Emergency prep doesn’t come cheap.
Stockpiling food and essentials, setting up a bug-out location, or equipping your homestead with solar panels all cost money.
How do you fit prepping into your budget when prices are skyrocketing?
For many people, an extra source of income is the only practical solution.
Check out the following nine side hustle ideas to grow your preparedness cash flow.
Build a Bigger Prepping Fund with These Side Gigs
If you already work full-time, just the idea of taking on a side hustle may seem exhausting. You don’t want to risk burnout, even if you need extra money.
To make this more manageable, your side gig must be flexible and play to your strengths. Choose something you enjoy doing and can fit into the occasional free afternoon or a slow weekend.
1. Handyman Work

Many people need small handyman jobs that don’t justify hiring a professional contractor, like fixing a squeaky door hinge, tightening a loose pipe joint, or replacing a few roof tiles.
If you’re good at that sort of thing, you can pick up some work here and there.
A caveat: check your state’s licensing requirements to make sure you don’t take on any project that would require a professional license or insurance.
2. Dog Walking or Pet Sitting

Dog walking is another flexible gig that you can do without compromising too much of your time.
For example, if you take your dog for a walk every morning anyway, you could easily add another dog to the setup, provided both dogs are well-mannered and get along nicely.
You could also work as a pet sitter for people who need someone to change the cat’s litter box, feed aquarium fish, or clean out a parrot’s cage while they’re on vacation.
Supervising someone’s homestead livestock is a grittier variation of a pet sitter’s job.
Homesteaders often find it difficult to get away even for a few days because it’s hard to find someone who can handle goats, cows, poultry, or horses. Experience with farm animals could give you a major advantage here.
3. House Sitting

Another closely related side hustle is house sitting, which you can do combined with or separately from pet sitting.
Many people will pay good money for you to stay in their house while they’re away, whether because they need someone to look after their plants or because they feel safer knowing there’s a trusted person to deter burglars and squatters.
House sitting may involve chores like watering plants or some basic yardwork. The best part is, you enjoy free accommodations and get paid for it.
This can also be a terrific opportunity to explore new locations.
4. Online Jobs

“Working online” is a very broad definition, and something that many people do these days as their primary source of income.
Freelance writing, editing, graphic design, and virtual assistant services are all ventures that could help you make good money if you have the right skills and are willing to work hard.
If you’re looking for something more sporadic, you can often find random gigs that involve uploading photos and videos or answering surveys.
Finally, many companies now launch AI training projects, and they often pay everyday people to label images, transcribe audio, or verify data – simple tasks that help train and improve AI systems.
5. Crafts

If you’re a crafty person, you can set up a little side businesses selling your wares.
Knitted and crocheted items, handmade dolls, woodworking pieces, artisan pottery, and many other creations can sell really well if you know how to market them, especially at fairs and other open-air events.
You can also consider opening an Etsy shop.
Remember that you still have to report income you make from a hobby, and may need a business license if your side gig starts bringing in significant cash.
Another thing to keep in mind is the upfront costs of selling crafts, like materials, tools, packaging, and shipping.
Do some number-crunching and make sure that the price people are ready to pay for your items makes the project worthwhile.
6. Tutoring

Are you great with kids, bilingual, or proficient at playing the guitar?
Leverage your skills as a private tutor working with either kids or adults.
Offer help with homework or lessons in a one-on-one or small group setting.
You usually don’t need any special license to start tutoring, but keep an eye on your state’s regulations. Also, as with any cash source, you’ll need to report income from tutoring.
7. Sustainability and Preparedness Guidance

If you’re interested in self-reliance and emergency preparedness, chances are, you’re already living out many of these principles.
You can help others start their journey towards sustainable living: this is a subset of tutoring, but with a more hands-on approach.
For example, you can help a neighbor convert their wasteful lawn into a lush food-producing garden, or work with them on building a chicken coop.
Other people may appreciate help with organizing a survival pantry or an emergency medical kit.
8. Reselling Thrift Store or Garage Sale Items

Do you enjoy rummaging through thrift store or garage sale treasures?
You can often score beautiful clothes, kitchenware, and works of art for next to nothing, just because the seller is in a hurry to get rid of them.
Nicely presented, these items can fetch much better prices on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace. And the best part, you don’t need to feel guilty about cluttering up your home with all these finds.
Restoring furniture is another potentially lucrative gig. Many lovely vintage pieces of furniture are made of durable hardwood that only needs sanding and refinishing to restore its former glory.
You can sell refurbished furniture at craft fairs or local specialty shops.
9. Selling Homestead Produce

If you already live on a homestead and have a surplus of fresh produce in season, you could start selling some of it and be making money from your homestead.
From putting up a sign at the end of your driveway to opening a weekend stall at the local farmer’s market, your extra fruit, vegetables, honey, or seeds can attract an avid customer base that values sustainably grown food.
Regulations can be slightly more complicated for eggs and dairy products. Some states allow small-scale egg producers to sell directly to consumers, but not to restaurants or grocery stores.
Raw milk is legal in some states and illegal in others. Please check your local laws before you begin selling farm-fresh eggs or cheeses.
