Today, there are plenty of ways to make money without a “real” job. Maybe the standard side hustle you can do online or in your neighborhood is just not exciting enough for you? Maybe you are looking for something more fun or more profitable? In this article, we want to give you the 7 most unusual side hustle ideas to make money without a job.

Unusual Side Hustle Ideas to Make Money

Do you want to make some extra dollars but don’t want to put in the effort to start an online business or find a remote job? No worries! Check out these unusual side hustle ideas that don’t require any skills and are not your typical work:

1. Professional Cuddler

Most people like a good cuddle, right? So why not make money with it?

Many studies show the physical and mental benefits of human interaction and touch. However, we live in a time where online connections are stronger than ever before which means there is less opportunity for the human touch. And this results in high demand for professional cuddlers.

For this job, you don’t necessarily need to undergo any training, don’t need to have a degree or any specific skills. And no, sexual contact is absolutely taboo here. This is really only about cuddles.

Check out companies such as Cuddle Up to Me, Cuddlist, Cuddle Connect, or Cuddle Sanctuary, to connect with clients.

How much money can you make? That strongly depends on the company you work for. But in general, the pay is really good. Expect to make between $40 – $80 for a cuddling session of 45 to 60 minutes.

2. Clinical Trial

This is another highly profitable way to make money. But definitely not the right choice for everyone.

Pharmaceutical companies need to make sure that their products are safe before they start selling them to people around the world. That means, they need humans who are willing to test them. But don’t worry, at this stage, the drugs and treatments have usually been through various other tests so the risks are not as high as you may think.

The requirements to be suitable for a medical trial can vary a lot. For some trials you need to be absolutely healthy, for others, you need to have certain conditions or diseases, for instance, asthma, diabetes, or high blood pressure. Again other trials need people who smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol, or women on the contraceptive pill.

Also, the form of trial varies a lot. Sometimes you get an injection and need to record your reaction to it. Other times you need to take drugs for a couple of weeks and get your blood levels checked regularly. Or you participate in sleep studies where all you do is sleep while researchers observe your sleeping patterns.

The payment also depends on all of these factors. You could make between $50 – $300 per day for a short study or around $2,000 for the entire test period.

To find paid clinical trials, check out educational institutes near you, or research companies such as Covance, Trial 4 Us, or FluCamp.

3. Sell Your Hair

While this is surely not the fastest way to make money, it is definitely one of the easiest ways. And a great option to make money as a teen because there are no age restrictions. Since the best extensions and wigs are made from human hair, this is a product that is always in high demand.

The requirements are fairly simple: Your hair needs to be healthy, thick, and at least 10 inches or 25 centimeters long. It also needs to be untreated, which means it has not been bleached, dyed, permed, or cut into layers. So the more natural you keep your hair, the better.

Head over to websites such as BuyandSellHair, HairSellon, or OnlineHairAffair, to list your hair with photos and details about the color, length, and your care habits. Once you’ve found a buyer, you can cut your hair and send it to them.

Depending on the health of your hair and how much demand there is for the color and structure, you can make between $100 – $1,000 per donation.

4. Be a Friend

Believe it or not but there are platforms out there that connect people with potential friends. Here you can register, create a profile, and then find clients who can book you for certain events. Again, although it sounds like it, there is absolutely no sexual contact involved. These are solely platonic friendship arrangements.

The activities you can get booked could be, for instance, family functions, concerts, parties, video games, wine tasting tours, hiking trips, bowling, sightseeing, or pretty much anything that people don’t want to do alone and prefer to bring someone along. That also makes it a great side hustle for beginners as you don’t need any type of knowledge or skills.

Have a look at websites such as Rent a Friend, RentaCyberFriend, or FriendPC. You can set your own hourly rates but people make about $15 – $40 per hour as a rented friend.

5. Donate Plasma

Donating plasma is not necessarily something you should do because of the money. But it’s also a nice bonus.

Blood plasma is the liquid portion of our blood that contains antibodies that are needed to fight off infections. To make enough medicine to treat one patient alone, it takes between 130 to 1,300 donations of plasma. So it’s clear to see why there is such high demand for it.

Unlike traditional blood donations, blood plasma is used to make pharmaceutical products and that’s why donors can get compensated for their contribution. How much you get depends on where you live and how much you can give. Generally speaking, the more you weigh, the more plasma you can donate. Expect to get around $50 – $75 per appointment. It’s not a lot but it’s definitely a great way to make money fast.

As an official recommendation of The American Red Cross, you could give plasma every 28 days and up to 13 times a year.

Check out websites such as Octapharma Plasma, CSL Plasma, BioLife Plasma, or Grifols to find donation centers near you.

6. Donate Sperm or Eggs

Of course, this one made it into our list of the most unusual side hustle ideas to make money without a job, too. For this idea again the main focus isn’t necessarily to increase your income but to help others conceive.

Donating sperm is an easy, no-risk procedure. The requirements can vary between the different sperm banks but often it’s something like: You have to be…

• Healthy,
• Under the age of 40,
• Educated,
• At least 5’7″ or 1,70 m tall

Depending on the country you live in, there might be restrictions on how often you are allowed to donate. In case there are not, you usually have to wait two days between the donations. Depending on the quality, the payout can range from $35 – $125 per donation.

Women who want to become egg donors generally need to be:

• Age 21 – 35
• Good health

Here, the process is much more complicated. First, you are injected with fertility drugs. Once the ovaries have produced a large number of eggs, the retrieval procedure takes place. The following recovery can take several days.

The payment is usually somewhere between $8,000 – $14,000 per donation. However, since there are many complications involved, this is nothing that women should do regularly but instead carefully deliberate if this is the right choice.

7. Be a Model for Body Parts

Not everyone looks like a typical runway model. And you most certainly don’t need to make money with your look!

Do you have nice hands? You could work as a hand model and work for jewelry companies. Is your hair super shiny and healthy? Make money running shampoo or conditioner commercials. What about your feet? If they look good in sandals, you could get booked by shoe stores for advertising campaigns.

To find jobs, you should reach out to modeling agencies or register at casting websites.

Your income opportunities vary widely but if you have the right look, there’s a lot of money waiting for you. For instance, for a day of TV work you could make $1,000. If you get booked for print campaigns, you can make $2,000 – $5,000 per day.

Make Money Without a Job Today!

As you can see, there are many unusual side hustles to make money without a job. Most of them may be completely new to you. So in case you are bored with the usual ways to make some extra money, these ideas could be worth looking into.

We hope, these unique side hustle ideas gave you some inspiration on how you can make money, too.

Do you know any other fun or profitable ways to increase your income? Let us know in the comments below!