10 Best Side Hustles for Stay at Home Moms in 2024

We’re going through the best side hustles for stay at home moms so you can make bank (and cookies too!)

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10 best stay at home mom side hustles

All of these side jobs for stay at home moms can be done at home and on your own schedule. Yes, you may have a few deadlines, but there’s never a time when you have to be “on the clock.” You can work at 2 pm for 30 minutes or 2 am for 2 hours. You just need to be able to devote a certain amount of hours every week.

Plus, we’re not only going to tell you the best side jobs for stay at home moms, but we’ll share where you can easily learn the skills to do these jobs. The best part, most are things that you can learn while at home.

Sell Printables on Etsy

If you have a creative side, selling custom printables on Etsy is an easy way to make extra money from home. You can design any number of digital products and sell them in your Etsy shop.

Julie has made five figures selling bachelorette party printables on Etsy. But you can make and sell any kind of printable.

You can make…

• Kids printables – coloring sheets, letter tracing, mazes, math practice, etc
• Home organization – decluttering task list, cleaning list, garage sale planner, etc.
• Finance – budget sheets, savings trackers, net worth trackers
• For you – inspirational wall art, hobby stuff, knitting patterns, etc.

You know that digital printables are popular and that you can make good money with them. But the magic of digital printables is that it’s mainly passive income.

Now passive income is amazing. You do the work once and then get paid over and over again for it. That means that you can make money while you sleep! (How cool is that?)

If you’re brand new to printables and have no idea where to start, or maybe you’re a little bit further along in your journey, and you *have* made some things to sell…but you’re not seeing the sales you want, maybe you feel like it’s just too competitive out there.

I’m here to tell you that it IS possible to make good money selling digital products on Etsy… but you have to have a plan. You can’t just wing it and hope for the best.

But how do I know it’s profitable? Because Julie & Cody from Gold City Ventures have done it themselves, and we’re talking seven-figure revenue here! (that’s a lot of zeros!)

They created a hugely popular E-Printables Side Hustle course, which shows you exactly how to do what they did. This step-by-step guide covers everything you need to know to start selling printables on Etsy.

In this course, you’ll learn how to: 

• Create designs from scratch in several different programs
• Research best-selling digital product ideas for Etsy using eRank
• Drive sales with keyword research and our seasonal product strategy
• Optimize your time to get more products listed faster
• And so much more!

One of the best parts of the course is that they show how to make a ton of printables with over-the-shoulder videos; you get to watch it step by step (and you can make your own at the same time). It couldn’t be easier. Well, it does get easier because, in addition to showing you how to make it, they give you 20 free templates you can use today to make your digital products.

If you’re not sure if making printables is right for you (but you’re curious), be sure to check out their free workshop, where you’ll get the cliff notes (along with some great insider tips) on selling printables on Etsy. This can help you decide if this is the best side hustles for you. 

Or, if you already have an Etsy printables shop and want to uplevel your offerings, you can grab their free eBook, The Seasonal Products Secret, on making massive sales with seasonal printables. 

Become a Virtual Assistant

Are you organized and have administrative experience? Then working a virtual assistant job could be an easy side hustle idea for you. You can offer services such as customer service, social media management, travel arrangements, and more – all without leaving your home!

The VA industry is booming these days, especially with the growth of small businesses, as these business owners need help but may not be able to afford to hire a full-on worker. So you could work for one client for 10 hours and then another client for five hours a week. Or however much you want.

According to Indeed, the average hourly rate for a virtual assistant is $23/hour. BUT, these reported wages are for people who work through an agency, and they take a big part of the profits.

You can easily work on your own and learn how to make $10k a month in this industry. In fact, Abbey Ashley’s course, teaches you to do exactly that!

One day, she clicked buy on a laptop from Craigslist as she decided she wanted to be a virtual assistant (as a friend told her about how she was making some money from home).

She scraped together info and used her time management and organization skills to become a fully booked VA in 30 days. She was busy! She was so busy, in fact, that she hired a few of her friends to help her.

She taught them everything they needed to know, and others were asking her every day how to do it. She made a quick online course to show people what to do.

That online course has been updated, expanded, and released year after year, and she’s helped over 5,000 students make a full-time income while working part-time from home in their own online VA business.

If you think you’d love working whatever hours you want to work (2 hours here, and maybe 3 hours there, maybe 1/2 a day on Thursday). Then you can check out Abbey’s free training – Become a Booked Out Virtual Assistant!

One of the best things about the course is that she shares with you all the templates she uses – invoice templates, pitching clients templates, sample contracts, and even templates on what to say when you raise your rates.

She even shows you the best ways to take customer payments to quickly reach that $10,000 a month mark – now that’s a great side hustle!

You can check it out at $10K VA.

Many of these online jobs are also perfect for single moms, as their schedules can be even more hectic. You can start small and, over time, grow it into a profitable side hustle that makes a full-time income.

Social Media Manager

As businesses and influencers grow, they quickly realize they cannot do everything themselves and turn to social media managers (SMMs) to help with their online presence.

A Social Media Manager (SMM) is the mastermind behind crafting, maintaining and optimizing a company’s or individual’s social media presence. They create posts that engage users on platforms such as Twitter and Facebook and develop captivating Instagram reels and pins for Pinterest – all to enhance their digital marketing reach to potential customers.

“The salaries of Social Media Managers in the US range from $24,000 to $175,000, with a median salary of $63,000. The middle 57% of Social Media Managers makes between $58,000 and $93,500, with the top 86% making $175,000,” according to Comparably.

Some people get started in the industry by becoming a virtual assistant, and then they get a chance to see what they like, what they’re good at, and then they niche down.

You can take clients on all platforms – Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Tik Tok, etc.- or specialize on just one platform and become an expert.

Initially, it’s best to have a broader focus so you can take on more work. Then build your name and reputation, then niche down to what you’re really good at, and then raise your rates (all experts charge more than general SMMs). A great place to start learning is with some online courses…

• Social Media Marketing – from Hubspot (best free course)
• Social Media Marketing Specialization – 4.7 stars with 4,700+ ratings
• Social Media Marketing Master Certification – Boot Camp Digital

To specialize in a single platform, check out…

• Instagram Marketing: Complete Guide To Instagram Growth
• Facebook Marketing: 1000% Facebook Engagement & Sales
• A Complete Content Marketing Course for TikTokers
  
  

If you want to know more about niching down as a SMM, then be sure to check out all the details on How to Become a Pinterest Manager. It goes into all the details on how to learn Pinterest from the content creator perspective, as well as the trainings to help you start your own business. You can start as a Pinterest VA and work up to being a Pinterest Manager.

Be a freelance writer

If you have a knack for writing, becoming a freelance writer is a great way to make extra money. You can offer your services to businesses and individuals needing content written for their websites, blog posts, or even marketing material, such as sales pages or marketing emails.

One of the great things about being a freelance writer is that you can do it from anywhere! All you need is a laptop and an internet connection. There’s no formal training or certification.

You’ll need a few things to get a handle on the business aspect of being a freelance writer.

You’ll want to know how to pitch clients, develop your rates, invoice your projects, and create systems to make it all flow seamlessly. Don’t worry; you don’t have to spend hours searching through Google for the answers to piece it all together.

Elna Cain built her freelance writing business part-time while staying home and caring for twins. She now makes $1,200 for single pieces of work from huge clients (i.e., big-box retailers). Her course, Write Your Way to Your First $1k, is a step-by-step plan for becoming a profitable writer.

If you’re not quite sure if freelance writing is for you (but you’re curious), Elna has a free mini-course on getting paid to write to help you get the ball rolling and see if it’s the perfect fit to be your new gig.

Do transcription work

Transcription is a great way to make money from home. It involves listening to audio recordings, then typing out what you hear and providing the text document in whatever format the client needs.

Transcriptionists can work in any industry, including medical or legal settings, or they can specialize in certain types of transcription, such as interviews or focus groups.

You need to have great listening skills (attention to detail), be a good typer, and it’s a bonus if you’re bilingual! Of course, good grammar is a bonus, but don’t worry if you’re not there; you can brush up on your grammar & skills in no time. In fact, to get an even better idea of what transcription is (and how you can build your own work-at-home business), check out Transcription Anywhere’s free mini-course.

It’s seven lessons, and you’ll learn…

• Lesson One: Explore what transcription is and why it’s a highly in-demand skill.
• Lesson Two: Learn what it takes to become a transcriptionist and the two keys to YOUR success as a transcriptionist.
• Lesson Three: They bust the biggest myth about transcription: Find out the WHOLE truth!
• Lesson Four: Top ten factors to discover if transcription is a good fit for you.
• Lesson Five: You can earn great money if you take the time to learn and develop your skills. This lesson details what AFFECTS your earnings as a transcriptionist.
• Lesson Six: How to find the most lucrative transcription home job.
• Lesson Seven: A recommended list of equipment you’ll need.
  
  

Be a scopist

Being a scopists is similar to being a transcriptionist, but it’s a bit different. A scopist takes a court reporter’s notes from the stenotype machine and edits them into clean, readable text. It requires a special set of skills, such as deciphering shorthand quickly, having an excellent knowledge of the English language, and having strong proofreading skills.

Learning all these new skills can be daunting, but the pay is well worth it. Glassdoor estimates that scopists average $60,000 a year. Yup, you can earn great money working from home while you’re still being Mom to your kiddos.

As with transcription work, there’s scopist school (sounds silly, I know), but it’s very comprehensive, teaching you everything you need to know about how to set up, build & grow your business. You can find out if scoping is for you with their free intro to scoping mini-course.

Make & sell stickers

Making and selling stickers can be fun and easy, plus the potential for earnings is huge! There are a few different ways to make money with stickers: through your online store, on Etsy, or by creating digital stickers that people then print at home. This is great if you want to offer something unique without any extra effort or high upfront costs.

Let’s say you sell ten stickers a day in your Etsy shop at $4 a pop; that’s $40 a day, that’s $280 a week, which is $1,213 a month or $14,556 a year. Not too shabby!

We go into detail on making and selling stickers here, but to recap, all you need is some graphic design software (start with Canva’s free plan), and you can start selling digital stickers. But you’ll need a Cricut machine if you want to sell and print the stickers. Once you have those two things, you’re all set.

You’ll need time to practice and get good at it, but if you want to get good ASAP, then you can learn from Mim!

Mim Jenkinson founded The Planner Podcast and The Paper Planner Club, both amazing resources for Etsy sellers. Her multi-six-figure business was built up from her Star Seller status on her Etsy shop. Now she’s expanded into teaching others how they can make a living selling digital products like stickers on Etsy.

If you know you are ready to sell stickers and don’t want to waste any time, you can jump right into her full course, The Sticker Plan.

If you’re interested in making & selling stickers but aren’t 100% sure, then you have to check out her free masterclass, Discover The Stickers That Sell On Etsy.

In her free masterclass, you’ll learn…

• The 3 BIG mistakes new sticker makers and shop owners make that YOU can avoid
• The essential tools and equipment you need to get started
• How YOU can stand out from the crowd and be successful
• The quickest way to YOU can get started with selling stickers!
  
  

Start a blog and do affiliate marketing

This is probably one of the most popular ways to make money with an online business. You can start your blog with WordPress in just a few minutes. (But it will take considerably longer to get good at it.)

Start a blog about something you’re passionate about, then find ways to monetize it. You can do this through affiliate marketing, ads, selling digital or physical products, or even coaching or consulting.

Pat Flynn from Smart Passive Income has a net worth of over $3 million, all due to his blog! And Lindsay Ostrom from PinchofYum makes high six figures from her food blog through ad revenue, sponsored posts, products, and affiliate marketing.

I know that “starting a blog” sounds very overwhelming; you’ve heard so many stories from friends who tried and just couldn’t make it go anywhere, or worse yet, they couldn’t even get started as it was too technical and way too confusing.

But I bet they didn’t have a pro behind them, showing them precisely what to do with their blog. But you have that pro, that step-by-step guide ensuring you succeed!

Tracie Fobes has been blogging since 2009, and you may have heard of her hit site Penny Pinching Mom. Soon she made six figures a month from her site and eventually sold it for a huge profit!

Now she shows new bloggers (just like you) how to set up their blogs correctly. She has the perfect introductory course, The Blogging Playbook. Which, you guessed it, takes you play-by-play in setting up your new blog.

I know jumping into a course isn’t for everyone, and Tracie knows that too. She’s made a great free workbook that you can use to get your ideas all out on paper, plan some basic ideas, and really see if this blog thing is for you. Again it’s a totally free workbook, so you have nothing to lose!

Tracie has the heart of a teacher; she takes time to answer people’s questions and gives them all the necessary resources to execute the task correctly the first time! I know, as I am a three-time student of hers!

If you’ve already set up your blog, don’t worry; you can still learn from Tracie; she has many different courses to help you grow a money-making blog.

• Intermediate Bloggers Guide
• Tripwires Made Easy
• Sponsored Post Success
  
  

Be a virtual bookkeeper

Being a small business proprietor or entrepreneur entails plenty of responsibilities, and bookkeeping & accounting are some of the most laborious tasks. It’s no surprise that numerous people procrastinate doing their bookkeeping or try to wing it, which results in big fat mistakes.

That’s where the virtual bookkeeping business model comes in. You can offer your bookkeeping services remotely, freeing business owners to focus on running their business. Plus, being virtual means that your client base opens up a lot.

If you’re unsure if virtual bookkeeping is for you, I want you to go to Bookkeepers.com and take their free discovery series classes. Don’t worry; it’s not a math test; they’re three short video-based class that talks you through the process and the basics to see if this is a good fit for you.

Now Bookkeeppers.com is considered to be the Rolls Royce of online bookkeepers training. They do have a paid program, which is very thorough; you hit the ground with everything you need to get started. They say their graduates make considerably more than the national average of $56k a year. That’s about $28 an hour, while bookkeepers.com veers into the $60 per hour range, which justifies the price tag of their training program.

Within six months of starting her own virtual bookkeeping business (Legal Ease Bookkeeping), Brandy had five clients paying her $60/hour, which allowed her to quit her 9-5 job!

But again, you should always start with a company’s free training to see if you like their methods, teaching style, and customer service support.

During this free class about starting a virtual bookkeeping business, you will discover:

1. Exactly what the business is (and is NOT)
2. What you need to know (and have) before you start…are YOU a good fit
3. The 3-step system to launch your own business.
   
   

Proofread copy

If you’re a grammar nerd, one of the best and easiest ways to make money in your spare time is by proofreading short articles, a few chapters of a book, some sales copy, etc. You can make over $25 per hour in many cases; that’s making $200 a day!

If you’re ready to begin, I strongly recommend enrolling with Proofread Anywhere to learn everything you need to establish a successful proofreading business. Oh, and the best part is that you can do this job from anywhere you happen to be in your jammies on the couch or while sitting in the school car pick-up line.

But first, check out their free workshop, where you’ll learn if proofreading is the perfect fit for you to start making money on your time from anywhere in the world.

Stay at home mom side jobs for quick cash

Sometimes you just need some quick cash, or maybe you’re patiently saving up for a solo mommy trip.

Earn money with receipts

• Earning points with fetch is super easy, and the great thing is that you earn points on the whole receipt, not just on a few items. I’ve only been using it a short while, but I’ve already cashed out my rewards for a Target gift card. You can redeem your points for; sweepstakes, restaurant gift cards, entertainment experiences, and you can even donate them to a nonprofit!
  
  
• ibotta is one of my favorite quick cash-back apps; I’ve earned $319.16 with this app! Basically, you go grocery shopping, then get on the app and add offers to items you bought, scan your receipt, and get easy money! You can even shop through their app (at your favorite stores & sites), and you’ll earn cashback.
  
  What makes this app different is they are constantly offering bonuses. So if you buy certain offers, you’ll get even more money. For example, around Thanksgiving, they’ll have coupons for stuffing, pumpkin pie mix, marshmallows, cranberry sauce, etc. And if you buy 5 of their ten seasonal offers, you’ll get an extra $5 on top of the individual cashback offers!
  
  
• Pogo is a fun new cashback app where you scan your receipts and earn points. The cool thing about this app is that you can connect all your accounts to it, so you automatically earn points when you shop. Think of places like Target, Starbucks, Amazon, Kroger stores, and more!
  
  You can also link your credit card to Pogo to earn even more points. Don’t worry; they use Plaid, a platform that all the big banks use for transferring info; no credit card info is stored with Pogo. When you link your cards, you never have to scan receipts; it does it for you.
  
  When you’re ready to cash out, you can choose an Amazon gift card or get cash via PayPal or Venmo. About 1,000 points equal a dollar, so it’s comparable to what the other apps pay, but there are more ways to earn with Pogo than the competition, in my opinion). 
  
  You can sign up for Pogo right here and get your 300 point sign up bonus and start earning today!
  
  

Take online surveys for cash

• Swagbucks – is a free platform where you earn gift cards for doing what you normally do online. They have thousands of ways to get points (called SB), which are redeemable for Amazon gift cards or PayPal cash, like answering surveys, printing coupons, shopping online, and more. They’ve paid out over $793,000 to their members, so sign up now and get your $5 free bonus!
  
  
• Inbox Dollars – is a free app where you can earn extra cash each week with polls & surveys. So if you can read emails, take surveys, shop online (which we will explain below), use coupons, and sell your items on eBay, then you can make some easy money.
  
  When you want to buy anything, search the Inbox Dollars website for what you need. You’ll be given a list of authorized vendors, after which you’ll earn money back if you buy something from one through the InboxDollars portal.
  
  The best part is that with Inbox Dollars, they pay straight into your PayPal account – everyone loves free PayPal money! Grab your free $5 sign-up bonus right here.
  
  

Play games

You can have fun with this online gaming side hustle idea while still making money! If you’re good at card games, then this could be for you!

• Blackout Bingo is the #3 ranked game in Apple for casino-style games! It’s a fun new way to play the classic Americana game of Bingo, but you are in control with Blackout Bingo! You’ll play against users at the same skill level, and everyone playing sees the same balls and cards. But you’ll need speed, strategy, and smarts to show you’re a bingo expert and beat your competition.
  
  A single game takes only 2 minutes to play, so it’s perfect for those small moments between tasks when you just need to relax or have fun. You will earn tickets and level up in tiers – bronze, silver, gold, platinum, diamond, and finally, the black tier. You’ll earn ticketz along the way, and when you win (I have faith in your skills), you can cash out straight to PayPal! To reach the top tiers, you’ll need to be sharp & quick, but I know you’ll love playing with Chelsea (the game’s heroine) and traveling the world playing Blackout Bingo, all while racking up the winnings! 
  
  
• Play Blackout Bingo on Android
• Play Blackout Bingo on iOS
• Play Blackout Bingo on Samsung
  
  Prize tournaments are not enabled in the following states: AR, CT, DE, IN, LA, ME, and SD.

• Bubble Cash is the classic bubble shooter game, except now, you can win real money online with your sharp shooting skills! Your goal is to get three or more bubbles of the same color together so they pop off the board and clear the way. Shoot fast as you’re being timed! Don’t forget, your aim matters a lot, as when you miss, you’ll lose a heart, and more rows can be added. So it’s a balance of speed & accuracy.
  
  You can play for fun for free, but when you’re ready, you can test your skills in the multi-player tournament to win cash! You’ll be matched with players of similar skill, but you’ll want to be in the top three on the leaderboard to win. After you win (I know you’ll do great!), you can cash out to PayPal, Apple Pay, Visa, or MasterCard.
  
  If your skills are good enough, you can compete for prize pools of $60 or more. Remember, the top three players win, so you’ll share the prize, distributed on where you land on the leaderboard. 1st place gets more of the prize pool than 2nd or 3rd place. Do you think you’ll get to the top of the leaderboard? Remember, you can practice for free for as long as you want, with no ads to stall your playing. 
  
  Bubble Cash is free to download and play! However, cash tournaments are unavailable in the states: AZ, AR, IA, IA, LA, MD, SC, SD, ME, MT, and WA.
  
  
  Play Bubble Cash on iOS
  
  
  Play Bubble Cash on Android & Samsung
  
  

My #1 Tip for finding the perfect side job for stay-at-home moms.

The #1 thing moms need is flexibility with their schedule. Things are always popping up – snow days = no school, there are appointments to go to, errands to run, and the never-ending household chores.

I am a stay at home mom, and even though I don’t work outside the home, I am just as busy (if not more so than my working husband). And for a long time, I was so frustrated with how much time I had to work on my side hustle. Or I should say, “how little time.” Yet, in my brain, I thought I should have lots of time because I didn’t have a traditional job.

Things only turned around for me when I did a time audit. I plotted out all my mom-on-duty times, gave room for errands and cleaning, and I figured out that I only had less than 15 hours a week to devote to my own side hustle (this blog). So I scaled back my expectations and work schedule to align with those few hours.

Once I got clear about the time I had available, I was much less frustrated about “lack of time” ad not getting things done. So I suggest you do the same. Figure out exactly how much time you have first, then find a stay at home mom side hustle that can work with what you have.

Tips for having the perfect side hustle as a busy mom

• Know your schedule: Again, I strongly encourage you to do a time audit, and yes, you need to put it all down on paper so you can see it. Be sure to give yourself plenty of time for errands and household tasks.
  
  
• Have a backup plan: Uh oh, it’s a snow day, or your sick kiddo can’t go to school. Even with the best-laid plans, sometimes a wrench gets thrown in, screwing up your plans. Always have a backup plan on what tasks you can accomplish while still on mom duty.
  
  
• Have dedicated space for work: You don’t want your work papers on the kitchen table and have a young budding artist draw with ketchup all over it. Of course, in the ideal world, you’d have an office, but I know that’s not possible for most of us. I have a standing desk in the corner of the master bedroom. It’s not much, but I have everything I need in that 3 x 6 ft space. (and I know everything is safe and will stay just how I left it.)
  
  
• Manage outside tasks cohesively: When I make doctor appointments for my family, I try and make them all in the first week of the month. This way, I know that for one week, I won’t get work done. But having them all scrunched up in one week saves a lot of driving time compared to if I spread out appointments throughout the month.
  
  
• Have a spousal IRA: Just because you don’t have a W2 job doesn’t mean you can’t save for retirement. You can invest up to $6000 per year into a spousal IRA, either traditional or Roth. It’s a perfect fit for stay at home moms to still build security for retirement with their lucrative side hustle. You can open an account at Fidelity, Charles Schwab, or my first choice is Vanguard.
  
  
• Get organized: This is by far the most important tip! Because if you’re not organized you’ll end up wasting time, getting confused and not planning properly.
  
  Having a side hustle planner all set up in a binder was a huge help to keeping me on task and on schedule! Anytime I had space, I could just grab my binder to head outside in the sun and do some work while my kiddo blew bubbles. I knew exactly what to do with the help of my trackers, planners, and project workflow diagrams. In fact, I loved it so much I even made one! You can use this today to get yourself started!

At the end of the day

If you’re a stay-at-home mom looking for some extra income, there are many legitimate options out there that can not only help you financially but also give you a sense of satisfaction and purpose.

From transcription services and creating printables to selling artwork and doing freelance bookkeeping, now is the perfect time to start exploring what side job may be the best fit for you. So take the first step today and sign up to sell your crafts on Etsy! You never know where it might lead or what amazing opportunities await around the corner — you just need to be ready to take them on!

Which of these side hustles for stay at home moms are you going to try first?