Many rideshare and food delivery drivers have discovered the attraction of gig work, including jobs that don’t require a car. Gig workers or side hustlers can control when, where, and how much you make by assembling a collection of side hustles matching your strengths, resources, and lifestyle if you work for one of the best side hustle websites.
The best way to immerse yourself in gig work is by working with the best side hustle websites and apps. Some of these platforms offer side hustle jobs from home. Others take you out into the world. This is a collection of some of the best side hustle platforms that have come to our attention.
If you earn your living from side hustle platforms, you fall into the category of self-employed. That’s really great because it gives you immense freedom and power, but it also means responsibilities. You need to know your expenses and where you make the most money. This is where the Gridwise app can be your best friend. Read to the end of this blogpost and learn how Gridwise can help you earn more, keep more, and pay less in taxes.
If you like, you can also refer to a previous Gridwise article, Unlock Your Earning Potential: The Best Side Hustle Jobs in 2024.
Here's what we cover:
Why should you use an app or side hustle platform?
Using apps or side hustle websites to search for work has distinct advantages. Yes, most of them take a small fee to administer the site, but they are often worth the investment. Consider these benefits:
Central platform. Finding work is one of the most challenging tasks when embarking on a side hustle career. Knocking on doors is time-consuming and unproductive. Voicemail makes phone calls frustrating. However, if someone posts a gig on a side hustle platform or app, you know they are interested. These platforms give you a central location for researching jobs. You know these people are looking for your service.
Job specific. Whether your side hustle is rideshare, delivery, dog walking, or handyman services, there is probably an app or platform full of jobs in your specialty. You’re not having to search all over.
Geography specific. Some side hustles allow you to work from anywhere in the world. For instance, freelance writers and graphic designers can work anyplace they can set up their laptop and get a Wi-Fi connection. If you specialize in personal services, such as dog walking, handyman jobs, and delivery—all jobs tied to a specific geographical region—then you will want to refine your search to a particular area. Apps and websites can help you do this.
Ensure payment. The best side hustle websites and apps administer payment. They require the entity seeking work to register a credit card or bank account. When a work agreement is reached, they hold the funds in escrow, ensuring that you get paid. This keeps you from getting burned by dishonest clients.
The best side hustle websites and apps
So you’ve decided to embark on a career of side hustles. Let’s look at some side hustle companies and platforms out there. If you remember from reading the Gridwise article, Unlock Your Earning Potential: The Best Side Hustle Jobs in 2024, the term side hustle stack, refers to a collection of side hustles. You should consider any of these for your side hustle stack.
Food delivery companies
We all know the food delivery story. These apps and companies skyrocketed in popularity during the pandemic, and users have found them a hard habit to break. Some restaurants are doing as much as 30% to 40% of their business in delivery, and industry experts expect this sector to continue growing. The bottom line is that food delivery apps—prepared food and groceries—will continue to generate a lot of gig work, making them a profitable side hustle.
You need access to a reliable car, although densely populated areas may support delivery on a bicycle or scooter.
Websites: DoorDash, Uber Eats, Grubhub
Rideshare companies
Uber and Lyft continue to rule this market. Drivers who are strategic in their hours and where they work can do well. Large metropolitan areas, especially with airports, provide lots of rides for drivers. Lyft and Uber continue to innovate their apps with new related services that promise extra rides for drivers that include priority pickups, saving a little by waiting a few minutes longer for a car, or added comfort with larger cars.
You will need a late-model car. Check your specific region, as requirements differ from one service area to another.
Roadie
If you’re a rideshare driver, Roadie represents an opportunity for you. The best and most strategic rideshare drivers can predict the areas they will be in during a shift. Since many deliveries on the Roadie app are not time sensitive, you can pick up a delivery if you know you’ll eventually be near the airport or downtown area sometime later to make the drop-off. Many airlines use Roadie to deliver misrouted baggage. So if you know you’ll be at the airport, and the delivery is on your way home at the end of a shift, you can earn the money for the delivery with minimal effort.
Website: Roadie.com
There are side hustles for services that you haven’t even considered. The best way to discover them is to check out this recent Gridwise article, Unlock Your Earning Potential: The Best Side Hustle Jobs in 2024.
Deliveroo
If you’re thinking of moving across the pond to any of a number of European countries, and you want to continue earning a living with side hustles, consider Deliveroo. The company operates in the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Ireland, Italy, Singapore, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Qatar. Deliveroo is also involved in cloud kitchens, where the staff prepares for delivery only. You can do Deliveroo in a reliable car, bicycle, or scooter.
Website: Deliveroo.co.uk
TaskRabbit
Are you handy with a hammer and drill? TaskRabbit’s jobs range from mounting a flatscreen television or chandelier to more involved projects. Thumb through the app and look for the projects that you know you’re capable of completing in a professional manner. TaskRabbit stresses same-day service, so you should be ready to work, and it’s necessary to have your own tools.
Website: Taskrabbit.com
FlexJobs
FlexJobs is your site for hybrid and remote work. Jobs include accounting, call centers, customer service, data entry, finance, and more. FlexJobs’ client list includes companies such as CVS Health, Progressive, DocuSign, and others.
Website: Flexjobs.com
Nextdoor
Nextdoor is a neighborhood website where you can advertise your services—including handyman, childcare, senior care, or whatever else you do. The great feature is that you can advertise hyper-locally so that you remain in your community as much as possible. The downside is that Nextdoor doesn’t administer payment, so negotiating fees and getting paid is between you and the client.
Website: Nextdoor.com
Thumbtack
Thumbtack is similar to Taskrabbit, although Thumbtack offers a broader array of job types, including DJs, wedding planners, event planners, musicians, and lots more. Thumbtack also integrates with other customer management tools (Housecall Pro, Jobber, and others) that you might use to manage your side hustle business.
Website: Thumbtack.com
Bark.com
Don’t let the name fool you. Bark is not a dog walking or pet care service. The website covers everything from writing services to tutoring to personal training and massage therapy.
Website: Bark.com
Rover
Rover, on the other hand, is a pet-care site. You can sign up for boarding in your home, overnight pet sitting in the owner’s home, drop-in visits, dog walking, and other pet-related services. You can go onto the Rover app and mark when you’re available, set your schedule and prices, and indicate the areas you specialize in. Like many of these sites, Rover handles payment and allows you to set prices.
Website: Rover.com
Do you want to know how to assemble the ultimate side hustle stack? The best place to start is with Gridwise. Read this recent article, Unlock Your Earning Potential: The Best Side Hustle Jobs in 2024.
TaskEasy
This site takes us back to the more traditional handyman services but focuses on the property maintenance aspect of work. If you specialize in condominium communities or business parks, this website and app is for you.
Website: Taskeasy.com
Ivueit
If you know about construction, Ivueit.com might be the site for you. These are primarily home inspections, routinely required when someone is selling or purchasing a home. The Ivueit app walks you through the process, allows you to take photos, and helps you produce a professional report.
Better yet, this is the kind of side hustle that you can dovetail with your other activities. Sign up through the Ivueit app to inspect a home in a specific neighborhood, and then rideshare your way there using the Set Destination function on your rideshare app. You earn money on your way to earning more money.
Website: Ivueit.com
Fiverr
Fiverr takes a different turn, focusing on the more creative side—graphic designers, web designers, voiceover, and product marketing. In addition, Fiverr has gigs in software development, data science, and more. If you have some professional skills, this is the site for you.
Website: Fiverr.com
Upwork
Upwork is a close competitor to Fiverr, and lately, they’ve been doing a fair amount of advertising on network and cable television. Like Fiverr, you register your profile and designate your specialty—graphic design, technical writing, programming, personal assistant, etc. Upwork is one of the most thorough and popular side hustle apps available, with tutorials and webinars on earning more.
Website: Upwork.com
Care
Care is a site for house cleaning and pet care, but it goes further and connects people with babysitters and even senior care. Senior care will become an increasingly vital service as the baby boomers grow older and their children, Gen Xers and millennials, struggle to meet their needs. Check online for babysitting and senior care certifications that will qualify you for these jobs.
Website: Care.com
How not to get hustled on your side hustle
Thousands of people, even tens of thousands, make their living with a side hustle stack. Depending on the hustles you work, making decent money is possible. Unfortunately, it’s also possible to get taken advantage of. Here are some tips for not getting hustled by your side hustle.
Set a price for yourself
Determine what kind of income you want to generate, break it down to a daily or hourly rate, and then engage in side hustles that allow you to make that level of money—and stick to your established level of earnings! People are out there who will offer to pay you peanuts for your services, and if you let them get away with it, they will continue to do so.
Sites like Fiverr and Upwork allow you to set an hourly rate. If a potential client’s budget doesn’t meet your threshold, pass them over. Plenty of clients will be willing to pay the appropriate rates. In many cases, you have been doing this for a while. You might even have a college degree. You need to be paid appropriately for your services.
Another version is the client who asks you to do a test job for free. They say things like, “Let’s see how it works out,” or “We want to ensure we like your work.” Hang up the phone, kill the internet connection, and don’t answer their emails. This rarely works out in your favor.
Research how to work on these sites
Lots of experienced side hustlers have been there before you and have valuable advice. On Google or YouTube try entering “Tips for working on Rover” or “How to make six figures annually on Upwork.” Learn from other’s mistakes and get some solid advice before taking on any of the most popular side hustle websites.
Verify how payment works
As we mentioned earlier, many of these sites handle payment. This is convenient because it makes it difficult for you to get burned. The app may charge an administration fee, but it’s almost always worth it.
Beware of scams
They are out there. We know of a freelance writer who applied for a job on a site, and the client approached him within hours with an offer for a full-time job with a well-known European media conglomerate moving into the US. They sent him an official-looking employment contract, offering a handsome wage and excellent benefits.
Then they said that he had to purchase their equipment from a third-party vendor, and they would reimburse him for it, to the tune of about $5,000.
That’s when the freelancer got suspicious. He looked up the company and sent an email to their PR department. They knew nothing about any such activity, weren’t moving into the US and had never heard the name of his contact. Everything was bogus. In all likelihood, the third-party vendor was someone’s personal bank account and reimbursement would never come, and neither would the equipment.
Some apps are trying to crack down on this activity, but they still sneak through. You need to beware.
Other warning signs
There are also warning signs and things you should not do while working on an app. These are especially true for those apps that advertise professional services such as writing, bookkeeping, graphic design. The apps try to weed out these scammers, but occasionally they infiltrate. Here is what to look for.
Unbelievable offers: There’s a simple rule: if it’s too good to be true, it usually is. Just like our freelancer who was offered a high-paying position, scammers will try to lure you with the promise of fantastic earnings and a low bar to entry. The unbelievable offers are a significant warning sign.
Trying to lure you off the app: If you encounter a client through an app, most terms of service prohibit you from working with that company or individual outside the app, at least for a specific time. If someone asks you to communicate with them off the app, this is typically a warning that they are trying to scam you.
An always available contact: Most client companies on these apps and websites run a nine-to-five operation. If your contact is messaging you at all hours, or is responding to your messages 24/7, that is suspicious. You should be aware.
Any suspicious activity: Most apps have a contract mechanism spelling out the work expectations and the compensation you will receive. If a client wants you to call third parties, ask for information, sell services, or make other offers, especially if you don’t have a contract, then they are likely involved in or getting set up for a scam.
The world of side hustles is immense and gets bigger every day. Do you want to see how your experience and talent might fit into a side hustle? Read this recent article, Unlock Your Earning Potential: The Best Side Hustle Jobs in 2024.
How the Gridwise app can help you with your side hustle
Remember that if you make a living through side hustles, you almost always work as an independent contractor. Neither the apps nor your clients withhold taxes for the IRS or the state. Taxes are your responsibility. The better you track your income and expenses, the better the odds you won’t pay unnecessary taxes.
Job-related vehicle mileage can be a substantial deduction for side hustle earners, especially considering the standard IRS mileage deduction in 2024 is 67 cents a mile for business use. The Gridwise mileage tracker, part of the Gridwise app, is the perfect way to passively track your miles and easily download them at the end of the year. Installation is simple, and once installed, the Gridwise mileage tracker passively records your mileage.
Most expenses incurred while working a side hustle are also deductible. The Gridwise expense tracker allows you to photograph receipts and type in a few words about each expense.
The Gridwise app stores mileage and business expense information so that you can download it into a file and manipulate it with Excel or other software. What used to take days at tax time is now accomplished in minutes with the Gridwise app.
Finally, the Gridwise app lets you enter your side hustles and compare them to see where you’re earning the most. You can be more efficient and spot those little sleeper hustles that could become big earners for you with a bit of work and ingenuity.
Ready to take your gig work to the next level?
Download Gridwise, the app that helps you track your expenses and maximize your earnings
Check out these Gridwise pages to learn more about the Gridwise mileage tracker:
- Download the Gridwise app (includes the Gridwise mileage tracker)
- Unlock Your Earning Potential: The Best Side Hustle Jobs in 2024
- TaskRabbit: A Flexible Side Hustle Platform
