The Best and Worst Side Hustles to Start in 2025

 **How to Rank the Best and Worst Side Hustles: A Tier List Guide**

 In the past 6 years, I've explored numerous side hustles, ranging from flipping items on Facebook Marketplace to dabbling in crypto, selling Instagram growth services, drop shipping, launching a Shopify store, and creating content. Today, I'll share a comprehensive tier list ranking these side hustles from best to worst, with the ultimate S+ rating for the top choice and F- for the least effective. Let's dive in! 

 **1. Facebook Marketplace Flipping** 

 Flipping items on Facebook Marketplace was one of the first ways I explored to make money online independently. Buying and selling on Facebook Marketplace can be quite profitable, especially if you specialize in a particular product and understand its market. For example, if you possess knowledge about watches and have capital to invest, you can monitor Facebook Marketplace daily for deals, purchase watches at a lower price, relist them at a higher price, and generate a profit. People also apply this strategy to collectibles like Pokemon cards or vintage items. Notably, Facebook Marketplace has a free items section where you can find items people are giving away. These can often be sold for $20 to $30, or you can fix up furniture or other items to sell at a profit. However, Facebook Marketplace isn't fully scalable. As a one-person operation, your buying and selling capacity is limited. Negotiating deals and meeting up to acquire products can be time-consuming, and relisting may take up to two weeks. While profitable, especially if you find a niche or fix up free items, the lack of scalability places it in the B tier. 

 **2. Uber**

 To drive for Uber, you need a car and the willingness to pick up strangers. You'll face expenses like gas, car insurance, and monthly car payments. As a driver, it's not completely scalable since you can only transport one ride at a time. On average, you can earn $15 to $22 per hour, potentially reaching $25 to $30 in busy locations like Manhattan, New York, or with a black SUV. Due to these factors, Uber falls into the D tier.

 **3. Shopify Store Creation**

 Creating your own online store through Shopify is a broad venture. You can establish a clothing brand, operate a drop shipping store sourcing from Alibaba or AliExpress, or offer services. The success of a Shopify store hinges on the product or service you sell and your marketing efforts. For instance, promoting a skincare product through TikTok videos demonstrating skincare routines and linking the product in your bio can drive sales if your TikTok videos gain traction. I've personally profited from Shopify through drop shipping and selling my own supplements and fitness products, especially by leveraging social media marketing. Therefore, Shopify earns a spot in the A tier. 

 **4. School**

 If you're unfamiliar, School is an online subscription-based platform where you can create your own paid community. Members pay a monthly fee to access the community, your courses, resources, programs, and calls. There are two primary methods to monetize School: * **Creator:** As a creator, you host your own community. For instance, I have a community called the S-Class, featuring my fitness programs, weekly calls, and courses on social skills and making money online. This approach enables personalized interaction with viewers and provides valuable resources. You can set the monthly subscription fee as you see fit, ranging from $10 to thousands of dollars. However, effective marketing is crucial to attract members. * **Operator:** An operator assists creators who lack a social media presence or traffic to build their community. Operators reach out to creators, offering to handle backend tasks, marketing, and content creation in exchange for a 30% cut of the revenue, while the creator focuses on content creation and promotion. The appeal of School lies in its scalability, low-cost nature, and versatility, enabling you to participate as a creator or operator, regardless of your social media presence. As such, School earns a place in the S tier. 

 **5. TikTok**

 There are multiple avenues to generate income on TikTok, provided you reside in an eligible country. * **Creativity Program:** Pays you for every 1,000 views on your TikTok videos, ranging from $0.02 to $4 per thousand views. * **TikTok Shop:** Allows you to promote products through your videos and link them directly in TikTok Shop. You earn a commission for each sale generated through your videos. * **Live Streams:** Viewers can donate to you during live streams. * **Marketplace:** Connect with brands for potential brand deals (requires a substantial follower base). * **Series:** Create exclusive videos that users pay to access. The most lucrative strategies are the TikTok Creativity Program and TikTok Shop, where you earn both views and commissions. Success on TikTok requires creativity and consistency. Building a dedicated audience within a niche is also essential. Despite the potential for high earnings, TikTok is competitive, requiring considerable effort. I will put it at A tier. 

 **6. Fiverr**

 Fiverr is a marketplace where you can offer various digital services such as photo editing, video editing, and website design. It becomes highly profitable once you build a strong portfolio of clients, resulting in positive ratings and higher visibility in search results. However, when starting, you're essentially a one-person operation with limited scalability. Your earning potential is tied to how much you charge and the number of jobs you can handle. Building credibility and attracting clients takes time. While you can earn significant income with the right skills, the competition and lack of scalability place it in the A tier. 

 **7. AliExpress Drop Shipping** 

 If you discover a unique product with low competition and high demand, promoting it on TikTok or through Facebook ads can generate sales. With AliExpress, you drop ship products as-is, without the option to customize them or add your own label. For example, when slime was trendy, people drop shipped it from AliExpress, selling it for $10 after purchasing it for $1, resulting in a $9 profit per sale. You create a Shopify store, import products from AliExpress, and only purchase products when you receive an order. Due to these limitations, I will put it at C tier. 

 **8. Alibaba Drop Shipping**

 Alibaba offers a different approach. You can communicate with suppliers, modify products, and add your own labels. By purchasing in bulk, you can negotiate better deals with suppliers. For example, you can find a skincare product, contact a supplier, and request to add your logo and brand name to a batch of 100 units. After receiving the units, you set up a Shopify store, promote the products, and ship them to customers yourself. This approach requires more effort but is more scalable because you're building a brand.

 **9. Online Surveys** 

 Online surveys promise low effort, low risk, and high rewards, but the reality is different. Companies pay survey companies to collect data about their products or services, and the survey companies, in turn, offer you a small amount (10 cents to $3) for completing the survey. It can take up to an hour, and sometimes there are conditions like needing to complete a certain number of surveys in a day to get paid. This requires a lot of time with minimal reward. Therefore, online surveys go into the F tier. 

 **10. DoorDash**

 DoorDash is preferable to Uber because you're driving your car without strangers. You can also use a bike or e-bike in busy areas, eliminating gas costs. DoorDash pays $15 to $25 per hour and offers base pay incentives. Therefore, DoorDash will be put in B tier.

 **11. Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency** I have personally made money on cryptocurrency and Bitcoin, having invested in 2020. However, Bitcoin and cryptocurrency are volatile, requiring you to handle the ups and downs. You also need money to invest. While buying meme coins or actively trading cryptocurrency is risky, investing in popular cryptocurrencies like Ethereum or Bitcoin and holding it has worked for me. I will rank it in C tier. 

 **12. Premiere Pro Video Editing** 

 Being a video editor and finding clients directly can be very profitable because you avoid third-party fees like those on Fiverr. However, you need to acquire your own clients. Building a portfolio and relying on word-of-mouth can help. It can be scalable since you can subcontract other editors. Therefore, I will put it in A tier. 

 **13. YouTube**

 YouTube can be very profitable if you get views on your videos. You don't need to be overly creative or have advanced editing skills. Many people create faceless videos or comment on memes and still get a lot of views. You can do shorts and long form. Many have started YouTube in the last year and have over 100,000 subscribers. You don't need fancy equipment or need to show your face. All you need to do is make content that people want to watch. You can also link your own products, offer channel memberships, and repurpose content as a clipper. Therefore, I will put YouTube in S tier. 

 **14. Sweatcoin**

 Sweatcoin pays you for walking at a rate of 0.95 sweat coins for every 1,000 steps. However, you can't redeem sweat coins into cash but only rewards with partnered companies. For that, I will put it in F tier. **15. Instacart** With Instacart, you shop for people's groceries. The downside is that it can be difficult to find something in a grocery store that is not usually purchased by yourself. If you put hours into it, you can make $10 to $20 an hour, up to $25 an hour. I will put this at B tier. 

 **16. Investing in Stocks** 

 If you are young and have extra money, investing in stocks is one of the best things you can do. For example, investing in an S&P 500. For that, I'll put Mr. Warren Buffett in S tier. **17. Day Trading** Day trading, buying low and selling high, can be very profitable but also very risky. The people that make a lot of money on day trading is because they offer courses teaching other people how to day trade or let other people copy their trade. It is a high-risk, high-reward activity, I will put it into D tier. **18. Mowing Lawns** If you have a lawn mower, you can offer to mow people's lawns for $20. You need to be willing to mow and talk to people. It is not a high risk and you can make some money. I'll put it at C tier. **S+ and F- Tier** For the worst side hustle, I will put Sweatcoin in F- tier, because it's just to promote companies and services. For the best side hustle, I will put YouTube in S+ tier, because all you need to do is share your personality and make content.