Stage 2

Steady side income

Services and routines built on a skill or a modest setup: freelancing, local services, small agencies, reselling as a habit. Takes one to three months to become dependable.

Platforms and offers

Places you can sign up today, with typical pay and what to watch for.

All 14 for this stage

AI training work

Outlier

Remote freelance contributors write prompts, build grading rubrics, and rate or rank AI model responses on projects matched to their expertise. Work is paid per task-hour at a project rate shown before you start, settled weekly.

Typical pay
$15–$150/hour
Age
18+
  • Taxable income
  • Work comes and goes
  • Unpaid assessment first
  • Watch for scam look-alikes
  • Earnings not guaranteed

AI training work

DataAnnotation

Contractors evaluate chatbot responses, compare AI outputs, write and review code, or do domain-specific STEM/professional work to train AI models. Work is paid hourly by project track, and earnings are withdrawn to PayPal.

Typical pay
$20–$150/hour
Age
18+
  • Taxable income
  • Work comes and goes
  • Unpaid assessment first
  • Watch for scam look-alikes
  • Earnings not guaranteed

AI training work

Alignerr

Alignerr (Labelbox) contracts experts and generalists to rate AI outputs, annotate documents and evaluate code remotely. Work is paid hourly per project, with rates shown on each job listing and payouts made weekly.

Typical pay
$40–$150/hour
Age
18+
  • Taxable income
  • Work comes and goes
  • Unpaid assessment first
  • Earnings not guaranteed
  • Watch for scam look-alikes

AI training work

Mercor

Mercor is a talent marketplace that matches professionals (doctors, lawyers, engineers, consultants) to hourly AI-training and evaluation contracts for AI labs. Contractors track hours and are paid weekly in USD.

Typical pay
$30–$150/hour
Age
18+
  • Taxable income
  • Work comes and goes
  • Unpaid assessment first
  • Earnings not guaranteed

Handshake AI's fellowship (including the MOVE 'Model Validation Experts' track for master's/PhD holders) pays students and degree holders to evaluate and improve AI models in their discipline. Work is remote, part-time and paid hourly at a rate shown before you commit to a project.

Typical pay
$30–$125/hour
Age
18+
  • Taxable income
  • Work comes and goes
  • Earnings not guaranteed

Invisible Technologies recruits freelance AI trainers through Meridial, its expert contractor marketplace, for projects writing, evaluating and correcting AI model output. Each project states its scope and rate in a Statement of Work, and contractors are typically paid hourly about twice a month.

Typical pay
$6–$150/hour
Age
18+
  • Taxable income
  • Work comes and goes
  • Unpaid assessment first
  • Earnings not guaranteed

Business ideas for this stage

539 ideas, most discussed first
Steady side income ideas
Piano tuning side hustle

A mobile service that tunes and services pianos for homeowners, schools, and venues, built as a skilled-trade side business.

Local Services1 videos · 1 channels
Picky-eater adult coaching practice

A one-on-one coaching practice that helps adult picky eaters expand their food tolerance through structured sessions and accountability.

Info Products & Education1 videos · 1 channels
Plant-based meal prep subscription

Selling a recurring plant-based meal prep service marketed through content and Instagram to monthly subscribers.

Ecommerce & Products1 videos · 1 channels
Podcast guest booking agency

An agency that books clients as guests on relevant podcasts as a service, charging per placement, scaling from a single operator into a…

Agency Services1 videos · 1 channels
Podcast studio rental

A service that rents out a dedicated, equipped podcast recording space by the hour or day to creators and businesses needing professional…

Local Services1 videos · 1 channels
Political novelty tea towel brand

A family-run ecommerce brand that designs and sells topical, political tea towels and novelty print products as a side business.

Ecommerce & Products1 videos · 1 channels
Polo and youth-sports videography service

A local videography business that films polo matches and youth sports events, sold as event-recording packages.

Local Services1 videos · 1 channels
Pop-up cosplay wig and hair salon

Travel near comic conventions and other fan events to offer wig styling, hair touch-ups and quick beauty services to cosplayers on a pop-up…

Local Services1 videos · 1 channels
Pop-up taco kitchen

A small pop-up food business run out of an office or shared kitchen that sells a single self-branded taco concept to coworkers and walk-up…

Local Services1 videos · 1 channels
Portrait photography studio business

A local service business that offers posed portrait photography sessions (family, professional headshots, etc.) as a full-time creative…

Local Services1 videos · 1 channels
Post-party morning-after cleanup service

A part-time crew cleans up after parties and events the morning after, charging hosts for trash removal, recycling and basic venue reset.

Local Services1 videos · 1 channels
Premium caricature commission business

Offer caricature drawing commissions at premium hourly rates, building a personal-brand design service around custom portrait illustrations.

Agency Services1 videos · 1 channels
Premium notebook manufacturing brand

A direct-to-consumer brand that designs and makes durable, premium notebooks and leather goods, sold online as an alternative to flimsy…

Ecommerce & Products1 videos · 1 channels
Premium-priced home-baked cupcakes

A couple-run microbakery selling premium, around-$20 cupcakes as gifts or special-occasion treats, leaning on quirky branding and a…

Local Services1 videos · 1 channels
Presentation and public speaking coaching

A coaching business built around teaching professionals to design and deliver strong presentations and paid workshops.

Info Products & Education1 videos · 1 channels
Print-on-demand custom candle brand

Sell custom-designed candles made through print-on-demand or made-to-order production, often branded for niches, gifting, or events and…

Ecommerce & Products1 videos · 1 channels
Private jet membership / arbitrage

Operate a private jet membership or empty-leg marketplace, monetized via membership fees or per-flight margin.

Marketplaces & Communities1 videos · 1 channels
Professional speaking pipeline via TEDx outreach

A side hustle built by cold-pitching TEDx and conference events to land paid speaking gigs and grow a professional speaking career.

Agency Services1 videos · 1 channels
Protein cake fitness food product

A specialty food brand that sells high-protein, fitness-focused cakes or baked goods built around a personal recipe.

Ecommerce & Products1 videos · 1 channels
Punny humor greeting card brand

A greeting card brand built around wordplay, puns, and niche humor, often run by a solopreneur selling directly online.

Ecommerce & Products1 videos · 1 channels
Puppet making craft business

A specialty craft business that sources puppet fabric and other materials to design, make, and sell handmade puppets.

Ecommerce & Products1 videos · 1 channels
Random-acts-of-kindness kit business

A founder designs and sells packaged kindness kits that buyers give to strangers, marketing the products through a positivity or…

Ecommerce & Products1 videos · 1 channels
Realtor CRM cleanup and automation service

Provides a flat-fee service that cleans up real estate agents' CRMs by merging duplicates, tagging leads and wiring up automated follow-ups.

Agency Services1 videos · 1 channels
Receipts to spreadsheet automation

Build a SaaS or service that turns paper receipts and invoices into spreadsheets or QuickBooks entries.

AI & Automation1 videos · 1 channels
Reclaimed lumber resale

A business that sources, processes and resells salvaged wood from demolition sites, barns and pallets to woodworkers, builders and DIY…

Ecommerce & Products1 videos · 1 channels
Refurbished marimba rental for schools

A niche instrument business that buys used marimbas, refurbishes them, and rents them out to schools, ensembles and events as an affordable…

Local Services1 videos · 1 channels
Regional-pride beer coasters brand

An ecommerce brand selling coasters and small drinkware themed around a specific region's craft beer and hometown identity, sold…

Ecommerce & Products1 videos · 1 channels
Rent-a-stranger companion service

A service that rents out a friendly stranger to accompany, stand in for, or simply be present with a client, paid by the hour or job.

Local Services1 videos · 1 channels
Residential house painting company

An entrepreneur starts and runs a residential painting service, hiring crews and managing jobs to scale revenue into six figures annually.

Local Services1 videos · 1 channels
Reusable bike shipping box rental

A niche ecommerce/rental side business that supplies cyclists with durable reusable bike shipping boxes for transporting road or triathlon…

Ecommerce & Products1 videos · 1 channels

When you're ready: build an asset