9 Remote Side Hustles for College Students [$5k Per Month]

As a college student, balancing academics with in-person roles is challenging. Between coordinating schedules and commuting to work, it can quickly become quite unpleasant. With the rise of remote work opening up an array of flexible side hustles, there are other options that might suit you better.

Below, we’ve provided nine remote side hustles college students can pick up. Each is fully remote, offering $17 per hour or more.

1. Start an Etsy Print-on-Demand Shop ($5k+ per month)

Etsy is an online creative marketplace, allowing buyers to purchase unique goods from sellers. While the platform started as a place to buy and sell handmade goods, it’s evolved over time to include digital and print-on-demand products.

Print-on-demand (POD) is a process for creating custom products without having an inventory or creating products yourself. Essentially, you create designs, then add them to mockups to show customers what the final product will look like. When a customer places an order, your print-on-demand partner creates and ships the product for you.

The best part about POD is how passive it can become. Once your Etsy shop is making sales, you can become a bit more hands-off while the product sells in the background. While earnings vary, one seller made over $63,000 in profit in one year.

2. Become a Virtual Assistant ($26 per hour)

If you’d prefer a side hustle with no upfront investment, consider becoming a virtual assistant (VA). A VA assists clients with administrative, technical, or creative tasks. The day-to-day work depends on the clients needs, but you may help respond to emails, manage social media content, or enter data into spreadsheets.

On average, VAs make $26 per hour. You’ll find roles on sites like Upwork and Wing.

3. Participate in Research Studies ($250 per month)

When companies need feedback on a new product or service, they pay people like you to give them feedback. This process is called user testing or market research.

To give user testing a try, apply to opportunities through platforms like UserTesting and Dscout. If accepted, you’ll provide feedback on the product or service at hand. In exchange, you can expect to earn anywhere from $5 to $150 per test.

4. Tutor Other Students ($26 per hour)

College courses can be challenging, and for many students, they’d prefer to learn from a peer as opposed to an adult. This is where you come in. If you’ve aced a course that others find challenging, offer to tutor other students—for a fee, of course.

As an online tutor, you can work with students all over the world, helping them understand topics they find challenging. In most tutoring sessions, students come prepared with questions. As a tutor, your job is simply to guide them through how to answer the questions.

You’ll find tutoring positions on platforms like Wyzant, Care.com, and GoPeer. If you’re open to in-person opportunities, your school might have openings at the tutoring center. That said, online tutors make an average of $26 per hour.

5. Become a Freelancer ($20 per hour)

A freelancer is someone who works for themselves, not a traditional company. Instead, they provide one-on-one services to clients in a range of specialties. If you have a knack for a certain skill—like design, writing, software development, or customer service—consider offering it to clients on a freelance basis.

While it might sound scary to work for yourself, freelancing is exciting. You’re able to set your own schedule, choose how much you charge, and work as many hours as you’d like—things most side hustles and part-time college jobs won’t get you. While the average pay for a freelancer in the US is $47 per hour, you can expect to earn around $20 an hour as a beginner.

To get started, decide which services you’d like to offer. Then, create a small portfolio to show off your work. Even if you don’t have formal work samples, you can create a few sample pieces based on prompts or projects you’d like to work on. Then, apply for freelance opportunities on platforms like Pangea and Upwork.

6. Use Cashback Apps ($100 per month)

If you shop often, this one’s for you. Cashback apps allow you to earn a bit of money back on purchases you make at certain retailers or online stores. In most cases, you’ll need to scan the receipt from your purchase into an app. If you’ve purchased a qualifying product, you’ll earn a few cents back.

While the amount you earn from cashback apps won’t make you rich, it’s quite simple to scan receipts in here and there. Plus, you can accumulate more than you think by using multiple apps at once.

7. Sell Notes from Class ($500 per semester)

StudySoup is a platform providing students with educational resources, like class notes, test preparation documents, and more. As an Elite Notetaker on the platform, you can get paid to submit your class notes.

According to reviews from previous notetakers, you’ll need high-quality notes from large classes of around 100 or more students. That said, if you’re accepted into the program, you’ll earn around $500 per course for the semester—not bad for doing something you’re already doing.

8. Become a Part-Time Social Media Manager ($17+ per hour)

Social media managers work behind-the-scenes to create content that spreads the word about a specific business or individual. It’s a common misconception that social media managers simply create cute posts, but there’s a lot more to the role.

Your tasks might include:

• Researching what competitors do on social media to craft a strategy that performs for you client
• Monitoring trends to stay on top of what content is performing at any given moment
• Planning, filming, and editing social media content
• Writing captions and other social media copy
• Analyzing the performance of content to ensure it continues to improve

If you hate doing the same tasks over and over, this might be a great fit for you. As a social media manager, you’d use both your left and right brain—a perfect mix of creative and strategic work. Plus, you’ll earn around $17 to $29 per hour.

9. Try Podcast Editing ($20 per hour)

According to Forbes, video podcasting is on the rise. This means podcast hosts are on the hunt for talent like you to edit their episodes.

As a podcast editor, you’d listen back to podcast recordings, transforming the raw recordings into polished episodes. The editing process may include removing unnecessary pauses or awkward silences, adjusting audio levels, and adding audio effects like intro and outro music.

Podcast editors earn an average of $32 per hour, but you’d likely earn around $20 per hour as a beginner. You’ll find opportunities on platforms like Upwork.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Can a Broke College Student Make Money?

College students can earn money by picking up a side hustle or part-time job. Freelancing is an ideal side hustle for college students given it’s completely flexible, allowing students to complete work around their busy schedule.

What is the Best Side Hustle for College Students?

Some of the best side hustles for college students include freelancing, selling course notes, participating in user testing, podcast editing, and using cashback apps.

Are Side Hustles Worth It?

If you want some extra cash, picking up a side hustle is absolutely worth it. While you will need to clock more hours to make money, you might only need to work a few hours to earn your desired amount.