14 Little-Known Side Hustles That Can Help You Earn Big Money

Earn some extra income with these interesting (and obscure) side hustles.

Edited by Jess Ullrich

Updated May 28, 2024

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Although your job may provide enough money to cover your necessary expenses and purchases, it’s always nice to have some extra cash on the side. With more money, you can achieve your financial goals quicker and feel more secure with your finances. But apart from getting a raise or promotion, what are some additional ways to make money?

If you look at some of the best side hustles, you have plenty of options to choose from — including some obscure and interesting ones you probably never considered before. Side hustles are typically done in your free time, so you don’t have to worry about leaving your day job to pursue one. In addition, a side hustle may make it easier to reach your goals, whether it’s paying off debt, making investments, or saving up for a dream vacation.

14 obscure side hustles that can help you earn big

Rent your house for commercial or film shoots

When you’re looking for a side hustle to increase your income, it’s good to keep an open mind about how to make money. For instance, did you know you can rent out your house for commercial or film shoots? You might think every company has its own film studio where it gets all its film work done, but that’s just not the case. Although you might be apprehensive about having a crew come into your home and film, hear us out. Often, using someone’s home to get some filming done is a win-win situation for both the homeowner and the production company. You get a nice chunk of change — $1,000 to $4,000 a day isn’t out of the question — and the production company gets a house that suits its filming needs.

To get started, look for opportunities to list your home as a film location on sites like LocationsHub and Set Scouter. Once your home is listed, wait for the inquiries to come in so you can start earning money.

Rent your car when you aren’t using it

Are you using your car less frequently these days or do you simply not use it much anyway? If so, you can put it to work for you by renting it out when you’re not using it. Companies like Turo and Getaround are car-sharing marketplaces that allow you to list your available vehicle on their websites. When someone rents your car, you get paid.

These services are available in major cities around the world, which makes it easy for you to get started with listing your vehicle.

Sell vintage collectibles online

Vintage collectible items are a big deal, especially when online marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, and Etsy have made it easy for people around the world to buy and sell from each other. If you’re into collecting interesting or rare items, there’s likely someone out there who’s interested in buying them from you.

You may find you don’t have the passion to continue with your hobby anymore or you have extra items you want to get rid of. Whatever the reason, you can list your items on global online marketplaces to gauge interest in what you’re selling. Depending on what you have, this could be a huge source of income for you. It could also be an especially useful side hustle to help stack your bank account before the holidays. You can help others get the gifts they want while fueling your own gift-giving expenses.

Get started with real estate crowdfunding

Real estate is no longer an investment opportunity available only to the rich or well-connected. With apps like DiversyFund, you can invest in real estate with as little as $500. DiversyFund doesn’t charge any fees, so you don’t have to worry about broker or management costs.

Plus, you don’t have to stress about doing anything with the properties. DiversyFund acquires properties and renovates them, then lets the assets appreciate so it can sell them for maximum profit. Maximum profit for DiversyFund also means maximum profit for you.

Launch your own website

Do you have a good idea for a business or blog? If you launch your own website for your idea or for services you’re already providing, you can help find customers and clients for your business. These days, everyone looks for a website when doing their research, whether they’re looking for new products or services.

Websites like HostGator make it easy to get your website up and running. They provide many essential services, like web hosting, website building, WordPress integration, domain names, and more.

Assemble furniture for others

As surprising as it sounds, not everyone loves taking hours to put together IKEA furniture. In fact, many people would love to pay someone else to do it for them. If you’re an accomplished furniture assembler, this could be the perfect opportunity for you to do something you’re good at while getting paid to do it. Check out websites like Thumbtack and TaskRabbit to list your services and find people willing to pay you for them.

Create your own email newsletter

If you’re passionate and knowledgeable about a particular topic, you can make money from it by creating your own email newsletter. This side hustle is often paired with creating your own website as well, but it’s also not necessary to create both. All you really need for a good email newsletter is to focus on something you’re interested in and then start building a community with the same interests. You can offer tips and helpful insights to your community based on your own interests and expertise.

Once your community is big enough, you can partner with advertisers to sell their products on your newsletter and/or create courses to sell to your community. So if your passion is woodworking, you might want to eventually partner with companies that sell woodworking products. Or you might want to create a course on how to build the perfect coffee table. The best part about this side hustle is you’re doing something you enjoy anyway, so the money is just a huge bonus.

Start your own home decorating gig

People spend a lot of time in their homes so it makes sense they’d want them to have a certain style and feel. But not everyone has the creative streak needed to properly bring the designs from their mind into a real-life setting. This is where an interior designer comes in — and where you can make money from your own creative ideas.

There’s plenty to do when starting your own interior design business, but an essential part should be getting your name out there so people can find you. Consider listing your services on Thumbtack or other similar websites while you build out your own website and start finding clients.

Roast and sell your own coffee

Are you a coffee connoisseur? Do you know the process that results in the best cup of coffee you’ve ever had? If so, it could be a good idea to share your end product with the world. Everyone’s always looking for the best coffee, so what’s stopping yours from nabbing that top spot?

Just be sure to have some taste-testing rounds with other people to make sure your coffee is the real deal before deciding to sell it. Then, consider reaching out to popular coffee subscription box companies to see whether they will include your coffee as an option for monthly subscriptions.

Create your own tour experience

If you’re an expert on your local area, you can profit from sharing your knowledge with visitors and newcomers to your region or city. Most tourists love to have an authentic experience when they’re visiting someplace new, so you can provide them with that authenticity. If you know the area, create an exciting tour experience for visitors that they’ll never forget.

Use websites like ToursByLocals or Airbnb to list the type of tour or experience you’re offering. You might be taking a small group on a walking tour of the historic district or going on a food tour to try the local delicacies. Whatever it is, you can have fun while earning an honest wage at the same time.

Rent out your storage space

If you have some extra storage space in your home, shed, driveway, or elsewhere, you can rent it out for money. Neighbor is a company that offers storage solutions for people who don’t want to pay the often high costs of traditional storage units and long-term parking garages. With this service, the customer needing storage can find a nearby solution while you get to make money off an unused space. If you want to earn passive income, this is an excellent way to start.

Turn your car into an ad campaign

There’s nothing better than earning money for something you’re already doing. If you’re already driving your car on a regular basis for work or something else, you can make money by turning your car into an ad campaign. With a quick and easy vinyl wrap on your car, you can advertise for a company without changing your daily routine at all.

Companies like Carvertise connect qualified drivers with companies who want to advertise their products and services. If you already drive with Uber, Lyft, Grubhub, or DoorDash, you could make some more money on top of what you’re doing by putting advertising campaigns on your car.

Become a secret shopper

How does going shopping and getting paid for it sound to you? It may seem like an opportunity that’s too good to be true, but secret shoppers and mystery shoppers are legitimate side hustles. Companies like BARE and Secret Shopper hire mystery shoppers to give valuable feedback to their clients concerning customer experience. So you get to shop for major retailers and brands while getting paid for it, which doesn’t sound like a bad gig, right?

Open your own winery or brewery

Similar to roasting and selling your own coffee, you could also consider opening your own winery or brewery. Everyone has their own talents, and if you have a big interest in making your own wine or brewing your own beer, you could share your talents with the public. You may not immediately have the funding to open up your own brick-and-mortar store, but you may still be able to reach your goals through selling your products online and to local businesses.

The bottom line

When you’re looking for a side hustle to increase your income, be sure to keep an open mind about what kinds of things you can do to make extra money. The list of side hustles that are out there is long and side hustles can fit a wide variety of interests, so think about what might sound worthwhile to you and keep your eyes peeled. You never know what side hustle might end up being both interesting and valuable for you.