25 Best Side Hustles Ideas in New Zealand [2024]
Money seems to be never enough, if you want to earn more in addition to your day job, getting a side hustle is a great option. In fact, 12% of all taxpayers in New Zealand have a second job, according to the survey made by Sorted. However, creating a second income doesn’t necessarily mean getting a second job. This article shows you ways how to earn more in alternative ways.
Best ideas for additional income in New Zealand in 2023:
- Online surveys
- Rent a room in your house
- Offer Airbnb experiences
- Build a sleepout and rent it out
- Airbnb a room in your house
- Dog walking
- Packing or picking
- Part-time jobs
- Deliver food
- Casual catering or waitstaff work
- Get a casual job
- Buy and resell on Trade Me
- Become Uber driver
- Start a blog
- Start a YouTube channel
- Find a job on Fiverr or Upwork
- Teach English online
- Get a job as a tutor
- Create and sell your own goods and produce
- Start an e-commerce or dropshipping business
- Manage social media
- Help people moving
- Become a real estate agent on a side
- Become a babysitter
- Invest or trade stocks
The great thing about side hustles is that you don’t need crazy investments to get started, most of them don’t require any initial capital but willingness to work. How much can you earn with a side hustle? Well, it ranges widely, but if you work for an employer or a client, you can expect at least $22.70 per hour since it’s the current minimum wage, and employers can’t pay you less than that.
Here are our top ways to earn more money in New Zealand in 2023.
1. Online surveys
Online surveys is an old-school way of making money on the side, but it still works! Plenty of companies offer the public to participate in surveys, especially when it comes to testing products and services.
You can sign up with platforms that collect all different surveys, with plenty to choose from! You opt for New Zealand focus websites or international ones. In New Zealand, platforms like Ipsos iSay, Prime Research, and Nielsen New Zealand are among the largest ones.
In the US and other large markets, Swagbucks, Branded Surveys, and Survey Junkie are leaders.
Keep in mind that filling out surveys won’t make you nearly as much as a part-time job; you can expect a maximum of a few hundred bucks per month.
Below are the best online surveys websites in New Zealand:
1. Ipsos iSay
Ipsos i-Say is a major company that is involved in market research. They conduct more than 70 million interviews per year, hence, there is plenty of work for you. Moreover, their survey questionnaires come from various industries, such as entertainment, advertising, etc.
2. Nielsen New Zealand
Nielsen is one of the largest players when it comes to audience measurement, data, and analytics. They conduct surveys that you can participate in.
3. Opinion World
Opinion World is an online survey panel with over 1,5 million people participating. The main idea is you share your opinion and get paid for it! They offer a wide variety of jobs, e.g., surveys, product tests, watching ads, and even participating in activities throughout New Zealand.
Potential earnings you can expect with online surveys are pretty low – up to $200 per month (but the effort is low, too!).
2. Rent a room in your house
That’s the easiest and most common way New Zealanders can make money on the side. Renting a room to a student, for example, is common in cities with large universities where thousands of newcomers are looking for a place to live each year.
Depending on the size of the room and location, you can make between $150 to $400 per week.
Nonetheless, it’s essential to consider the potential drawbacks, such as the need to share your space with a stranger, potential conflicts with your tenant, and the added responsibility of being a landlord.
3. Build a sleepout and rent it out
If you don’t have any spare room in your house, you can build a stand-alone sleepout. It’s a cost-effective way to add a sleeping place to your existing property. Sleepouts can also be great as Airbnbs, as you can charge a higher rate than a long-term rental. Overnight rent might also be more suitable for sleepouts since they usually don’t provide much room anyway.
4. Airbnb a room in your house
In recent years, Airbnb has become an incredible income source for Kiwis willing to put work in. If you have room to spare or even an additional property, renting it out via Airbnb can be a lucrative money-making mechanism.
Airbnb is a preferred way to rent short-term and long-term accommodations in New Zealand. If you live in one of the main cities, your property is already in high demand.
By renting a room on Airbnb, you can charge anything between $45 and $100 per night, depending on the room. If a room has a private en-suite bathroom or even kitchen facilities, you can charge higher rates.
If occupancy is 100% throughout the month, your monthly revenue will be between $1,350 and $3,000. Not too shabby for a room!
Don’t forget about Airbnb fees which are set to 3% of the booking. Guests also pay a service fee of 14%, which goes straight to Airbnb but adds up to your total rate per night.
5. Offer Airbnb experiences
You might not know that, but Airbnb isn’t only for renting out a place to stay. It’s also a great way to get involved with locals and create some unique memories while visiting the location.
If you don’t have a spare place to rent out on Airbnb, you can offer people Airbnb Experiences. This way, you can share some local places, tips, and secrets while making a side income.
Some of the Airbnb experiences you can offer in New Zealand include cooking classes, hikes, bar hopping, bar tours, sightseeing tours, and many more. Regarding the revenue, you can price experiences as you wish, but it should be reasonable. For instance, a cooking class would sell for $50 – $100, while bar hopping might cost less.
6. Dog walking
Busy working people often look for dog walkers to help manage their pet’s demands. If you have spare hours between 9 am and 5 pm, you can offer dog walking services even without experience.
Particular companies hire dog walkers that you might want to look into, such as Pet Sitters NZ. Moreover, you can post your job ad on websites that match dog walkers and pet owners, like Pawshake.
If you work for a company, you can expect to get about $23 to $30 per hour for walking a dog in New Zealand. If you work with pet owners directly, you might be able to walk several dogs at the same time and hence get at least a double hourly rate.
7. Packing or picking
New Zealand has a serious shortage of workers where manual labor is always high on jobs but low on applicants. You can easily get a side hustle as a fruit picker which is usually a seasonal job but pays very decently. Hence, if you want to add a solid amount to your savings over a short period of time, picking jobs are high on the list.
Kiwi pickers can earn as much as $60 per hour! But the average pay lies between $22,7 and $30 per hour.
At the moment, there are about 198 jobs across the country in fruit picking alone. You can also contact companies who specialize in picking, such as Picknz.
In addition, manufacturers and other companies are always on the lookout for people to do manual packing. Also, fruit producers have plenty of packing jobs, kiwis have to be packed in the end!
8. Part-time jobs
Besides seasonal options, there are plenty plethora of part-time jobs available. Whether you are available on weekends, mornings, or evenings, there are options. Part-time jobs provide money, a social atmosphere, and potentially some knowledge about the industry or job.
The best part about many part-time jobs is flexible working hours and high minimum wage, so even if you earn the least, it’s still pretty substantial.
At the moment of writing, there are 2,168 part-time job listings across New Zealand. You can choose from various industries and positions. Most companies pay weekly, so you will get your cash flow going.
Moreover, a part-time job can also lead you to a full-time job if you desire to. Some of the easiest and casual part-time jobs to get include:
- Cafe staff – waiter, barista
- Delivery man
- Salesman in retail
- Warehouse staff
- Factory hand
- Retail assistant
- Cleaning
Read our guide on NZ salaries, so you know how much you should get.
9. Deliver food
As with grocery delivery, food delivery has become increasingly popular over the past couple of years. Food delivery is an easy-to-start side hustle, with a ton of apps like Uber Eats, DoorDash, Delivereasy, and Menulog where you can sign up to become a driver.
If you decide to go with Uber Eats, your background will be checked in the application stage. If everything goes well, Uber Eats will give you a bicycle to deliver orders if you wish to work on a bike (the eco and healthy way). Alternatively, you can fulfill orders by using a car, scooter, or motorbike.
The data from 2019 have shown that the average wage of the Uber Eats delivery driver is $21.69 per hour.
10. Casual catering or waitstaff work
If you’re in a big city or a regional area that hosts lots of events, you might be able to find casual jobs for catering assistants and waiters. This work is usually available on the weekends and evenings, so it’s easy to combine with your day job. If you have an experience in hospitality, it will help to land a better gig.
It’s a good idea to register with agencies like Bravo Hospitality and Function Staff that are hiring waitstaff.
11. Get a casual job
A casual job is a classic way to make money on the side. It can be anything from a delivery guy, barista, or mover to a construction worker.
Besides looking for a job on job boards, you can get a casual geek via on-demand staffing platforms like Sidekicker. They provide vacancies in hospitality, events, and exhibitions, business support, warehouse and logistics, and promotions.
So far, about 15,000 have got a temporary job on their website. With Sidekicker, you can choose how many hours you want to work, from as little as 3 or 40 hours a week.
Another massive benefit of Sidekicks is that they hire you as an employee and not as a contractor. And they ensure you are paid fairly by providing transparency over rates.
Keep in mind that the application process might be a bit tedious. First, you will need to apply online, then get through an interview, get into onboarding, apply for jobs you are interested in, and lastly, get to work!
12. Buy and resell on Trade Me
Trade Me is the largest marketplace in New Zealand, where you can buy and sell everything. Websites like Trade Me and Facebook Marketplace give you instant access to an entire market of millions of thousands of people.
That said, flipping, e.g., reselling items on marketplaces, requires some investment and involves higher risk. You don’t know if someone buys the item at the set price. The demand might not be there.
Yet people do it successfully. Some source products from China and make a profit by selling on the NZ market. Some popular items are phone chargers, cases, battery packs, and adaptors. Besides Trade Me, you can resell items on Etsy or Facebook Marketplace, the latter is especially popular in New Zealand.
13. Become an Uber driver
Driving for Uber or Zoomy is one of the most common ways to make an additional or even a full-time income.
Uber and Zoomy match drivers with passengers via the app. The benefit of being a driver is a flexible schedule which you can set yourself, and the pay is also decent. The drawback is that you will use your own vehicle, hence, it will wear down more quickly, plus all the dirt people bring with them.
How much can you make driving Uber? In NZ, most drivers earn around $25/hour after the expenses, according to Rideshareconsultants. Also, drivers in Auckland tend to make more than drivers in smaller cities due to the higher demand.
14. Start a blog
Starting a blog is a not get quick rich scheme; you won’t see money in the first months of getting started. Yet after about one year, returns can be significant. The trick with blogging is knowing what you are doing. No one makes money online by writing what they have done today and how they love their mum.
That said, if you have an idea about blogging or are willing to take courses, it’s a good way to make money on the side and even replace your full-time job.
The main idea of blogging is to build a website and start generating traffic from Google. After that, you can monetize this traffic with advertising and affiliates.
15. Start a YouTube channel
Starting a YouTube channel might not be something you will think of when considering a side hustle, but it truly can be a great source of income! You will need to find a topic to make videos about, where you preferably have some interest, knowledge, and expertise.
You can have various income sources on YouTube, including advertising, sponsorships, and affiliate marketing.
16. Find a job on Fiverr or Upwork
Fiverr and Upwork are the two best platforms to find a job as a freelancer. Freelancing is a fantastic side hustle if you have the right skills and experience. Moreover, your earning potential with freelance is much higher than with casual jobs. On platforms like Upwork, you can work with clients from around the world, set your rate and decide which projects to take on.
Most gigs in freelancing are online based, e.g., software programming, writing code, social media management, content writing, video editing, web design, research, and much more. If you are curious, register on Upwork and start browsing through jobs to see what’s out there.
Your potential income as a freelancer depends on several factors, including:
- skills
- reviews
- industry
- experience
- project type
At the start of the career, you can expect anything from $20 to $40 per hour. Yet, many jobs are project-based, e.g., you get $500 for the entire project, and it’s up to you how long it takes (but you must meet the deadline).
The US is the best market to work as a freelancer. Read this article on how to work for a US company from New Zealand.
17. Teach English online
If you are a New Zealander or a native English speaker, for that matter, you can teach English online! In some cases, you don’t need an official license or certificate to work as an English teacher or tutor, but some companies might require you to have one.
TESOL/TEFL certificates are the most common ones.
The most popular companies that will allow you to teach English online are:
- English First (EF)
- Preply
- Lingoda
- XploreAsia
The pay for English teachers can vary greatly depending on the company and country you teach in. Generally, expect an hourly rate from $15 to $30 when teaching online, e.g. on Preply.
18. Get a job as a tutor
Besides teaching English, you can teach almost anything if you are knowledgeable in this area. It’s possible by becoming a tutor and teaching people online or in person. Assuming you are skilled in a particular academic or practical field, you might offer private tutoring to students.
There are websites specializing in such jobs, such as clueylearning.co.nz and superprof.co.nz where you can register or post a job. For international tutoring gigs, check out sites like Cambly, TutorOcean, Preply, and Learn to Be.
The pay is also decent; you can expect to earn around $35 to $50 per hour, depending on your skills.
19. Create and sell your own goods and produce
Do you have a hobby that involves crafting handmade goods? Selling them on a farmer’s market or online can bring you a good side income! If you have livestock in your household, you can easily make custom-made animal products and sell them on weekend markets or even build a small shopping site and Facebook group around it. That is also related to all the produce, including veggies and fruits.
On the other hand, if you are a keen knitter, painter, or carpenter, you can embrace your creativity and come up with some masterpieces to sell to the public. This can be done on marketplaces like Trade Me and Facebook Marketplace or your local market.
20. Start an e-commerce or dropshipping business
Despite the small New Zealand market, e-commerce or dropshipping businesses are viable side hustles with the potential to replace your day job. As more and more people shop online, it’s never have been easier to sell on the internet.
Amazon is less prevalent in New Zealand, yet you can look into eBay and Shopify to find opportunities for trading. Choosing the right product to sell is the most crucial part of the e-commerce or dropshipping business. Therefore, invest time in the proper market research to find a niche product with enough demand.
What’s the difference between dropshipping and e-commerce? Dropshipping is simpler. Here a third party manufactures and ships products for you. You only need to be responsible for sales, e.g., on your store or other platforms like Shopify or eBay. Products are only shipped when they’re purchased, making it a low-risk business model.
E-commerce, on the other hand, requires more investment, work, and commitment. In e-commerce, a business owner handles all processes from sourcing products, selling in the store, fulfilling orders, shipping, and handling after-sales. Therefore, you are the owner of the product, and you also need to have a warehouse and packaging facility or use someone’s else.
21. Manage social media
Nowadays, most NZ companies, contractors, and solopreneurs have social media accounts. It’s almost expected to have at least Instagram and Facebook accounts, and if you are more adventurous, YouTube follows. In fact, social networks are now the main marketing channels for many businesses.
Therefore, there are plenty of part-time or full-time jobs around social media and its management. If you have an idea of how to build and maintain a profile on one of the following:
- YouTube
- TikTok
You stand a good chance of getting a great side gig and helping someone to achieve more reach! If you come across an individual or a company that you would like to help with social media, you can just send them a message and propose improvements you could make. The magic will happen from there.
The amount you can charge or get paid depends on your skills and experience. For a full-time position, it’s between $50,000 and $80,000 per year or between $30 to $40 per hour. Check out over 380 social media management jobs in NZ.
22. Help people moving
New Zealanders are constantly moving – from house to house, city to city, and even overseas. Therefore, moving and removal companies, as well as individual movers are always in high demand – it’s very easy to land a job as a helper or a mover. The job can also involve packing and shipping household items and physically moving them from one place to another.
Check out Wisemove, an NZ company that hires moves for all sorts of jobs. Here you can sign-up with them as a driver.
Moving companies will pay you an hourly wage between $23 to $32. It’s a great and profitable way to have a weekend workout! Obviously, this side hustle is more suitable for males since lifting couches isn’t something you want to do as a girl.
23. Become a real estate agent on a side
New Zealanders are constantly buying and selling homes; hence real estate agents always have a job. They are professionals who assist sellers in marketing and selling properties. But real estate agents also work with buyers to ensure a smooth process.
Becoming a real estate agent is more a career in itself rather than a side hustle, but you can work part-time too. Typical skill set includes good management skills, organization skills, customer service, and handling paperwork. You also need to be flexible, so a vehicle and travel are required.
To become a real estate salesperson in New Zealand, you would need to get a New Zealand Certificate in Real Estate and a salesperson’s license from the Real Estate Authority. Therefore, you don’t necessarily need a college degree for this job, but this path is also viable.
Getting a job as a real estate agent is the next step in your career and requires further education, such as Diploma in Business. Read more here.
The pros of working as a real estate agent include earning commission from sales to rump up your income, flexibility, and setting your own working hours.
Agents are usually paid on commission which is a percentage of the house price. An average salary of a real estate agent in New Zealand is between $85,000 to $95,000 per year.
24. Become a babysitter
Alright, the last side hustle on our list that is accessible to everyone is working as a babysitter. Full-time workers with children often seek a flexible person to assist them with childcare. It can be occasionally or on a regular basis.
Babysitting is common among students as it’s a relatively easy job to do that doesn’t require experience & education. As you might guess, babysitting jobs are more in-demand on weekends and Fridays, when parents want to relax without their children.
Of course, you should like children and have a high tolerance for them. If you have an experience with kids, it will help tremendously.
Moreover, some parents might require a police check if they are rigorous. To find a job as a babysitter, you can either create a profile on websites such as Babysits or browse jobs on regular job boards like Seek.co.nz and SJS dedicated to student jobs. The average pay for babysitting is from $23 to $25 per hour.
25. Invest or trade stocks
Investing is an excellent way to build wealth over time and is less suitable for generating extra cash, but it can be done. There are several ways you can make money by investing:
- Invest in stocks of individual companies
- Invest in shares
- Invest in bonds
- Invest in ETSs (mutual funds)
- Invest in cryptocurrencies
- Invest in trusts
- Invest in options and other derivatives
But how do you make money, though? You can make money by selling your investments when their value is higher than you have bought them at. This is more common when you buy stocks, shares, ETSs, and cryptocurrencies. Investors also make money if they buy stocks that pay dividends. Dividends are usually paid regularly, e.g., monthly or quarterly.
In New Zealand, there are several great investment websites and apps where you can get started. Hatch Invest, Sharesies, and Tiger Brokers are at the top of the list. Hatch is the best investing platform in NZ. Sign up with my link and get $10.
Start by researching companies with high potential and invest slowly; as the value of your assets grows, you can make money by selling your shares or receiving dividends (if the company offers them).
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