Yahoo Finance 10 Part-Time Side Gigs To Cover Your Grocery Bill
Groceries are expensive. Even if you’re sticking to a budget, using coupons and shopping sales, you might still wonder if the cash register had an error when computing your bill.
The average monthly cost of food for a 19- to 50-year-old male on a moderate grocery budget is $377 per month, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Women in this age group following the same type of budget spend a little less at about $318.70 per month.
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Many people joke about getting a side gig to cover rising grocery costs, but you may be seriously considering it. Doing so might be what it takes to make ends meet or to ensure you still have some extra spending money each month.
“Side gigs can give you a sense of freedom and earn you a little extra each month for covering some expenses,” said Scott Liberman, founder of Touchdown Money. “Most of these can be done on your own schedule with no long-term commitment.”
Many side gigs allow you to capitalize on skills you already have, while others can be an opportunity to learn something new. Here’s a look at 10 part-time side gigs that could help cover your grocery bill, along with average pay estimates from Indeed.
1. Freelancing
Average virtual assistant pay: $24.96 per hour
Average handyman pay: $23.95 per hour
Average proofreader pay: $21.93 per hour
“There are several sites where you can sign up for gigs to do in short time frames,” Liberman said. “Common gig work includes virtual assistant admin tasks, handiwork around a home and proofreading.”
He recommended checking out sites like Upwork, Flex Jobs, Freelancer or Taskrabbit to find job listings that interest you.
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2. Fiverr Projects
Average pay: Set your own rate
“List a service you can do online such as social media marketing, creating logos [or] editing and list your service on Fiverr,” Liberman said.
This way, clients seeking out your services will be able to get in touch and contract you to perform the desired work. You’ll set your own rates, so your earning potential will largely be up to you.
For example, you can earn $10-$100 or more for personalized logo design projects.
3. Special Event Staff
Average usher pay: $14.79 per hour
Average concession stand worker pay: $14.69 per hour
“Find fill-in jobs for festivals or concerts, concessions at sports games [or] ushering at plays,” Liberman said.
This can actually be a pretty fun job, as you may get to see some — or even a lot of — the special events you work.
4. Supermarket Product Demonstrator
Average demonstrator pay: $16.14 per hour
Customers love free samples, so consider becoming the person who doles them out. Lieberman suggested this side gig, which could take you to Costco, BJ’s Wholesale Club or even your local supermarket.
5. Pet Sitting
Average pay: $15.95 per hour
An animal lover’s dream: Get paid to hang out with other people’s pets.
“Try out pet sitting for neighbors and friends,” Lieberman said. “Sign up for Rover or Wag to promote your pet-sitting gig.”
Exactly what you want your business to entail is totally up to you. For example, you could watch several dogs at a time at your place or simply care for a few cats per month at their home while their owner is out of town.
6. Babysitting
Average pay: $21.77 per hour
If you assumed babysitting was just a gig for teenagers, think again. Many parents prefer older babysitters, especially for babies and toddlers.
This can be a great side gig for anyone who likes kids and has experience watching them. However, your services will likely be especially enticing to parents if you happen to work in a daycare center, preschool or K-12 school.
7. Rideshare Driver
Average Uber driver pay: $20.34 per hour
Average Lyft driver pay: $21.69 per hour
If you enjoy driving and meeting new people, becoming a rideshare driver could be fun. Companies like Uber and Lyft allow you to make your own schedule, so you can work whenever it’s convenient.
8. Food Delivery Driver
Average DoorDash delivery driver pay: $17.32 per hour
Average Postmates delivery driver pay: $21.81 per hour
If you’d rather drive food to customers instead of driving the customers themselves, you might enjoy being a food delivery driver. Companies like DoorDash allow you to work when you want so you can deliver orders on your own schedule.
9. Tutor
Average pay: $24 per hour
Put your excellent math, English or science skills to work by becoming a tutor. You can likely find listings for in-person or online tutors in nearly any academic specialty, allowing you to earn money while helping a student struggling in certain subject matter.
10. Start an Etsy Shop
Average pay: Set your own rate
Share your creativity with the world by starting an Etsy shop. Whether you’re a gifted knitter, painter, woodworker or graphic designer, there’s plenty of people who may be interested in buying your wares.
Do note, publishing a listing to the Etsy marketplace costs $0.20. When an item sells, you’ll pay a 6.5% transaction fee on the sale price.
Additionally, if you accept payments through Etsy Payments, you’ll be charged a 3% plus $0.25 payment processing fee for each item sold. You’ll also pay an advertising fee on any sales made from offsite ads, but participation in advertising services is optional.
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