5 Side Gigs To Tackle Your Student Loans in 2025
Written by
Martin Dasko
Edited by
Molly Sullivan
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According to the Federal Reserve, student debt reached $1.74 trillion in the second quarter of 2024. Research from the Education Data Initiative shows that the average student borrows over $30,000 to earn a bachelor’s degree. The data also found that the average federal student loan debt is $37,853 per person and the average private student loan debt per borrower is $40,681. This is why it’s crucial to point out that working a 9 to 5 may not be enough when trying to build up your finances and you’ll want to find a side gig that can help you tackle your student loans.
We will list lucrative side hustles to help you pay down student loan debt in a few years or less.
Offer Freelance Services in Your Field
“If you want to make the most money, you need to leverage your professional skills when side hustling,” said Erika Kullberg, attorney, personal finance expert and founder of Erika.com. “Take that expensive degree and put it to work.”
The good news is that you likely picked up skills in college that you could transfer to a freelancing career. According to ZipRecruiter, the average salary for freelance work is $48 an hour and the amount you earn will depend on the portfolio that you build.
“If you’re pursuing a career in marketing, offer freelance social media marketing services. If you’re really good at math, consider bookkeeping. Photography, graphic design, writing, project management and consulting skills can all be applied to a side hustle,” Kullberg said.
It’s worth starting freelance work as a side hustle because this method can help you build your skills, resume and connections, which could even help you at your day job.
Online Reselling Business
A lucrative side gig that could become a legitimate source of income is an e-commerce business. You can flip items on eBay or open a shop on a platform like Poshmark, Depop or Etsy. You don’t need a lot of capital to get started, as you can begin with vintage clothing or items you already have around the house until you build your business up.
While the amount you earn will vary depending on the type of items you resell, we’ve spoken to a Poshmark closet owner who earned over $4,000 monthly from the venture. Based on data from ZipRecruiter, the average salary for an e-commerce business owner is well over $100,000 and your earnings will depend on your efforts.
Social Media Content Creation
While it might take time to grow a social media channel with a significant following, the earning possibilities can be endless with this side hustle. If you grow a following on a social media platform like Instagram or TikTok, you could create a variety of income streams for yourself. You can pursue this side hustle completely in your spare time as you try to build a business around a passion.
ZipRecruiter lists the average salary of a social media content writer as $40 an hour, but the amount that you earn will depend on the monetization strategy that you follow. If you find enough advertisers or build your channel, you could quit your job one day.
Virtual Assistant
“Taking on a virtual assistant side hustle is great for recent grads who are still looking for a full-time job or one that they can do in their spare time along with their regular 9 to 5 since it’s flexible in terms of setting your own hours,” said Andrea Woroch, consumer and money-saving expert. “This is even something you can build into a full-time business and work for yourself.”
According to ZipRecruiter, virtual assistants make an average of $24 an hour, so you can focus on specializing and creating a client list. This is a side gig that you can easily perform in your spare time. The skills acquired through this position could also transfer to your day job as you repay your student loans.
Pet Sitting
Woroch pointed out that pet sitting is an easy, fun and lucrative side hustle that can help you pay off your student loans quickly. “Sign up at sites like Rover where you can set up your pet-sitting profile and make up to $1,000 a month by watching someone’s pet in your own home,” she added.
If you work from home or pursue one of the other side gigs on this list, you can pet sit simultaneously and earn extra cash to help pay off your student loans. This is a side gig that can be done in combination with almost every other income stream on this list. For example, you could perform your freelance work while staying at someone’s house to watch their pet.
If you want to pay down your student loans in 2025, you can try one of these side gigs or combine a few to maximize your earnings. The goal is to find a side venture that brings in money without interfering too much with your daily work schedule.
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