I tried 7 trends side hustles – only one earned money actually

How many people I was involved in the hype of the Hustle side.

Wherever I saw – YouTube, TikTok, Instagram – earned thousands of dollars a month with a “simple” side building. No experience required. Just a laptop and a dream. They said that anyway.

So I decided to make you a shot. Seven of them to be precise.

Some were fun. Some were frustrating. One was so ridiculous that I was still laughing about it. But only a real, consistent money made me of all seven.

Here is what happened.

1. Dropshipping

Profit: $ 0 (but gave $ 297)

I started with dropshiping because every influencer swore online that it was easy money. You set up a shopify business, find cheap products on Aliexpress and carry out some ads. That is the pitch.

So I followed the script:

The result? Two sales. One canceled. The other led to a complaint because the shipping took three weeks.

Between the Shopify fees, the domain name and the advertising editions I landed in red. Great time.

It turns out that customers do not like to wait a month for a shining dog collar from China. Who knew it?

2. Print-on-demand (pod)

Profit: $ 3.20

This had potential, I admit. I designed a few T-shirts with funny sayings such as “introverted but ready to discuss cats” and upload them to a pod site.

They took care of pressure, shipping, everything. I just had to market it.

I posted on Instagram. Made a tictok. Even asked friends to share them. A person bought a shirt.

The Commission? $ 3.20.

The design was cool, but it is difficult to stand out in a sea of ​​tailor-made T-shirts, unless you already have a supporter or become viral. I didn't do it.

3. Online surveys

Profit: $ 8.55 (after the hours of clicking)

Yes, online surveys are real. But wow – they are painfully slow.

I have registered for three different measurement locations. Each survey paid between 0.50 and 2 US dollars. But many were “suffering, they don't qualify halfway.

After clicking through polls for a week during my lunch break, I did $ 8.55.

This is hardly enough for a sandwich. Not worth the time or mental health.

4. Sale of digital products on Etsy

Profit: $ 0 (had fun designing)

This sound clever. You create a product – like a planner or a checklist – and sell it forever without shipping.

So I developed some minimalist digital planners with Canva. Uploaded in Etsy. It added sweet descriptions such as “Deactivate your spirit in 30 days”.

Grill. Not a single sale.

It seems that digital products only sell well if they have great SEO, a niche audience or a great presence on social media. I didn't have any of it.

Nevertheless, it was fun to design them. I could try better marketing later.

5. Turn free things on Facebook Marketplace

Profit: $ 65

Now we're talking.

I started to search the “Free” section on Facebook Marketplace and picked up a few articles:

• A slightly scratched coffee table

• A dusty bike that needed some cleaning

• A number of uniform Esstühlen

After tidying them up (mainly with vinegar spray and elbow fat), I added it to a low but fair price.

Everything sold within a few days. The table brought me $ 30, the bike $ 25 and the $ 10 chairs.

Not life -changing, but it felt good. Real money. No gimmicks. Just a little cleaning and hustle and bustle.

6. Be a conceptual template manufacturer

Profit: $ 0 (but people said “cool template”)

I am a bit of a productivity nerve, so I loved the idea of ​​selling custom concept templates.

I created a dashboard “Weekly Reset” and a “Tor tracker for Zauderer” and listed it on the Gumroad.

Divided them into Reddit and in some Facebook groups. People liked them – a person even sent me to say “this is cool” – but nobody bought them.

Maybe I rated it too high. Perhaps users of terms are mostly do -it -yourselfers. Who knows. It was a fun creative outlet, but no money came in.

7. Freelance letter about Fiveverr

Profit: $ 340 (winner!) ✅

This was the only one who really worked for me.

I have registered for FIVERR, created a simple gig offer from blog posts and article letter and evaluated it for 25 US dollars for the start.

I had no formal background, but I wrote a decent example and added it to my profile. Within a week, someone ordered an article with 500 words. Then another. And another.

By the end of the month I had earned $ 340 from seven different customers.

The best thing about it? It felt like real, valuable work. I used my brain, helped companies and built up an ability. I could also increase my prices because I got better.

This page was actually sustainable.

What I learned

When I try all of this side hardening, three large lessons brought me to me:

1. If it sounds too simple, it is likely.
Many of the side books switched off rely on happiness, algorithms or massive efforts in advance, without guaranteeing the return.

2. Skills are important.
The one who worked – present – was the one who required an actual ability. It was not passive, but it was reliable.

3. Start with something that does not cost you any money.
The easiest way to kill motivation is to spend hundreds for advertisements, courses or tools before you even earn your first dollar.

Last thoughts

I am glad that I tried all seven. Although only one of them made money, the process taught me what I should concentrate on.

If you are looking for a side job that actually works, my honest advice is:

• Select some skills

• Avoid everything that is fraudulent or excessively

• And are not afraid to start small

Most of the success stories overnight took many unpaid nights.

So start where you are, with what you have and see where it leads. Who knows – you could surprise yourself.