5 High-Paying, Remote Side Jobs In 2024

With the United States ranking as the 12th most expensive country in the world, American Millennials are struggling to make ends meet. In many U.S. states, renting is a preferable option to buying a home. Although, on a monthly basis, renting is more expensive than paying a monthly mortgage rates the inflated down payments and soaring interest rates has priced many Gen Z and Millennials out of the housing market, according to research by Statista.

This is one of the underlying reasons why an estimated 39% of Americans have a side hustle or a side job, leading to a spike in the popularized TikTok and Reddit trend known as over-employment. Over-employment entails working two full time white collar jobs remotely, often within the same working hours, and collecting two full time pay-checks.

While the practice may be considered unethical by some employers, nonetheless, the concept of having a side job or side hustle is one that is necessary to survival and even to career stability. Perhaps, one should consider having a candid discussion with their employer to come to an agreement or flexible working arrangement, to avoid the fear of being “caught out” if they choose to have a second job.

The remote and flexible working job board, FlexJobs, recently identified a number of side jobs that pay well and are also remote. These roles are well-suited to individuals who wish to work part-time around their full-time job commitments, or who wish to have a side hustle, and perform the role as a freelancer.

The top five of this list (ranking highly in average pay), are:

1. Software Developer

You can find remote side jobs as a software developer on platforms such as DevIT Jobs, Turing, and Dice. As a freelancer, or working part-time, the average pay you can expect to receive per hour is $59.71 per hour. This is definitely one of the highest paying side jobs/side hustles on the market.

2. Project Manager

Project managers are in high demand across several sectors and companies; if you already work as a project manager and are taking on extra projects as a freelance gig, you will need to work on separating your mind from your regular work, ensuring you do not get terminologies or key stakeholders confused. The average hourly rate for project management professionals is $45.85.

3. Consultant

There are many different types of consultants. For example, you could have expertise in social media management or social media strategy, and then choose to be a social media marketing consultant, or digital marketing consultant. Or you may have a background in law and wish to be a freelance legal consultant as opposed to being a lawyer.

Because there are so many types of consultants (including IT consultants), it can be hard to prescribe one specific pay rate, but generally, you can expect to earn around $45 per hour.

You can find consulting gigs within your network, on LinkedIn, and on FlexJobs.

4. Adjunct Professor

An adjunct professor is a professor who does not work within an educational establishment full-time. Sometimes, they teach in multiple colleges at the same time, while others wait for their freelance contract to end before teaching at a new institution. This is a great way to share your expertise and boost your income at the same time. Adjunct professors have a median hourly pay of $38.87.

5. Web Designer

Web designers create the layout of web pages, unlike web developers, who create the structure of the website. If you have web design skills, you might want to put them to sue in your spare time by taking on some web design projects. You could earn as much as $38.81 an hour.

If you haven’t considered it already, now is an excellent time to have that conversation with your boss, or find a work-around in which you perform freelance work outside of your regular work hours. Taking a side job or side hustle will help you realize your financial and personal goals, and add invaluable skills to your career development.