earns from advertising, mostly sponsored text links, with free signups seeing no ads.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2011
- Content and mediaRuns wallpaper websites that earn from domain registration commissions, plus ads on a related blog.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2011