Side Hustle Ideas UK: How to to make extra money

We love a side-hustle!  A persons side-hustle can tell you more about them than their full time job ever will.  It shows you something personal, where they’re at, what’s happening to them… because it takes guts, effort, energy and determination to run a side hustle.  We’ve pulled together some side hustle ideas that you can do from the comfort of your home.

But first, Erica Wolfe-Murray, author of ‘Simple Tips, Smart Ideas’ shares her advice on how to launch a side hustle and make money. Referred to by Forbes.com as ‘a leading innovation and business expert’, Erica works across the creative, cultural and tech sector helping companies to innovate through imaginative use of their intellectual assets/IP.  Read her top tips on how to launch your new venture.

Why start a side hustle?

The two main reasons for you to get cracking on this extra-curricular activity are either:

• you’re starting a small venture that ultimately you want to grow into the main event, or
• you need some extra cash to help pay the bills, supplement the pension or you’re saving for a big splurge.

Whatever the reason, make sure you think through what you want as outcomes from the get-go.

Treat your side-hustle as you would a normal business

By planning your side hustle properly you’ll get it on to the right footing.  Take time to research your market, understand your customers, your competitors, your marketplace.  Ensure you structure your pricing right, your suppliers are nailed.

Don’t be afraid to ask for advice – people are really happy to support start-ups and are incredibly generous. This forward planning needs to be thorough as you will be doing this in your non-work time, which is tight.

Remember to check your current employment contract

If you are working for and employer during the day, with your side-hustle happening in the evening, at weekends, or online, check your contract of employment before you start.  Many contracts limit you from working elsewhere or state that your employer will own all of your IP, whether created in the office or outside. In other words they could – if they wanted – take over your side hustle or even close it down.  

If your contract is severely limiting, go to talk to your boss or HR.  A contract which controls you outside working hours is unreasonable.

Don’t forget to get all your ‘legals’ in place

No matter what size your business is – and a side hustle is a business – you need to ensure your website, your T&Cs, your privacy policy, your contracts are all properly formulated.  Particularly if you’re trading over the internet.

Even if you’re side hustle is ‘just’ running a stall intermittently at market, or offering cooking classes on the side – you will need to think through what might go wrong and ensure you are properly protected – with a short contract and some form of insurance.

Research before setting your prices

Setting your pricing to ensure you make a profit is key.  If you are unfamiliar with different ways of pricing, talk to other people in a similar venture how they set theirs.  Products for sale are costed differently from a service, where most people charge for their time.

Remember that you may need to declare your new additional income to HMRC, either as self-employed earnings or as annual accounts if you have started a limited company.  Don’t ignore this as you don’t want it to come up later and bite you in the bum.

Then go for it… nothing is more fun than running your own venture.

Side Hustle Ideas UK

1. Start a Vinted account

Whilst selling your unwanted items might not seem like your typical ‘side hustle’, it can be a great way to make regular money. The Vinted app put the cost of postage and other fees on the buyer, so you get 100% of the price anything sells for. If you get into the habit of decluttering and setting aside unused / preloved items once per month and list them for sale on Vinted, you can top up your earnings or make money for new stuff – every little counts!

2. Put a listing on Facebook or Gumtree for pet sitting or walking

Through the pandemic, pets got used to their owners being at home during the day, most days in the week. Now that the world has gone back to normal, it’s left a lot of needy pets out there and owners seeking pet sitters or dog walkers whilst they’re at work.

Dog walking is a great way to make some money during your lunchtime walk, especially if you work from home. Similarly, home sitting is another perfect opportunity to kill two birds with one stone, take along your laptop and get some work done whilst you keep their furry friends company.

3. Look for Virtual Assistant jobs

Most virtual assistant jobs are part time, so they’re great if you have a few hours spare in the evenings. You can offer anything from administrative support to arranging travel and booking appointments.

Look online for part time jobs, or create your own listing on sites like Fiverr, you have the freedom to set your own prices and requirements so you only get requests that suit you.

4. Offer your copywriting services

Good at writing? Offer your copywriting services as a way to make a little extr cash. They great thing about this is, you can do it from anywhere and at any time. There are loads of sites online where you can list your services, just be sure to set your prices by the hour or niche, for example if it’s a topic that’s going to need more research time, then set your fees accordingly.

5. Social media strategy or management

Every brand or business needs some form or social media account, whether it be more creative platforms such as Instagram or TikTok, or business focused like Linkedin. If social media is your day job, then it makes sense to use those skills as a side hustle too.

You could offer things like account set up, analytics, strategy, content creation or even the day-to-day management of the pages. Set up a listing with the options you’d like to offer and offer a retainer fee for x amount of hours per month.

6. Sell your photos online

If you’re good at taking photo’s then why not sell them? There are a few options for Photographer’s to cash in on their assets, firstly you could list prints on sites like Vinted or Etsy, this is the best option if you want full control of the sale.

Other options include listing your photos on third party sites, you will have to apy a small commission but it’s the least time consuming. You can also look at stock image sites, some offer a small fee upfront and others pay by download.