Quick question: what do Michael Jordan, Rihanna, and Beyoncé all have in common? They are all super-rich people, but they made the bulk of their money off side-hustles. MJ has the Jordan line of Nike shoes, Rihanna has Fenty Beauty, and The Queen B has Tidal. This shows that you don’t need a high-paying day job to be rich. You just need to get into the right hobbies that make money.
A word of warning, though: picking up a hobby with the sole purpose of profiting off of it isn’t fun. If you want to profit off your hobby and enjoy it, you have to pick one you actually like.
Not all hobbies that make money are the same, though. Some of them require a bit more capital than others. That’s why I broke them down into three different categories for every budget:
10 Hobbies That Make Money That Need Little to No Capital
You can do these hobbies right now with stuff you probably already have at home. You won’t spend much except your time with these hobbies that make money. These hobbies don’t need more than $100 to start!
Blogging
This is how you can make money off of literally anything. If you have a hobby, you could start a blog about it. People love listening to other people talk about their passions. If you write about a specific topic long enough, people will begin to look to you as an influencer. Then, companies may even contact you (and pay you) to talk about their products.
If you have a way with words and an internet connection, blogging is a simple hobby that makes money. However, like all hobbies on this list, it requires time and effort.
Vlogging
Not everyone is as good at writing as they are at speaking, and that’s okay. If you’re more comfortable behind a camera than you are behind a keyboard, try vlogging. It’s just like blogging, but instead of writing down your thoughts, you’ll be sharing them through video. They mainly make money the same way bloggers do: through sponsorships after establishing themselves as an influencer within their niche.
Podcasting
Podcasting is one of the more popular hobbies that make money right now. Think of podcasts like radio talk shows. You and any regulars or guests that you may have will talk about anything under the sun as long as it’s related to your niche. There are all kinds of podcasts talking about news, celebrities, music, and sports.
Similar to vlogging and blogging, podcasting makes money through sponsorships and merchandise. You can start a podcast with nothing more than your phone’s built-in microphone.
Streaming
Streaming is another popular hobby at the moment. Just like vlogging, when you stream, you’ll be articulating your thoughts to an audience through video. The difference is that streaming is done completely live. This requires an entirely different skillset and suits some people more than others.
Before making money as a streamer, you have to establish an audience first. Popular streaming platforms such as Youtube, Facebook, and Twitch require a specific amount of followers before they allow monetization. You can make money through audience subscriptions and donations, sponsorships, and merchandising as a streamer.
Self-publishing
If you have a knack for writing short but sweet ebooks, you can self-publish on Amazon. Self-publishing through this platform is entirely free and takes no more than 5 minutes. You can write and sell your ebooks for pretty much nothing!
Coding
Coding is one of those hobbies that make money that seems complicated at first. It’s an intimidating hobby, to say the least, but it’s a highly sought-after skill. Learning how to code will get you a lot of opportunities, like working as a freelance web developer.
Volunteering
Volunteering itself may not get you money, but it can teach you critical soft skills. Volunteering teaches problem-solving teamwork and that there’s more to life than just making money for yourself.
Volunteer work can even help you get a better job. You can put volunteering in your resume, and it will give you an additional topic to talk about during interviews.
Become a local tour guide
Do you think you know your city well enough to share it with others and get paid for it? Learning about your city and becoming a local tour guide can be a great side-hustle. Researching deals and selling travel plans doesn’t cost much money, but tourists will be willing to pay for it.
Learning a foreign language
Do you want to open your horizons to even more possibilities? You could learn and master a foreign language like Mandarin, Japanese, or Spanish. Mastering a foreign language can open up a lot of potential side-hustles like teaching said language or becoming a translator. Not to mention that it looks good on a resume because it shows that you’re willing to learn and communicate with others.
Self-care
This hobby doesn’t necessarily make you money, but it will save you a lot of money. In general, self-care hobbies are fitness, meditation, and anything that helps you improve your well-being. These hobbies make you money in the sense that they save you from spending thousands of dollars on doctor’s appointments.
I have a few more side-hustle ideas that fit this bill. Check them out in my article on the best stay-at-home jobs.
5 Hobbies That Make Money That Need a Decent Amount of Capital
Let’s say you have some money to play around with. These hobbies make you money but require you to spend a little more. You should have about $100-$500 if you want to get into these hobbies. However, this can be more affordable depending on what you already own.
Graphic Design
Graphic design is one of those hobbies that make money that requires a lot of passion. This is because your passion for creating art will show in the quality of your work. If you have a lot of passion for your work, more people will want to buy your designs or hire you to create designs for them.
To get into graphic design, you need the equipment and the software. For example, a base-model iPad, an Apple Pencil, and the Procreate software would add up to about $400.
Thrifting
If you have an eye for quality, you can make a lot of money through thrifting. By buying and flipping thrift items for profit, you can make money and have fun while doing it. Don’t believe me? This woman made $5000 a month just through thrifting and flipping.
Cooking
Cooking is one of those hobbies that make money that has been tested time and time again. A lot of restaurants and food businesses started as side-hustles. You just need a delicious signature dish that sells, like brownies or pizza, and people will want to buy it.
There are quite a few dishes that you can make for cheap and sell for profit. Check out my article on the most affordable meals if you want to know my recommendations.
Making music
There is also a lot of money in music. I don’t necessarily mean becoming the next pop sensation, but selling stock music online. People will want to use this music for stock videos and presentations and pay for it.
Gardening
You don’t have to be a farmer to be a market-gardener, sis. With the right plants, tools, and enough patience, you can definitely profit off gardening. Not only can you sell what you grow in your garden, but you can have it for dinner as well. This can save you a few extra dollars a month on the food budget.
If you’re interested in finding more ways to save money on the food budget, check out my article.
5 Hobbies That Make Money That Need a Large Amount of Capital
Got more money than you know what to do with? How about earning a bit more! Here are some hobbies that can be expensive, but you can still make money from them. Getting into these hobbies costs a lot of money, so you better be willing to spend more than $500.
Travel and Airbnb
Consider renting out your home as an Airbnb if you travel a lot. This will help offset some of that travel cost so you can see the world guilt-free!
Note that part of the cost is managing an Airbnb and dealing with potentially unruly tenants. Don’t leave anything in your home that you can’t risk losing or breaking. Otherwise, you might get unlucky, and it could be damaged, or worse stolen, by a tenant.
Photography
A good camera can be expensive, not to mention professional editing software like Adobe Lightroom. Travel costs also add to the price of photography as a hobby. However, this allows you to become a photographer for events like weddings, which can pay handsomely.
Art Collecting
Art collecting is one of the most expensive hobbies that can make money. To be an art collector, you need to have money to burn and an eye for talent. However, if you don’t mind waiting years to turn a profit, it could be for you.
Trading Stocks and Cryptocurrency
While I wouldn’t usually call them hobbies, trading volatile assets like stocks and crypto takes a lot of time. You need to do constant research and be willing to lose that money too. Still, there’s a lot of money to be made in crypto and the stock market. Just make sure you have enough capital to begin with.
Investing
Are all of your basic needs met and bills paid? If so, you should be investing. As a financial coach, learning about investments is a hobby I recommend to everyone. Doing this will help you secure even more money in the future. By all means, you should start investing if you haven’t already.
Want to learn how to start investing? Check out my list of the best books for investing beginners.
Those are just 20 hobbies that make money that you can look into. If you want more helpful content like this, you should sign up to join the financial fam! As a member, you’ll receive personal financial advice from me every week. Occasionally, I’ll even throw in a personal reminder letting you know that you’re doing great! The best part? Membership is completely free, so sign up today!
