Rebekah MayAre you looking for a new way to earn some extra money in 2021? Or do you simply want something productive to do during lockdown? Starting your own business or side hustle in your spare time may be the answer. Here we look at 16 of the best side hustle ideas for 2021.
1. Freelance Writing
It’s quite common for smaller companies to hire freelance writers to help with articles and blog posts. If you’re good with words, and have interesting perspectives on current topics, then you could earn a small income by offering up your writing skills.
Sign up to companies like People Per Hour, create a stand-out profile, and work on getting some regular clients.
2. Sell Unwanted Items
It can be quite easy to accumulate a lot of “things” over the years. One way you can earn some extra money is to have a rummage through your possessions and pull out anything you think could be resold.
Start by creating accounts with eBay, Depop, Vinted, or even explore Facebook Marketplace.
Before you list anything for sale, research how much similar products are selling for, and take into consideration the cost of shipping. Make sure you then spend time taking good, clear, pictures of your items and always write detailed descriptions. This will increase your chances of selling an item, and will help you get the best price possible.
3. Sell Handmade Goods
If you’re particularly arty, selling handmade goods could be a great side hustle for you. The best thing about this is that you can sell practically anything!
Use sites like Etsy, or even Instagram, and Facebook to sell handmade candles, printable artwork, cards, pottery, jewelry, and even clothes. If you’re good at baking you could even explore this as an option. Personalized birthday and wedding cakes could be a lucrative business if you enjoy baking.
4. Create Youtube Tutorials
Do you have lots of ideas for funny, engaging, or informative content? Why not share your ideas on your own Youtube channel?
Start by planning the kind of things you want to talk about, and then set yourself a goal of posting a certain amount of videos each month. It’ll take a while to build a good community, but if you get enough subscribers, the earning potential is huge.
5. Complete Online Surveys
Looking for a new way to make money that involves little effort? You can now make money online by participating in research and focus groups, for companies like Research Opinions, StreetBees, Respondent, and YouGov.
These companies pay for your opinions, and provide a great way to earn a little extra cash each month. Plus, you can complete many of these tasks in under 10 minutes, at a time that suits you. What’s not to love?
6. Become An Uber Driver
If you’ve got a car and are looking for extra work, then consider whether becoming an Uber driver is a good side hustle idea for you. There are some requirements that Uber drivers must meet before they can begin working, but once you’re accepted you can make a solid income from this.
If you don’t have a car but have a bicycle or a scooter, then how about taking some shifts with UberEats or Deliveroo instead? You’ll need to be older than 18, have a smartphone, and have access to some form of transport. You can also choose when to work, and get paid weekly!
7. Offer Your Services On Fiverr
Fiverr is an online marketplace for freelance services. If you’re skilled in logo design, WordPress, social media management, SEO, illustration, and even voice-overs then you could make an extra income by signing up to Fiverr.
As a seller on Fiverr you’ll need to start by creating a profile and setting your price. You can charge anything from £5 for your work, including add-on services for extra money. A buyer then sees your profile, selects you to do the work and pays you for your services. The more jobs you get through Fiverr the easier it is to build your seller “rating”, and the higher your rating, the more money you can start charging.
8. Begin Matched Betting
Matched betting is a betting technique that works by profiting from free bets and incentives offered by bookmakers. It is completely legal, and generally considered risk-free as it’s based on mathematical equations rather than luck. It works by turning free bets offered online into money by covering all the potential outcomes of a sporting event through multiple bets.
It’s important that before you begin matched betting you do your research, and fully understand how it works. Find out what users on the Emma Community think about matched betting.
9. Start A Blog
Starting a blog takes a lot of time and effort, but has the potential to earn you huge amounts of money. To get started you’ll need to think about your blog niche and the type of content you want to create. Then you’ll need to buy a domain name, and pay for a web host.
Once your website is more established you can then start monetising your blog by adding sponsored posts, affiliate links and other forms of advertising.
10. Sell Items For Profit
We’ve already mentioned that selling items from around your home is a great side hustle. If you want to start earning even more money then think about buying and selling items for profit. You could start by browsing through charity shops and buying items you think you could sell for more money. Or, if you’re more serious about the idea of flipping products for profit you could invest in more expensive items like jewellery or designer handbags.
It’s important to note that you will have to invest in buying these items first, so only choose this side hustle idea if you’re sure you’ll spend the time selling it later on.
11. Offer Tailoring Services
Good with a sewing machine? You could start a side hustle by offering your alteration services.
Advertise your services around your local community and work on building up a trusted client base. You could be paid for quick fixes like turning trousers up, or more complicated tasks like wedding dress alterations. You could even expand into custom homewares, selling personalised cushions, or curtains.
12. Create An Online Course
If you’re particularly knowledgeable about a certain topic then you could earn some extra cash by creating an online course. Skills such as coding, or wordpress are particularly in demand at the moment as small businesses are looking to improve their online presence.
If you don’t possess those skills then think about what you are good at – business management, art, writing, creating a killer CV? People want to learn, and will pay good money to access fresh new advice from people they trust.
13. Publish An E-Book
As above, if you’re an expert in a particular field you could make money from your knowledge by creating an e-book.
With the introduction of low cost self publishing options, creating an e-book is easier than ever. This form of side hustle will take a lot of effort to begin with, but once it’s been published can offer a great source of passive income.
For example, if you’re an experienced investor you could write an e-book explaining how you began your investment journey. It doesn’t need to be hundreds of pages long, it just needs to be useful enough that people will be happy to pay for it.
14. Offer Coaching
Don’t fancy creating an online course, or publishing an e-book but think you’re knowledgeable about a specific topic? Consider becoming a coach.
You could be a wellness coach, a financial coach, a career coach – the list goes on. Getting people to pay you for coaching sessions won’t be easy to begin with, so start by creating a community of people who trust you and the advice you give. Research if you need any qualifications to become a coach, and then promote your services through Instagram, Facebook or Twitter.
15. Become A Tutor
Another side hustle idea for 2021 is to offer online lessons.
One option is to teach ESL (English as a second language), where you work with non-native speakers to help them speak, read, write and understand English. To become an ESL teacher you must complete a teacher preparation course, so you need to be serious about this type of side hustle.
If you’re already a teacher then this option is much easier. You can use your existing skill set and knowledge of the current curriculum to offer private tutoring. Advertise your services at the school you’re currently working at, or promote yourself throughout the local community.
16. Become An Instagram Influencer
Having a big online presence can lead to big bucks. If you have a well established audience you may be able to influence them to buy certain products or services. These could be your own products and services, or other peoples.
A lot of brands are now working with smaller influencers to promote their products, and in return are offering the influencers commission for every sale. This is called affiliate marketing, and works by tracking the amount of sales or clicks that come from your unique link. The good thing about affiliate marketing is that if you do it well, the amount of money you can make is limitless.
You could then also earn some extra money by helping other people become Instagram influencers, by writing courses, creating a blog, or starting a Youtube channel.
Starting A Side Hustle In 2021:
Before starting any side hustle take into consideration how much time it’ll take up. If you enjoy the side hustle and are learning valuable skills, then time may not be an issue. But it’s good to be aware that some side hustles need serious investment in time (and money)!
Having a side hustle is just one way you can earn extra money. If you don’t think having a side hustle is right for you, negotiating your salary or switching to a better paid job are also proven ways to earn more money.
We spoke to The Bank Engine about his top tips for making more money – check it out here.
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