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
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- 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 data24 ideas
- Teaching and coachingTeaching hands-on shop class projects to kids, with customers found through homeschool groups and word of mouth. It can stay a weekend side hustle or grow larger.In personThe Koerner Office, 2026
- Physical productsBuying poorly listed couches, negotiating the price down and reselling them with better photos, including AI-generated backgrounds. The operator is a teenager working in spare time.Online and in personThe Koerner Office, 2026
- Rentals and assetsRents out tables to vendors at local comic conventions.In personHacker News, 2026
- Services and freelancingSelling ad space on oversized postcards mailed to every home on a route through USPS Every Door Direct Mail. Several local advertisers share each card, and the operators keep the difference.Online and in personSide Hustle Nation, 2026
- Content and mediaA paid membership that delivers private podcast episodes mixing public domain radio shows with cleaning routines and prompts. Members pay a monthly or quarterly fee.OnlineSide Hustle Nation, 2025
- Digital productsWrites a newsletter of real-world projects for learning programming, and sells paid courses.OnlineHacker News, 2024
- Content and mediaA product review blog that earns from affiliate commissions.OnlineHacker News, 2021
- Physical productsMakes and sells notebooks with music staff paper for musicians.OnlineHacker News, 2021
- Rentals and assetsTakes preorders for expiring domains and tries to catch them when they drop, and also holds a portfolio of domains for later development.OnlineHacker News, 2019
- Content and mediaRuns a site that reviews web hosts and earns affiliate commissions. Competition is heavy.OnlineHacker News, 2019
- Services and freelancingDoes adult webcam work with an established base of private clients, using it as flexible fallback income between jobs.A few hours a weekOnlineHacker News, 2019
- Physical productsSells folk music CDs and handmade items at science fiction and fantasy conventions.$100 to $1kIn personHacker News, 2019
- Content and mediaMakes video tutorials on Arduino programming on a personal site. Earns referral commissions when visitors buy parts.OnlineHacker News, 2019
- Physical productsKeeps chickens and sells the eggs, which covers little more than feed costs.A few hours a weekHacker News, 2019
- Physical productsSells phosphorescent cosmetic modifications for synthesizers, a niche hardware accessory product.$100 to $1kOnlineHacker News, 2019
- Physical productsDyes small batches of yarn with traditional methods for a small group of weavers who want specific colors.$100 to $1kOnline and in personHacker News, 2019
- Physical productsMakes jelly by hand from berries grown in the garden and sells it through word of mouth.Hacker News, 2019
- Physical productsDesigns outlines for cases cut on a maker space laser machine and sells them on eBay. Local materials make it possible to undercut imports on price.$100 to $1kOnline and in personHacker News, 2019
- Physical productsDesigns and builds adapters that turn surplus server power supplies into general purpose 12 volt supplies. Sold as a physical hardware product.Hacker News, 2016
- Content and mediaMaintains a handful of websites, including a gift ideas site that earns through Amazon affiliate links and some content sites.OnlineHacker News, 2016
- Content and mediaBuilt a content website covering a niche in a non-US market, with a lot of long-tail search traffic monetized by AdSense.A few hours a weekOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Physical productsDesigned a London map in a historic style and sells it as a physical product online.A few hours a weekOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Digital productsWrote a book about payments with Stripe for Rails developers, backed by related blog posts and content.OnlineHacker News, 2014
- Physical productsSells grafting tools made by a relative's family company through an online store, after testing demand on eBay.A few hours a weekOnlineHacker News, 2011