8 Worst Side Hustles of 2024

Choncé Maddox
aluxum / Getty Images
aluxum / Getty Images

Side hustles can be great for supplementing your income, but there are some opportunities that just may not be worth the time. A popular YouTuber, Your Driver Mike, earns the bulk of his income from gig work and recently shared a video covering the best and worst side hustles of 2024 based on his independent research.

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If you’re wondering which extra income opportunities you may want to avoid this year, here are eight options to be wary of — and why they may not be a good fit.

1. Network Marketing

Network marketing, or multi-level marketing (MLM), is a business model where a company distributes products through a network of distributors who earn income from their own retail sales and from the sales made by the distributors in the network.

Unfortunately, many MLMs have come under fire for being pyramid schemes in disguise, with the majority of participants earning little to no profit. They often require significant up-front investment and aggressive, often alienating, sales tactics.

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2. Cryptocurrency Trading

Cryptocurrency trading involves buying, selling and exchanging cryptocurrencies and can be done through various exchange platforms. But it requires a good understanding of financial markets.

While there have been success stories, cryptocurrency trading is highly volatile and can easily lead to large losses. It can also be immensely time-consuming and requires a significant amount of initial capital to see meaningful returns.

3. Online Surveys

It’s common for companies to offer money for completing surveys or entering data to help with market research. However, this doesn’t mean that taking online surveys for extra cash is a good option for everyone.

Many survey sites pay extremely low rates — well below minimum wage. With inflation and the recent cost of living increases, survey payouts have even less value for your time and effort.

4. Selling Stock Photos

Many stock photo websites allow you to upload your high-quality photos to stock image websites, where businesses and individuals can purchase them for their projects.

The problem is that the market is oversaturated, and the majority of the sale price goes to the platform, leaving minimal returns for photographers. Also, it often requires a large portfolio and routinely updated content to see consistent income.

5. Weight Loss Betting Apps

Health and weight loss betting apps like DietBet offer monetary rewards for meeting weight loss goals and penalties for not meeting them. SweatCoin is another app that pays you points for walking, but you can only use these points to redeem for products from certain brands, so you don’t actually get money you can keep.

While the concept of weight loss betting apps may seem enticing, these apps rely on participants’ fear of losing money rather than promoting healthy habits for long-term weight management. Also, the money earned is not guaranteed since you may not win the bet.

6. Car Wrapping Programs

Car wrapping programs offer to pay car owners to wrap their vehicles in advertisements for a set amount of time in exchange for a set payout. The downside of this side hustle is that you have to be selected for a campaign to be able to earn money. If you do land a campaign for a few months, you shouldn’t expect to make much. The base compensation is around $100 per month, per Carvertise, though compensation can range up to $500 per month.

7. Sharing Your Location With CoinApp

CoinApp is a mobile app that allows users to earn digital currency by sharing their location data while traveling. While the concept of earning money for simply using an app may seem attractive, the potential privacy concerns and risks of sharing personal location data are significant.

The payouts are also on the lower end — and instead of getting paid cash, you’ll get coins that can be used as rewards for certain digital and physical products.

8. Dropshipping on Crowded Platforms

Dropshipping is a retail fulfillment method where a store doesn’t keep the products it sells in stock. While it can be a successful business model, the over-saturation of dropshipping businesses on platforms like Amazon and eBay makes it difficult to stand out. Margins are often low, and competition can be fierce with little control over the quality of products or delivery reliability.

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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 8 Worst Side Hustles of 2024

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