Less than 5% of the 500+ side gigs reviewed on SideHusl.com earn 5-star ratings. To a degree, that reflects shortcomings in the side gig industry, which frequently pass all of the risks and only a portion of the rewards to the freelancers who do the work. (And SideHusl.com\u2019s ratings are focused on how the sites serve freelancers, not customers.) But it also reflects our view that a 5-star side hustle ought to be outstanding.<\/p>\n
5-star side hustles<\/p>\n
What makes a side gig a 5-star hustle?<\/p>\n
The potential for exceptional earnings.
\nReasonable fees that are only triggered when you make money \u2014 or are paid by the client, not the freelancer.
\nRewards that far outweigh any risks.
\nGeographic reach that gives our readers a good chance to participate, no matter whether they live in a small town or big city.
\nEnviable working conditions.
\nA set-up that allows freelancers to make the gig their business, if they want to.<\/p>\n
Gigs that make the grade<\/p>\n
Although these side hustles are outstanding, they aren\u2019t for everyone. Some are exclusively for homeowners; some enlist specialists; and some require a learned skill. That said, almost anyone can find at least one viable gig from this list. Since they\u2019re all equally great, they\u2019re listed here alphabetically. But when one great gig is similar to another, they\u2019re grouped together.<\/p>\n
Airbnb<\/p>\n
The ubiquitous peer-to-peer home rental site<\/a> is consistently cited as a top money-maker in side-gig surveys. And while there are some rental horror stories, they\u2019re far less common than those of consumers who say they earn thousands renting out spare rooms and vacation homes.<\/p>\n Array crew<\/p>\n If you\u2019re looking for work in the film industry, ArrayCrew<\/a> offers a free way to get introduced to producers in need of everything from camera operators to art directors and production assistants. Although the site specializes in getting underrepresented groups into the film industry, anyone can sign up.<\/p>\n AVVAY, Giggster and Peerspace<\/p>\n All three of these sites help you rent your home by the hour to film crews, photographers, and event planners. SideHusl.com editors personally tested both\u00a0Giggster<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Peerspace<\/a> to see if they were too good to be true, and they work as well as advertised. With Giggster,\u00a0our tester earned $1,455 in one day<\/a>. With Peerspace, she rented her house for several shorter events, earning $700 to $900 per event. AVVAY<\/a>, which launched in the South, is now the fastest growing of the three platforms and operates in more than half of the country.<\/p>\n BeatGig<\/p>\n If you\u2019re a comic, speaker or musician looking for an inexpensive way to advertise your services, you should know about\u00a0BeatGig<\/a>. This artist-friendly site can help you connect with venues and organizations looking for entertainment. Artists pay nothing to find gigs here. All the costs are shouldered by clients.<\/p>\n DoulaMatch<\/p>\n Do you have vast experience and compassion for the childbirth process, either because of personal circumstances or your profession?\u00a0 You may want to look into becoming a doula. Doulas advise and assist expectant parents on everything from pregnancy aches and pains to the birth itself. They can also offer babysitting, lactation consulting, sleep training advice and a variety of other services to parents of newborns. To help people find these jobs, DoulaMatch<\/a>\u00a0provides a national directory, where doulas can get matched to clients that fit their geographic service area and have due dates that correspond to your availability. The cost? Just $25 annually.<\/p>\n EatWith<\/p>\n If you love to entertain people with your wonderful cooking, you can turn your penchant into a profit center with\u00a0EatWith.<\/a> EatWith is an international dining marketplace that encourages home cooks to offer authentic meals in their own homes to traveling diners. You determine what to cook, when, what to charge and the maximum number of diners. You get the full amount that you set, but EatWith will tack on a 20% fee to customer bills to pay for their marketing and administration.<\/p>\n eBay<\/p>\n This popular selling site gives everyone from professionals to housewives the opportunity to trade goods on an international scale.\u00a0eBay\u2019s<\/a> fees are reasonable and its reach is astounding. There are some comparable sites for selling select goods. But none are better, and none sell as wide an array of products.<\/p>\n Expert Institute<\/p>\n Expert Institute<\/a> is a legal services firm that connects attorneys and subject matter experts for legal cases and legal consulting opportunities across North America. By signing up as an expert here, you\u2019ll be put into the site\u2019s directory, which is used by Expert Institute\u2019s researchers to match experts with appropriate client requests. While jobs are infrequent, pay is substantial. Nurses, for example, charge $250 to $400 an hour.<\/p>\n This site charges nothing to experts. All fees are paid by the law firms seeking the expert witnesses.<\/p>\n FineArtAmerica<\/p>\n FineArtAmerica<\/a> is the best of dozens of print-on-demand sites that help artists sell their work, both as prints and as puzzles, quilts, T-shirts and mugs. Artists set their own mark-ups. The only downside? Artists love the site, so you have tons of competition here. So plan on doing some outside marketing to make your products stand out.<\/p>\n HigherEdJobs<\/p>\n Would you like to work at a college or university? Whether you\u2019re a teacher, custodian or a parking administrator, a site called HigherEdJobs might have just the job lead for you.\u00a0HigherEdJobs<\/a> is a free job search site that specifically targets positions at colleges and universities. However, these are not just teaching positions. The site posts openings for faculty, executive leadership, administration and non-academic support services.<\/p>\n Indeed<\/p>\n Like HigherEdJobs,\u00a0Indeed<\/a> is a job search site that provides a valuable service at no cost to job-seekers. And its reviews help applicants know the character of the companies they hope to work for.<\/p>\n IntelyCare<\/p>\n IntelyCare<\/a>\u00a0is a rapidly growing nurse staffing company that hires nurses to work in post-acute care, such as skilled nursing and rehab facilities. Nurses sign on for per diem work, picking and choosing among available shifts, facilities, hours and pay.<\/p>\n Unlike most gig jobs, the site actually hires its nurses, which makes them eligible for a wide array of employee benefits, including overtime and retirement accounts. But nurses also report that the site pays considerably better than many of its competitors. Specifically, certified nursing assistants earn $21 to $62 per hour; licensed practical nurses earn $33 to $80 an hour; and registered nurses earn $62 to $146 per hour.<\/p>\n LessonFace<\/p>\n If you\u2019re looking for an opportunity to make some money with music or acting, you may be able to teach these skills through\u00a0Lessonface.<\/a> The site provides an online interface where students can find people teaching everything from how to sing to how to play the violin. Registration is free, but teachers must have teaching experience or extraordinary skill to pass the site\u2019s rigorous vetting system. You set your own pay. LessonFace takes a 5% to 15% commission, depending on who found the client.<\/p>\n Outdoorsy<\/p>\n Got an RV?\u00a0Outdoorsy<\/a> can help you rent it out and potentially earn thousands. Fees are reasonable and the site\u2019s rules and insurance do a good job at protecting your property when bad things happen.<\/p>\n Outschool<\/p>\n Outschool<\/a> is an online teaching platform, for kids ages 3 to 18, that takes a different approach to learning. Instead of teaching a set curriculum and testing against a grade standard, the site encourages teachers to offer classes that spark the imagination. Teachers set their own rates, limit their own classroom sizes and simply pay a fee to the site for marketing and collecting payments.<\/p>\n Rover<\/p>\n Rover<\/a> is a marketplace to connect animal lovers willing to walk, watch and groom animals with people who need help with their pets. From grooming to dog-walking, pet boarding or housesitting, this site connects freelance pet providers with clients. It is also one of a handful of sites where freelancers say they can make great money while enjoying themselves.<\/p>\n Rare Patient Voice<\/p>\n Do you have a chronic ailment \u2014 or care for someone who does? You could make good money helping healthcare companies improve how they serve you and people like you by signing up with a site called Rare Patient Voice<\/a>. This site connects patients and caregivers with medical researchers. And it pays an average of $120 an hour for patients to consult on making care better. It\u2019s a win-win all around.<\/p>\n Wyzant<\/p>\n If you\u2019re a talented tutor who\u2019d like help finding new clients, you should know about Wyzant<\/a> \u2014 one of the oldest and largest tutoring services. Wyzant is our No. 1 pick for finding an academic tutor and for offering academic tutoring services. This well-established site elegantly balances the needs of students and tutors, making it easy for both sides to find the right fit. Tutors set their own rates and schedules and simply pay a commission for Wyzant\u2019s help with billing and finding clients.<\/p>\n