A side hustle is extra income you earn alongside your main job, and in the Netherlands it’s becoming a mainstream lever for employees. With higher costs of living and taxes, people are looking for the best side hustles to build a stronger financial safety net.
Planning to start a side hustle in the Netherlands in 2026? This guide covers everything you need to know: how much you can realistically earn and the best side hustles for 2026.
What are side hustles
Side hustles are activities people do outside their primary jobs to earn extra cash for their time. For many, side hustles are a way to supplement their income, while for others, it’s a way to build passive income.
Additional work from these gigs is beneficial, as they are more flexible than the main job: workers are in charge of how much they work and how much they earn. In some cases, these extra workloads can lead to career changes if a hobby turns into a profitable venture.
What types of side hustles can you do
In the gig economy, people find new ways to generate extra income, and there are plenty of options and possibilities you can pursue, including side hustles from home. What we discovered is that there are several opportunities, ranging from digital services to face-to-face interactions and even investing, but investing requires more capital to start.
The type of software side hustle is primarily skill-dependent. Starting a side hustle of one type can be easier if you already know what you’re doing. At the same time, other side gigs can be tried even with minimal knowledge, but they will require more effort and time. The key is finding an opportunity that aligns with your lifestyle and financial goals.
How to choose a side hustle
To choose a side hustle, it’s essential to look at what you like doing, how much you want to work on the side hustle, and what your ultimate goal is. Are you just looking to add some extra cash and only allocate one to two hours? Or are you looking to build a side hustle from home with the extra time you have before bed? These are important questions to understand what to look for and how to integrate it into your daily life.
To answer these questions, you need to understand your strengths, identify the easiest opportunities, and assess the effort required. It’s important to set realistic expectations about your time commitment. To choose your next passive gig, start by exploring online forums, platforms, and payment options. Some ideas require specific tools or upfront investment, while others only need a reliable internet connection.
How much can you earn with side hustles
What you earn depends on how much time you invest and how committed you are. According to Bankrate’s data, people who take on extra jobs alongside their regular jobs earn an average of $885 per month, or €776 at current exchange rates. That is mostly the case for top side hustles that make money, though the average is just $200 or €175 at current euro prices.
In the UK, Monzo’s data shows that good side hustles in 2026 can earn up to £470 or approximately €550, which is similar to the amounts reported in the Netherlands. For example, Yieldfund provides a way for people to earn passively with the money they already have saved. A minimal contribution can earn around €400 per month depending on the plan they choose.
The honest numbers: The typical side hustler earns a median of €175/month, while the average is $776/month (Bankrate, 2025)
Best side hustle ideas in 2026
Here are some of the top side hustle ideas to consider in the Netherlands for 2026.
Teach others
If you have expertise in a particular subject, you can share your knowledge with others. This could involve academic tutoring in subjects like math or language, or teaching a practical skill, such as playing a musical instrument or coding. You can offer sessions in person or online through video calls, giving you flexibility. Platforms like Udemy and Teachable also let you create and sell online courses for a more passive income stream.
Investing with Yieldfund
If you already have capital on hand and want to enter a side hustle where money is coming in with little effort, then Yieldfund provides this opportunity. Yieldfund is a quantitative trading company that provides annual returns of up to 48%. By purchasing any of the three available plans, users can consistently return with weekly payouts without having to trade themselves. This means you leverage professional trading expertise to grow your capital with no trading knowledge.
DIY Services
If you’re skilled with your hands, offering DIY services can be a profitable side hustle. There is always demand for tasks such as assembling flat-pack furniture, gardening, house cleaning, or minor home repairs. You can advertise your services locally through community groups or on platforms that connect service providers with customers.
Virtual Assistant
Many businesses and entrepreneurs need administrative, technical, or creative support but aren’t ready to hire a full-time employee. As a virtual assistant, you can offer services such as email management, social media scheduling, and basic bookkeeping. This is a great remote side hustle that allows you to use your organizational skills and work flexible hours.
Content creation
Creating content such as blog posts, videos, or podcasts can build an audience and generate income through advertising, sponsorships, or affiliate marketing. Focus on a niche you’re passionate about, whether it’s travel, cooking, or finance. Consistency and quality are key to growing your following and monetizing your content.
Selling digital products
Creating a digital product—like an e-book, a template, or a guide—means you create it once and can sell it repeatedly. This offers excellent potential for passive income. Identify a common problem or need within a specific audience, and create a digital product that solves it. You can sell your products on platforms like Etsy or Gumroad.
Passive income vs active side hustle
Passive income and active side hustles are often conflated, but they operate very differently. Active side hustles pay faster because the exchange between money and time happens instantly. At the same time, passive income requires upfront work and capital before any return starts coming in. This matters even more because tax and compliance can change how much you end up earning and how realistic a side-income idea really is.
The most useful way to think about the choice is not which model is “better,” but which one fits your goals, time, and risk tolerance. Quicker cash flow moves the idea into active side hustles and is the more practical starting point. However, if you can wait longer and want something that can scale without constant manual effort, passive income may be the better fit – but that needs bigger cash inflow and more time without gratification.
| Active side hustles | Passive side hustles | |
| How it works | Trade time for money directly | You do the work upfront, then earn over time |
| Examples | Freelancing, tutoring, virtual assistance, delivery, consulting | Digital products, investments, real estate, websites |
| Ongoing effort | High | Lower after launch |
| Startup cost | Low to moderate | Typically high |
| Scalability | Limited by time | Better long-term scalability |
Online side hustles from home
Online side hustles from home are one of the most practical ways to earn extra income in 2026 because they require little upfront capital and can be started around an existing job or family schedule. In Holland, the strongest options tend to be freelance digital services, virtual assistance, translation, tutoring, and, to a certain extent, content creation – although only if the price is below the market. That’s because these can usually be done from a laptop.
The appeal is that flexibility makes it easy to start side hustles because you can set your own hours, choose clients who match your skills, and keep startup costs low.
The main trade-off is that online side hustles are rarely passive and start as active income streams, meaning your time still has to go in before the money comes out. Someone looking for extra income on the side needs to consider tax and self-employment rules if the income becomes significant.
That said, this is exactly why they work so well as a side-hustle category: they offer a low-risk way to build a second income stream from home, with the option to turn a simple freelance service or digital offering into something more scalable over time.
Side hustles to make money in the Netherlands
Starting a side hustle in the Netherlands is an excellent way to boost your income, but some avenues are better than others. Online discussions about real estate or investing incur high start-up costs.
Realistically, online side hustles are a good entry point, especially if you have a skill that you can monetize, like copywriting, social media, or even design. For short gig work where you can monetize your skills, you can use UpWork, Fiverr, or Malt.
The other option that fits Dutch people is DIY products and even reselling. People with craft skills can build and sell small products, since this is less time-consuming and doesn’t require large upfront investments. Platforms that allow product selling include Etsy or even Facebook groups.
Reselling, on the other hand, can require a larger cash influx, but to generate €200-€300 per month, a €2,000 investment might be required. There is already a large resale market for shoes, clothing, and also Bol or Amazon.
FAQ
What is the best side hustle for flexible hours in the Netherlands?
Side hustles like freelance writing, virtual assistance, delivery or content creation offer great flexibility, as you can often set your own hours and work from anywhere.
Are side hustles passive income?
Some side hustles, like selling digital products or investing, can generate passive income once they are set up. Others, such as freelancing or DIY services, require active work to earn money.
What’s a legit side hustle?
A legitimate side hustle is any legal activity that provides a product or service in exchange for payment. The ideas listed in this article, from tutoring to investing with reputable firms like Yieldfund, are all legitimate ways to earn extra income.
