How to Make Money Without a Job in 2024

You might think it’s difficult to make money without a job. However, there are several ways to earn money without committing to full-time work.

As a bonus, the pay can be significantly higher than completing online surveys and other micro-tasks.

Whether you need to work from home or are willing to side hustle in your community, you can pursue several of these ideas to earn income and maintain a flexible schedule.

Top Ways to Make Money Without Being Employed

Thanks to side hustles, it is possible to make money without a 9-to-5 job. Here are the top gig economy jobs to earn extra money if you’re transitioning between employers or can only work part-time.

1. Be a Dasher

Delivering meals provides a flexible work schedule since you can deliver in your free time instead of working a shift for a restaurant.

Delivery app jobs let you review the order request before you accept it to determine if the pay is worth your time. You can often earn good money and keep customer tips.

DoorDash is the best delivery app because they partner with many restaurants in small and large cities.

You can deliver by car, scooter, or bike if you’re at least 18 years old and pass a background check. Read our guide on ways to make money with your bike to identify other choices to earn cash if that’s your situation.

Regardless of how you deliver, you will receive a complimentary insulated bag to help keep the order either hot or cold.

This can be a fantastic option if you live near several restaurants and can safely deliver the customer’s food by keeping it intact.

*Related: Read our analysis of Grubhub vs. DoorDash to learn how the two services differ.

You might avoid this idea if you don’t want to put wear and tear on your vehicle. Also, if the food isn’t ready at the pickup time, you must wait and won’t be able to choose a follow-up delivery as quickly.

Learn more: Read our review on driving for DoorDash

*Related: You can deliver with multiple apps to maximize earning potential. Uber Eats is an excellent supplement to DoorDash and it has similar requirements.

2. Deliver Groceries

Instacart Shopper is a fantastic option if you want to purchase groceries and deliver them to people. The app offers an earning potential of $20 per hour plus tips.

You might prefer delivering groceries instead of prepared meals that you’re responsible for keeping warm.

Related: Looking for other driver jobs to make money? Read our guide on the best food delivery service to work for to learn more about each platform and its qualifications.

In most cities, you shop for the items at the supermarket and deliver the order. As a result, you will need a car.

Some stores hire in-store shoppers similar to a traditional 9-to-5 job. If your local grocer offers this option, you work a scheduled shift but don’t have to deliver.

Two potential downsides of this side job are needing a reliable vehicle and being skilled at buying the right grocery items. This can be a little more complicated when it comes to fresh fruits and vegetables.

Learn More: Read our Instacart Shopper Review

The previously mentioned delivery driver jobs are just two options to earn cash. Here is a breakdown of the best money earning apps to work for, along with their estimated pay.

3. Take Care of Pets

If you love animals, taking care of pets and dog walking jobs can be one of the most fun ways to make a living. Some people actually replace their full-time income by becoming professional dog walkers.

Your work-from-home business may offer these pet care services:

• Dog walking
• Pet daycare
• Pet sitting
• Overnight boarding
• Salon and grooming
• Drop-in visits

Rover is a website that lets pet owners book services for their dogs and cats. For example, many people hire a dog walker if they work long hours and know their dog will be alone all day.

You can advertise your services and wait for owners to book appointments.

The platform lets you decide if you want to care for small, medium, or large dogs. It also lets you avoid certain sizes.

For example, you won’t get penalized if you don’t accept pets weighing 100 pounds.

It’s possible to make at least $15 per walk and $30 per boarding night. Once you receive steady demand, you can expect to earn $1,000 a month or more.

The key to growing your petsitting side hustle is to secure reviews from your clients. Each review helps you stand out to prospective clients and receive more business.

One potential downside to this service is that Rover keeps 20 percent of your earnings. Read our review of Rover to learn more about the opportunity to pet sit.

If you’re looking for side hustles in your area, other than on-demand gigs, Steady is a good choice. The free app helps you identify opportunities near you, and the company claims members earn $5,500 per year, on average, through the platform.

4. Be a Proofreader

Do you find yourself catching grammatical errors when reading online content, books, or magazines? You can use this skill to earn money online as a proofreader.

Proofreading can be an excellent way to build a full-fledged business and make money online without a job while working from home.

Proofread Anywhere is a great resource to help launch a proofreading business if you don’t know where to start.

In the free course, Caitlin Pyle, the founder, shares the tools you need to launch a business and find clients.

Like many side hustle ideas from home, your earning potential depends on the client and the content you’re reviewing. You can expect to earn between $15 and $20 per hour as a beginner.

Read our guide on how to find proofreading jobs from home to learn more about this opportunity.

5. Blogging

If you’re a content expert and love to write, blogging can be a great way to start earning money without being employed.

It’s possible to write about almost anything, but evergreen niches like health, finance, and fashion can have the most reader interest.

Bluehost is a helpful service to use to choose a domain name and launch your site. They also provide technical support to ensure your site runs as it should.

As you write articles, you have several ways to earn money:

• Run website ads
• Earn commissions via afiliate marketing
• Partner with brands for sponsored posts

With a small audience, it’s possible to make a few hundred dollars per month. Larger sites can earn more than $1,000 per month.

Unfortunately, it can take several months to build an audience and begin generating revenue. You will need to pursue other ideas if you need to make money fast.

Freelance writing is a good complement to blogging and a great way to make money.

6. Assist Businesses Online

If you’re organized and like to help others, you can be a virtual assistant for local or online businesses.

A virtual assistant’s responsibilities can vary by client but might include:

• Reading emails
• Tracking expenses
• Scheduling appointments
• Write online articles
• Social media management
• Data entry

Your schedule can be flexible, and you can earn up to $25 per hour. No prior experience or special certifications are necessary.

Consider the $10K VA free workshop to learn about the different ways to earn money as a virtual assistant.

7. Rent A Room In Your Home

A spare room or house is an easy way to supplement your income. You can list it on Airbnb and make money without working.

While some places are more popular than others (think big cities, high tourist areas, etc.), you can still make good money.

In fact, the average person makes at least $400 per month listing a property on Airbnb.

You can list which nights you’re accepting guests if you only want to offer short-term rentals. However, you must be comfortable having strangers in your house and cleaning up after they leave.

Don’t miss our Airbnb host checklist to learn more about this opportunity.

If you don’t have a spare room or your landlord won’t give you permission to sublet your place, you can try earning passive income through real estate.

RealtyMogul is a crowdfunded real estate investing platform with a $1,000 investment minimum. You invest in a curated portfolio of properties and can earn quarterly dividends with historic annual returns of at least five percent.

While RealtyMogul is one of the easiest ways to invest in real estate with small amounts of money, the minimum investment period is five years before making penalty-free withdrawals.

8. Housesit

Housesitting can be an effortless way to earn money without being employed. It’s also one of the best under the table jobs to pursue as it pays in cash.

Care.com is a useful site to find gigs. Pay is often at least $25 per day. Experienced house sitters and those in pricier cities can charge more.

In addition to making sure the owner’s house remains secure, you may need to perform housekeeping tasks, including:

• Cleaning rooms
• Carpet shampooing
• Laundry
• Treating furniture
• Window washing

Your client may require you to provide your own cleaning supplies and equipment, which can reduce your net profit. Housekeeping experience might also be necessary to complete certain tasks.

9. Transcribe Audio and Video

Transcribing audio recordings and adding subtitles to videos can be an effective way to supplement your income.

Some platforms don’t require special equipment like a foot pedal or transcription software that can improve your speed. No startup costs make it easy to begin this side gig from home.

General transcriptionists earn $15 to $20 per audio hour. This could be competitive with what you might make at a full-time job depending on where you live and the line of work you are in.

You can earn more if you specialize in one of these niches:

• Legal
• Medical
• Foreign language captions

Several platforms hire freelancers, including Rev, or you can use a site like Indeed to land jobs.

10. Freelancing

Freelancing can also help you make more money as you can monetize your professional skills or a hobby.

Several good ways to make money include:

• Graphic design
• Photography
• Teaching English online
• Translation
• Voiceover
• Writing

Fiverr and Upwork are two online platforms to connect with clients.

You might be able to earn more per hour than other side hustle apps but may need to work harder to find clients. It’s possible to complete one-time gigs or have recurring work.

Related: Read our guide on how to make money on the side to identify 101 side hustle ideas you can use to earn extra cash.

Many part-time freelancers earn several hundred dollars per month. Full-time freelancers can earn between $1,000 and $3,000 monthly with several clients.

11. Do Odd Jobs

If you have the skills to make repairs, move furniture, or run errands, you can help homeowners and businesses through Taskrabbit.

Some of the tasks you can do include:

• Cleaning
• Furniture assembly
• Landscaping and yard work
• Mounting TVs
• Moving
• Personal shopping
• Pressure washing

You can earn between $15 and $20 per hour for simple tasks such as running errands.

Labor-intensive work and specialized tasks like moving, repairs, and yard work can fetch between $30 and $40 hourly. If you have a specialized skill like carpentry or electrical experience, you can earn up to $60 an hour.

These one-time gigs can help you earn money without being employed by a professional repair company. If you do have a traditional day job, this can be a lucrative side hustle.

However, you must be willing to drive to the customer’s address, and you may need special tools or skills to accept an assignment.

How Can I Make Money Without a Car?

It is likely that you will need a car before you can work for many of the best-paying platforms.

If you don’t have access to a car or it’s in the shop, don’t fret. It’s possible to rent a car for the day so you can get to work.

The HyreCar app lets you choose from their available cars and even offers insurance coverage. They are available in all 50 states and offer daily rentals.

It’s also possible to use this platform to offer your car on the days you’re not driving. According to their website, you can earn $1,000 or more per month by helping other freelancers make extra money.

How Can I Earn $1,000 a Week?

You can make $1,000 weekly by delivering for delivery gig apps. Most platforms let you accept multiple orders and can provide steady income as customers order meals throughout the day.

Read our guide on other ways to get paid to drive to identify additional opportunities.

Freelancing is another option whether you work from home or travel to local clients. For example, walking several dogs daily or completing assignments for multiple online clients can help you meet your target income goal.

You can tackle these income ideas in your free time if you have a day job. Read our guide on the top side jobs that pay weekly to identify ways to increase your earnings.

How Can I Make $1,000 a Week Without a Job?

There are many side hustle ideas that allow you to earn money without a job, and several opportunities let you make at least $1,000 a week.

Numerous options on our list will help you earn good money.

Finding gigs that require a special skill or allow you to accept multiple assignments at once can boost your hourly pay. Don’t be afraid to combine gigs to reach your goal.

Reviewing your options and finding the highest-paying opportunities can help you maximize your time.

Read our guide on side hustle stacking to learn how to maximize your earnings with multiple gigs.

Bottom Line

With apps and the internet, it’s easier than ever to figure out how to make money without a job. While you may not become wealthy with all of the options, they do offer opportunities to earn extra cash and pay the bills.

Whether you need money to make ends meet or want to create another stream of income, don’t overlook easy money-making jobs. You never know how the income stream you choose will pay off in the long term.

What do you look for in an income opportunity? How many streams of income do you have?

*Earning more on certain types of orders (ex. alcohol): Earn more per order as compared to restaurant orders. Actual earnings may differ and depend on factors like number of deliveries you accept and complete, time of day, location, and any costs. Hourly pay is calculated using average Dasher payouts while on a delivery (from the time you accept an order until the time you drop it off) over a 90 day period and includes compensation from tips, peak pay, and other incentives.

*Get paid instantly (DasherDirect): Subject to approval

*Cash out daily (Fast Pay): Fees apply

*Start Dashing today: Subject to background check and availability

*Dash anytime: Subject to availability