10 Hobbies That Make Money in 2023

In this guide, I’ll share with you 10 hobbies that make money in 2023, along with the strategies, techniques, and free resources you can use to begin profiting from your passion. 

As an entrepreneur who has built multiple side hustles from my hobbies, I know first-hand how rewarding it can be to make money doing what you love. In this article, I’ll share the exact strategies I’ve used to turn my passions into profits, so you can unlock new income streams while indulging in the pursuits that bring you joy.

10 Hobbies That Make Money in 2023

1. Fiction Writing

If you’ve read my previous guides such as 10 Best Side Businesses to Start in 2023, you’ll know that one of the best ways to make extra money with writing is to set up as a freelance writer, creating blogs, articles, and other resources for paying clients. 

Still, as lucrative as freelance writing can be, it’s an industry dominated by non-fiction content, which may not be your thing. 

So, what if you love writing, but your interests lie in the weird and wonderful world of fiction? Can you still turn your passion into profit?

Absolutely. 

In fact, there are multiple ways you can make money from fiction writing, including: 

A. Self-Publishing Your Own Books 

Whether you’re crafting thrilling mystery novels, epic fantasy sagas, or heartwarming romance stories, platforms like Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) allow you to publish your work and reach a global audience without the need for a traditional publisher. 

After completing your magnum opus, you can download a free book template from Amazon which makes it easy to format and layout your book so that it’s ready for publishing. 

From there, open a free Canva account and use one of the countless book cover templates to design the ideal cover for your book. 

Next, create a free Amazon KDP account and choose whether to publish your book as a traditional paperback or a digital eBook. 

In my experience, paperbacks generate higher royalties per sale, but eBooks can be enrolled in the KDP Select Program which pays you for every page read on users’ Kindle devices. 

From there, you can follow the onscreen instructions to complete essential tasks including: 

• Uploading your manuscript and book cover
• Adding key details such as your author name, book description and keywords to help people find your book on Amazon
• Selecting your pricing options. 

As an alternative, or perhaps an addition, to KDP, you can also use services like Draft 2 Digital to self-publish books on platforms such as Smashwords.

Of course, publishing your book is only the beginning.

From there, you’ll need to begin using social media, blogs, and other low-cost marketing tools to promote that book, build and audience, and make sales. 

B. Publish Serialized Fiction 

Platforms like Wattpad Paid Stories, Kindle Vella, Raddish give you the opportunity to publish your creative writing in serialized form, with readers paying to unlock new chapters of your work. 

If you’d rather get straight to writing and publishing without the hassle of creating your own books, this may be the better option. 

C. Start a Patreon

Whether you’ve been self-publishing through Amazon, selling short stories on Wattpad, or simply publishing your work on a self-hosted blog, there’s extra money to be made by starting a Patreon.

Here, your most loyal readers pay a small monthly subscription to receive exclusive content from you, whether that’s advanced previews of your upcoming work, entirely new stories not published elsewhere, or even interactive content such as Author Q&A sessions. 

2. Arts and Crafts

We’ve all heard of the phrase starving artist, a term that suggests focusing on your creativity means sacrificing financial gain.

Yet in 2023, there’s absolutely no reason why you can’t pursue your favorite hobby and make money at the same time.

Here’s how:

A. Sell Your Products Online

Whether you paint, draw, or make handmade gifts such as candles, soaps, and jewelry, there are people out there willing to pay for your work and platforms out there to help you find them. 

The biggest of these is Etsy, an online marketplace connecting artists and creators with shoppers looking to buy their work.  

Creating an Etsy store is free, though there are fees involved, including:

• $0.20 for every item you list
• 6.5 % Transaction fee 
• 3% + $0.25 payment processing fee for each sale. 

Despite the fees eating into profits, Etsy’s vast audience of approximately 92 million active buyers annually offers significant potential for artists to make a profit even after accounting for the fees.

Alternatives to Etsy include:

• Big Cartel
• iCraft
• IndieMade. 

B. Sell at Craft Fairs and Events

The easiest way to find out about local craft fairs, popup art events, and creative markets is to talk with galleries, art organizations, and other artists.

Sign up to available mailing lists, and follow them on social media so that you never miss out on a potential opportunity to sell your work.

Though some events do charge a fee to participate, many don’t, and even allow you to keep 100% of your earnings.

Once you’ve got an event booked in the calendar, gather your inventory and create as many payment options for potential buyers as you can. 

You can get a free card reader from Square that connects to your smartphone, making it easy for customers to buy your work with their credit or debit card. You may also want to set up accounts with platforms such as Venmo and Cashapp. 

On the big day itself, don’t be afraid to put yourself out there. 

Sure, nobody likes a pushy salesperson, but talking to potential customers about your journey or the inspiration behind the piece they’re looking at can help form a personal connection which results in more sales.

3. Gaming

Top professional gamers can make upwards of $400,000 per year. While you may not be quite at that level yet, you can still turn your love of games into a profitable side hustle by: 

A. Live Streaming

By far the most popular way to make money from video games is to use software such as OBS Studio or LightStream to stream live gameplay, share walk-through videos, or create other game-related content for platforms like Twitch and YouTube.

This content can then be monetized via multiple methods, including subscriptions, advertising, sponsorship deals and tips. 

B. Playing Mobile Games

If you’d rather just play games in private, apps like Bingo Cash give you the opportunity to earn cash rewards, though games like these usually require you to spend some of your own money first. 

Elsewhere, you can earn points for playing a variety of games on Swagbucks. Although this isn’t going to make you a millionaire, you can convert these points into Amazon vouchers and gift cards, which is a great way to make your spare time more rewarding.

4. Cooking

If your favorite pastime involves cooking up all kinds of tasty creations in your home kitchen, there are several ways you can turn this fun hobby into a money-making side-business. 

A. Sell at Farmers Markets and Events 

Enjoy baking cakes or making jams and preserves? Make extra cash selling your home-made goodes at farmers marketsand similar events. 

Here, the approach is the same as the one I laid out for artists earlier: 

• Do your research to find local events 
• Reserve your spot
• Prepare your inventory
• Have multiple payment options available for customers
• Engage with potential customers without being overly pushy. 

B. Start a Part-Time Catering Business

If your culinary talents extend beyond individual goodies and into creating delightful spreads, starting a part-time catering business can be a rewarding way to monetize your cooking hobby. Whether you excel in crafting mouthwatering appetizers, delectable main courses, or exquisite desserts, there’s a market for your culinary prowess.

To do this effectively, you’ll need to: 

Define Your Niche

Decide whether you want to focus on intimate gatherings, corporate events, weddings, themed parties, or other types of events. 

Create a Menu

Develop a diverse menu that showcases your signature dishes and culinary creativity.

Obtain Necessary Licenses

Check local regulations and acquire any required licenses or permits for operating a catering business from your home kitchen.

See our guide to common business licenses, permits, and registrations by state for help with this.

Set Your Costs

Determine your pricing strategy by factoring in ingredient costs, labor, and overhead expenses.

Build a Stunning Portfolio

Assemble a portfolio showcasing pictures of your delectable creations to impress potential clients.

Find Your First Clients

Use networking events, social media, paid advertising, and other marketing methods to land your first paying gigs. 

5. Photography

If you love nothing more than picking up your camera and capturing the world around you, there’s a number of ways you can turn your talent into an income-generating side gig. 

A. Start a Freelance Photography Business

Freelance photography involves selling your services on a project-by-project basis, whether that’s covering a particular event, taking in-studio portraits, or helping businesses showcase their products and services in the best possible light.

As you’ll read in our guide to starting a photography business, the steps involved include: 

Define Your Niche

Whether it’s portrait, wedding, wildlife, landscape, commercial, or fashion photography, focusing on a niche can help you stand out in a competitive market.

Create a Portfolio 

Carefully curate a collection of your finest photographs and use them to build an online portfolio using sites such as Squarespace or ShootProof. This portfolio will prove essential for impressing potential clients.

Set Your Rates

Determine how much to charge by researching the average rate charged by other local photographers in your niche. Don’t forget to consider expenses such as travel and equipment costs, and price your services to ensure that you can still make a profit once those costs have been deducted. 

Market Your Photography Business

Use social media platforms such as Instagram, attend networking events, and traditional print advertising to attract clients. You may even want to consider starting a referral program whereby clients receive discounts on your services every time they refer a new customer to you.

B. Sell Stock Photography

As a keen amateur photographer, I occasionally dabble in uploading my best work to stock photography sites such as Alamy. 

Although this isn’t my main source of income, I’ve still earned close to $1,000 just by uploading pictures from my various trips and experiences that I would have enjoyed taking anyway. 

Other useful stock photography sites you can sell your work on include: 

• Shutterstock 
• DepositPhotos
• IStock

The good news is that you don’t even need any professional equipment to start with this. Sites like Eyeem and Foap even allow you to earn from photos taken with your smartphone.

C. Teach What You Know

One of the best ways to diversify your income as a talented photographer is to teach others how to do what you do. 

You could, for example, start a YouTube channel offering various photography tutorials, or use a platform such as Udemy to create and sell your own photography courses. 

6. Music

As with most creative pursuits, music offers a plethora of profit-making opportunities including: 

A. Teach

Use online tutoring sites such as OutSchool to provide virtual one-to-one lessons to budding music students, create courses or YouTube videos, or, better yet, put up flyers in local music stores and other local spots to advertise your services as a music tutor.

B. Play

If you have the confidence to show off your musical skills in public, there’s lots of ways to monetize that, including:

• Contacting local venues in pursuit of paying gigs
• Offering your services to studios and professional artists as a musician-for-hire
• Live streaming concerts and giving audiences options to support you through tips.

C. Host

Partner with local venues and bands to host your own live music events. Put a small cover charge on the door and split the profits between yourself, your venue, and your artists. 

7. Making Videos

In today’s digital age, video content is big business, making it one of the most profitable hobbies for anyone with the creativity and technical know-how to pursue one of the following video-based businesses: 

A. Create Your Own Content

By creating engaging content and growing a substantial subscriber base, you can join the YouTube Partner Program and earn money through ad revenue, sponsored content, and channel memberships.

B. Freelance Video Editing

As a freelance video editor, you can collaborate with content creators, businesses, or individuals to edit and enhance their video projects. 

Offer your expertise on platforms like Upwork or Fiverr to find clients and negotiate competitive rates based on the complexity and length of the videos.

C. Sell Stock Video Footage

Sell your high-quality video clips, b-roll, and images as stock footage on platforms like Shutterstock, Adobe Stock, or iStock. Content creators and businesses often purchase these assets for use in their projects.

8. Sports

You don’t have to be a world-class athlete to profit from your passion for sports. 

Even at a local, grassroots level, you could still bring in some extra cash with any of the following side hustles. 

A. Coaching

If you’re particularly skilled at your sport of choice, you could use sites such as Coachup.com to sell your services as a sports coach. 

The platform allows you to create a professional profile which you can use to either apply for one of the countless coaching jobs posted on the site, or sell your own one-to-one and group sessions, as well as workshops, online coaching courses and more.

B. Refereeing

Refeering can be a tough gig to break into, but it’s not impossible. The National Association of Sports Officials has a ton of information on how to get started as a referee for games like soccer, basketball, softball, and more. 

C. Content Creation

If you’re more a spectactor than a participate, you can still profit from your love of sports by creating content about your favorite leagues, teams, or the world of sports in general. 

Whether you set up a blog that you monetize with paid ads or affiliate marketing links, create a YouTube series and work your way into the YouTube Partner Program, or develop a social media brand that you monetize through sponsorships and paid partnerships, this is a great way to get paid for talking about the things you love most.  

9. Coding 

In a world dominated by apps, websites, and technology, there’s never been a greater demand for talented coders. 

You can capitalize on this lucrative market by: 

A. Creating Your Own Apps 

Develop smartphone apps that you can monetize through ads or in-app purchases. 

B. Freelance Coding 

Offer your coding skills as a freelance developer, working on projects for various clients and industries. Freelancing allows you to work on diverse projects, set your own rates, and have the flexibility to choose when and where you work.

C. Building Websites and Web Development

Provide web development services, creating responsive and visually appealing websites for businesses, individuals, or organizations. Many businesses are in constant need of web developers to establish a strong online presence.

10. Thrift Store Hunting 

Last but not least, if your favorite hobby involves browsing thrift stores, flea markets, and garage sales in hunt of a bargain, don’t forget that there’s money to be made by flipping your prized finds for profit on sites such as eBay and Facebook marketplace.

You can learn more about how to make money selling second hand goods in our guide to the best no-money side hustles to start in 2023. 

Making Money From Your Hobbies: A Final Word of Advice

It’s often said that if you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life. 

Speaking from experience, I can tell you that this is rarely -if ever- true. 

No matter which money-making hobbies you decide to pursue, and no matter how passionate you are about them, there are always going to be challenges and obstacles to overcome. 

Put the work in, however, and the rewards are certainly there for the taking, whether that means a little extra cash in your bank account at the end of the month, or the start of a journey towards creating a full-time business. 

If the biggest challenge you face right now is simply finding the time to start, check out How to Start a Side-Hustle With a Full-Time Job  for top tips and strategies that can help you launch your passion project without it affecting your 9-5.