How To Start A Side Hustle With No Money: Creative Ideas

Sometimes it seems like everybody has a side hustle - and why wouldn’t they? As the cost of living crisis started to bite, side hustles rocketed in popularity, with recent statistics showing that almost half (43%) of Brits have a side hustle as an additional source of income in 2024. After all, who wouldn’t appreciate a little extra income at the moment?

Source: Finder’s Side Hustle Statistics

The problem, though, is that the people who are feeling the pinch the most - and who most need the income boost from a side hustle - are also likely to have the most trouble getting a side hustle off the ground.

Without having at least a little spare cash, it can seem impossible to get a side hustle going, when everything seems to involve some form of start-up cost before any extra money starts coming in.

However, that isn’t the case for all side hustles - it’s just a matter of picking the right one. And we’re here to help! In this article, we’ve rounded up the best side hustles to start in the UK with no money (or with only a little bit of money), so you’re sure to find something that works for you.

Is It Possible To Start A Side Hustle With No Money?

Absolutely! It will depend on your existing set of skills, of course, but there will be at least a few options for pretty much everybody, no matter how strapped for cash they are.

Your options will, of course, be a bit more limited if you’re getting started without any funds - but there’s no law that says once you’ve started a side hustle you have to stick to it forever. If the side hustle you really want to do involves a start-up cost you can’t afford right now, you can always try something else to begin with to build up some funds, and then use those funds to get started on the side hustle you’re actually interested in pursuing long term.

The only true essential for starting a side hustle is enough spare time to give yourself a real chance of success - and let’s face it, most of us waste hours on our phones every week. As long as you’re willing to dedicate enough of your time to your new venture, you’re good to go.

The Best Side Hustles You Can Start With No Money At All

If you’ve got absolutely no spare cash at all (something that’s all too common among Brits these days), these side hustles are your best bet for bringing in a little extra income each month.

1. Deliveries (and other driving work)

If you’ve got a car, or even a bike if you’re in a city, you can sign up to be a delivery driver (or rider). Companies such as Amazon or Evri are always looking for drivers to deliver parcels - and although the hourly rate isn’t brilliant, it’s easy work, and you can usually work only as much as you want to, scheduling shifts around your existing commitments.

Similarly, you could sign up as a driver for Uber, or for Ubereats or Deliveroo, all of which allow you to work whenever suits you. You will have to pay for petrol out of your earnings, but if you’ve already got a car this can be one of the easiest ways to make some extra cash in your free time.

2. Tutoring, coaching or consulting

If you’ve got any kind of skill or expertise, it’s worth considering offering tutoring, coaching or consulting. You’re likely to earn most from professional consulting, but that does of course rely on having the sort of knowledge that people are willing to pay for, usually relating to business (e.g. marketing, accounting, investment etc).

For many people, it’s easier to get into tutoring. There are tons of websites out there that will match you with tutees, so as long as you’ve got knowledge to impart, it’s very simple to get started. Tutorful and The Profs are a couple of popular options in the UK, but there are plenty of others out there. Most will charge commission on your earnings, but they won’t charge you a fee to sign up as a tutor, so there’s no cost to get started.

3. Online surveys or market research

One of the very easiest ways to make a little extra cash is to sign up with online survey or research companies - you don’t even have to leave the comfort of your own home or, for that matter, your couch. Online surveys often pay rather poorly, but there are usually plenty of opportunities to take part, and you can complete studies as and when suits your schedule.

Some of the most popular and best paying survey sites are Ipsos i-Say, Swagbucks and Prolific (though there is a waiting list to join Prolific), but there are lots of others out there too. Make sure to check external reviews of survey sites before signing up, however, and steer clear of any that charge you to register - the chances are, they won’t be reputable.

Market research and focus groups, meanwhile, can be rather better paid - although it’s also more difficult to participate frequently. There are a number of services you can sign up with as a participant, such as UserInterviews, AngelFish and Your Voice, and if you fit the parameters for a particular study you may receive an invitation to participate.

Depending on the study, you can be paid as much as £20 - £50 an hour - but market research companies are especially keen to find what they call ‘naïve’ participants, i.e. people who aren’t too accustomed to taking part in studies. This means you won’t be able to rely on this sort of study as a regular source of income, but it can be an incredibly useful top up every so often.

4. Pet sitting, babysitting or house sitting

If you don’t have pets or children of your own requiring your attention, looking after other people’s can be an excellent source of extra cash. The only skills you need are to be tolerably good with children or animals (although a childcare or veterinary qualification would be extra impressive to potential clients), and there shouldn’t be any upfront costs to get started.

And if you don’t have any home responsibilities of your own, looking after someone else’s house while they’re away can be a brilliant way to boost your income. Generally, all you’ll have to do is commit to staying there overnight while your clients are away from home, meaning that you can still go to work normally (assuming you don’t work nights) and otherwise enjoy life as usual.

The bonus is that people looking for house sitters usually have pretty nice houses to sit in, so it’s almost like getting paid for a mini holiday in a fancy AirBnb!

5. Rent out your car or driveway

If you’re in possession of a car, and/or a driveway, both can be used to make you extra money, especially if you don’t use either very much.

There are a few different peer-to-peer car rental companies - three of the most popular in the UK being Hiyacar, Turo and Getaround - which all operate on fairly similar principles. Having signed up with one of them, you’ll be able to advertise your car and its availability, and the company in question will take a certain percentage of the rental fee as commission.

Insurance and breakdown coverage are usually either included with your membership or taken out of your commission, though this isn’t universal so do check the exact details when signing up.

Alternatively, if you have a driveway but no car to put in it (or just a particularly large drive), you can rent it out - and if you live somewhere where parking is scarce, you can stand to make quite good money with no cost and very little inconvenience. If you’re close to any major venue, or even a railway station or hospital, you’d be surprised at how much you can make, just for allowing people to park in your drive.

JustPark is one of the most popular options, with no upfront costs, just commission on your rental fees. ParkLet, meanwhile, is especially good for longer term rental, and there are a number of other parking rental services available as well.

6. Freelance work

Depending on your existing skills, you may be able to freelance in your free time. Some particularly sought after freelancing skills include:

- Writing, including blogging, copywriting, content writing etc

- Editing or proofreading

- Audio transcription

- Virtual assistant work (although for some clients this may be more like a 9-5 job)

- Videography and video editing

- Digital marketing

- Graphic design

- Photography (or stock photography)

These do, of course, require you to have any necessary skills and equipment already - and if that isn’t the case, you’re unlikely to be able to set up a freelance business without any start-up cost. However, if you’re already an expert in one (or more!) of these areas, it’s well worth signing up to a freelancing service such as Fiverr or Upwork and making some money from your expertise.

The Best Side Hustles You Can Start With Just A Little Money

If you’ve got at least a little money to get you going with a side hustle, your options widen considerably. It’s therefore a good idea to think about saving up at least a small chunk to get you going, if at all possible. Alternatively, you could start one of the completely cost-free side hustles to boost your savings, before using them to get going with something that does require some cash up-front.

1. Matched Betting

We’ve said it before, but Matched Betting really is one of the best side hustles out there. You’ll need a small bankroll to get started - ideally £50 - £100, but it’s possible to get going with as little as £30 - but it won’t be long at all before you’ve made several times that in profit.

You don’t need to have any existing skills or experience of betting, or any specialised equipment at all. A laptop or desktop computer’s the most practical option, but even just a smartphone is enough, if you don’t have access to a computer.

Matched Betting works by taking advantage of the offers and bonuses offered by bookmakers, designed to lure in new customers. By betting both for and against the outcome of an event, you’re able to turn a free bet into guaranteed profit.

Most offers run along the lines of ‘Bet £10 and get a £10 free bet’. By matching the first bet, you break even - and you’re then able to make a profit on the free bet.

On average, matched bettors make between £300 and £1000 a month - all entirely from home and whenever is convenient, though the more time and effort you put in, the more you can make.

Our detailed guide to Matched Betting takes you through everything you need to know - but if you’re keen to dive straight in, our free trial takes you step by step through how to make your first £40 Matched Betting.

2. Making and selling items on Etsy (or other crafty platforms)

If you’re a crafty person, it’s pretty easy to monetise your hobby. You’ll need to have enough money for supplies to get started, but once you’ve sold a few items you’ll be able to reinvest your profits into your business and scale things up. To begin with, then, you only need the absolute essentials to get going.

3. Furniture flipping

If your creative flair runs more to DIY, you could consider flipping furniture. People often list old furniture free, or at very low cost, on facebook marketplace, just to get rid of it. If you’ve got the skills to bring new life to a tired sofa or chest of drawers, you can turn one person’s trash into someone else’s treasure.

You’ll need to have enough money to buy both the old furniture and the materials to refurbish it, but again once you get going you’ll be able to reinvest your profits and, hopefully, start to make good money from your side hustle.

4. Cleaning

Whether you offer house cleaning or car cleaning services (or both!), it’s possible to get started with minimal upfront costs. The only things you’ll really need to worry about are specialised products and equipment - and when it comes to house cleaning, at least, you may even be able to use your clients’ own products and equipment.

It might not be the most glamorous side hustle in the world, but people will always need cleaners, so you can be confident of getting steady work.

What About Tax?

Most side hustles will count as self-employment, for which you have to submit a yearly tax return - but the government does allow you a bit of leeway when you’re first getting started.

We’ve broken down the tax implications of side hustles in a dedicated post, but the most important thing to be aware of is that you have to submit a tax return and pay tax on your side hustle if you make over £1000 in the tax year.

This means that if your side hustle doesn’t take off, you won’t have to worry about the tax implications - so tax certainly isn’t any reason to put off getting started.

It’s also worth noting that Matched Betting is tax-free - so if you did decide on Matched Betting as a side hustle, you wouldn’t have to worry about tax at all!

Summary

If you’ve been thinking of starting a side hustle but been concerned about the start-up cost, there’s no need to worry. There are plenty of options available to people who don’t have any spare cash lying around - which, frankly, is most of us at the moment.

Even if you’re not passionate about the side hustle you choose, you can still get going with one of the ventures listed here until you’ve built up enough of a bankroll to move to something that really inspires you. And if you’ve got a little in savings, but not much to spare, it’s hard to go wrong with Matched Betting, which allows you to make a few hundred pounds a month from home while occupying only around fifteen minutes a day.