Are you looking to boost your income and make the most of your weekends? In today’s fast-paced world, a side gig you do on weekends offer an incredible opportunity to earn extra cash while honing your skills and pursuing your passions – all on your own schedule.
From freelancing gigs to creative ventures, this comprehensive guide is meant to help you discover the perfect weekend hustle tailored just for you.
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Why Start A Weekend Side Hustle?
With many US households already generating additional income through side hustles, it’s time for you to jump on the bandwagon too.
If you are free on weekends and have some time on your hands, having a side hustle will benefit you in more ways than one.
Let’s take a look at the benefits of having a side gig that keeps you occupied on the weekends:
Additional Income
A weekend side hustle can provide a significant boost to your overall earnings, making it an attractive option if you want to supplement your primary income. A recent survey revealed that with the cost of living going up 44% of Americans need a side hustle to make ends meet.
You can generate consistent additional income through online marketplaces such as Etsy where you sell handmade crafts or vintage items or opt for offline opportunities like bartending at events or working as sports coaches – both of which tend to have higher demand during weekends.
Flexibility
One of the most appealing aspects of a weekend side hustle is the flexibility it offers. Unlike traditional full-time jobs, these opportunities allow you to set your own schedule and work at your own pace.
Therefore, you can explore more money-making avenues without affecting your existing professional or personal commitments.
Such flexibility also comes in handy when it comes to scaling up or down according to seasonal demands, personal preferences, or other factors in life that might affect your availability.
Take freelance writing as an instance; if there’s a high demand for content creation during certain periods, you can easily increase your workload in response to clients’ needs without being tied to specific hours from Monday through Friday.
Skill Development
A weekend side hustle is also an excellent opportunity for you to develop your skills. When you take up part-time gigs or freelance work, you can enhance existing abilities or even acquire new ones in areas such as writing, marketing, social media management, and more.
When you learn new skills through your side hustle, you broaden your professional portfolio, which may open up more job opportunities or allow you to transition into a different field altogether.
Passion Pursuit
You also get to pursue your passion outside of your full-time job. Whether it’s starting a part-time business or honing a creative skill, when you use your spare time for something you’re passionate about, you get great satisfaction and personal fulfillment.
For example, if you love photography, offering weekend portrait sessions could be a way to pursue something you enjoy.
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Weekend Side Hustles To Make Money
If you are looking for ways to earn some extra cash on the weekends, we have compiled a list of side hustle ideas you can try out.
These jobs often feature in many lists of best side hustles and they tend to come up when people do online searches things like “part-time weekend jobs” and “best ways to make extra cash”.
After reading this, hopefully you will find a gig that fits your skills and interests:
Hospitality (bartender, Server, Host)
Working in the hospitality industry as a bartender, server or host is a popular side hustle idea. It is an excellent option if you love interacting with others and don’t mind working long hours on your feet.
The income potential is great, especially if you work at a busy restaurant or bar that gets a lot of foot traffic. You can also earn tips on top of your hourly wage, which can significantly increase your earnings.
Plus, it’s flexible work that often allows you to choose when you work and how many hours per week you’d like to put in.
Handyperson
If you are skilled with your hands and can handle basic repairs around the house, being a handyman or handyperson on the weekends is an excellent way to make extra cash.
You will handle tasks like painting, home repairs, furniture assembly, lawn care, and cleaning.
You can either find gigs by word of mouth or by signing up for a service like TaskRabbit, which will connect you with clients who want the kinds of services you have to offer (you can read our handy guide on how to get started on TaskRabbit as a handyperson).
Pet Sitter Or Dog Walker
If you love animals, pet sitting or dog walking can be a great weekend side hustle. Many people need someone to watch their pets while they are away on vacation or working long hours during the week.
You can advertise your services locally on social media platforms or local online marketplaces like Craigslist. Depending on your experience and location, you could earn more than $2,000 per month for your services.
Freelance Writing Or Editing
You can start writing or editing if you are good at it on weekends for extra money.
Here are some ideas to get started:
- Create a profile on freelance websites like Upwork, Freelancer, or Fiverr to find freelance writing jobs. If you are getting started on Upwork, you will find our cover-letter writing guide useful.
- Join Facebook groups or LinkedIn networks dedicated to freelance writers and editors to network with other professionals in your field.
- Pitch your services to your contacts and network on social media or email.
- Write for blogs, websites, or newspapers that pay for contributors.
- Offer editing and proofreading services to students, professionals, or businesses.
- Write copy for advertisements and marketing materials.
- Create content for social media accounts or newsletters for businesses.
Freelance writing and editing can be a profitable way to spend your weekend if you’re willing to put in the time and effort.
Renting Out A Room Or Car
You can earn extra cash on weekends by renting out a spare room or car. It’s never been easier to turn your unused spaces into income generators, especially with the rise of apps like Airbnb and Turo.
If you don’t mind sharing your living quarters with strangers, renting out a room in your home will generate passive income for you.
Likewise, if you live in a tourist hotspot where visitors may require transportation services, in addition to renting out a room, you can rent out your car if you don’t use it regularly.
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Taking Paid Surveys
You can make money on weekends as a survey taker because many companies pay people to complete online surveys in exchange for valuable market research. You can find paid surveys on websites like Swagbucks, Survey Junkie, and Vindale Research, among others.
While survey taking may not be the most lucrative side hustle, it can be a quick way to earn a few extra dollars with minimal effort. On top of that, many surveys are available on the go via mobile apps so it’s easy to complete them during downtime or while watching TV at home.
Yardwork Or Landscaping
Yardwork or landscaping can be a physically demanding, yet fulfilling weekend side hustle. It involves mowing lawns, trimming hedges, planting flowers and maintaining gardens.
You can start doing landscaping on weekends and if you gain a positive reputation in your neighborhood, you will start getting referrals for other clients.
Tutoring Or Teaching
Tutoring or teaching is an excellent weekend side hustle, if you have expertise in a given subject. You can offer your services as a tutor to students struggling with their studies, and charge an hourly rate for your time. It is a popular side hustle idea for teachers.
You can tutor students in person or online. While in-person tutoring is the more traditional form, online tutoring is popular due to the emergence of online platforms and communication channels like Zoom. Online tutoring offers flexibility and allows you to interact with students from farther from the comfort of your home.
Selling Your Stuff Online
Selling stuff you no longer need or use at garage and estate sales can earn you a few dollars extra on weekends while also decluttering your home.
Alternatively, you can sell online because there are marketplaces such as eBay, Amazon, or Etsy.
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Photography Or Videography
If you have a passion for capturing moments and telling stories through visuals, you can do photography and videography on the weekends for cash.
There are many ways you can monetize your side gig. For example, you can offer your services at events such as weddings, birthday parties, or corporate events or create stock photos or videos that can be sold online on platforms like Shutterstock and iStock. You can even sell prints of your photographs on Etsy.
Selling Arts And Crafts
If you have a talent for creating unique handmade items like jewelry, home decor, and personalized gifts, you can start selling what you have created over the weekend at a sale. This is a nice way to turn your hobby into income.
Arts and crafts sales have been steadily growing in popularity over the past few years as people embrace the trend of buying locally made goods. This was particularly true during the pandemic. This has opened up opportunities for artists to make extra cash doing what they love.
Event Planning And Coordination
If you have a talent for organizing and coordinating, event planning can be a side gig you do over the weekend.
There is demand for people who can organize events, whether it’s a small birthday party or a large corporate conference.
As an event planner, you will be tasked with coordinating all aspects of the event, from decorations to logistics to keeping track of expenses and budgets. Therefore, you will be at an advantage if you are meticulous and provide good customer service too.
You can get more gigs by reaching out to friends and family, advertising your services, and build relationships with local vendors so they tell you when they catch wind of new opportunities.
Selling Food Or Beverage
You can start a business selling food or beverage at the weekends at a local farmer’s market. There, you can sell baked goods, homemade jams and sauces, gourmet coffee blends, and other similar items.
Another option is offering meal prep or catering services for busy families and professionals in your area on weekends.
Doing Voiceover
If your weekends are free, you can start taking voiceover gigs. When you do voiceover, you provide narration, dialogue, or commentary for things like films, TV shows, video games, commercials, audiobooks, and animations.
You can do voice over in a studio or even from home if you have the right equipment, making it convenient if you don’t want to leave the house.
Podcasting
Podcasting can be something you do over the weekend if you have an interest you wish to talk about. It has grown rapidly over the past few years. For example, there are 464.7 million podcast listeners globally as of April 2023 and the industry in the United States is valued at $2 billion.
These figures are expected to go up and this presents you with an opportunity to monetize your passion. By this, I mean that you can record your episodes on the weekend and release them on a schedule.
Social Media Management
You can do social media management or marketing on the weekends to make extra money. Since social media is huge now, businesses are constantly looking for individuals who can help them maintain their online presence and reach their target audience.
Since we are looking at this as something you do on weekends, you can use those two days to create content and schedule posts. Engaging with the public will be tougher though because that is an ongoing task that you can’t just do on weekends.
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Personal Shopping
Personal shopping is yet another job you can do over the weekend because many people simply don’t have the time to go shopping themselves and are willing to pay someone to do it for them. As a personal shopper, you will work closely with clients to understand their style preferences and budget before hitting the stores on their behalf.
One successful example of this type of side hustle is Kimberly White, a former teacher who now runs her own personal shopping business in Dallas. She charges between $50 and $100 per hour, depending on the complexity of each client’s needs, and also offers additional services like closet cleanouts and styling consultations. Through word-of-mouth referrals and social media marketing, she has built up a loyal client base and even branched out into offering virtual styling sessions.
While you don’t have to invest as much time and effort into it as Kimberly, it is a nice way to earn extra cash on weekends by helping others look their best.
Delivery Driver
You can work on weekends as a delivery driver. With the rise in online shopping, many companies need drivers to deliver packages to customers’ doors.
Companies like Amazon (Amazon Flex), Grubhub, and Uber Eats offer delivery opportunities that allow you to work on your own schedule and make some extra cash.
Retail Sales
Retail sales is a great option for a weekend job. It involves everything from helping customers find products they’re looking for, answering questions about pricing and availability, to ringing up purchases at the register.
Many retail jobs are part-time or seasonal, which makes them perfect if you are looking to earn some extra cash on the weekends.
Blogging
I’ve included blogging on this list because you can be a part-time blogger who only works on their blog on weekends. You can create content and post it immediately or schedule your posts.
Blogging allows you to share your passions, expertise and personal experiences while earning extra income. Starting a blog is easy and affordable with platforms like WordPress, Blogger, and Squarespace. You can monetize your blog through affiliate marketing, sponsored content or advertising.
There is money in it because many bloggers have turned their passion into a full-time profession. One successful blogger is Pat Flynn who started his website, Smart Passive Income, as a way to share his journey in making money online. He now earns over $2 million annually from various passive income streams generated from the website.
Ultimately, blogging requires time and effort to build an audience but it can be fulfilling and profitable in the long run.
Affiliate Marketing
Although affiliate marketing is somewhat related to blogging, it is worth a mention because it can extend beyond blogging.
As an affiliate marketer, you can promote products through your website or social media platforms (Instagram and TikTok), and when someone clicks on your unique affiliate link and makes a purchase, you earn a commission.
It is also something you can work on during the weekend and spend the rest of your week on your main job.
Virtual Bookkeeping
If you have an accounting background, virtual bookkeeping is something you can do on weekends for cash. This job involves managing financial records, and reconciling bank statements and tracking expenses for small businesses or individuals virtually.
With hourly rates ranging from $40 to $80 per hour, virtual bookkeeping can be a lucrative way to earn extra income on the weekends.
Online Course Creation
With the rise of e-learning platforms and technology, you can spend your weekends creating and selling online courses to share your knowledge with others. You can create courses on anything from cooking to programming languages, marketing strategies, or even personal development.
Online courses not only allow you to earn extra income but also help you establish yourself as an expert in your field. It’s a flexible way to work on your own schedule while sharing what you know with students.
Graphic Design
Graphic design is one of the best side hustle ideas for those with a creative eye and the technical skills needed. As businesses increasingly focus on having a strong online presence, graphic designers are in high demand to create logos, website layouts, social media images, and more.
With freelance platforms like Fiverr and Upwork or personal outreach efforts via social media accounts or local Facebook groups, you can find work that aligns with your skillset as a graphic designer.
One successful example is the founder of Graphic Design Blender who turned his graphic design passion into a full-time business.
Many existing small business owners also require the support of a graphic designer to help establish their brand identity at an affordable rate. The beauty of working as a graphic designer is that you can set your own rates based on experience level and hourly requirements; you may charge around $30 per hour or over $100 per hour depending on expertise.
As a freelance graphic designer, you will often have the flexibility to choose projects you want to take on along with setting your own schedules. That makes it an ideal weekend side job option if you need extra cash while pursuing other passions or working a full-time job during weekdays.
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Tips For Starting A Successful Weekend Side Hustle
To ensure you start your new side hustle on the right track, implement these tips:
Set Realistic Goals
Set realistic goals to determine what you want to achieve and how you plan to do it. When you set unrealistic goals, you can get burnout, frustration, and disappointment in not achieving them.
For example if you are starting a pet-sitting business as a weekend side hustle, set a goal of booking five clients within the first month instead of aiming for twenty in two weeks.
This way, you’ll have more manageable expectations while still working towards achieving growth with your side hustle.
Create A Business Plan
Although it may sound like overkill, you need a business plan to track the success of your side hustle. A business plan lays out details like your ideal client and their needs, your competition, your unique selling proposition (USP), the pricing structure, the marketing plan if it’s a business, and goals for growth and expansion in the future.
Remember to revisit and revise your business plan regularly as circumstances change or evolve over time. By creating a comprehensive business plan, you can set yourself up for success and achieve your goals with greater efficiency.
Market Yourself Effectively
Market yourself by creating a strong online presence where you showcase your skills and services on social media platforms like LinkedIn or Instagram.
Developing a portfolio of your work can also help demonstrate your expertise to potential clients.
Build A Strong Network
To build a strong network for your weekend side hustle, you need to be intentional about meeting new people and establishing relationships. Attend events related to your side hustle, join online groups or communities where professionals in your field gather, and participate in local networking events.
You will also benefit from referrals when you maintain good relationships with customers and clients because they can refer their friends or colleagues who might need the services you offer.
Upgrade Your Skills
You should build on your skills to make your side hustle more profitable and sustainable in the long run.
You can upskill by taking online courses and tutorials, attending workshops and webinars, joining a professional organization that may provide you with training sessions and resources, and reading books and blogs written by experts in your field.
When you improve your skills, you’ll be able to deliver higher-quality services or products and charge more while also standing out from competitors. For example, if you are a freelance writer, learning search engine optimization will allow you to make more money from your gigs.
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Balancing Your Weekend Side Hustle And Personal Life
Since you will be spending your weekends working on your side hustle, you should learn to strike a balance between working and living. There are a few things you can do to achieve this balance:
Prioritize Self-Care
Managing a weekend gig alongside other responsibilities can sometimes lead to burnout and exhaustion. This is why it’s crucial to prioritize self-care when starting your side hustle, to ensure that you don’t neglect your own well-being in pursuit of extra cash.
Also remember that maintaining good mental health and physical wellness are just as important as earning extra income.
Communicate With Family And Friends
Tell your loved ones that you are starting a side hustle to let them know about your plans, goals, and the time commitment required for your new venture.
This way, they can support you and make adjustments in their schedules accordingly.
You can involve them in your side hustle if possible or find ways to spend quality time together with them outside working hours. It’s likely that someone close to you has experience balancing work and personal life and they can give you tips on how to do that.
Learn To Say No
While it’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of a new weekend side hustle, it’s important to learn when to say no. Saying yes to every opportunity can quickly lead to burnout and neglecting other responsibilities.
For example, if you have plans with family or friends on the weekends, don’t overbook yourself with side hustle work. It’s okay to set boundaries and communicate your availability upfront.
Don’t take on more than you can handle at once and remember that saying no doesn’t mean giving up on your entrepreneurial dreams altogether—it simply means being strategic about how you allocate your time and energy.
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Success Stories And Inspiration
Launching a successful side hustle that you do over the weekend is doable. There are many examples of people who started out NOT knowing how to go about starting their side hustle but they learned on the job and became successful.
By giving you these personal anecdotes of successful side hustle examples, we hope that they will offer encouragement to pursue your own weekend side gig:
Personal Anecdotes Of Successful Side Hustles
There are countless success stories of people who have found their niche in the world of side hustles.
One such example is a woman who turned her love for baking into a profitable business. She started by selling baked goods to friends and family, which led to referrals and eventually orders from local cafes and restaurants. Now she runs her own successful bakery on weekends while maintaining her full-time job as a teacher during the week.
Another inspiring story comes from a man who turned his passion for photography into extra income on the weekends. He began by taking portraits for friends and family, but soon expanded to offering event photography services at weddings and corporate events. With time, he built up an impressive portfolio and now has his own thriving weekend business.
A third anecdote involves someone who discovered their talent for social media management through their regular job in marketing. They decided to capitalize on this skill by offering social media management services on the side, helping small businesses increase their online presence over the weekends. This venture quickly took off due to word-of-mouth referrals, leading them to quit their day job and focus solely on their side hustle as a full-time career.
These success stories demonstrate that with hard work, determination, and dedication, you can turn your passions or skills into profit-generating ventures that can supplement or even replace your primary income source over time.
Encouragement To Pursue Your Own Weekend Side Hustle
Starting a weekend side hustle can be an exciting opportunity to earn extra income while pursuing your interests outside of your regular job.
It also offers the chance to build skills and experiences that could benefit your career in the long run. Don’t be afraid to take the leap and explore different options.
Many successful entrepreneurs started with a side hustle before turning it into their primary income source.
Take inspiration from these success stories and start brainstorming ideas for your own weekend gig. If you need an extra push, you can check out this list of motivational quotes about side hustling from some famous entrepreneurs who turned their side jobs into empires.
With the rise of online platforms, it is easier to find clients, whether you want to offer freelance writing services, create and sell products, or become a virtual assistant.
Tips And Lessons Learned
Starting a side hustle that you do on weekends can be a great way to earn extra cash and build new skills. Here are some tips and lessons learned from those who have succeeded in the side gig market:
First, focus on finding something that you enjoy doing or are passionate about, as this will make it easier to stay motivated and put in the necessary effort. For instance, if you love pets, consider offering pet-sitting services or dog walking.
Start small and gradually build up your business over time. This means taking on just one client at first before expanding your services once you feel more comfortable.
Don’t forget to set clear goals for yourself and track your progress along the way.
Finally, don’t be afraid to seek out advice from others who have been successful in their own side hustles.
By following these tips and lessons learned from experienced side hustlers, you can turn your spare time into a profitable venture while gaining new experiences along the way.
Conclusion
In conclusion, starting a weekend side hustle can supplement your income and allow you to explore new opportunities.
With so many ideas available, from freelance writing to creating products or helping out with event planning, there’s bound to be something that fits your interests and skills.
By setting realistic goals, creating a business plan, and managing your time effectively, you can build a successful side hustle that balances with your personal life. So why not take advantage of your free time and start your own side hustle ? Who knows? It may turn into something bigger than you ever imagined!
Before you leave
If you’re tired of scams and want a real solution for making money online check out my no.1 recommendation.
It’s helped me earn over $300,000 in the last 12 months alone:
Go here to see my no.1 recommendation for making money online
(This is a 100% free training)
David Fortune has been the editor NoBSIMReviews.com since 2019. He is an expert at writing content on stock advisory services, side hustles, reviewing online business opportunities and many more topics. You can learn more about David on our about us page.