6 minute readStarting a side hustle is a great way to earn extra money towards your bills, debts, and savings or to give you a bit of extra spending money. It could be that you’re saving for a house deposit, a holiday or you’re heading off to university and need to do a big shop. Either way, it’s a great opportunity to build your bank balance up.
However, it is worth mentioning that if you do have a side hustle, you will need to declare any earnings over £1000 in any tax year. This means you’ll have to complete a self-assessment tax return for this income source.
We’ve put together a list of a few options for you to take a look into and see if you’re interested in putting some of your spare time into earning a bit more money to keep the cogs turning.
Blogs
Blogging is one of the original side hustles. A lot of bloggers use display ads or take on sponsorship deals with companies to promote their products. You might often see your favourite bloggers or social media influencers putting “ad” or “#AD” at the start of their copy for their post or buried in their hashtags at the bottom, this means they are being paid by the company they are talking about, to talk about the product. This is normally attached to a link in the copy or a link in their bio which will allow them to earn a commission for every product sold.
Surveys
No, this doesn’t mean going out and standing in a street to collect data from the public, although this is also an excellent earner! Taking part in online surveys is not always a heavily paid area, surveys have been around for years and allow their participants to earn pennies or pounds by helping the researcher gather data on their area of interest.
There are many different sites out there, so make sure you do some research to find the right one for you. In addition, your favourite finance blogger or creator may have a referral link for you, allowing you to earn a little extra when creating an account. Again, they are more than likely being paid a commission for each sign-up from their link.
Selling Your Stuff
This really doesn’t need that much explaining! Essentially, you need to put some time aside to give all of your belongings a good old sort out. Put aside any items (clothing, homewares, furniture, crockery or appliance) that are in good working order and put them up for sale. This could be at a good old fashioned carboot, or online through various means such as Vinted, eBay, Facebook Marketplace and more. Make sure to do your research on how much similar items are selling for, and always be transparent on the quality of the item (scuff, holes, missing parts etc).
Matched Betting
Matched betting has been around ever since the first betting exchange was launched back in 1999. It is a technique that mathematically helps you make a profit from the free bet promotions that almost all bookmakers advertise to bring in new customers.
Matched betting is a technique that mathematically generates a profit from free bet promotions offered by betting companies. Almost all bookmakers advertise these offers to entice new customers to place bets with them. It is the idea that you use a free bet to place a ‘back’ bet, for example “I bet England will win the World Cup” and a ‘lay’ bet against the outcome, for example “I bet England don’t win the World Cup”. By placing both bets, you are essentially betting against yourself, so whether England Win or Loses, you will still win as you have bet for both outcomes, therefore, making a profit.
There are always risks involved when betting, so please make sure you are aware of them before taking on this side hustle.
Walking dogs or pet sitting
If your friends & family are heading out of town, offer to pet/house sit for them. Charging a daily rate (again, make sure you do your research) to walking their dogs & water their plants could make you a pretty penny. There is also a high demand for dog walking, especially with people going back to work after working from home during the pandemic. Put a post out to your local community on social media and see if anyone needs help!
Let us know over on our socials if you decide to take on a side hustle to make a little bit of extra money. We’d love to hear from you.