Abby B. In this article, I’ll be sharing 15 side hustle ideas for journalists, where some are writing-related and leverages on your current writing skills. I’ll also provide recommendations of what you’ll need to start and provide more tailored options for making extra income as a journalist.
*This post may contain affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission (at no cost to you) if you sign up for a program or make a purchase using my link!
15 Best Side Hustles For Journalists
If you love using social media, you’ll be shocked to know just how much people are paid to promote brands and products. Most of us spend a lot of time scrolling our feed so what’s better than using these social platforms to promote your own content?
Reframe your mindset to produce instead of consume. You can become an influencer for the field you’re currently in or decide on something different altogether. Some popular niches are lifestyle, fashion, technology and food.
Once you’ve built a good number of followers (about 10k on Instagram), brands will start reaching out to you for sponsorships!
The video below talks about side hustles you can do for passive income, even with a full-time job. There are ratings on effort needed to set up each side hustle and how much money can be made.
2. Promote affiliate links for products you use
If you already have a considerable number of followers for your social accounts, you can make money by promoting products or services using affiliate links. It’s a great way to make passive income with social media (unlike sponsorships), you’ll earn for purchases made via your links.
Promote products or services that you personally use or relates to majority of your audience. The best affiliate program with high conversions is Amazon Associates.
However, Amazon’s commission rates are not as much as affiliate marketplaces like CJ affiliate, Clickbank, Share-a-sale and Rakuten Advertising.
| What do I need to start? | – Affiliate products or services you can promote – Social media account with growing followers |
3. Create a YouTube channel on topic of interest
If you’re into making longer videos compared to shorter ones like TikTok or IG Reels, YouTube is for you. You may not be aware but if you’re a journalist by profession, you already have a niche or topic to talk about.
Want to share personal stories outside your current field? Vlogging and sharing aspects of your daily life as a journalist can be inspiring too. People love watching these kind of videos – even more so if they can relate to it.
Make it easier for yourself to start by using what you already have e.g. an iPhone to record, and reduce decision fatigue by having your tripods and gears in place to start recording new videos.
Interesting YouTube channels on journalism:
| What do I need to start? | – A camera to record – Portable microphone for better sound – A video editing software |
Read: What I spent for my vlogging gear in first 6 months
4. Build a podcast for a niche you love
Building a podcast from scratch can take a lot of time – but editing audio files requires lesser work than editing videos for YouTube! As a journalist, having a guest to talk to for each of your podcast episode makes it even more interesting for others to listen to.
You may have great connections that are willing to share their stories on your podcast. My favorite podcaster is Jay Shetty and although he has some episodes where he talks on his own, I personally prefer the ones with special guests.
Talk about topics within the journalism field or specialized in an area you’re familiar with. Just like YouTube, you’ll need a good audio setup to work with (ideally in an enclosed area) that makes it easy for you to record.
You’ll earn based on number of downloads you get every month and from sponsorship deals.
| What do I need to start? | – Good desk microphone – Set of quality earphones – An audio editing software |
Check out: 40 best podcasts for education and learning
5. Write for your own blog or someone else’s
Prefer writing more than anything else? You can make a good side income writing for yourself or for others.
If you want to write for yourself, set up your own blog, publish your own educational content and earn from every pageview you get. Blogging anonymously is possible without showing your face or using your real name.
However, if you don’t want to go through the hassle of building a blog and need to make money today, consider becoming a freelance writer for other blogs within your niche.
By specializing in a niche, you’re able to charge a higher price compared to the usual fee – freelance writers can earn up to $100 per article depending on the topic.
This beginner freelance writing course is the one I took myself to start my writing career. It’s basic but has everything you need to start tomorrow and earn from clients all over the world. Includes how to pitch to clients for topics they can’t resist!
| What do I need to start? | – A WordPress Website if you want to blog on your own – Platform to market your services if freelancing – Passion to write for a specific niche |
Check out: How to start freelance writing and make money (the ultimate resource)
6. Sell stock photos online by learning photography
Professional photography skills is highly useful regardless what kind of business you’re in.
As a journalist, you’re probably aware that not all big websites or blogs have relevant images to use within their content. Most of the time, they will resort to purchasing quality photos on stock websites.
You’re also more aware of what kind of photos are in demand and sells best for large websites since you’re in the field. Take up a photography course to enhance your skills and get professional gears – they’ll make you passive income in no time.
Aside from selling your photos on stock websites, you can make money from it by selling as an NFT.
Stock websites you can join to start:
| What do I need to start? | – A good camera – Photo editing skills – Consistency to upload photos frequently |
7. Become a pet sitter for friends and neighbors
Not everyone’s looking for a side hustle that takes a lot of work. Sometimes, we just want something simple to do that still pays you. Pet-sitting is one of it!
If you’re a pet lover, offering pet sitting services within your neighborhood is something highly doable. For customers, it’s a cheaper more practical alternative compared to sending their pets to a vet or pet boarding center – especially if it’s just for a few hours in a weekend.
Pet sitters typically make $15-20 per visit and usually take more than 10 visits in one day. That’s easily $400-600 in a single weekend!
Alternatively, babysitting for your friends and neighbors is possible as well. People are always more inclined to send their loved ones to someone they trust.
Services you can include with pet sitting:
- Walking
- Home boarding
- Sleepovers and night care
- Training
- Bring to vet
- Basic grooming & care
- Travel trips
| What do I need to start? | – Good skills with pets e.g. dogs, cats – Tools for the service you want to offer – Socializing to get clients |
8. Buy second hand items and sell them for profit
I love to declutter every three months or so, it’s even more important now that I don’t live on my own. We tend to keep things that are not useful and no longer in use just because of memories we had with them.
But instead of storing away your treasures, why not sell it to someone else that might use it better? I made about $2000 in a year selling my unused stuffs on marketplaces like Facebook Marketplace.
You can make some serious cash on the side by buying second hand goods for cheap and selling them for a higher price. Other offline places to find these items are your local flea market – but you’ll need time and a good eye to spot something worthwhile.
If you’ve watched the video I’ve linked above, you’ll find another site that you can sell your items on.
| What do I need to start? | – An eye to spot underpriced valued goods – Skills and platform to sell online or offline – A small budget to purchase your first second hand item |
Check out: How to start reselling things as a side hustle
9. Start online tutoring for a subject you love
Do you have a good academic record in school? It doesn’t matter if you’ve graduated for a long time now, but if you know the basics of a specific subject, you can make money tutoring others.
You can also tutor juniors on topics of journalism, but I believe it’s not as high in demand compared to teaching for school kids. Most common subjects to tutor are English, Mathematics and Science – as well as languages.
Join online tutoring platforms for best exposure and create your profile around a single subject you want to offer (it’s less overwhelming this way). These platforms will get you your first few students to start with!
Some sites you can promote your online tutoring services on:
| What do I need to start? | – Patience to teach – Relevant module depending on subject you’re teaching – Platform to promote your tutoring service |
10. Offer translation services for professional papers
If you’re not looking to work with others directly for your side hustle, you may like translating papers. It’s a lucrative side hustle to get into if you have a high proficiency for a second or third language.
On sites like Upwork, you are paid on a hourly basis or per project and rates depend on the scope of work. Just like any other freelance work, you will be able to increase your pay as you gain more experience.
My close friend makes over $5000 per month translating movies and dramas as a freelancer, after quitting her corporate job. You can start small by translating professional papers or short videos in your field.
| What do I need to start? | – Good command of the primary and secondary language you wish to translate – Good writing skills and formatting – Attention to details |
11. Host workshops to teach others a skill or create paid online courses
Try analyzing your current work and lifestyle, there may be a skill that you can teach others. Skills can be as simple as how to meal prep, how to use Photoshop or how to write a report (for students).
Personally, I find that people are more inclined to purchase a course if the skill helps them make extra income – even if it’s priced higher than most others.
Make your courses a passive side hustle by recording your lessons and selling them as online courses on learning platforms. A short online course is usually priced for $30, $47 and $67. This depends on the course module and the kind of value customers are getting.
Some sites you can host online courses on:
| What do I need to start? | – A niched course idea – Well thought out module – Tools to record your lessons e.g. screen record, microphone |
Creating courses is too much work for you? Here’s a list of digital products you can make to sell on easy platforms like Etsy. I’ve made a quick guide on how to make these products too!
12. Sell digital downloads or printables on Etsy
If creating a full-fledged course sounds like too much work for you but you’re interested in the concept of selling digital goods, consider creating printables for sale on Etsy.
Aside from handmade crafts and physical products, Etsy allows for sale of digital downloads on the site. You just need to upload the final product (usually as PDF or ZIP file) when creating the listing and once a customer makes a purchase, they’ll instantly be able to download the file.
Depending on the product you’re going for, it will take some time to create it and perfect it for sales. Take other similar products as reference and create something better for the market!
| What do I need to start? | – Tool to create your printables or digital products – Digital product idea that’s in demand |
Check out: 18 digital products you can sell on Etsy
13. Proofread papers and submissions for others
Unable to speak a second or third language but have great proficiency in your primary language? Offer proofreading services instead for academic papers, online articles or even websites.
Clients prefer native speakers of the language over others and usually pay a fixed price per project as the task is pretty straightforward.
Basic proofreading usually does not involve any editing work as your clients will be fixing their work themselves – you will only highlight any mistakes. You can upsell your services by offering copyediting services as well – possible if you have more time on hand.
| What do I need to start? | – Great written and spoken command of primary (native) language – Attention to details |
14. Sell low to medium content books with Amazon KDP
Self publishing your own books is possible with Amazon KDP. While creating storybooks is not an easy thing to do and is difficult to make sales as a beginner, designing low content ones is more doable.
Low and medium content books are usually much cheaper under $15 which makes it easy for customers to purchase. Some examples of these books are children’s drawing books, notebooks and useful printables for kids.
You can design them with Canva or Photoshop, download the file as PDF and upload to Amazon for sales. Once you make a sale, Amazon will print them out and ship out to your customers. You’ll earn a commission from anywhere you are!
| What do I need to start? | – Tools to design your book – Product idea that’s in demand |
15. Start a print on demand business from home
Everyone dreams of having an ecommerce business from home but not all can sustain one. Business models like Amazon FBA takes capital to set up and dropshipping from China is more tedious than you think.
One ecommerce model I personally believe in is print on demand. It’s super simple for beginners to start and almost does not involve any money to start.
All you need to do is make designs using tools like Canva or Kittl, create an account with fulfillments like Printify or Printful and upload your designs on merchandise such as t-shirts, phone cases, tote bags etc.
Another option is to purchase ready made designs on creative marketplaces like Creative Fabrica or Envato Elements.
You can then sell these merch on Etsy or Shopify, and your chosen fulfillment will handle the printing and shipping of orders to your customers (similar to KDP).
| What do I need to start? | – Basic designing skills – A laptop to work with – An initial niche and product |
Can’t decide what product to design and sell? Check out my product guides before deciding!
- Tote bags for print on demand
- Tumblers for print on demand
- Phone cases for print on demand
- Posters for print on demand
- Leggings for print on demand
- Jewelry for print on demand
- Candles for print on demand
- Doormats for print on demand
- Hoodies for print on demand
- Pet products for print on demand
- Socks for print on demand
- Pajamas for print on demand
- Blankets for print on demand
- Baby clothes for print on demand
- Wrapping paper for print on demand
- Puzzles for print on demand
- Stickers for print on demand
- Athletic wear for print on demand
- Hats for print on demand
- Journals for print on demand
- Greeting cards for print on demand
- Mugs for print on demand
9 Jobs For Journalists From Home
- Freelance writer
- Blog writer
- Scripter
- Copywriter
- Proofreader
- Social media manager
- Virtual assistant
- Online tutor
- Podcaster
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
To start a side hustle as a writer, you’ll have to define the niche you want to write for. Specializing in a single niche will allow you to charge a higher price for your writing. Start by creating a profile on sites like Upwork for freelance writing jobs and bid for work by submitting proposals.
You can make more money as a journalist by exploring side hustles outside your full-time job. You can also take up freelance work on the side that’s related to journalism. Otherwise, consider offering services for content writing, translation, proofreading or even online tutoring.
Which Side Hustle Should I Choose?
Unsure which side hustle for journalists you should go for? Here are the top 6 things to consider when deciding which side hustle is best for you.
- How much time can you commit to it?
- Consider how much time you can set aside for your side hustle for weekdays and weekends
- What type of income are you looking for?
- Do you want to make income actively or passively while you sleep?
- What sparks interest & passion in you?
- Choose a side hustle that aligns to your personal goals and interests as it keeps you motivated
- Are you an extrovert or an introvert?
- Different side hustles requires different level of communication with the outside world, are you comfortable meeting new people every day?
- What is your current partner or friend up to that you can leverage on?
- Doing something with a friend or partner makes things easier and more manageable
- How soon do you need to make extra money?
- Not all side hustles make the same amount of money in the same pace, do you need money today or in a year’s time?
Bottom Line
There are so many side hustles you can explore for journalists within the media or writing niche (or even outside of it). Take some time to list down the skills and interests you have, and see if any side hustle ideas fit into it.
It’s easy to get burnt out when juggling too much so it’s best to assess what these side hustles mean to you. Is it a way to explore your creativity or to just make money from it?
The best way to get started is to TRY. I will always recommend building passive income streams to no longer trade time for money.
Here are 15 best side hustles for journalists:
- Become a social media influencer and get sponsored
- Promote affiliate links for products you use
- Create a YouTube channel on topics of interest
- Build a podcast for a niche you love
- Write for your own blog or someone else’s
- Sell stock photos online by learning photography
- Become a pet sitter for friends and neighbors
- Buy second hand items and sell them for profit
- Start online tutoring for a subject you love
- Offer translation services for professional papers
- Host workshops to teach others a skill or create paid online courses
- Sell digital downloads or printables on Etsy
- Proofread papers and submissions for others
- Sell low to medium content books with Amazon KDP
- Start a print on demand business from home
I’m not one to brag, but blogging has changed my life. I’ve been able to earn an income passively while on a coffee date and traveling with my family. With everything, it takes time to learn and not an overnight success – to speed things up, get yourself a blogging coach before starting.
These are my blogging resources to help you out:
- Step-by-step guide how to start blogging in your free time
- Why you need a blogging coach right from the start
- Worried of exposing yourself? You can blog anonymously
Photo by Ron Lach
