New Research Reveals How Much Money Most Side Hustles Make in 1 Month — and the Number Might Surprise You Some successful side hustlers are earning hundreds of thousands of dollars a year — or more. But what's typical?
By Amanda Breen Edited by Jessica Thomas
Key Takeaways
- Most Americans have a side hustle — one they've picked up out of necessity.
- Many use their side hustle income to cover essential bills, but some reinvest it into their extra gigs.
You might have heard that the majority of Americans (54%) have a side hustle to make ends meet these days, but how much money are they actually earning?
Although side hustle success stories about people making hundreds of thousands — or even millions — of dollars a year abound, that's not necessarily the reality for most people.
A new survey from NEXT Insurance, which collected responses from more than 1,000 side hustlers across the U.S. between the ages of 18 and 64, examines what the norm really is.
Thirty-eight percent of survey respondents said they started side hustles because of economic conditions, including recession fears and slow wage growth, and the majority of those people (62%) bring in less than $1,000 a month with their extra gigs.
Of course, some do see significantly higher earnings from their side hustles: 15% make $1,000-$5,000 a month, 7% make $5,000-$10,000 a month and 15% make more than $10,000 a month, per the research.
The survey found that many of those side hustlers (28%) use that money to cover essential bills and necessities, which is why most took up the gigs in the first place.
However, 20% of respondents funneled the earnings back into their side hustles, 11% into themselves via training and courses and 5% into social media campaigns and ads for their businesses.
"People are telling us they're side hustling because they have to, not because they want to," Bankrate senior industry analyst Ted Rossman told CNBC Make It. "It's become a bit of a treading-water situation ... I wish more people were getting ahead, pursuing that passion project or maybe saving and investing more."
