4 Simple Side Hustles That Will Boost Your Earnings

Starting a part-time side hustle is easier than ever, thanks to the power of the internet. So it’s not surprising that one in four Brits is making the most of this money-earning opportunity. 

Interested in setting up your own side hustle? Read on as we investigate four simple but successful ideas.

Food delivery couriers are in demand due to an increase in the popularity of online food orders. So if you own a scooter, a bike or a car, this could be your ideal side hustle. It simply involves using your spare time to collect hot food from restaurants and deliver it to hungry customers.

Popular food delivery apps include Deliveroo, Just Eat, Hungry House, Uber Eats and Food Hub. Here’s a quick guide to side hustling with two of the most popular companies.

Deliveroo pride themselves on delivering food from a wide range of establishments., including some high-end restaurants. Their riders operate in over eighty towns and cities across the UK.

How it works: The company’s app will inform you that an order has been made in your area and you simply swipe to accept the job. Once you’ve arrived at a restaurant tell the app and your customer will be updated. You’re free to choose your hours of work and how often you work, so you can still do your day job.

What you need: A bike or scooter is essential for this side hustle idea, although you can use your car instead. There are advantages to travelling by bike however, as scooter and car users need to arrange food delivery insurance that covers use for hire and reward.

Become a Deliveroo rider and you’ll receive free personal accident and income protection. If you cycle you’ll also be covered by public liability insurance. All riders need a core scooter kit which varies depending on your mode of transport. For example, cyclists need a reflective jacket a helmet, a phone mount, a small thermal bag and an insulated backpack.

How to apply: The application process includes an hour-long onboarding session with your area rep. They’ll want to see proof of your right to work in the UK, proof of your address, proof of your delivery insurance and your vehicle licence. You’ll also need to be over 18.

Payment: Deliveroo uses two payment models and both of them involve being paid weekly. Model one pays riders an hourly fee plus a fee per delivery, whereas model two pays a higher delivery fee. Deliveroo claims that riders earn around £10 per hour on the first model and £12 per hour on the second. However, if you work during peak times you could earn up to £21 per hour. Not bad for a side gig!

Just Eat is a global food delivery company that partners with 100,000 local restaurants.

How it works: Just Eat matches your availability and location with the time food will be ready to collect. You choose your working hours and the company assigns you a delivery run time which you can sign up to in advance, so you’ll be kept busy during your shifts.

What you need: To become a courier you’ll need a bike, a scooter or a car with food delivery insurance. This must also cover use for hire and reward.

Unlike Deliveroo, Just Eat doesn’t have a uniform, so you’ll just need to dress neatly and safely. You’ll also need a mobile phone that’s compatible with the company’s app, and a commercial-grade thermal bag. This can be bought from Just Eat.

How to apply: You must be over 18 to apply for this side job, so you can apply for this job if you are an A Level Student. The process starts by signing up online and uploading documents such as your driving licence and your insurance certificates. You’ll then receive a quick screening call before downloading the courier app.

Payment: Just Eat base your delivery fee based on distance and driving time and you’ll be paid weekly directly into your account. Although there’s no information about pay on the website, according to Glassdoor the average hourly rate is £9-£10

The government’s Trading Income Allowance enables freelancers to earn up to £1000 of extra income per year without registering as a business owner. Perfect if you’re testing out a new side hustle in your spare time!

If you’re nifty with a needle or love creative crafts, this could be the best side hustle for you. The easiest way to start making money online is by joining a successful selling platform. But before you start your small business, you need to decide what to sell. Here are our top tips.

This established selling platform for handmade products features nearly two million sellers. Buyers from around the world visit it to find handcrafted or vintage jewellery, clothing, bags and homeware.

It won’t cost you a penny to open your Etsy shop but you will have to pay for listings and sales. To list a product for up to four months you’ll pay fifteen pence. If you sell it, you’ll then be charged a 5% transaction fee and a 4% payment processing fee.

Setting up your own business with Etsy is simple. Install the app on your phone and you’ll be able to edit listings, manage orders, respond to customers and create offers. Shopfronts can be customised and payments are made via Etsy’s payment system. This allows buyers to pay by credit/debit card, PayPal Apple Pay and Google Wallet.

The team who run Etsy are passionate about developing the community, so if you become a seller you can take part in regional meetups and events, including the pre-Christmas Etsy Made Local events.

One of the longest-running e-commerce marketplaces for UK designers and makers is Folksy, which boasts over 3000 sellers. The platform’s emphasis is on selling handmade British products, so it doesn’t feature vintage items and there’s no eBay style reselling.

Every Folksy shop front is customisable and sellers receive instant payments for sales. While you can set up a basic account for free, it’ll cost you fifteen pence to list every item and you’ll also be charged 6% commission plus VAT. However, if you sign up to a Folksy Plus account, five pounds a month will get you unlimited listings, extra photos and a featured item option. You’ll still pay commission though.

Folksy has an extremely loyal fan base, so when you set up a shop your wares could be included in the site’s weekly gift guide which goes out to 50,000 subscribers. They’ll also be promoted on social media, including Folksy’s Pinterest boards, which receive 9 million monthly views.

Interested in learning about different cultures? The UK’s universities and language schools host thousands of foreign students every year and they all need accommodation. This is a great side hustle, as a comfortable spare room and an extra place at the dinner table is all that’s required.

If you’re hosting a foreign student, you’ll either be asked to provide full board or bed and breakfast plus an evening meal. Generally, your student will spend most of the day at their language school or on trips. However, their evenings will be free and they may be around during the weekends. This is a great chance to become their tour guide and take them to your favourite spots.

The length of your student’s stay will vary depending on their age. Younger teenage students generally only stay with their host family for 2-3 weeks over the summer holidays, whereas older language school students might stay for up to six weeks. Many universities also run exchange programmes, and their students tend to need accommodation for the whole term.

Before you start your side business you’ll probably have to undergo a home inspection of some kind. Here’s a quick rundown of what the inspector will be looking for:

To find your nearest language schools we recommend using the search facilities on the International Association of Language Centres website or the English UK website. Most language schools have an accommodation officer who is in charge of their database of host families, so once you’ve located a school, give them a call or look for details on the school’s website.

Some university websites also feature information about hosting foreign students, but if you can’t find anything try calling the accommodation office. You’ll find details of your local universities on the UCAS website.

Thanks to the government’s Rent a Room scheme, you won’t have to pay any tax on your extra money unless you’re making over £7,500 per year, or £625 per month. This isn’t likely, as you’ll generally receive around £100 per week for hosting a single student.

Renting out your driveway is a great way to supplement your full-time job and make extra money, particularly if you live near a big city, train station or airport. You can earn up to £1000 tax-free and there’s very little work involved. Looking for a super-easy side hustle? This could be it.

Here’s a brief introduction to the two biggest marketplaces.

Just Park rents spaces to three million drivers and features parking spaces in over 45,000 locations. You can rent your space by the day, the week or the month and create a listing for free.

So how does it work? It does, of course, involve an app, which shows drivers available car parking spaces while they’re on the go. Once a driver has spotted a space with a reservable icon, they can select it and pay instantly using their card, PayPal, Apple Pay or Google Pay. The app is equally handy for renters, as it arranges contracts, processes payment and transfers cash.

Now for the bad news. You will lose some of your extra cash, as Just Park charge 3% commission per booking and 20% on your first month of bookings over two months. However, you can make withdrawals as often as you like and choose what to charge.

If you want to rent your driveway for a longer period and make a regular passive income, Parklet has the app for you. Listings are free, contracts are provided and payments are automatically processed. However, the commission you’ll pay is higher.

It might be more expensive, but, Parklet does provide excellent service for side hustlers. You’ll receive protection in the form of a contract, help with setting competitive prices and payment via direct debit.