Are you looking for an easy way to put extra cash in your pocket?
As the cost of living in Toronto continues to rise, many residents have taken up a second job or side hustle to make ends meet and keep up with the bills.
Below, I’ll share some of the best side hustles in Toronto that you can start now, regardless of your experience or resources.
Let’s make some money together!
The Best Side Hustles In Toronto: Easy To Start
There are virtually limitless side hustles you could do to earn extra money. However, some of the most lucrative side businesses require considerable skill and/or start-up capital.
For example, freelance software developers can over $100,000 per year, provided they have the skillset. If you’re starting with limited skills, it could take years to get to this point, though.
That’s why I wanted to share a list of simple, relatively easy side hustles in Toronto that require little to no start-up capital. Using already available resources, you can start these side hustles in less than a week (or even today).
- How much you could earn: $20+ per hour
- Skills required: Driving
If you have a relatively new car (no more than 7 years old), are at least 21, and have a decent driving record, then driving for Uber is an excellent side hustle. Uber drivers in Toronto earn an average of $20.19 per hour.
With its massive population, Toronto is a great city for Uber. You may also consider signing up for Lyft (many rideshare drivers work with Uber and Lyft together).
Related Reading: How Much Do Uber Drivers Make In Canada?
2. Food And Parcel Delivery
- How much you could earn: $15 to $25 per hour
- Skills required: Driving (or bicycle riding)
Toronto is home to over 7,500 restaurants and thousands of small corner stores and grocery stores. Food and parcel delivery is 100% freelance and is very similar to Uber driving, except you don’t have to carry customers in your car or have a newer-model vehicle.
If you’re working in downtown Toronto, you can even make money delivering food, groceries, and parcels on your bicycle, moped, or motorcycle (you’ll just need a secure carry box).
As a food or parcel delivery driver, you’ll simply be delivering meals, small grocery orders, and parcels from one place to another. You can usually pick your own hours and clock in/out whenever convenient.
The best delivery platforms to check out are:
Related Reading: Best Food Delivery Services In Canada
3. Online Surveys
- How much you could earn: $10 to $20 per day
- Skills required: Basic computer skills
Consumer review panels help major brands by reaching out to consumers and asking them to complete surveys and questionnaires.
On average, you can earn anywhere from $.25 to $3 per survey (depending on the length), and many platforms allow you to participate in multiple surveys daily. The more platforms you sign up for, the more you can make.
Check out my list of the best paid survey platforms here.
4. Offer An Airbnb “Experience”
- How much you could earn: $50 to $300 per day
- Skills required: Depends on the experience
In addition to house/room rentals, Airbnb also allows users to offer unique local “experiences.” To see an example, log into your Airbnb account and check out the “experiences” tab in the Toronto area. You’ll find everything from tour guides to yoga classes, food guides, and more.
Here, the only limit is your creativity.
If you know some great local restaurants or bars, consider offering food tours to tourists. Some other creative ideas could be:
- Hosting a painting class
- Hosting a cooking class
- Historical tours of the city
- Mediation or yoga
Experience hosts typically charge a flat fee for each person and may offer discounts for larger groups. I recommend starting with a lower fee until you receive more positive reviews. Once you receive more reviews, you can increase your price accordingly.
5. Office Cleaning
- How much you could earn: $20+ per hour
- Skills required: Cleaning
If you have an eye for detail and like to keep a clean home, you could make excellent money cleaning offices and commercial buildings. There are millions of square feet of office space, restaurants, and short-term rentals in downtown Toronto.
They all need to be cleaned regularly.
You can start with a broom, mop, rags, cleaning sprays, and a vacuum. Make a business card, create a social media page for your service, tap into your local network, and ask local businesses if they’re looking for a punctual cleaner with a quality guarantee.
6. Flip Items With Kijiji or Facebook Marketplace
- How much you could earn: $50 to $200 per week
- Skills required: Refurbishing, deal-finding
Toronto has thousands of cheap or low-cost listings on Kijiji. You’d also be surprised just how many people toss out old furniture on the street simply because they don’t want to move it themselves.
If you have an eye for detail, can find deals on secondhand items, and know how to quickly restore old furniture, then you could make some great side money.
For example, you could find a deal on a $50 pair of chairs, sand them down, give them a fresh coat of paint and resell them on Kijiji or Facebook Marketplace for $100 or more.
Related Reading: Best Food Delivery Services In Canada
7. Virtual Assistant
- How much you could earn: $17 to $25 per hour
- Skills required: Basic computer and software skills
As businesses continue to adopt remote work models, becoming a virtual assistant can be a great part-time job (or even full-time).
Usually, you’ll be helping businesses or busy individuals complete tasks they simply don’t have time for. You’ll transcribe audio, answer phone calls and texts, respond to emails, organize files, and perform other administrative tasks.
You may already have the skills required to start today. If not, consider checking out this 90-day VA course, which will teach you everything you need to know to earn money online.
8. Language Lessons
- How much you could earn: $20 per hour or more
- Skills required: Fluent in another language, teaching
Toronto is a cultural hub. Over 200 languages are spoken in the city, and 45% of residents speak at least two languages. Additionally, Toronto is becoming home to an increasing number of immigrants from around the globe.
You could teach international students, travellers, business/office staff, and more. It’s also a great opportunity to meet new friends and build your personal network.
You can also offer language lessons online to students around the world.
9. Dog Walking And Pet Sitting
- How much you could earn: $25+ per hour
- Skills required: Good with dogs
Home to over 230,000 dogs, Toronto is ranked among the 10 most dog-friendly cities in the world. Many dog owners work long hours, can’t walk their dogs in the middle of the day, or frequently travel and need somebody to watch their pet(s) while they’re out of town.
You can offer your services via business cards or social media.
Alternatively, you can apply to work with Rover or Spot Dog Walkers. These websites will help you find clients, as they screen service providers and offer in-app GPS tracking for dog owners.
10. Sell Art In The City
- How much you could earn: $20 to $200 per day
- Skills required: Art and/or music
If you have an artistic talent like drawing or painting or are a skilled musician, consider starting an arts business. Toronto is an artistic hub, and you can make decent money by selling your art, drawing portraits, or playing music on the street.
Just make sure that you apply for the necessary licenses and receive permission.
You can also share your art and music by registering as a vendor or musician at local farmers’ markets, vendor events, or even restaurants.
How To Start:
- If you want to sell art or play music on the street, make sure you apply for permission/licenses to perform in your chosen area
- Register to showcase or play art at local art/vendor events
- Ask local restaurants if you can play music for tips (or negotiate a flat fee)
11. Bartending Or Serving
- How much you could earn: $25+ per hour
- Skills required: Customer service, food, drinks
Toronto is a food-and-beverage paradise and home to some of North America’s most exclusive restaurants and cocktail clubs.
If you’re good with people, can make a good cocktail, or have an in-depth understanding of a certain cuisine, consider picking up a part-time job serving or bartending on the weekends.
If you provide great service and are willing to work busy dinner or late-night shifts, you could earn lots of tips in addition to your hourly pay.
12. Social Media Marketing
- How much you could earn: $15 to $30 per hour
- Skills required: Marketing, social media
If you’re skilled in using multiple social media platforms, consider approaching local small businesses in Toronto and offering your skills. SMM can be as simple as making daily Instagram posts for a business or could involve filming short-form video content or running paid social media ads.
Once you’re experienced and have some good reviews under your belt, you can also offer your services online as a freelancer. If you work hard and develop a good reputation, you could even turn this into a full-time business.
13. Audio Transcription
- How much you could earn: $15 to $100 per project (varies by length)
- Skills required: Typing and/or AI programs
Business owners and other professionals often record important phone calls, conferences, or speeches they attend, so they can review them later and take notes.
They often hire audio transcribers who can listen to the recording and turn it into easy-to-read written content.
You can do it the old-fashioned way (listen and type) or use an AI program like SpeechText AI or Cockatoo. You can upload the audio file to these programs and have a written transcription in minutes. Just make sure you re-read through it, as AI isn’t correct 100% of the time.
14. Window Cleaning
- How much you could earn: $10 to $15 per window
- Skills required: Cleaning
Walking through downtown Toronto, you’ll see countless storefronts, restaurants, and offices. Have you ever noticed how most of the windows are clean? These businesses keep their ground-floor windows clean to encourage customers to come in (who wants to walk through a dirty glass door?).
Cleaning these windows is incredibly easy and simple. All you need is a squeegee with an extendable handle, some window cleaning solution, and a pressurized sprayer that shoots up to 10 feet.
Walk into office buildings, storefronts, and restaurants, offer your window cleaning services at $10 to $15 per window and explain that you can clean the windows as often as they need.
15. Rent Your Vehicle On Turo
- How much you could earn: $25 to $100 per day
- Skills required: Basic computer skills
Turo is like Airbnb but for cars. On the Turo app, vehicle owners can rent their cars out for a daily fee. The best part is that you don’t have to own the vehicle outright. You can do this side hustle even if you’re still making payments on a financed vehicle.
As long as the vehicle is in good condition, with updated insurance and updated plates, then you can list it on Turo. I’ve even heard of some entrepreneurs turning this into a full-time business, buying multiple cars and renting them all.
Not sure how much to rent your vehicle for?
Take a quick look at the app, and see what other users are charging for vehicles that are similar to yours.
You can also charge extra if the customer drives over the allowed mileage, leaves your car messy, smokes in your car, or violates other terms. While the car is being rented, it will be covered by Turo’s insurance, so you’re not liable for any damage incurred by the customer.
Don’t Overthink It – Start Earning Extra Today
The best advice I can give you is to stop overthinking. If any of these ideas appeal to you, take action. Take out a pen and pad, create a plan to make it happen, and then start doing it. You can start any of these side hustles in Toronto with little to no capital and start earning by the end of the week.
Do you have a unique side hustle idea? Share it below!
Otherwise, keep reading to see my list of Canada’s best six-figure remote jobs.
