What Is a Good Side Gig Income for 2026?

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As you start to think about your New Year’s resolutions, improving your finances might be high on the list. A survey by Origin for 2025 found that three-quarters of the 85% of Americans who set a New Year’s resolution made a financial goal, most commonly around increasing their income. For 2026, that trend is likely to continue, considering inflation remains relatively high, and many Americans are worried about the labor market.

One way to quell those fears and hit your income goals in 2026 is to start a side gig. But what’s a good side gig income to aim for?

Start With the Average

First, you might consider aiming for average side gig income. 

Among the 45% of Americans who already have a side hustle — e.g., rideshare driving, freelance writing, and running e-commerce stores — their average monthly earnings total $442.76 in 2025, which is down from $688 in 2022, according to a Self Financial survey.

However, this decrease doesn’t necessarily mean that side gigs are getting less lucrative, but rather that there’s a wide range in monthly side hustle incomes that can affect the average. The most commonly cited monthly side hustle income range in the 2025 survey was $51-$250, which is where 32.1% of side hustlers fell. Yet around 10% make over $1,000 per month, which pulls up the average.

So, depending on what side gigs a select group of respondents are engaged in at a given time, that can affect monthly income.

To that point, a survey by Bankrate found a higher average monthly income at $885 in 2025, down slightly from $891 per month in 2024, but up from $810 in 2023.

Figure Out What’s Realistic for You 

Altogether, this report indicates that if you make somewhere in the ballpark of $500-$1,000, you’re probably either close to the average or above it. 

Yet if you make a lower amount, such as $51-$250, you’re probably in common company with many other side hustlers. This might be a more realistic place to start, especially if that range is good enough to meet your financial goals, such as if you just want a little extra money to enjoy a few nights out per month. 

But if you have more aggressive goals like paying off debt or saving for a down payment on a house, you might want to push for a higher income range. Remember, even if earning close to $1,000 per month is the average for some types of side gigs, that’s often skewed by those at the top, so keep your expectations in check. It can take time and perseverance to reach the higher levels.

For example, if you start a freelance writing side hustle, you might not have a deep portfolio to show prospective clients. So, you might have more limited opportunities, perhaps starting with an article that pays $50. As the months go by and you build clips and connections, however, you might start charging $200, $500, or even $1,000 per article, which can quickly boost your income.

Learning New Skills

As tempting as it can be to focus on earning good money directly from your side gig, another approach to consider for 2026 is using a side gig to learn new skills that then help you land a higher-paying primary job.

A study by the World Economic Forum (WEF) found that workers can expect 39% of their existing skills to be transformed or become outdated by 2030. This number has actually gone down a bit in recent years, despite recent disruptions such as from AI, but that could reflect an increasing share of workers who have gone through new training, reskilling, or upskilling, said WEF.

The study found that analytical thinking is the top core skill that employers are looking for, while AI & big data skills are the fastest-growing, followed by networks & cybersecurity, and technology literacy.

So, your side hustle might not even be paid initially, like if you take an online course to learn how to use AI coding tools, and you then build complementary websites or apps for local businesses. Yet this can soon turn into a substantial income boost, whether you use those skills for a side business or you demonstrate to an employer that you’re qualified for a higher-paying job in 2026.

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