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
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- 14 publications and shows
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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 data22 ideas
- Software and appsA minimalist Android launcher distributed free, with a paid pro version.OnlineHacker News, 2024
- Digital productsFound a popular product category on a code marketplace and built a better JavaScript image cropper and uploader to sell there.Under $100OnlineHacker News, 2022
- Digital productsWrote helpful articles, collected them into a book sold on Gumroad, and also builds a monitoring SaaS on the side.OnlineHacker News, 2021
- Software and appsA paid Mac App Store app that grew out of a personal need for a Safari extension that refreshes tabs automatically.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2021
- Digital productsBuilt a level design package and sells it on the Unity Asset Store, relying on organic discovery.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2019
- Digital productsSells a boutique Jekyll theme aimed at software people and academics, with a free base version and a paid version.Under $100Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2019
- Digital productsWrites and sells books about programming, currently covering Angular and related tools, with little promotion.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2019
- Software and appsDevelops watch faces for Android Wear and sells them as paid apps on the Play Store.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2016
- Digital productsDesigned watch faces for a smartwatch and sold them at the lowest price in the store. Sales were strong at first, then copies appeared and they pulled the apps.Under $100OnlineHacker News, 2016
- Software and appsBuilds small single-purpose mobile apps such as calculators and a flashlight. Some are sold for a fee and others earn from in-app ads.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2016
- Digital productsWrote an add-on for the ExpressionEngine CMS and sells it through a marketplace.Under $100Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Digital productsDeveloped an add-on for a popular video game that earns small, usage-driven income.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Software and appsBuilt a glockenspiel app for a friend's daughter, released a free version and a paid version with extra features.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Digital productsDesigned a child theme for the Genesis WordPress framework in a few days, and it keeps earning monthly sales.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Digital productsTurned a portfolio site into a WordPress theme sold on ThemeForest, plus answering support emails.A few hours a weekOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Digital productsMade custom maps from OpenStreetMap formatted for Kindle and sells them as ebooks.Under $100Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Software and appsBuilt an Android app that roots and fixes problems on an ISP-supplied modem, selling it through the Play Store.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Digital productsCreates animated icons and page templates and sells them on a theme marketplace.Under $100Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Software and appsA paid Android app with a list of physics puzzles, built as a learning project and earning small steady income.Under $100Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Digital productsWrote a PHP library and sells licenses to developers, getting a few sales a year.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Software and appsAn Android app for managing a Shopify store, sold on Google Play without marketing.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2014
- Software and appsBuilt a to-do app for Windows Phone in evenings and sold it through the app store.Hands-offOnlineHacker News, 2011