Whether you’re just wanting some extra cash, saving for family holidays, covering rising bills or dreaming of replacing your day job, you’ll need the right side hustle.
Let’s explore practical, realistic and inspiring ways you can start a side hustle—no fancy business degree required. And the best part? You don’t need to sacrifice motherhood to succeed. In fact, many mums are making good money building steady income streams right from their kitchen tables.
Why side hustles work for mums
Mums are naturally resourceful. We multitask like pros, solve problems daily and have more resilience than we realise. That’s why side hustles can be such a good idea. Done right, they give you:
- More extra income
- A creative outlet outside of mum life
- The ability to set your own hours
- A way to grow confidence and skills
And in many cases, the hustle income can turn into something much bigger.
Real mums, real stories
Sydney-based mum Hannah Miller founded Sleep Dreams, an online store offering sleep solutions like Bluetooth sleep headphones and silk hair bonnets. Motivated by her own sleep challenges as a new mother, her business experienced a 600 per cent year-on-year growth, aiming for $1 million in revenue.
Esta transformed her passion for op-shopping into a profitable venture. By selling her thrifted and upcycled fashion finds on platforms like Depop, she turned a casual hobby into a full-time business, earning a six-figure income. Her journey began with a simple hat sale and evolved into a booming online store.
Stay-at-home mum Gia Asher launched an Etsy shop selling digital and print-on-demand products. Dedicating just 20–60 minutes a day, she built a six-figure business, ranking in the top one per cent of Etsy sellers. Her story highlights how strategic product offerings and SEO can lead to substantial passive income.
Start with your strengths
You don’t need to reinvent yourself to start a side hustle. Start with what you know, what lights you up and what fits into your free time. The skills you use every day, the passions you’ve quietly tucked away, even the things you do for your kids or friends—these are the seeds of something extraordinary. You don’t need a million followers or a business degree. You just need a spark and if you’re reading this, that spark lives in you already.
Love animals?
Try pet sitting or dog walking, or consider taking a course in pet grooming and setting up your own small dog grooming business.
Enjoy writing or admin work?
Write books and sell them on Amazon through Kindle Direct Publishing. Become a virtual assistant to small businesses or start your own virtual assistant agency. You could also offer resume writing services.
Have a knack for cooking?
Offer services for premade kids’ lunch boxes to your mum friends, or advertise in the school newsletter or on Facebook. You might even want to be a personal chef (depending on how much time and energy you have).
Organised and people-savvy?
Help local businesses with social media or email marketing.
Like interior design or property management?
Rent out your spare room on Airbnb and help manage other people’s Airbnbs. Or you could give old furniture items a new life, selling them on Facebook marketplace.
Creative?
You could explore graphic design and create digital products to sell on Etsy and social media, earning passive income through sales funnels while you sleep.
Online platforms open up even more ways for mums to earn from home and have flexible schedules. Things like:
- Affiliate marketing: Recommend your favourite mum-friendly products and earn a commission.
- YouTube channel: Share parenting tips, recipes or real-life. You never know; you might just build a loyal target audience.
- Start an online course: Teach what you know that is also in high demand, such as baking, budgeting, breastfeeding . . . the sky’s the limit.
Be intentional
For best results in your side hustle, it shouldn’t be random. Choose something intentionally, something that suits your interests, skills, time and capacity. Your hustle should align with your future goals, passions and what genuinely drives you.
The biggest tip of all? It doesn’t need to be perfect before you start. You don’t need to have everything figured out or polished to a tee. The truth is you refine a product or service by actually doing it. Trial and error and showing up consistently are how you get better. If you’re super proud of your offer from the start, it might mean you waited too long to launch it.
Start simple. Start real. You’ll build as you go.
Remember, even a small win—like making an extra $100 a week—is a massive win. That’s $5200 a year in extra income and with a bit of smart planning, reviewing what’s working (and what’s not), and growing intentionally, it can snowball faster than you think.
Quick start: How to launch in six steps
Want to get started today? Here’s a great idea to launch in just six months or less:
- Pick your idea. Choose something that fits your lifestyle and passions.
- Do your research. Find your target audience and what they’re looking for.
- Create an offer. Whether it’s a product, service or content.
- Promote on social media. Use Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube or TikTok to share.
- Deliver with care. Great service equals great reviews and returning customers.
- Repeat and refine. Tweak what’s working and stay consistent.
Money matters: Budget and reinvest
Earning is one thing, but managing your money wisely is where real progress happens. You can’t expect to take home all of your profits as you start earning. Many successful mumpreneurs reinvest a third of their profits and sometimes a little extra money directly back into the business, whether it’s through marketing, tools or learning through a short online course or hiring a coach to improve their systems.
Also, look for small ways to cut costs while still keeping your service great. It might be that you don’t need a subscription to something, or you can let go of tools or platforms you’re barely using. Maybe you can swap to free versions, batch your work to save time or find more affordable suppliers. Small savings add up and every dollar you don’t spend is a dollar that goes back into your pocket or your business growth. Smart money habits early on make a big difference down the track.
You can do this
One of the biggest side effects of building a hustle? Confidence. Many mums lose a bit of themselves during the early years of motherhood. Creating something of your own, no matter how small, can be incredibly empowering.
You’ll learn, grow and discover you’re capable of more than you imagined.
Not every hustle needs to become a full business. Some mums just want a bit of easy money without the pressure. That’s why part-time jobs can be a helpful place to start, whether it’s for yourself or someone else. Others go all-in and scale up with help from mentors or networking with other business owners.
Think about your long-term vision. What does wealth look like for you? Time freedom? More choices? Or just the ability to say yes to a few more things? Success looks different for every person and that’s okay.
No matter your main job, relationship status or how little spare time you have, there’s something out there that fits you. Don’t worry about having it all figured out. Just start small. Take one idea, one action, one hour at a time. Stay open, stay learning and celebrate each milestone you reach. In three months, six months or a year, you’ll be amazed at how far you’ve come.
You’re not “just a mum”. You’re a powerful woman with insight, creativity and grit. And your story of success? It might just be the next one that inspires someone else.
Read next: 26 jobs for stay-at-home mums
