How to start a side hustle

Nowadays, side hustles are one of the most common ways to make extra money, develop your skills and potentially even turn your passion into a lucrative full-time business! Whether your end goal is to keep your savings topped up, become debt free, or just have a bit more financial freedom, there are plenty of ways to begin a side-hustle. Want to know the best part? You don’t need a lot of money or experience to begin with! With the right approach and a little effort, you can start earning money through a side hustle without it taking over your entire life.

In this guide, I'll share plenty of top tips on how to pick the right hustle, what are the benefits and potential limitations of starting a side hustle, as well as lots of ideas for how you can make extra money from the comfort of your own home!

What is a side hustle?

A side hustle is considered any way that you can make extra money outside of your main job. As the name suggests, it's called a side hustle because it's something you do on the side! It's usually thought of as a flexible way to boost your income, without having to actually quit your 9-5 job.

People start a side hustle for plenty of different reasons. Primarily, as a way to earn a passive income. According to an analysis by Finder.com, 2 in 5 Brits, which is equivalent to 39% — have a side hustle as an additional source of income in 2025. The same study found that the average income from side hustles is £210 a week or £914 a month, with millennials earning the most from side hustles, with an average income of £1,321 per month.

Another study conducted by Natwest Bank found that 45% of people admitted actively looking to increase their income by starting or growing a side hustle.

Pros of starting a side hustle

Now that you know what a side hustle is, and how popular they appear to be in the UK — let's get into all the benefits that come with starting a side hustle.

Increased income and financial security

The first, and perhaps most obvious benefit of side hustles is earning more money! This is the main reason people start a side hustle in the first place — as a way to easily make money from the comfort of your home, often requiring minimal time, effort and resources. In a study conducted by Aviva, results found that 1 in 5 Brits had officially started a side hustle since 2020. This growing trend in earning a passive income may been fueled further by the ongoing Cost of Living crisis, with so many day-to-day expenses increasing in price, including rising food prices, energy bills, fuel costs and more. With more and more people actively looking for ways to earn extra money — finding a good side hustle that works can help relieve this financial burden.

If you're looking for more ways to save money, then take advantage of our range of free money-saving resources, like our household budget calculator and savings calculator.

Skill development

Making money aside, side hustles can be a great way to develop your skills in a certain area that you can then use for life, like business skills and marketing. Although side hustles are typically seen as easy and minimal-effort, getting a business off the ground may take time, effort and resources — especially if you are a beginner or this is your first time starting a side hustle. Some fundamental skills you may learn during this process include managing finances, communication with clients, flexibility and time management — especially working this around your full-time job. To make the learning part easier — you can browse our wide range of discount codes to save you money on online learning such as Skillshare, New Skills Academy and Future Learn.

Pursue your passions and interests

A lot of people start a side hustle as a way to make money from genuine passions. Whatever you like to do, whether it's something more creative like baking and jewellery-making, or more academic such as teaching or website design — a side hustle is a way to invest time and energy into something you genuinely love to do!

Networking and making new connections

There's also the social factor to think about! You may have the opportunity to meet like-minded people, such as industry experts, potential business collaborators and loyal customers. Whether it’s through social media, networking platforms like TaskRabbit or via online communities — having a side hustle may build valuable relationships that could lead to new opportunities. Plus, surrounding yourself with motivated individuals can keep you inspired and even help your side hustle to grow!

Cons of starting a side hustle

Less free time

One of the most obvious down sides of having a side hustle is that it can be time-consuming! Especially in the early stages of getting an online business up and running, this may require more dedication than is initially expected. On top of that, balancing a side hustle with a full-time job, as well as family life and various other commitments, means your free time might take a hit!

Increased tax

Did you know you may be liable to pay tax if you have a side hustle? According to Gov.UK, those who earn over £1000 from a side hustle are obligated to pay tax. In fact, very recently — in February 2025, Gov.UK initiated the Help for Hustles campaign — a free guide to help people with a side hustle better understand their tax obligations. So whilst side hustles are good for making money, it's important to understand the potential tax payments that come with it, to avoid any unexpected bills or penalties in the process.

Financial risk

Not all side hustles are lucrative, especially in the early days. Depending on the type of business you have, it may need an initial investment for things like supplies and marketing. Without researching everything beforehand, you might end up spending more than you earn, especially if it turns out there's no demand for your product or service. That’s why it’s so important to weigh up the costs, test the market, and start small before committing too much money to your side hustle. Carrying out your research first can help you to avoid unnecessary losses and build a profitable side hustle without the financial risk!

One of our Savoo Money-Saving Editors, Ruby Lizon-Walker, shares her advice for starting an online business from scratch:

"Make sure you do lots of market research to ensure people will actually buy your product — discover who those people are and where, how and why they spend money. Carrying out consumer research will save you lots of time and money in the long-run. After you know that, you know how to advertise, where to advertise, what sort of marketing you should be putting time money and energy into, you know where to prioritise spending and which parts of your business to develop first. Try to be reactive to what is selling well and adjust your market knowledge accordingly."

Popular Side Hustles

Tutoring

Tutoring is a great way to earn extra income while helping others learn and grow. There usually is a demand for knowledgeable tutors, especially for secondary school students nearing their GCSE's and A Levels.

In fact, Gov.UK states that according to the Department of Education, a staggering 2,142,822 courses have been delivered to pupils via National Tutoring Programme within the 2022-2023 academic year!

According to Money.co.uk, tutors can typically earn between £15 and £40 per hour, with rates averaging around £20. The amount you charge depends on the subject, location, and whether the lessons are in-person or online. Platforms like Tutorful and MyTutor make it easy to connect with students, set your own rates, and work around your schedule. Plus, it’s a rewarding side hustle that lets you share your expertise while making a real difference!

Freelancing

If you're looking for an easy way to make money at home, then why not consider freelancing? This is a great way of making a bit of extra cash using skills you already have. Some great examples of freelancing opportunities include copywriting, graphic design, website development and accounting. Websites like Fiverr, Upwork, and PeoplePerHour are great platforms to create your own freelancing portfolio, find clients and even set your own rates. What's great about freelancing is that you can work as much or as little as you want, making it a great side hustle to fit around your 9-5. Check out our Fiverr discount codes to help you get started today.

One of our Money-Saving Editors, Louise Holder shares her experiences on freelancing:

"To help boost my freelance journey, I signed up for Freelance websites such as PeoplePerHour & Fiverr. These platforms allowed me to network, showcase my skills and tailor my offering to businesses of all sizes worldwide. As a freelancer, it was important for me to ensure I was always up-to-date on all things relating to PPC e.g. Blog pings (Ensuring I was alerted any time my favourite PPC blog had posted), enrolling in advanced PPC courses, taking various Google Ads exams; you name it I did it! This allowed me to provide my clients with the most up-to-date strategies and enabled them to be the first to try new search ad features. From here, I grew from 1 client to 9 in the space of 3 months, it took hard work and perseverance. Ensuring I applied to all proposals promptly and tailoring my proposal to the client's need (not a template). This helped me build relationships outside of the platforms and provided me with further long-term opportunities."

Selling Goods

Platforms like Vinted and Depop make it super easy to sell clothes and shoes you no longer wear. Alternatively, if you're selling handmade items, Etsy and eBay are great places to connect with buyers who love unique, one-of-a-kind products.

Ruby Lizon-Walker shares her top tip for selling goods online:

"Using Vinted and Depop, do a bit of research into SEO and keywords — you can even get your products in "sponsored" slots on Google! By using more terms to describe your products you're more likely to show up when people are looking for similar items."

According to Sumup, baking sweet treats has seen an increase of 9.8% in recent years. Platforms like Instagram, Facebook Marketplace, and Etsy make it easier than ever to advertise your baked goods, while local markets, community events and pop-up stalls offer great opportunities to sell in person, meet your customers and talk about your baked goodies! Plus, baking can be a low-cost business than other side-hustles, with genuinely fewer start-up costs.

One of our Savoo Money-Saving Editors, Chelsea Alvarado shares her recent experiences in selling home-made baked goods:

"I started baking during COVID and began sharing my creations on social media. This hobby allowed me to refine my own recipes, with a particular focus on brownies. As my posts gained traction, I started sharing my baked goods with friends and family, who gave me overwhelmingly positive feedback. Encouraged by their response, I began selling through Instagram, offering pre-orders and pickups whenever I had fresh batches. This side hustle was both flexible and rewarding, allowing me to turn a passion into a source of income."

Pet Care

If you love dogs, why not turn that in a way to earn extra cash? Offering your services by dog walking and pet-sitting are great ways to make money whilst spending time with furry friends. With many pet owners working long hours or heading off on holiday, there’s definitely a market for reliable people to look after their pets. The great thing about it is pet-care can be entirely flexible! Depending on the owner and circumstance, it could be as easy as a simple hour-long walk per day, overnight stays or even just popping in daily for a feed and cuddle — oftentimes you can set your own schedule and work around this.

Another of our Savoo Money-Saving Editors, Persia-Lili Moharerr, shares her experience on pet-sitting as a side hustle:

"I pet-sit every summer for a few families whilst they're on their holidays. It started off as a one-off gig for my next-door neighbours, who asked me to come by twice a day to feed their cats. I was then able to network and gain a second gig for another family who live locally. I stayed in their house for two weeks, looking after their dog and cat. This was very flexible, as I was still able to work hybrid-remote, incorporating time to walk the dog twice a day when working from their house, and could also feed both pets before leaving for work on office days. Through word-of-mouth, this turned into three pet-sitting gigs, which was a very easy way to make extra money — because I could be flexible around my job and for the most part it didn't feel like work! For more information on the cost of petcare, check out my free guide today!"

Plus, signing up to platforms like Rover and Housesitters UK makes it even easier to connect with local pet owners—browse our range of Rover discount codes today to get started with dog-sitting as a side hustle.

Competitions, Surveys & Product Reviews

Lots of companies and market researchers want to know what people think of their products and services. So you can make money online by entering competitions, carrying out online surveys, and reviewing products. Entering competitions, also known as "comping" can be a fun way to win everything from tech gadgets to holidays. ThePrizeFinder.com is recognised as the UK's biggest online competiton site, offering winners not only cash rewards, but other great prices such as cars and holidays too. However, be sure to do your research beforehand, as not only is the probability of winning a competition very low, but it can also be time-consuming entering all of your details and reading up on T&Cs. MoneySavingExpert have summarised some of the most popular product-testing sites in the UK, how they work and what rewards can be expected.

Mystery Shopping

According to the MSPA (Mystery Shopping Professionals Association), approximately 500,000 people are registered as mystery shoppers in the UK alone, but what is mystery shopping — and is it worth the hype? Mystery shopping is a way for companies to carry out market research to improve the overall quality of the business. Basically, regular people or in this case "mystery shoppers", pose as customers (either in person or online via telephone or social media) in shops, restaurants and other places of business to test levels of customer service. This may include asking an assistant for help, taking note of things like cleanliness, queuing times, stock availabilty etc - and then writing out a report to feed back to the company.

A helpful guide by MoneySavingExpert offers various tips to consider before becoming a mystery shopper, including some very easy to implement tricks, such as simply making sure your phone notifications are turned on!

What do you need to start an online business?

Now that we've looked at the pros and cons of starting a side hustle, as well as the many different examples of side hustles that people use to make money online, let's talk about some of the steps that can help you kickstart your side hustle, and how much these may cost! The British Business Bank have mapped out all the things you need to be mindful of when starting a business, and how much you can realistically expect to pay when starting a business from scratch, including fees and other start-up costs.

I spoke to Joseph Murray, Co-founder of Startup AZ, a free company formations agent, who says: 'They say it takes spending money to make money. And the immediate costs you’ll face when starting a business come from forming the company itself. To register your business through Companies House, you’ll need to pay a £50 registration fee. If you’d like to speed this process up with a same-day turnaround, the cost will jump to £78. Startup costs you may need to cover include registering for taxes, business insurance and marketing support. It’s a good idea to research and write down all the expenses you need to account for ahead of time, so you’re fully prepared and aren’t caught out further down the line.'

Website Creation

Having a website is a great place to start! Not only is it a dedicated place for your customers to browse your products of services, but it also helps to make your business look professional and may help attract more customers. Having a website doesn't have to come at a huge cost though. Many DIY platform sites like Wix, WordPress and Google Sites offer website creation for free, but the designs and features available may be limited. If you're wondering how much it costs to build a website, GoDaddy suggests you can expect to pay £100 for a basic website, and as much as £10,000 for a complex website!

You can browse out range of Squarespace discount codes to get you started and help you to save money on website development.

Social Media Management

If you're not looking to create a website just yet, then social media is a great way to advertise your business and and can definitely be done for free! Consider posting about your side hustle on social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook, where you can easily create social posts and stories to promote your business. This is a great way to share news and updates on your side-hustle and start off by advertising to family, friends and people you know. For more engagement and reach on social media, you could also use paid ads which start from as little as £5 a day!

On this topic, Joseph Murray Co-founder of Startup AZ, says: 'If you’re looking to save money when forming a business, start with these simple steps: Prioritise your essential tools: Start with the most important software and services you need. Ask yourself, can I get by with social media first before setting up a website? Are you able to use a free money transfer service rather than paying for software? Small adjustments like these can keep your costs down early on, allowing you to visit these options at a later date.'

Visual Design

Strong branding helps you stand out, and free tools like Canva make it easy to create professional-looking designs. Canva Pro (£10.99/month) unlocks extra features, but the free version is great for beginners. Check out our range of Canva discount codes to unlock great savings today.