Refinishing furniture, shopping ‘till you drop, nerding out over your town's local history.
If you're wanting to make the most out of your weekends — while also putting a little extra cash into your bank account — turning the things you love doing most into profitable weekend side hustles might just be the answer.Â
Check out our list of 10 fun, and potentially lucrative, weekend side hustle ideas that allow you to turn your passions into income.Â
Table of Contents
Why You Should Consider a Weekend Side Hustle (Or Two)
Research shows that around 44%Â of all Americans have a side hustle. People choose to take on a weekend side gig for a variety of reasons, including:
Paying off debt – If you're sitting under a lot of debt, particularly credit card or other high-interest debt, picking up a weekend side hustle can be a smart way to pay it down. With extra money from a weekend job, you can put that money towards paying off any outstanding debt and getting your finances under control.
Increasing their savings – Another great benefit of a weekend side job is it allows you to pad your savings account. The money you bring in can help you save for unexpected expenses and increase your wealth.Â
Saving for a specific goal – Are you working on saving for a down payment on a house? Is it time to buy a new car? Would you love to take that dream vacation to Europe, or save a little extra cash for holiday gifts? Whatever the goal, having a weekend side hustle can give you the extra cash you need to make it a reality.Â
Gaining valuable experience – Another fun benefit of a side hustle is that it can be a great opportunity to gain new skills. Are you considering a job change or taking your current career in a whole new direction? Picking up a side hustle can give you valuable experience that may increase your value at your current position or boost your resume for a new work adventure. A side hustle can also give you the chance to explore the ins and outs of new career possibilities while still making sure you get a steady paycheck.
Saving for retirement – Once you build up your savings, you can set aside the income from your side hustle toward your retirement account.
Active Income vs. Passive Income
Active income requires you to actively participate to earn money. You get active income via:
Salaries
Hourly wages
Independent contracting
Sales commissions
Tips
Bonuses
Passive income comes from an interest-earning asset that you’re not actively involved in and might include:
Renting out a space, such as a property, room, or parking space
Affiliate marketing and ads
Cash back from a credit or debit card
The royalties earned from licensing intellectual property such as a book, online course, professional-quality photos, or an app
Do you need to get access to a little extra cash?Â
Sorbet can help. Our PTO cash advance can get you quick access to the money that’s already yours — but is wrapped up in your unused PTO.Â
Find out more today!
How Do You Start a Weekend Side Hustle?
As you've probably guessed, starting a weekend side hustle can take a bit of planning. Here are a few things you'll want to take into consideration, so you can hit the ground running:
Choose something that matches your skills and interests – It's best to consider both of those factors when determining the best weekend side hustles. If you're great at writing but don't enjoy it, a side gig in freelance writing likely isn't the best choice.Â
Decide how much time you have to invest – You may have to put in extra time up-front to get things started, but you'll want to weigh your time investment to avoid burning out.
Determine your earning goals – Figure up how much you need to make to reach your goal. Will the weekend side hustle you’ve considered reasonably help you reach this amount?Â
Create a strong business plan – Once you've narrowed down your options, create a business plan. Focus on what it will take to make your hustle a success. How will you market yourself? What does the competition look like? What do you need to invest in to get your business up and running?
Familiarize yourself with relevant laws – You may want to enlist the help of a financial advisor for this step. You'll also want to consider the best type of business for your situation, including sole proprietorship, LLC, etc.Â
10 of the Best Weekend Side Hustles Anyone Can Do in 2023
#1: Create and Sell Courses Online
Many people love learning on their own time and in the comfort of their own homes.
Not only is online learning convenient and accessible, it can also be a way to make a passive income via a weekend side hustle that creates online courses.
You’ll need to put in the effort upfront to create a course in a digital format, but once it’s out there, you can then sell the same course again and again without having to do any additional work.
If it sounds difficult, don't be intimidated. You can create your first course for free by using an online course platform like Udemy or Teachable.
#2: Set Up an Etsy Shop
Are you the artsy-craftsy type? Then selling on Etsy may be just the weekend side hustle you’ve been looking for.Â
Whether you’re a beginner or an expert, Etsy has a ready-made audience waiting to buy your creations. And since you won’t have to spend any time marketing, you can invest all your energy into making things to sell.
A few Etsy ideas include:
Printables
Handmade goods
Personalized products
Artwork
Stickers
Anything vintage
#3: Fill Out Online Surveys
Another weekend side hustle option you can try is instant cash survey sites that pay consumers for sharing their opinions.
While they won’t make you rich, survey sites are an easy way to make some extra cash while binging Netflix or relaxing by the pool.
A few great survey options include:Â
Swagbucks – Earn money by completing surveys or shopping online, playing trivia for cash, watching ads, and more.
Branded Surveys – Get free PayPal cash and gift cards.
InboxDollars – Lots of ways to earn, including getting a $5 bonus just for becoming a new member.Â
Survey Junkie – Share your opinion for cash.
#4: Do Drop-Shipping on Amazon
If you've considered getting into e-commerce but are hesitant due to logistics, cost, or maintaining an inventory, you might want to consider drop-shipping on Amazon as an alternative.
With drop-shipping, you can start your own e-commerce business — minus the typical concerns about upfront costs, inventory, and risk.
Drop-shipping works like this:
A customer places an order and pays through your website.
You then order the product through Amazon at wholesale pricing and have it shipped directly to your customer.
You pocket the profits.
#5: Be a Mystery Shopper
How would you like to get paid to shop? That's exactly what happens when you become a mystery shopper. It’s the perfect weekend job for people who love to shop.
Companies pay mystery shoppers to shop in their stores and offer an unbiased view of their shopping experience and customer service.Â
Restaurants also hire mystery shoppers, so if you love eating out, you may just hit the jackpot here, too.
A few of the top mystery shopper companies include:Â
Market Force Information – You can set up an account for free and see the details of an assignment before you decide to accept the job.Â
Sinclair Customer Metrics – First established in 1987, they specialize in retail, banking, grocery store, fast food restaurant, and convenience stores.
IntelliShop – This company specializes in online reputation management, customer experience, loss prevention, and compliance. They cover over 18K cities in the U.S. and Canada, as well as 180 countries around the world.
#6: Become a Pet Sitter or Dog Walker
If you're an animal lover, consider becoming a dog walker or pet sitter.Â
These jobs are especially great weekend side gigs since many people want to take a quick getaway and need someone to care for their pets.
There are a number of apps on the market that make it easy to find clients in your area and get your pet business up and running, including:Â
Rover – Free to use, this app connects pet sitters and walkers with pet owners. You get to decide the types of animals you work with, set your own hours, and establish your rates.
Wag – Known as the ‘Uber for Dogs,’ Wag services over 400,000 owners in the United States. You'll need to pay a sign-up fee, take a safety quiz, and pass the background check before getting started.Â
#7: Take Food Delivery or Grocery Shopping Gigs
Another popular category for weekend side jobs is food delivery apps that deliver groceries or meals.
People place their orders through the app, you pick it up, and deliver it to their door. Weekends, in particular, seem to be the most lucrative time for food delivery gigs.Â
A few of the more commonly known apps include:
#8: Become an Uber or Lyft Driver
If you like to drive and have pockets of free time on the weekends, you might want to consider driving for a ride-share company like Uber or Lyft.
You’ll just need to:
Submit a copy of your driver's license.
Have been a licensed driver for the required amount of time — one year for Lyft, three years for Uber.
Pass a background check.Â
Besides just driving, you can also make extra cash by recruiting new drivers for each of these companies.
#9: Act as a Local Tour Guide
Do you live in a city that's a popular destination for tourists?
If the answer is yes, consider becoming a tour guide — right in your hometown. This can be done by going through a local tour company or by offering independent tours through Airbnb Experiences.Â
Not only is it fun, but you get paid to walk around and share cool stories about your city.
You can offer tours for small or large groups and can make a lot of cash for just a few hours of your time.
Local tours might include:
Bike tours
Pub crawls
Historic tours
Walking tours
Downtown tours
Ghost toursÂ
You can advertise your tour guide gig at local hotels, bus stations, the airport, and other places frequented by visitors to your area.
#10: Clean Houses
Is cleaning your thing? Cleaning houses can be a great side hustle for the weekend or evenings. The start-up costs are minimal and once you establish a client base you can make some decent money. People are busy living life and house cleaning services are always in high demand.Â
Enhancing Your Weekend Side Hustle Journey with SorbetÂ
If you’re needing a little extra money, Sorbet can help!
Our PTO cash advance allows you to access the PTO days you’re never going to use and turn them into extra cash.Â
 It’s easy as 1, 2, 3:Â
Use Sorbet’s free PTO calculator to calculate the value of your unused PTO.
Apply, risk-free.Â
Get paid. You’ll receive your funds on a prepaid Sorbet Visa card.
You’ll pay a small monthly interest payment and then repay the full amount either at the end of the term or when you receive your payout from your employer.
If you want to take on a little side hustle, more power to you. But if you want to boost your income without spending your weekends taking on more work, think Sorbet.Â