25 Perfect Side Hustles for College Students to Make Extra Money
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Let's face it ' trying to make ends meet as a college student is often tough. With this thought in mind, considering the best side hustles for college students can be an excellent option to consider. Indeed, there are countless amazing earning opportunities and side hustle ideas that college students can try to make extra money alongside their studies. These simple tips don't necessarily need prior experience, either ' so there are plenty of options to boost your income.
25 SIDE HUSTLE IDEAS FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS
If your regular college allowance or earnings don't seem to be going far enough, don't panic. With a little creativity, the following 25 side hustle ideas can offer a brilliant solution to help you take back control of your finances.
Here are the best side hustle ideas for college students today:
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- Uber & UberEats
- Grubhub
- Lyft
- ParaWorks for Drivers
- Bagged N Brought
- Freelancer
- Fiverr
- Upwork
- Steady
- Rev
- Shopify Store
- Instacart
- Gigwalk
- Rover
- Etsy
- Swagbucks
- Inbox Dollars
- Survey Junkie
- KashKick
- Neighbor Storage
- PostMates
- Checkout51
- MyPoints Surveys
- Fetch Rewards
- DeCluttr
#1. Uber and UberEats
Earning potential ' up to $22+ per hour
One of the simplest options you could consider to help earn money from your side gig while at college is Uber and UberEats. Both of these apps offer a simple and versatile way of making money alongside your studies since you can do them whenever and wherever works before for you.
The regular earning income for Uber drivers is approximately $15 to $22 per hour. However, if you want to further increase your earnings, be sure to give the Para delivery driver app a try to see how it might help you make more.
#2. Grubhub
Earning potential ' up to $16+ per hour
GrubHub is another brilliant food delivery app that's available in a huge number of states across the US. The earning potential for GrubHub is admittedly somewhat more limited than for Uber and UberEats, but it is possible to make substantially more by using Para's delivery driver tools to help optimize your earnings
#3 Lyft
Earning potential ' up to $25+ per hour
If you're looking specifically for ridesharing opportunities, the Lyft app could be well worth considering. Not only does it offer an excellent rate of pay per hour compared to regular delivery and ridesharing apps, but Lyft is also one of the most versatile tools on the market when implemented alongside Para.
#4 ParaWorks for Drivers
Earning potential ' up to $50 per hour
ParaWorks is a new way for drivers to find and accept new types of high-paying (pays up to $50/hr) scheduled & on-demand job opportunities to make their workdays much more efficient and profitable!
With ParaWorks, drivers:
$$$ Get pre-approved, skip the line, and enjoy expedited onboarding.
$$$ Stack with existing work and reduce their downtime.
$$$ Know their schedule & pay ahead of time.
$$$ Discover new high-paying revenue streams nearby.
ParaWorks community has fulfilled partner opportunities ranging from product and food delivery to merchandising to courier driving, making it one of the best gig apps in the industry right now. Just sign-up with ParaWorks and make that extra cash today!
#5 Bagged N Brought
Earning potential ' up to $25 per hour
As another key part of the ParaWorks delivery driver range, if you live in California and have been looking for a versatile way to make bonus income, the Bagged n' Bought app could be a brilliant option to consider. Bagged n' Brought pays its delivery drivers through the ParaWorks platform the next day, so it's brilliant if you need last-minute income in a tricky situation.
Bagged n' Brought provides several different services, including restaurant food delivery, workplace delivery, alcohol delivery, and more. As such, it's definitely a versatile option to consider for local residents.
#6 Freelancer
Earning potential ' up to $20 per hour
If you're looking for a freelancing platform that doesn't have as strict requirements as some other options and is easy to get started with, Freelancer.com is an excellent pick. It's easy to start. And, although the earnings aren't necessarily as lucrative as other platforms, there are lots of clients always looking to hire a freelancer on the platform.
#7 Fiverr
Earning potential ' up to $25 per hour
Getting started with Fiverr can be a little difficult, as it requires some semblance of SEO knowledge to help your first gigs rank in search results. However, once you begin appearing, work can be easy to attain through the site ' making it a great place to work for creatives.
#8 Upwork
Earning potential ' up to $35 per hour
Another common platform for online freelancers is Upwork. It's often considered the highest-paying online freelancing platform, so if you want to make more from your time, this could be the place to go. However, placing your first bids isn't necessarily free, so if you're considering the site as a viable option, make sure you first check you're likely to get enough clients to see a return.
#9 Steady
Earning potential ' up to $25 per hour
Steady is a little different from the other options we've listed so far, as it's more of a side hustle marketplace. This handy app allows you to find the best easy side hustle options for college students. In turn, you can spend less time trying to plan your earnings and more time actually making money.
#10 Rev
Earning potential ' up to $20 per hour
If you need a simple, quick, and effortless way to make money on the side, why not try Rev? Rev is one of the most popular online platforms for those looking to make money with transcription work. You may need to prove your transcription skills first, but don't worry ' it's not too tricky!
#11 Shopify Store
Earning potential ' unlimited
If you need to make some extra income, one of the most lucrative side hustles is definitely launching a Shopify store. And, better still, the amount you can earn per hour is really only limited by how much you sell!
Launching a Shopify store doesn't take all that long, and the Shopify platform handles a large amount of the work involved. As such, if you've been wanting an almost-passive extra income and have a good idea for a product, Shopify could be the place to start.
#12 InstaCart
Earning potential ' up to $23 per hour
When it comes to excellent gig earning opportunities, InstaCart can definitely be a valuable app to consider. InstaCart allows its teams to earn a little money on the side by completing shopping orders for customers.
There are two forms of earning opportunities with InstaCart: in-store shopping or full-serving shopping. The former is ideal if you don't want the hassles of delivery driving; however, if you have a vehicle, you can boost your InstaCart earnings a little higher by shopping and delivering the customer's order completely.
#13 Gigwalk
Earning potential ' up to $50 per hour
Fancy an easy side hustle? Why not try secret shopping with Gigwalk? This handy app often requires secret shoppers to check whether a store offers good customer service, has certain items in stock, or is putting up displays appropriately. Better still, some jobs can often pay around $20 each, making them pretty good for a side income.
#14 Rover
Earning potential ' up to $30 per hour
Love dogs? If so, working with Rover could be an excellent option to consider. Work for yourself as a dog walker or pet sitter and get paid good money for doing so; it's a win-win situation if you ask us! Better yet, you're effectively working as your own boss ' so while the platform does take a significant cut of your earnings (about 20%), there's lots of room to make a good income here.
#15 Etsy
Earning potential ' unlimited
If you have creative skills, selling your work on Etsy can be a genuinely brilliant earning opportunity. Indeed, Etsy is one of the leading go-to destinations for quality handmade goods and products. And, similar to Shopify, you're only limited on income by the amount you can sell.
#16 Swagbucks
Earning potential ' up to $25 per hour
If you're looking for a simple and easy-to-use online earnings platform that pays quickly and easily, Swagbucks is definitely a good option. Swagbucks offers a wide range of different options for money-making, from completing tasks to downloading and trialing apps and more.
Accordingly, if you've been looking for the best part-time jobs for college students but don't want to be tied to a time, Swagbucks might be ideal. However, it's generally best to integrate survey sites like Swagbucks with other online earning platforms, as the rate of pay per hour can be hugely variable.
#17 Inbox Dollars
Earning potential ' up to $5 per hour
InboxDollars is an old name in the money-making scene, but that's not to say it's anything short of impressive! Indeed, InboxDollars offers numerous money-making opportunities, and this can make it a good option for those wanting to stretch their money a little further.
Admittedly, you may struggle to get big income from the platform ' but if a small bonus is enough for your needs, InboxDollars is a simple option you can do from the comfort of your home.
#18 Survey Junkie
Earning potential ' up to $12 per hour
Making money from home comes in many different forms, and Survey Junkie embraces many of these into a single solution. Offering several different earning options, aside from paid surveys alone, Survey Junkie is a brilliant tool for any student needing a quick way to make a little cash on the side.
#19 KashKick
Earning potential ' up to $20 per hour
As another highly popular choice of online earnings platform, KashKick offers a simple way to make a little extra as a simple side hustle for students. With KashKick, users can complete surveys, surf the internet, or watch videos for money ' all of which can add up to a nice bonus in your pocket.
#20 Neighbor Storage
Earning potential ' up to $200+ per month
If you have spare storage space in your house, you could begin advertising on Neighbor Storage. This handy app allows you to make money from that wasted storage space by letting others use it for a small fee. A brilliant, passive income opportunity!
#21 PostMates
Earning potential ' up to $20 per hour
If you need a simple way to make money as a side hustle, another excellent choice of food delivery app is PostMates. You can also deliver using a bicycle or scooter if you don't own a car, which really helps increase the reach and appeal of the app as a side hustle idea.
#22 Checkout51
Earning potential ' up to $5 per purchase
As another brilliant option to consider, it's well worth trying Checkout51, a specialist cashback tool that allows you to earn money back on each receipt you scan. Depending on the items you buy, you can potentially save a significant amount of money on your regular shopping ' the ideal way to complement your existing earning efforts.
#23 MyPoints Surveys
Earning potential ' up to $5 per hour
It's not the highest earning survey and online earnings platform, but MyPoints Surveys is still a versatile tool to consider alongside your regular college work. Users can get paid for activities such as printing coupons, surfing the web, and reading emails. So it's easy to complete alongside your regular online activities.
#24 Fetch Rewards
Earning potential ' 25 points per receipt
If you want a simple side hustle that can help save a few dollars, uploading your old receipts through Fetch Rewards can be an easy option. It's as close as you'll get to making 'money for nothing,' and it doesn't matter how much the receipt is worth ' you'll get the same amount of points each time.
#25 DeCluttr
Earning potential ' value of your goods
If you've been looking to turn your old electrical goods into a little extra income, DeCluttr could be the best place to start. DeCluttr specializes in refurbishing and reselling old, used technology ' and this is well worth considering as part of your decision to make a side income.
Of course, selling goods on DeCluttr isn't necessarily going to earn a long-term income. However, reselling your old electronics can be a good way of recouping some of their value.
FINAL THOUGHTS
If you've been struggling to make your regular income work while in college, side gigs can be a brilliant option to help. With just a few hours a week, you could have a significant impact on your saving efforts ' and, notably, make affording your bills much more accessible each month.