If you’re in the process of repaying student loans , your monthly payment probably ranks among your largest expenses. By some estimates, most recent graduates pay more than $300 a month , which is no small figure on any budget. Additionally, as they build their careers, millennials typically earn less than the median national income. That can make keeping up with significant payments difficult if they rely on their salaries alone.
Thankfully, the increasingly popular gig economy offers endless opportunities for borrowers to make a little extra cash. Millions of people have already seized the chance to supplement their incomes: A recent study found that nearly a quarter of Americans have used a digital platform to earn additional money. Millennials are leading the way in this trend, with 39% of workers aged 18 to 24 taking on at least one side hustle. For those aged 25 to 44, the rate was even higher.
With a little time and entrepreneurial ambition, you can join this army of part-time earners. If you’re looking for a side hustle that will help you repay your student loans, the booming app economy is bound to include some way for you to employ your skills. But you probably don’t have time to try out dozens of competing possibilities and determine the most lucrative way to sell your labor. That’s where this article comes in.
In this guide, we’ll recommend the best side hustles for earning extra cash to pay off your student loans. Our list includes 11 part-time possibilities that will let you earn what you need, often on your own schedule. If some extra work will help you leave debt behind, here are your best options.
If an item no longer brings you joy, let it bring you cash instead. Depending on how much stuff you’ve accumulated over the years payday loans South Dakota, you could earn short-term income by parting ways with unused goods on platforms like Craigslist or eBay. Mobile app Letgo offers a similar service, and its popularity has skyrocketed in recent months, with more than $20 billion in merchandise sold since 2015.
If you can find local buyers, Craigslist or Letgo could be your best bet: They specialize in exchanges among residents of the same city and don’t charge fees . eBay does charge a sliding scale of fees to facilitate transactions, but their platform is better suited for shipping, giving you access to a wider pool of potential buyers across the world. eBay also handles payments , which you’ll need to figure out with each buyer on the other two platforms.
The Top Ways To Earn Cash By Selling Your Stuff
| Craigslist | The Top Apps to Earn Cash With Your Car |
| Letgo | Similar to Craigslist, Letgo connects local buyers and sellers in a mobile app. |
| eBay | Offering a broader base of buyers across the world, eBay helps facilitate payment and shipping but charges a fee for doing so. |
The selling process is a lot like holding a digital yard sale, though, so the added income will end once all your unwanted items are sold. Unless you have a vast supply of goods to unload, your new cash flow could be short-lived.
2. Make cash from your car
Nearly 4 in 5 millennials have a car, which means you’re likely sitting on an untapped source of potential cash. Ride-hailing apps like Uber and Lyft are all the rage, but you may not know about ride-renting apps like Turo, which allows you to earn money by letting someone else drive your whip around town. Don’t worry: Turo covers insurance in case someone else gets your car in a scrape.