Best Weekend Jobs to Make Extra Money

This article originally appeared on Arrest Your Debt and has been republished with permission.

Weekend jobs are an excellent way to make a little more (or a lot more) money depending on what you can do and how much time you have available. To help you figure out which job opportunities are right for you, which ones are available, and how to find the perfect weekend job, continue reading.

What Is a Weekend Job?

Pros of Weekend Jobs

Cons of Weekend Jobs

What Are the Best Gig Economy Jobs and Apps?

Conclusion

What Is a Weekend Job?

While the name might seem kind of obvious, not everyone has the usual schedule of working Monday through Friday with weekends off. Your weekend could be Tuesday and Wednesday, which actually may offer more options for a great part-time job. While most people may think of a weekend job as one done on Saturday and Sunday, it generally refers to a particular type of part-time employment.

However, a weekend job tends to require less than 30 hours a week and may be used to supplement one or more other part-time jobs. In this way, a weekend job is probably better understood as a job where you work less than 24 hours a week, generally for three days or less.

That said, there’s no legal definition of “weekend work” the same way there is for part-time and full-time jobs. So, the answer will differ depending on who you ask. Still, if you work four to five shifts a week for four or more days, you’re likely not working in what most people would consider a “weekend job.”

Pros of Weekend Jobs

Money

Let’s be honest with ourselves and admit that the primary reason anyone picks up a weekend job is to make more money. Granted, different people will want or need that money depending on their circumstances. However, it doesn’t change the fact that one of the best things about a weekend job is that extra cash.

However, depending on how much ext r a money you need and when you need it will determine how selective you should be with your search. If you already have a highly sought after skill set, it might not be a bad idea to wait for the right weekend job–even if some seem good on the surface.

On the other hand, if your full-time income doesn’t pay enough and you need that additional cash just to make ends meet, a weekend job can be a lifesaver. That said, this situation is less likely to afford you the luxury of waiting until the right job opportunity comes your way and may force you into a first come, first served basis.

Planning

While the money is nice, it’s worth noting that weekend jobs require a lot of work to manage properly, and this is on top of the additional work you have to do for the job. A weekend job will drastically eat into your free time, leaving you in a crunch for scheduling other activities in your life.

After working weekends for a long enough period, the chances are that scheduling tasks and managing obligations that might stress other people out won’t even phase you. Scheduling skills aside, it can go a long way in making your life generally more comfortable and stress-free.

It’s also worth noting that planning well and managing a hectic schedule is also one of the best management skills for someone in authority. As such, taking on the extra workload of a weekend job can not only provide its benefits, but it can help prepare you for bigger and better things down the line.

Skills

With the economy and workforce changing quickly and rapidly, it can feel like the world is passing you by with no way to catch up. This is an area where a weekend job can come in handy as it may allow you to learn entirely new skill sets, depending on the job.

Beyond picking up new skills on the fly, weekend jobs also provide you the opportunity to hone other skills you may already possess. In this instance, you can use a weekend job to help you train for a new job entirely. And you can us a slower pace to ease you into the skill set rather than having to try and absorb everything all at once.

Even when a job lists a given set of skills required to perform its responsibilities, there are inevitably many more skills needed along the way. On top of that, whatever obligations a job advertises, the job will almost certainly add more, so look for opportunities to expand your repertoire.

Experience

While weekend jobs are a great way to help develop skills and gain entry into a challenging field, the company may often offer you more responsibilities and a permanent position if you show competence and dedication. This harkens to the old joke that you can’t get a job without experience but can’t get experience without a job.

Thankfully, this is another area where a weekend job can help you obtain the necessary qualifications and requirements for the job you want rather than the job you have. Even if you start in an entry-level position, you could use that opening to gain experience for other jobs.

Of course, even then, a weekend job can simply help add to your resume for another, better job if it’s related. Even if you’re not necessarily chasing the job of your dreams and simply would like to find something better full-time, a weekend job may provide the resume clout to help you advance at your traditional full-time job.

Networking

A common phrase that people say is “it’s not what you but who you know that counts,” which might seem disheartening for someone looking to break into an otherwise insular field. Once again, the weekend job can help you gain entry into the field and introduce you to more people.

Depending on the job in question and your ability to network, you can use a weekend job as an avenue for obtaining a completely secondary set of networking contacts. The value of this is immeasurable as it may not only help you get a job in the field you are passionate about but can open doors you never even knew existed.

Be mindful that if you spend more of your time and energy trying to network at your weekend job instead of working, you’re liable to set a bad impression and ruin those networked connections altogether.

Cons of Weekend Jobs

Extremely Tired

This is easily the biggest and most common issue people with weekend jobs face because it does not matter what kind of person you are; everyone needs some time off to rest and recover. Many of the potential drawbacks of a weekend job will hit some people more than others, but no one is immune to the relentless grind of a 24/7 workweek.

A constant grind can also have larger impacts on your overall health, making this drawback a top priority. If you already struggle with a severe health issue, a weekend job may not be the best idea since it could lead to further complications down the line. That said, even otherwise healthy people can expect to see some kind of decline in their overall health if they maintain a long workweek over a period of time.

Unfortunately, there’s not that much you can do about the amount of time you have at your disposal, depending on the weekend job you take. The best you can do is hone in on your planning skills to ensure you find a way to fit some time for relaxation into your already packed schedule.

Lack of Entertainment

There’s no getting around the fact that all work and no play makes everyone dull, but this issue is exacerbated when you do not have any free time because of a weekend job. This is where you will definitely need to put those hyper-developed planning skills to good use, as your options for entertainment will be somewhat slim.

However, flying solo is not the only concern here as the sheer number of different events shrinks dramatically when you pick up a weekend job–the time of the week when the biggest events are scheduled. As such, it might not be a terrible idea to look outside of your traditional interests to see if something less popular sparks your interests.

Not only will this increase the number of potential events at your disposal, but it will also help you find events that do not rely on large crowds to find their niche. Thankfully, your well-developed planning skills should provide plenty of ability to figure out what events occur in your area that coincides with the diminishing amount of time you have.

Increased Taxes

This is another issue that depends more on the individual in question and the various jobs they work, but a second job may end up not worth the time and effort. The main reason for this is that a second job is only as good as the money you get to take home with you.

However, if your weekend job pushes you into a higher tax bracket, the amount you get to keep may be significantly less than if you manage to stay just below the next tax bracket. Granted, this can be a tricky proposition since you may not know how close you are to moving into the next tier.

Most gigs do not label the people who work for them as employees and instead label them as independent contractors. While this comes with the added benefit of schedule and task flexibility without the worry of being fired, it also means you need to file taxes every year or quarter with a 1099-NEC on top of your yearly W9 for your full-time job.

Lack of Benefits

Few weekend jobs are the type that will provide any kind of benefits, even if you are registered as an actual employee instead of an independent contractor. This often comes down to the amount of time you work at your weekend job.

Basically, employers are not required to offer their employees any kind of benefits such as health care and retirement plans unless they are full-time employees, and most of your weekend jobs will not qualify as full-time. Of course, if you already have a full-time job that provides a robust benefits package, the absence of benefits with your weekend job may not be that big of a deal.

On the other hand, if you’re looking for a weekend job not as a source of disposable income but supplementary income, it may weigh heavier. This is because most jobs that do not pay enough are also unlikely to provide significant benefits, making this absence sting a bit more.

Lack of Advancement

Our last drawback is another issue that will matter more to some people than others. Many people are completely content to work their weekend job for the extra income without concerning themselves with the corporate ladder. On the other hand, if you;’re using a weekend job to break into a new industry, you may find the results less than stellar.

Because weekend jobs are often entry-level and do not place the same kind of workload on the employee as a full-time job, employers are disincentivized to advance you. Keep in mind, the term “lighter workload” is entirely relative here as many employers often see part-time employees as expendable and pile on as much work as they can.

Even if you only work your side hustle on the weekends, you can still attract plenty of high-paying clients with exceptional work, create an excellent reputation, and build a solid marketing strategy. For those working traditional weekend jobs, once you have enough experience, it might not be a bad idea to transition to that field full-time if you are looking for advancement opportunities.

What Are the Best Gig Economy Jobs and Apps?

Given how popular the gig economy has become, it is worth considering which of the apps are the best for those looking for a weekend job. While not all of these apps can provide many of the benefits we outlined above, we think they are great ways to help make some extra money regardless of who you are.

1. Uber

2. Lyft

3. DoorDash

4. InstaCart

5. Postmates

6. TaskRabbit

7. Amazon Flex

8. GrubHub

9. Shipt

10. Rover (pet care)

11. Care.com

12. Upwork

13. Freelancer.com

14. WriterAccess

15. TextBroker

16. Toptal

17. Fiverr

18. Xteam

19. Swagbucks

20. Survey Junkie

21. Opinion Outpost

22. Prize Rebel

23. Inbox Dollars

Conclusion

In the end, the best weekend jobs will be different depending on your needs, skills, and circumstances, but there is almost certainly an option that is right for you. Even if you have a good job but are stuck in a rut, a weekend job can be just the thing to help you start a new career that you are genuinely passionate about.