With the cost of living rising over the last year, many Australians are finding ways to earn more to keep up with expenses. Side hustles can be a useful way to earn a second income.
What are the most popular sources of additional incomes?
Finder's Consumer Sentiment Tracker shows that the 2 most popular ways Australians are earning a second income is by selling pre-owned goods and collecting recyclable cans and bottles. Just under half of Aussies report doing something to earn extra cash. Of that group, almost 1 in 10 report using their homes to earn money, with 9% reporting they rent their house or a spare room and 5% renting out the garage.
How are Australians earning a second income?
How are Australians earning a second income?
Q7.2 - Do you earn money from any of the following activities? Please select all...
Count
Collecting recyclable cans and bottles
36
Selling pre-owned goods
34
Making & selling goods
14
Getting paid for a hobby
11
Dog walking
9
Renting out a room/ your home
9
Mystery shopper
9
Food delivery
9
Tutoring
8
Freelancing on the side (Airtasker)
8
Influencer or brand ambassador
6
Modelling/extras work
5
Renting out a garage
5
Ride-share driver
4
Selling pre-owned goods is more popular with younger Australians with 37% of millennials and 34% of gen Z using it to make extra money compared with only 30% of baby boomers. On the other hand, collecting recyclable cans and bottles is far more popular with older generations 48% of gen X doing it as opposed to only 18% of gen Z.
The data also shows that in any given month in the first three quarters of 2023, selling pre-owned goods was the most lucrative, with Aussies making on average $897.
How many people hold a second job?
However, using the assets a person already owns is limited by the fact the person had to buy those things to begin with. A more steady form of second income is a second job. ABS data shows more Australians than ever have resorted to finding a second source of income through a second job. The proportion of employed people with a second job has risen to a record high of 6.7%.
Proportion of employed people with a second job
Proportion of employed people with a second job
Quarter
Proportion of employed people with a second job
Sep-1994
5.3
Dec-1994
5.3
Mar-1995
5.5
Jun-1995
5.4
Sep-1995
5.8
Dec-1995
5.7
Mar-1996
5.6
Jun-1996
5.5
Sep-1996
5.4
Dec-1996
5.4
Mar-1997
5.2
Jun-1997
5.4
Sep-1997
5.2
Dec-1997
5.3
Mar-1998
5.4
Jun-1998
5.4
Sep-1998
5.2
Dec-1998
5.0
Mar-1999
5.6
Jun-1999
5.5
Sep-1999
5.8
Dec-1999
5.6
Mar-2000
5.4
Jun-2000
5.3
Sep-2000
5.4
Dec-2000
5.5
Mar-2001
5.5
Jun-2001
6.0
Sep-2001
5.5
Dec-2001
5.7
Mar-2002
5.5
Jun-2002
5.6
Sep-2002
5.7
Dec-2002
5.8
Mar-2003
5.7
Jun-2003
5.6
Sep-2003
5.6
Dec-2003
5.5
Mar-2004
5.8
Jun-2004
6.0
Sep-2004
5.9
Dec-2004
5.8
Mar-2005
5.8
Jun-2005
5.9
Sep-2005
5.6
Dec-2005
5.8
Mar-2006
5.7
Jun-2006
5.5
Sep-2006
5.4
Dec-2006
5.4
Mar-2007
5.4
Jun-2007
5.6
Sep-2007
5.6
Dec-2007
5.6
Mar-2008
5.5
Jun-2008
5.3
Sep-2008
5.5
Dec-2008
5.5
Mar-2009
5.7
Jun-2009
5.6
Sep-2009
5.6
Dec-2009
5.7
Mar-2010
5.7
Jun-2010
5.6
Sep-2010
5.5
Dec-2010
5.5
Mar-2011
5.2
Jun-2011
5.5
Sep-2011
5.4
Dec-2011
5.3
Mar-2012
5.3
Jun-2012
5.3
Sep-2012
5.2
Dec-2012
5.3
Mar-2013
5.4
Jun-2013
5.4
Sep-2013
5.6
Dec-2013
5.3
Mar-2014
5.3
Jun-2014
5.2
Sep-2014
5.2
Dec-2014
5.4
Mar-2015
5.5
Jun-2015
5.7
Sep-2015
5.5
Dec-2015
5.8
Mar-2016
5.7
Jun-2016
5.6
Sep-2016
5.6
Dec-2016
5.5
Mar-2017
5.4
Jun-2017
5.6
Sep-2017
5.6
Dec-2017
5.5
Mar-2018
5.7
Jun-2018
5.7
Sep-2018
5.7
Dec-2018
6.0
Mar-2019
5.9
Jun-2019
5.7
Sep-2019
5.9
Dec-2019
5.8
Mar-2020
5.9
Jun-2020
5.1
Sep-2020
5.7
Dec-2020
6.0
Mar-2021
6.0
Jun-2021
6.2
Sep-2021
5.9
Dec-2021
6.3
Mar-2022
6.3
Jun-2022
6.4
Sep-2022
6.5
Dec-2022
6.6
Mar-2023
6.6
Jun-2023
6.7
Admin workers and those in agriculture, forestry and fishing are the most likely to have a second job, with 9.4% and 9.3% of the workforce holding 2 jobs at the same time. Workers in the arts industry are not far behind with 8.8% holding a second job.
Proportion of people with a second job by industry of main employment
Proportion of people with a second job by industry of main employment
Industry
Rate of multiple jobs
Administrative and support services
9.4
Agriculture, forestry and fishing
9.3
Arts and recreation services
8.8
Accommodation and food services
7.8
Healthcare and social assistance
7.7
Education and training
7.0
Retail trade
5.9
Rental, hiring and real estate services
5.7
Construction
5.6
Other services
5.4
Mining
5.4
Public administration and safety
5.4
Information media and telecommunications
5.3
Transport, postal and warehousing
5.1
Professional, scientific and technical services
5.0
Manufacturing
4.3
Financial and insurance services
4.2
Wholesale trade
4.2
Electricity, gas, water and waste services
3.6
What sorts of second jobs are people taking on?
Finder's data shows that of those engaging in job-related side hustles, most people either prefer earning money through doing things they enjoy or a job where they can be their own boss. 22% of those with a side hustle that is a job have one that involves their hobby and 27% involve making and selling things online.
16% of those with a side hustling job reported working as food delivery drivers and 15% as tutors – both jobs where people can largely determine their own hours.
What kind of second jobs are Australians doing?
What kind of second jobs are Australians doing?
Q7.2 - Do you earn money from any of the following activities? Please select all...
Count
Making & selling goods
27
Getting paid for a hobby
22
Dog walking
17
Mystery shopper
17
Food delivery
16
Collecting recyclable cans and bottles
16
Tutoring
15
Freelancing on the side (Airtasker)
15
Being an influencer/brand ambassador
11
Modelling/extras work
10
Ride-share driver
8
Interestingly, there appears to be a gender divide to second jobs. 25% of men report getting paid to do a hobby compared to 18% of women. However, 31% of women report making and selling things online, compared to only 21% of men.
When it comes to the side hustles that pay the most, selling pre-owned goods tops the list, with Aussies making $897 per month on average. Renting out a room comes in second at $667 per month.
How much are Australians making per month in their side hustles?
How much are Australians making per month in their side hustles?
Saranga Sudarshan is an experienced analyst specialising in consumer finance research, data analysis and market intelligence. Formerly a research analyst at Frost & Sullivan, he holds a PhD in political philosophy from the University of St Andrews, as well as a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Philosophy from the University of Sydney. Saranga was an Analyst at Finder from 2022 to 2024.
See full bio
Saranga's expertise
Saranga
has written
20
Finder guides across topics including:
Can AI effectively manage risk and deliver returns in real-world markets? To answer this question, we have deployed seven of the most advanced AI platforms — ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, DeepSeek, Perplexity, Meta AI and Grok — to act as portfolio managers.
Finder's Property Investment Index predicts price growth in each suburb across Australia's major cities. Find out how your suburb stacks up.
Important information about this website
Finder is a comparison service. We do not compare every product or every provider in the market.
We make money through commercial arrangements with some of the providers on this site. Products marked 'Sponsored', 'Promoted', 'Featured' or 'Advertisement' appear as a result of a commercial arrangement.
Our editorial content, product reviews and any 'Top Pick' designations are prepared independently of these commercial arrangements.
The default order of products in our tables can be influenced by commercial arrangements. You can re-sort or filter using the controls above each table.
Some content on this site may be generated or supported by AI tools. You should verify details directly with the provider.
Finder is one of Australia's leading comparison websites. We are committed to our readers and stand by our editorial principles.
Our comparison service does not include every product or every provider in the market. Some product issuers offer their products under multiple brands or through associated companies. Where we can, we identify the underlying issuer so you can compare like with like, but you should always check with the provider directly to confirm which brand you are dealing with.
Finder is a comparison website and an intermediary. We are not a product issuer and we do not provide personal financial or credit advice. When you click a link to a product, or apply for a product through our site, you deal directly with the product issuer. We may receive a referral fee, commission or other payment from the issuer if you click through, apply or take out a product. We describe these arrangements in more detail under 'How we make money' below.
Product features, fees, terms and eligibility criteria are set by the product issuer and may change. We rely on information supplied by issuers when we present product details on our site. Before you apply for or take out any product, you should confirm the details directly with the issuer.
We earn revenue from Finder in four principal ways:
Referral fees and commissions. When you click a product link, complete an enquiry form or apply for a product through our site, we may receive a referral fee, commission or other payment from the product issuer. We may also receive payment based on the volume of leads or conversions we send to an issuer.
Sponsored placements. Products marked 'Sponsored', 'Promoted', 'Featured' or 'Advertisement' appear as a result of a commercial arrangement between Finder and the issuer. These labels always indicate a paid placement. We do not use them for editorial choices.
Display advertising. Banner advertising, newsletter advertising and similar display ads on our site are paid by advertisers.
Content sponsorship. Some articles, videos and social media posts are sponsored by an issuer and are clearly labelled as such.
Our editorial opinions, product reviews and any 'Top Pick' designations are prepared independently of these commercial arrangements. A 'Top Pick' is an editorial choice made by our writers and editors based on the criteria described on each comparison page. A 'Top Pick' is not a personal recommendation and does not mean the product is appropriate for your circumstances.
If you would like to know whether we have a commercial arrangement with a specific product issuer, please contact us.
When products are grouped in a table or list, the default order can be influenced by commercial arrangements we have with product issuers. In some categories, sponsored or featured products appear in the top positions of the table by default, and are always labelled as such.
Other factors that influence default order include price, fees and features, and (where relevant) our editorial view of the product.
You can re-sort every comparison table using the controls above the table. You can filter by product features that matter to you. The order you see after re-sorting or filtering is not influenced by commercial arrangements.
Some content on this site is generated or supported by artificial intelligence tools, including our AI-powered assistant FinderBot. AI-generated content may contain errors. Please verify important information directly with the product issuer before making a financial decision. For more information about FinderBot, see the FinderBot Terms of Use and FinderBot Privacy Collection Notice.
Please read our website terms of use and privacy policy for more information about our services and our approach to privacy.
We update our data regularly, but information can change between updates. Confirm details with the provider you're interested in before making a decision.
Our goal is to create the best possible product, and your thoughts, ideas and suggestions play a major role in helping us identify opportunities to improve.
