The modern world is pushing more and more people like you and me to starting a business on the side. However, this can be a daunting process if you don't know where to start or how to do it.
Luckily, I've already done all the work for you, and I'm here to tell you how to start a business on the side.
Every idea listed here has the potential to earn you some extra money to pay your bills or support your family. But it can also become your new career in case you discover you have a true calling for it.
So, let's get listing!
1. Work from Home as a Bookkeeper
This might sound daunting at first. But do you know what the best part about this side business is? You absolutely do not need to have experience in accounting or bookkeeping to do this job! How amazing is that?
As a part-time bookkeeper, you will help other start-ups or businesses to manage their financial transactions. To do this, you will need to go through an easy course which will show you everything there is to know about this side job.
This successful business will allow you to plan your schedule exactly as you want it, especially if you have another job or a family to look after.
2. Become a Proof Reader in Your Free Time
One of the best business ideas to make money is proofreading. The market is huge and wide open as there are more and more individuals as well as companies who are releasing massive amounts of content online.
This includes eBooks, short stories, novels, and fan fiction.
This is where you come in. All these content creators require proofreaders to spot check for grammar mistakes, continuity errors, spelling blunders, badly placed commas, and more. If you have an eye for these things, you can make more money than you ever imagined!
3. Starting a Business on the Side – Sensitivity Readers
Here's an idea for the best business to start with little money that builds on the above. So, just like I already mentioned, creators are releasing more content than ever in the online literature department. However, all of it must meet modern standards. What does this mean?
That it cannot contain any racism, homophobia, misogyny, transphobia, or insensible material. As a result, a new business has been created. That of sensitivity readers. You can get a job editing online content to make sure it meets community guidelines.
4. Open a Business in Property Preservation
I know you've never heard of this. That's alright. You can use this to your advantage since most people also don't have a clue how to profit from this type of side business. However, when it comes to passive income strategies, it's an amazing way to make massive amounts of money while still keeping your day job.
Property Preservation is also called Repairing Foreclosed Homes. Essentially, it means you will have to trade in real estate, but without buying or selling actual property. It’s a side business that you can do completely online and which you can actually outsource so you don't have to do any work yourself.
5. Flip Clothes from Thrift Shops
This side business idea is perfect for people who have an eye for fashion.
Apart from that, you will also need to spend a bit of time online because you will be starting a business on the side. The more it grows, the more you will have to cater to your customers.
Here is how it works. Scour your local thrift shops and flea markets for valuable pieces or designer items. Invest as little as possible in them.
Create a website for your new business and flip them for a large profit. This is one of the small business ideas that are profitable right from the beginning.
6. Gather Trash from Local Parking Lots
Starting a business on the side can be as simple as going to the nearest parking lot and picking up all the trash there. Yes, you read that well! It's a dirty job, but someone has to do it, especially when you need money, and you want to keep your day job as well.
This idea has quite a few benefits apart from that. First of all, the hours are super flexible. This means you can work whenever you feel like it, even at night. You can also work as much or as little as you want.
And second of all, the job allows you to expand, and turn it into a veritable business. After a little while, you can hire other people to work for you, while you manage a team and collect the money!
7. Do You Have What It Takes to Be a Life Coach?
Ok, maybe picking up trash isn’t for you. Then how about giving life advice to people over the internet? That's basically what you do now on Instagram if you really think about it, isn't it? This is a great business to start with little money. Take an online class that will teach you the basics, and you can get going!
Your income will depend on your targeted clients. For example, you can charge more for group sessions than for independent ones, or you can focus on wealthier clients if you want to make more money.
8. How Much Weight Can You Lose?
We are here to talk about little-known ways to starting a business on the side. So, I have a great idea for you. Join a weight loss program and turn it into a business! This is a classic win-win-win situation that you can benefit from in every way.
If you have ever planned on losing weight but never managed to or never had the incentive or the means to, this is your shot. Not only that, but you will get paid to lose weight.
The program allows you to win up to $10,000 for your weight loss. After that, you can use your success story to write a book, become a life coach, start your own weight loss program, and more!
9. Start a Speed Dating Business
This is another idea that is a little niche since not everyone is keen on romance or working closely with people. However, when it comes to the best business ideas to make money, this might be your shot. Use your social media influence to start a dating business that can bring people together.
After you find enough people who are interested, you can start selling tickets and make a profit. The business is very easy to understand, and can make you a pretty profit as quickly as you can say romance!
10. Sell Old Smartphones for Cash
This is one of the best business ideas to make money fast and incredibly easy. Old smartphones are very simple to locate and collect. All you have to do to get this small business going is set up a website. As a result, you will see that this is also the best business to start with little money.
Let people know that you will collect their old and broken smartphones free of charge. When you have collected enough, you can sell them and make a profit. In time, you can even grow your business if it goes well, and then you can manage an entire team of collectors.
11. Start Your Chef Business
Believe it or not, restaurants are not the only venue in which you can display your cooking skills anymore. If you already have a full-time job but are very skilled at cooking, don't let those skills go to waste!
There are plenty of websites that allow you to become a personal chef for people who simply don't have time to cook for themselves. This means they will hire you by the hour or by the week and pay you to make their daily meals. In no time at all, you will be making money hand over fist!
12. Become a Personal Shopper
If cooking is just not your thing but you do like the idea that I've described above of working personally for someone in your free time, then you can also start a side business as a personal shopper. This is one of the passive income strategies that can earn you experience, allow you to network, and get your incredible perks.
Don't limit yourself to a single client! Build a group of people that need you to do their personal shopping and earn as much money as you want per week or per month.
13. How to Become a House Sitter
Starting a business on the side has literally never been easier than with this idea. You can become a house sitter for different people who need to leave town to go on vacation, on business trips, or leave the country for extended periods of time. They will hire you to look after their house, water their plants, and generally make sure everything is in order.
You will need to provide good credentials, but you will get paid by the hour for doing almost nothing. How good does that sound for someone who already has a nine-to-five job?
14. Give Tours of Your Home Town
Here is another less known idea on how to start a business on the side. Most people who are looking for a side business don't usually apply for this one because they believe you need to be a qualified tour guide or historian. That's not true!
In reality, you can easily apply with your local museum or even any of your town's travel companies. They can pay you by the hour or you can volunteer and get tips at the end of each tour. Either way, it's a profitable business if you can also find some team members to increase your profits.
15. Start Using Lending Services
This is one of the small business ideas that are profitable but it's also one that requires you to have some money, to begin with. As a result, it might not be for everyone, but only for those who are ready to invest.
Lending services, especially those that are peer to peer, require you to invest a sum of money which will then be used for different businesses across several industries. If the investments are successful, you stand to make a substantial profit.
16. Become a Motivational Speaker
Out of all the ways of starting a business on the side I've put on this list this one has got to be one of the most profitable. Highly successful motivational speakers make tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars every year. This could very well be you if you have a compelling life story that will help motivate people.
Should this be the case, start by writing it down. Post it on social media, and if it gets a positive response, think about organizing motivational events where you sell tickets.
17. Binge Watch TV and Get Paid
Is this really a thing? I'm glad you asked. Absolutely it is! Have you ever heard of tagging? This is what the job is called and you can apply for it whenever you want. Most streaming services employ metadata analysts, otherwise known as ‘taggers’ to simply watch endless hours of their online content.
Their job is to attach certain 'tags’ to specific content so that users of the platform can identify the content easier. Hence the name. Small business ideas that are profitable and which you can do right from your couch!
18. Start Making Knitted Baby Clothes
If you have a passion and the right skills to make knitted baby clothes, then you're in luck. The new born market is offering endless possibilities for creative people like you who can produce handmade items from scratch.
This includes clothes, of course, for new-borns and babies, but also blankets and toys.
You can charge as much as you want for them, depending on the fabrics you use and the hours of labor you put in. If the business takes off, hire more people and create a team you can manage.
19. Start a Hauling Service in Your Local Town
I've chosen this idea on how to start a business on the side specifically for people who own a trailer, a van, or a truck. Of course, if you don’t own one and still want to give this idea a go, you can buy it. But you will have to invest money first before the business can take off.
However, if you already have the truck or the van, you can use it to deliver furniture in your local town. Make sure people choose you instead of already established moving companies by offering lower prices. In this way, you can make some money on the side.
20. Decorate Houses for the Holidays
This does not just mean Christmas, but every holiday you can possibly think of. In this way, you will have work and money all year round. Offer your decorating services on Valentine's Day, Easter, Thanksgiving, the 4th of July, St. Patrick's Day, and everything in between. Don’t forget about ethnic holidays that could also be a source of income.
Gather a team of employees that will help you start this side business and offer people who don't have time to decorate themselves a much-needed service.
21. Dumpster Diving for Beauty Products
If you do your research and find the perfect spots, this side business idea can quickly turn into a gold mine. Watch a few YouTube videos and tutorials to see how others have already perfected the craft of dumpster diving for beauty products and then sell them at a major profit.
As the name suggests, this is one of the best business ideas to make money with little effort and absolutely no investment at all. Start by searching through the refuse behind key major stores that sell beauty products. According to the tutorials, the stores throw out makeup and other cosmetics that are no longer in use or that belong to older promotional lines, but which are still perfectly fine to use.
Once you rescue them from the refuse, you can resell them online and make a profit. Make sure that everything you rescue is clean, sealed, and has never been used before to ensure customer safety and hygiene rules.
Are You Ready for Your New Side Business?
Making extra money is always a challenge, especially when you already have a full-time job that doesn't allow a flexible schedule. However, I hope that this list will help you learn some new ways of starting a business on the side that will allow you to bring in additional income.
Most of the ideas listed here can easily make you a few hundred dollars a month while a select few can reach a few thousand, if not more. It all depends on you, how many hours you want to put in, and how dedicated you are to achieving your goal. Good luck!