In the current high cost of living, side jobs are becoming increasingly popular. Industry experts revealed that there are three types of side jobs in the market worth considering, not only in high demand but also with lucrative income. What’s even more encouraging is that even if you have no background, some inexpensive or free online courses can help you easily acquire the necessary knowledge and establish relationships with potential employers during the learning process.
According to the freelance outlook survey released by the freelance platform Upwork in December 2023, 38% of the U.S. workforce (approximately 64 million Americans) were engaged in freelance work in 2023, an increase of 4 million professionals from 2022. While some people work full-time as freelancers, many also do it part-time and consider it as a side job to supplement their income.
If you are considering starting a side job but don’t know what to do, the valuable advice from Sidehusl.com founder and CEO Kathy Kristof and side job blogger Daniella Flores from “I Like to Dabble” may be helpful to you.
The following are three high-paying and high-demand side jobs worth considering summarized by “CNBC make it” based on the recommendations of Kristof and Flores.
“Marketing is a giant. Kristof said. In her opinion, social media marketing is a service in great demand. There is also a huge demand for talent who understands SEO.
SEO
aims to optimize website content and structure to improve its visibility and ranking on search engines.
If you are interested in understanding how SEO works, various online courses are available on platforms like Coursera, and Google itself provides related tutorials. Currently, SEO experts on Upwork charge as high as $250 per hour.
“Since many aspects of people’s lives happen online, the demand for cybersecurity is extremely high, and this demand may continue to grow,” Kristof said, “Threats are becoming increasingly complex and harder to prevent.”
She mentioned that you don’t necessarily need a college degree to work in this side job. Large tech companies like Google, IBM, and Apple offer very affordable, sometimes even free, cybersecurity courses. Various colleges and universities also provide such courses. The U.S. “National Initiative for Cybersecurity Careers and Studies” lists some cybersecurity certification programs for reference.
Kristof emphasized the benefits of taking courses.
“When you take these courses, you often build connections with the people who will ultimately hire you,” she said.
Cybersecurity experts on Fiverr charge as high as $1,480 per project.
Another lucrative side job in the tech industry is coding. Flores said, “The demand for part-time coders is very high, especially in the field of artificial intelligence.”
Many in this field have computer science degrees, but it is not always a prerequisite for getting the job. Websites like Codecademy and various universities offer online coding bootcamps to get you started.
Flores suggested offering your services through websites like “Data Annotation Tech.” When registering, you need to take an assessment test. Once you pass, they guarantee everyone will find work. One user reported earning $23 per hour, but Flores said coders can earn up to $50 per hour through the website.
Flores also recommended using LinkedIn to find jobs.
Many people, when hiring freelancers, post job information on their LinkedIn profiles regardless of the project. Flores advises using keywords to search for job opportunities, including “web development freelancer” and “freelance coder.”
Coders on Upwork charge as high as $200 per hour.