Shake Up Your Finances With A Bartending Side Hustle
Work from home side hustles are all the rage these days. It’s no surprise - why wouldn’t you want to be able to make extra money online, without ever leaving your sofa?
But the best part of an online side hustle is also the worst part - absolutely anybody can do it, and that means competition is fierce.
If you’re planning to join almost 40% of Brits in starting a side hustle, there’s a lot to be said for taking on something that can’t be done from home, precisely because that means you don’t have an entire world’s worth of people competing with you.
Bar work is the traditional part time job of the student for a very good reason. It’s not particularly skilled, can be done outside normal working hours and, if you like people, it can be really good fun.
But there’s no reason it should remain the preserve of students alone. Anyone with a regular 9-5 job can take on bar work in the evenings if they like, to make a little extra cash.
If that sounds like a side hustle you’d enjoy, this is the article for you. We’ll cover all you need to know about bartending as a side hustle, from how to get started to what qualifications you need, and a few tips and tricks for success in your new role. Keep reading to find out if bartending is for you!
What Does Bartending Involve?
At its most basic level, we all know what bartending involves - standing behind a bar doling out drinks to customers. You’ll be spending your time pulling pints, pouring wine, and possibly lending a sympathetic ear to particularly drunk patrons at the end of the night.
But bartending isn’t a monolith, and there’s more variety than you might expect in the kinds of work you can end up doing. Establishments in need of a bartender can include:
- Pubs
- Bars
- Restaurants
- Hotels
- Wedding venues
- Nightclubs
- Music venues
- Ad hoc events
- Theatres
- Sport stadiums
- Private clubs
So while your first thought might be pubs or bars if you’re planning on a bartending side hustle, it’s worth thinking outside the box. Any establishment with a bar may be in need of a bartender, and there can be other advantages to your workplace beyond your wages.
If you’re a sports enthusiast, manning the bar at your local rugby club might suit you especially well, or for music fans, bar work at a popular concert hall could satisfy your passion as well as your wallet.
How Much Can You Earn As A Bartender?
Typically, bar work isn’t paid especially well, especially if you’re new to the job. Unless you’ve got specialist skills, or you’re working in an extremely high end establishment, you’re likely to be paid minimum wage - or a little above it, if you’re lucky.
In the right establishments, though, you may also receive extras in tips. Admittedly, this is less common for bar staff than for wait staff, but in establishments where tips are common, they can be a meaningful addition to your income.
Do You Need Any Qualifications To Be A Bartender?
No, you do not need a qualification to be a bartender in the UK.
Many bartenders start with no experience or skills at all, and are trained by their employers. If you’re lucky enough to land a role quickly, before you’ve gained any skills, you don’t need to worry about any kind of formal certification - you’ll learn as you go.
However, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t help to complete a qualification. You can gain a certificate in professional bartending, and even acquire specialist qualifications in cocktail-making, if you’re keen to improve your chances of landing a bartending role.
One thing you do need to be aware of, though, is that you are legally responsible for checking the age of the customers you serve.
Your employer should provide you with training to help you determine exactly when you need to ask for ID before serving a customer, but it is important to bear in mind that both you and your employer can be held liable if alcohol is sold to someone underage.
How To Get Started As A Bartender
Fortunately, it’s not difficult to start your side hustle as a bartender. If you follow the steps laid out below, you’ve got a good chance of making your first money as a bartender without too much time or effort.
1. Take a course. It’s certainly not an essential prerequisite for bartenders to have any qualifications, but it doesn’t hurt! If a potential employer has to choose between you and several others, your chances are improved if you’ve already taken a course in bartending.
Of course, in many places you’ll be trained on the job - so if you’ve already got a prospective workplace lined up, feel free to skip this step.
2. Consider volunteering. If you’ve got your eye on a particular spot, you might improve your chances of landing a job there by offering to work a free trial shift. This allows you to build your experience of bartending work and to demonstrate your suitability for the role. Hopefully, when the bar sees you in action, they’ll be keen to employ you for real.
3. Get to know your local bars and pubs. If you’re not already a regular in your locals, it’s a good idea to start popping in. Familiar faces are typical choices when bars and pubs are looking for new staff, especially if the establishment knows you’re keen to get started as a bartender.
Obviously, you can’t spend every night drinking beer - or you probably shouldn’t, anyway - but you can become a regular and get to know the management to improve your chances of landing a job.
4. Apply for roles. It’s possible that the above steps will have secured you a job already, but if not it’s time to start applying seriously. Check out online job boards like Indeed or Reed, and keep an eye out in your local area for establishments advertising for bar work.
Apply for any that look suitable and, with a bit of luck, you’ll find yourself with your first bartending role before too long.
Tips And Tricks For Bartending Success
- Keep track of where you’re at. One of the most important skills of the busy bartender is knowing at all times who’s waiting to be served, who got there first, and which drinks are for whom.
Of course, you can ask your patrons if necessary, but learning to remember exactly where you’re up to will be an incredibly valuable skill, especially for the busiest evenings.
- Consider event work. As well as regular shifts at your local pub or bar, you could consider signing up as a freelancer for event work. It won’t be a source of income you can rely on, but it’s usually significantly better paid than your average weekly shift, and it can result in some very interesting experiences.
- Be wary about accepting drinks. It’s common for customers to tip a bartender by buying them a drink, but this has some obvious pitfalls. For one, you don’t actually get to enjoy the money, and for another, if this happens often you’ll end up drunk on the job.
Each bar will have a different way of handling this situation, but as a rule it’s far safer to stick to soft drinks - or, if your workplace allows, to simply get yourself a water and add the cost of a ‘real’ drink to the tip jar for the staff to share.
- Learn to make cocktails. For a lot of bartenders, cocktails are the bane of their existence. They’re complex and time-consuming to make, and when the bar’s busy the last thing you want to do is spend five minutes on a pink concoction with an umbrella.
However, cocktail-making is a prized skill, and as well as pleasing the customers, you’ll be valued by your employers - and potentially able to offer your services to dedicated cocktail bars as well as run-of-the-mill pubs and clubs.
Pros And Cons Of Bartending As A Side Hustle
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Ideal for social, outgoing types who like to meet and chat to other people | It usually requires you to work unsociable hours |
| It doesn’t require a lot of existing skill (in most cases) | You’ll have to put up with a lot of noise and stress |
| There’s the potential for extra income from tips | Pay can be variable - and is often pretty low |
| It works well alongside a normal day job or study | It can’t be done from home |
| It can be good fun, especially for younger people | You’re subject to the bar’s schedule |
| You’re legally responsible for accurately IDing people |
Other Ways To Make Money Online
If you’d like to start your own side hustle, but spending your evenings in pubs or bars sounds like your worst nightmare, there are plenty of other options you can consider.
For relatively active side hustles, you could offer cleaning services, or try gardening or dog walking. Alternatively, if you’d like to be able to work from home, you could try self-publishing, or audio transcription.
Another option is Matched Betting, one of the best side hustles you can take up, which can be done entirely from home. You don’t need any existing skills or qualifications, and once you know what you’re doing it’s an easy way to potentially make £300-£1000 a month!