10 Exciting Side Hustle Ideas For Your 20s
Find your preferred leisure activity and monetize it
Our 20s are a period of self-discovery, career orientation, and lots of trial and error journeys.
That’s where “side hustles” come to fruition. Our characters and careers are not yet set in stone. Side hustles are, therefore, excellent sources of personal growth and extra income.
Let’s start with a simple overview.
By definition, side hustles are activities that pay you on the side.
You have a regular job or university curriculum and monetize a different activity in your spare time. That activity can be on- or offline.
In the last five years, I’ve tried all of the following side hustle ideas with varying success rates.
I turned my writing, blogging, stock photography, and Airbnb activities into profitable business ventures. The others remained small income streams.
All of these side hustles work. Nevertheless, your success will ultimately depend on your character, perseverance, and ingenuity.
The best course of action is to test the ones that might suit your personality.
That way, you can strive toward finding your preferred side hustle. Take a couple of online courses in different fields and try a certain activity over a few months.
Applied correctly, this method can secure your place under the digital sun.
On this basis, here’s a brief overview of 10 exciting side hustle ideas for your 20s.
1. Blogging
Some people argue that blogging is dead, but that’s factually wrong.
According to Internet Live Stats, over 5.7 million blog posts are published every day. Every month, bloggers post 78 million new articles on Wordpress alone.
Blogging has changed a lot in recent years, but it is still a great side hustle to start in your 20s.
How about making money with a blog nowadays?
There are thousands of articles telling you that everyone can make a fortune blogging, but this is a farce. Blogging is a great side hustle if you have the right expectations.
Here’s the gist of it: as a means to make money, blogging is very slow, time-consuming, and difficult.
Nevertheless, blogging is the ideal way to nourish your love for writing and to get your first glimpse of online entrepreneurship.
2. Youtube
Similar to blogging, Youtube is a slow and crowded ecosystem. It’s nonetheless a rewarding activity to fuel your creativity.
If you want to improve your videography skills, Youtube is the best place to start. In that same vein, it’s a great platform to share your message and showcase your talent.
Better still, you don’t need to set up a website and once you pass Youtube’s monetization threshold, your passive income will flow.
3. Stock photography
Look at your phone. You probably have thousands of city shots, travel pictures, and bedroom selfies floating around.
That’s how I got started in stock photography.
The process is simple. Upload your photos on sites like Shutterstock, Adobe Stock, or 500px and get paid every time someone licenses them. The same goes for videos. There are many more sites but those are the ones I use.
There are naturally a few caveats.
First, your pictures need to be of reasonable quality. However, quality does not require artistic, cinematic flair. You don’t have to be a great photographer to make a decent side income on stock sites. Having a proper concept is more important.
As an example, I have a few highly cinematic nature shots that never sell. They sell as prints, but not on stock sites.
Some of my iPhone London Tube shots, on the other hand, sell frequently. They aren’t special or artistic, they simply show a specific concept that newspapers and other clients want.
Along the same lines, you don’t need a 5,000 dollar camera with six lenses. Most high-end smartphones will do.
Secondly, your pictures should have commercial value. As mentioned with the London trains, shoot something that could either be used by a company or as an editorial picture. Think about the customers and how they could utilize your work.
Finally, once your photos are good enough and their commercial value is established, stock photography is a pure numbers game.
Consequently, the more your upload, the more your income grows.
Like most side hustles, it is not a get rich quick scheme. Nevertheless, If you continue improving and upload regularly for 1–2 years, you can easily make a few hundred dollars every month.
4. Copyediting and ghostwriting
Copyediting is among the best side hustle ideas for your 20s thanks to its simplicity.
You don’t need to be Shakespeare to correct standard English texts. The same goes for ghostwriting.
Many bloggers and websites hire ghostwriters to increase their output. Students often ask ghostwriters for help with their essays. And teachers frequently order exercises from freelancers.
Freelancer platforms like Upwork, RushEssay, and Fiverr are adequate starting points in this regard.
5. Freelance writing
Akin to copyeditors, many businesses hire freelancers to create content for their websites and blogs.
The main advantage is the exposure you get from writing as a freelancer under your name.
If you want to build a long-term writing career, freelance writing is the way to go. Once you master your craft, you’ll establish long-lasting relationships with clients — ensuring regular gigs.
Freelance writing is also an ideal means to make money during your blog’s launch phase. Your blog might take one or two years to become profitable.
In the meantime, freelance jobs can provide additional income or finance your blogging expenses.
6. Coding and programming
When it comes to high-paying side hustles to start in your 20s, not many activities beat coding and programming. According to EliteDaily, coding is “THE money skill you want in your 20s.” And they have a point.
There are a few glaring upsides to having coding skills in your 20s.
First, in our uber-connected world, coding is rapidly becoming a general rather than a niche skill.
In a couple of years, it might become a self-evident requirement for a wide variety of jobs.
Secondly, most 20-somethings are already attuned to the coding and programming world.
Many millennials experiment with software development in their childhood bedrooms — a clear advantage over older generations.
Finally, coding and programming are nowadays prevalent in almost every sector.
No matter if you want to work for a bakery, a tech startup, or a travel agency, freelance coding jobs are never in short supply.
7. Airbnb
Many people rent shared apartments in their 20s. Some buy their first condo. And some still live with their parents.
Notwithstanding the type of real estate, most of us have a spare room or at least a spare couch.
Everything — and I mean everything — can be rented out on Airbnb nowadays.
Especially if you live in a large metropolitan area with a steady influx of tourists and/or students, you’ll find tenants. And these tenants can help you shoulder your rent or mortgage.
Of course, many landlords don’t allow Airbnb. Couchsurfing is another option in this scenario.
Wait, isn’t Couchsurfing free?
Yes, you would be renting out your couch for free. But you’ll gain valuable experience with tenants and you connect with new people.
If you can’t do Airbnb, you can still trade your couch for non-monetary soft skills.
8. Dropshipping
Dropshipping is a popular side hustle for people who are astute in e-commerce.
Here’s how it works. Set up your virtual storefront on sites like eBay or Shopify and sell products without ever seeing or touching them.
The idea is simple. A buyer orders a product through your store. Your store processes the order and it automatically ships from the manufacturer to the buyer.
The dropshipping world is highly competitive nowadays but there’s still room for newbies.
The major challenge resides in finding products that offer an ample balance between offer, demand, and profit margin.
As an example, a friend of mine sells retro video games in Europe. He always scouts the Japanese market for bargains. With original packaging, some consoles like the NES can sell for astronomical prices in Europe and the US. In Japan, they are much more common.
9. Online consulting
“Consulting” is a broad term. And so is the market. The good news is that there is a demand for consultants in almost every niche today.
Whether you want to consult people on their honeymoon destination, their personal finance decisions, or their dog food choices, you’ll find a market.
We all have skills in different domains.
I visited over 50 countries before turning 25. This enabled me to participate in travel consulting for people who had never left their hometown.
The process of online consulting as a side hustle is straightforward. Utilize your skills and turn them into value for other people.
10. Influencing and social media marketing
Finally, influencing and social media marketing are certainly also among the most popular side hustle ideas for your 20s.
Good or bad news first?
Right, let’s start with the bad news. Influencing is by far the most crowded of the 10 side hustle ideas on this list.
This makes it easily accessible, but also hard to stand out. The chances of becoming the next superstar Instagrammer are close to zero.
The coin, however, has two sides. On a more positive note, the fact that everybody wants to be an influencer makes it relatively easy to find small gigs.
Platforms like TribeInfluencer accept people with as little as 3,000 followers. For others, the magic number is 10k.
Consequently, influencing could be a good stepping stone for another career. And making a few hundred extra bucks certainly doesn’t hurt — especially if you are pursuing your passion and sharing it with your followers.
