3 Side Hustles Worth Starting in 2026, According to Codie Sanchez
Written byCaitlyn Moorhead
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Edited byGary Dudak
Yes, everyone is now aware that to make ends meet, or simply eat, you probably need more than one income stream. However, if you’re tired of the same old <a Side Hustles You Should Start (And AVOID!)".
As more Americans are looking for ways to boost their paycheck(s) and hopefully build some wealth outside of a traditional 9-to-5, side gigs have become one of the most popular ways to generate extra cash — and Sanchez has the inside track. If you’re looking for great options, she suggests to start with these — and take a few off the to-do list.
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1. Trash Can Washing
Yep, this side hustle is what it sounds like. Recommended for teens or any intrepid entrepreneur to earn money in the summers, the idea is that someone would offer their services washing out neighborhood trash cans, charging $15 each. If you wash 20 cans a day, that would add up to $2,100 per week.
Maybe Avoid: Donating Your Plasma
While one man’s trash is another man’s treasure, body parts are a different category. Donating plasma is not the kind of thing you can do often or easily enough to make that money worthwhile. As Sanchez said, “Donating parts of my body to make money is not at the top of my list of side hustles that I think we should participate in.”
2. Mobile Ice Cream Cart
A fun passion project that turned into a lucrative side hustle had Sanchez virtually clapping for a woman who started an ice cream cart that she hooked up to a bicycle, and had a ton of fun doing it.
The woman started her side hustle for less than $8,000 while working a full-time job, and within three months had tripled her initial investment. What really sold Sanchez was that the woman described herself as being “head over heels in love with what she was creating,” which made the time she put into it worthwhile.
“Obsession is often a good indicator of somebody who is telling you the truth,” Sanchez said. She also felt that the woman was transparent about the costs, the time it took and the work involved.
Maybe Avoid: Reselling Used Medications
Though everyone screams for ice cream, Sanchez had a good giggle at a video of a man dressed up in green calling himself “the Therapy Gecko.” She advised a caller that no, she could not resell medications like Adderall and Xanax that the pharmacy she works for no longer has use for. She made it very clear that this is an illegal activity. She called it a “verified scam.”
3. House Painting
After writing off one video of a man purporting to be a handyman with dubious skills, Sanchez rubber-stamped another independent home-painting business, in which the man claimed to earn around $4,000 per house painting over three to four days. Of course, Sanchez had questions, such as whether that profit figure was inclusive of labor, marketing and other costs.
She said it fulfilled the “Five Rs” which are: real estate agents, referrald the idea “cute” and doable, but suggested it will likely work best in affluent neighborhoods, and probably only as a part-time concept. She recommended tying the service to trash collection or some other service, such as power-washing houses
While she called the amount of money possible to earn “a little aggressive,” she said it’s a great idea for a young person with free time.
Maybe Avoid: Making Your Own Coloring Books
The self-publishing revolution has certainly made it possible for people to earn money publishing their own work. One self-proclaimed entrepreneur purported to make “a minimum of $20,000” by creating children’s coloring books in Canva and earning 60% royalties on the sales.
Sanchez said she wanted to like this idea because the designs were adorable, but the problem is that earning money through publishing is all about marketing. Sanchez suggested the likelihood of anyone really selling the thousands of coloring books necessary to earn that kind of money is slim, aka, “a glorified PowerPoint for kids.”
Jordan Rosenfeld contributed to the reporting for this article.
This article was provided byMoneyLion.comfor informational purposes only and should not be construed as Passive Income (You Can Start This Week)
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