Blogging for Change

Easy Side Hustles With Low Startup Costs

by Jackie Lam on
9/15/2021
in Personal Finance
Woman in mask delivering groceries to elderly woman.

The gig economy isn’t going anywhere soon. According to a 2018 Gallup Poll, about 36 percent of workers in the United States do at least some amount of freelance work. It’s easy to see why - trends in technology have made it easier and easier to trade skills, resources, and manpower for cash.

If you’re looking for an easy side hustle to start earning extra money, the first question you may ask yourself is, “What kind of side hustle can I afford to start?” After all, most freelance work is going to require some form of investment on your part.

Fortunately, there are quite a few side gigs out there that don’t require a lot of money, materials, or equipment upfront. Here are a handful of side hustles that require very little investment to start:

Dog Walking

If you love pups, why not consider taking up being a professional dog walker? All you need is some experience with dogs, dog leashes, doggy poop bags, and a sturdy pair of sneakers. Since you’ll be walking (it’s right there in the name), you’ll also want to be in relatively good shape. Dog walking platforms such as Wag! and Rover make it easy to open an account and set up a profile.

Once you land your first few reviews, you’ll have an easier time landing more gigs. You can get a dog walking certification if you’d like to boost your cred, but it’s not necessary to get started. According to Glassdoor, the average hourly wage for a dog walker on Wag! Is $16 and $17 if you’re a dog walker for Rover.

House Sitting

Want a change of scenery and get paid for it? Sites such as Nomador and Trusted Housesitters have listings of homeowners that are looking for a solid, reliable people to watch over their homes while they’re away on vacation or business trips. All you need is a clean record, strong communication skills, and a pleasant demeanor. Of course, any prior experience house sitting or watching over pets is a bonus.

Focus Group Participant

Want to get paid for voicing your political views, or for test-tasting a new brand of chewing gum? The eligibility requirements depend on the study, but if you fall within a certain age, gender, or ethnicity, you could make some easy money for being part of a focus group.

Depending on the type and length of the study, you could be raking in anywhere between $50 to $200 a study. Check out opportunities to participate either online or in person on Focus Group or 20|20 Panel.

Online Paid Survey

Similar to being part of a focus group, you can side hustle by taking paid surveys. You can earn either cash or gift cards, and can rake in anywhere from $5.00 to $30.00 a survey. Fair warning: They can get tedious pretty fast. And you can either sit for a stretch of time or break up surveys into smaller chunks.

Earning a decent chunk of change is definitely a matter of volume — the more you do, the more you earn. The best part of online surveys is that you can do them in the comfort of your home, relaxing in a pair of sweats, and on your own time. Popular online survey sites include Swagbucks, Survey Junkie, and CashKarma.

Food Delivery

You don’t need a car to deliver food from restaurants to businesses and people’s homes. While having your own set of wheels could certainly come in handy, many popular food delivery services, such as DoorDash, Postmates, and Grubhub, allow you to deliver food via scooter or bike. You’ll just need a method of carrying the food around.

What’s nice about food delivery is that if you like staying busy, you can also stagger with other “easy” side hustles, such as being a rideshare driver.

Babysit

Do you go “ga-ga” for babies? Then consider taking up babysitting. You can scour local listings on sites such as Care.com or Urbansitter. You’ll need to be reliable, responsible, and have a way with children. If you have a certification in CPR or disaster training, it could make you a more attractive kid-sitter. But besides having some experience caring for children under your belt, you probably don’t need a lot of equipment or supplies to get started.

Taking up a side hustle with relatively little investment upfront makes it easier to get the ball rolling. What’s more, you can test out the waters. If you don’t want to continue pursuing a particular side hustle, you won’t have to worry about having put in a lot of resources and time upfront. You can try out a bunch of side hustles to see which ones are most profitable or jive best with you.

Not enough cash to meet your monthly expenses? Let one of our budget experts help you find ways to save money. Our NFCC-certified counselors are available 24/7. 

Tagged in Earning extra income

A corporate headshot of Jackie Lam.

Jackie Lam is an L.A.-based personal finance writer who is passionate about helping creatives with their finances. Her work has appeared in Forbes, Mental Floss, Business Insider, and Bankrate. She's also a 2022 Financial Literacy and Education in Communities (FLEC) award winner. You can find her at heyfreelancer.com.

Recommended Articles

Man sitting in front of pile of bills, trying to understand his options.
Professional Budget Advice
Make the most of every dollar and start building toward your dreams! Budget counseling is FREE and available 24/7.
Learn More
Learn more
  • Better Business Bureau A+ rating Better Business Bureau
    MMI is proud to have achieved an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB), a nonprofit organization focused on promoting and improving marketplace trust. The BBB investigates charges of fraud against both consumers and businesses, sets standards for truthfulness in advertising, and evaluates the trustworthiness of businesses and charities, providing a score from A+ (highest) to F (lowest).
  • Financial Counseling Association of America Financial Counseling Association of America
    MMI is a proud member of the Financial Counseling Association of America (FCAA), a national association representing financial counseling companies that provide consumer credit counseling, housing counseling, student loan counseling, bankruptcy counseling, debt management, and various financial education services.
  • Trustpilot Trustpilot
    MMI is rated as “Excellent” (4.9/5) by reviewers on Trustpilot, a global, online consumer review platform dedicated to openness and transparency. Since 2007, Trustpilot has received over 116 million customer reviews for nearly 500,000 different websites and businesses. See what others are saying about the work we do.
  • Department of Housing and Urban Development - Equal Housing Opportunity Department of Housing and Urban Development
    MMI is certified by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to provide consumer housing counseling. The mission of HUD is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. HUD provides support services directly and through approved, local agencies like MMI.
  • Council on Accreditation Council On Accreditation
    MMI is proudly accredited by the Council on Accreditation (COA), an international, independent, nonprofit, human service accrediting organization. COA’s thorough, peer-reviewed accreditation process is designed to ensure that organizations like MMI are providing the highest standard of service and support for clients and employees alike.
  • National Foundation for Credit Counseling National Foundation for Credit Counseling
    MMI is a longstanding member of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling® (NFCC®), the nation’s largest nonprofit financial counseling organization. Founded in 1951, the NFCC’s mission is to promote financially responsible behavior and help member organizations like MMI deliver the highest-quality financial education and counseling services.