💡 Side Hustle Ideas: Start a Business for Less Than $100
Are you looking for a way to make some extra money on the side? Maybe you want to start your own business, but you don't have a lot of money to invest upfront. Well, you're in luck! In this article, we'll give you a bunch of side hustle ideas that you can start for less than $100. These ideas are inspired by our own experiences and the experiences of others who have successfully started their own businesses with practically no money at all. So, if you're ready to take the leap and start your own side hustle, keep reading!
🎨 Sell Products with Print on Demand
The first business idea that we want to present to you is to sell products with print on demand. This was actually the first business that our kids started when they were only 9 and 11 years old. They sold entrepreneurship t-shirts for kids, and the beauty of print on demand is that there are practically zero upfront costs and you don't have to carry inventory. You create a design that can go on t-shirts, bags, mugs, practically anything that you can think of, and when an order comes in, it is electronically sent to your print on demand provider who prints and ships the product to the customer. You only have to pay the supplier when an order comes in, and you get to keep the difference.
Now, even though our kids chose to launch their own website to sell the print on demand products over at kidencharge.com, a website is not necessary. You can list all of your print on demand products on Etsy, where they will automatically be fulfilled when an order comes in. Right now, our favorite print on demand companies are Printful, Printify, CustomCat, and Gelato. They are all free to join, and you can get started right away.
If you do plan on giving print on demand a try, here's a quick tip: selling t-shirts is popular but probably among the lowest margin products that you can sell. To make more money, take a look at customized blankets, pillows, and other home goods.
💍 Sell Handmade Jewelry
Selling jewelry is a great way to make money online because jewelry is light and easy to ship, the margins are extremely high at 70% plus, and the business is easy to scale. You can reach customers anywhere in the world, you aren't restricted by your business location, and the cost of storage and transportation is minimal.
Our daughter has always been into arts and crafts and she loves wearing jewelry. So, one Christmas, we bought her a jewelry making kit from Amazon for about $50, and she was hooked. When her friends started commenting on her jewelry, she decided to start a business over at Reena Be selling her own pieces.
Right now, there are two students in our Create a Profitable Online Store course that we featured on our podcast that run online jewelry businesses making six and seven figures in sales respectively. Studi C is a seven-figure business run by Julia Viigerskaya where she sells her own custom design jewelry, bags, and accessories. She generates most of her sales via TikTok and Instagram, where she's developed a cult following for her products. My other student is Angela Lee, who runs a multiple six-figure brand selling her own custom-made jewelry over at Aura Jewelry. Angela designs and sources her pieces from all over the world and generates most of her sales via social media.
If you don't want to launch your own website, there are thousands of successful jewelry sellers on Etsy, which is where our daughter currently lists her jewelry. The best places to sell jewelry online for beginners are Etsy, Amazon Handmade, eBay, and Shopify. However, experienced sellers can also list their jewelry on Ruby Lane and Worthy.
📱 Sell Used Cell Phones and Other Electronics
Another business idea that you can start for very little money is to sell used cell phones and other electronics. This is actually a business that I used to run before I started my online store over at bumblebeelens.com. I would go on Craigslist and specifically look for people who were moving or just trying to liquidate their stuff. Back in the day, I wrote a little script that scraped Craigslist to tell me when new listings popped up so I could be the first to respond to the offer. Anyway, I would purchase used electronics in bulk, refurbish them, and then resell them on eBay for a profit. At the height of my business, I was generating an extra $1,500 a month, and this business was actually a stepping stone towards starting my own online store.
You can easily start this business and get your feet wet by selling your old, unused electronics on eBay. Here are just some tips on how to get top dollar for your products:
- If you can sell a working and fully packaged product, you'll make significantly more money than selling a functional but unboxed product by itself.
- If you buy a box for a popular product, you can charge a lot more. For example, let's say I want to sell a bunch of used Apple Watches. By performing a quick search on eBay, I can buy five empty Apple Watch boxes for $35. $7 for an empty box might sound high, but a boxed Apple Watch commands a 25% premium in resale value.
- Bundle your products together. For example, sometimes selling a used cell phone case by itself can be difficult, but if you bundle a used cell phone with a phone case, you can charge more money and increase your average order value.
- Including accessories like chargers and instruction manuals will increase your asking price as well. Accessories can be easily located on eBay and can make a huge difference in your asking price.
Right now, the best places to buy electronics for resale are Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, eBay, or Swappa.
🪑 Refurbish and Sell Furniture
This next side hustle is one that I recently discovered through a friend who makes a living reselling shoes online. If you enjoy fixing up furniture, you can find old furniture in good condition, clean and repair it, take great photos, and then create a listing on Facebook Marketplace, OfferUp, Letgo, or Buku.
One of my colleagues makes six figures running this type of business in the Bay Area where I live. During the pandemic, no one was coming to work, and lots of businesses decided to end their leases on their office buildings. In order to move out, they had to liquidate millions of dollars worth of furniture in perfect condition. So, my buddy bought all of it up for pennies on the dollar and then fixed them up for resale. On a smaller scale, you can look on Craigslist for people who are moving out and usually find super cheap furniture. The best pieces to get are made out of wood. With a little sanding and paint, you can sell wood furniture like new for lots of money.
Keep in mind that it's best to sell heavy furniture locally because the shipping rate can be pretty expensive depending on the weight and the location of the buyer.
👟 Start a Sneaker Reselling Business
This next side hustle idea is fun, rewarding, and lucrative, especially if you enjoy collecting sneakers. If you're a sneakerhead looking to turn your love for kicks into a profitable venture, starting a sneaker reselling business is a fantastic idea.
The process of sneaker reselling is pretty simple. You scout for both new and used sneakers with a substantial resale value, secure them at competitive prices, and then sell them at a healthy profit. In order to succeed in this type of business, you must have a solid understanding of how much different shoes are worth. So, start by signing up for emails from sneaker sites like Hypebeast, Sneaker News, and Just Fresh Kicks for connecting with other like-minded enthusiasts and staying in the loop. Join the Reddit community r/Sneakers.
Then, you must find a reliable source that sells legit merchandise. Major releases from brands like Nike and Adidas often occur through dedicated websites or apps such as Nike SNKRS and Adidas's Confirmed app. You can also find great deals at thrift stores, Facebook groups, resellers, and conferences like Sneaker Con.
To find out how much your sneakers are worth, StockX provides pre-sale data for upcoming sneaker releases, allowing you to gauge the prices people are willing to pay for a pair before it officially hits the market. If you have older sneakers, you can check their historical pricing over a 12-month period over on StockX, and there you'll find other key data such as the number of sales, average sale price, and volatility percentage below the pricing graph.
After you've cleaned up and refurbished your sneakers, you can then sell them on popular marketplaces like GOAT, eBay, and StockX.
📚 Sell an Online Course
This next side hustle idea carries margins that are 90% plus and only requires your cell phone to get started. Right now, our daughter is working on a digital course that she plans to sell to other teenagers, teaching them how to sell on Etsy. The beauty of selling an online course is that it can be taught entirely online and can be a great source of passive income. There's no delivery costs since they are digital products, there's no inventory to maintain, and very few logistical issues to deal with. The best part is that you don't need much money to film your course. Our daughter is filming a bunch of her lessons straight from her phone and using a program called Camtasia to edit her videos.
To sell and distribute her course, she's using a platform called Teachable, which is 100% free. You can upload your entire course to the platform, and Teachable takes care of hosting and collecting payment.
📦 Buy Amazon Return Pallets
This next side hustle idea is super fun, mysterious, and lucrative. Those of you who shop on Amazon know that the return policy is extremely lenient, but have you ever wondered what happens to all that return merchandise? Well, it turns out that all unclaimed returns are sold by Amazon to liquidators and resellers at a discounted price. You can purchase these returns in bulk at super low prices by buying them by the pallet. These pallets are called Amazon return pallets and are a treasure trove of merchandise. All you have to do is refurbish and fix up the merchandise and sell it like new on eBay or even back on Amazon itself.
For example, here's a pallet that's valued at $2,066 that is going for only $92. In this pallet are products from named brands like Fisher-Price, Plow and Hearth, and Tumi. Buying Amazon returns is almost always a gamble, but if you bid less than 20% off of MSRP, you have a good chance of making a profit depending on how much time you spend refurbishing your products.
If you end up bidding and winning an auction, you can arrange to have the pallet shipped directly to your warehouse. But it generally makes more economic sense to look for Amazon liquidations in your geographic area.
🎟️ Sell Unused Coupons
This final side hustle idea came to me when I saw my wife buy a bunch of these on eBay for the holiday season, and I had no idea that this was a thing. If you enjoy collecting coupons, you can sell your unused coupons on online marketplaces and forums. You can find coupons in newspapers, magazines, grocery store websites, and retailers, and then sell them on eBay. But just be aware of the rules. For example, you can only list a maximum of 25 coupons worth $100 in 30 days. The key to making a profit by selling coupons is by finding coupons with a high dollar value amount.
Overall, if you're struggling to decide what product to sell, here's just a couple of things to remember: there are ideas everywhere, and if you enjoy these ideas, then make sure you watch this video here for more million-dollar ideas for the taking.
Pros and Cons
- Pros: All of these side hustle ideas can be started for less than $100, and some of them carry margins that are 90% plus. They are all relatively easy to start, and you can work on them in your spare time.
- Cons: Some of these side hustles require a lot of time and effort to get started, and there is always a risk involved when starting any business.
Highlights
- Sell products with print on demand
- Sell handmade jewelry
- Sell used cell phones and other electronics
- Refurbish and sell furniture
- Start a sneaker reselling business
- Sell an online course
- Buy Amazon return pallets
- Sell unused coupons
FAQ
Q: How much money can I make with these side hustles?
A: It depends on how much time and effort you put into them. Some of these side hustles carry margins that are 90% plus, while others require more time and effort to get started.
Q: Do I need any special skills to start these side hustles?
A: No, you don't need any special skills to start these side hustles. All of them can be learned with a little bit of research and practice.
Q: How much money do I need to start these side hustles?
A: Most of these side hustles can be started for less than $100, and some of them require no upfront costs at all.
Q: Are these side hustles legal?
A: Yes, all of these side hustles are legal as long as you follow the rules and regulations in your area.
Resources
- Printful
- Printify
- CustomCat
- Gelato
- Etsy
- Amazon Handmade
- eBay
- Shopify
- Ruby Lane
- Worthy
- StockX
- Teachable
- Facebook Marketplace
- Craigslist
- Swappa
- BCK Bulk Liquidation
- Direct Liquidation
- 888 Lots
- Blue Lots
- Box Fox
