Best Side Hustles for Dental Professionals Just Starting Out

So you just graduated from dental school and are looking forward to earning the high average salary that many medical professionals dream of. In the meantime, expenses are adding up. You’re still paying off your student loans, organizational fees, and insurance, all while trying to save up to open your own practice.

At this point, a side hustle is the best way to earn extra money and get into a more comfortable financial place. Fortunately, this is my specialty, and I can tell you, the opportunities are endless. Here are some you might consider.

Moonlighting at Another Facility

Taking extra shifts at another facility is always an option. However, you should first ensure you don’t lose your current job in the process by considering the following:

Exclusivity Agreement: Moonlighting within your industry is only a possibility if you didn’t sign an exclusivity agreement with your current employer.
Scheduling: Choose a facility that doesn’t require you to work hours you are already committed to.
Location: Consider location, ensuring you don’t spend more time traveling than working.

Teledentistry

Teledentistry is an excellent choice because it allows for flexible hours and can be done from almost anywhere, provided you have WIFI and remote access. Dentistry is typically in-person work, but you can offer second opinions and consultations virtually, helping you earn more money each day. Advertise your remote services separately to establish your niche.

Dental Pop-ups

These services are ideal because they allow community members to access dental care without long commutes, and are often offered on weekends, eliminating the need to take off work to attend appointments. You can provide cleanings, check-ups, and basic services at schools and community events on the spot. While a truck can be helpful, you can conduct services in a shipping container or behind a curtain for a money-saving approach.

Teaching

Teaching is always a possibility, and there are so many techniques to choose from. For example, you may:

Provide Workshops: Workshops can be helpful for dental students, other professionals, or people who just want to know more about dental health. Choose a topic you feel may be popular, and charge people to attend. You may even be able to provide educational credits in return for your services, incentivizing signups.
Test Prep: Were there any dental tests you excelled at? Consider offering tutoring to students struggling through dental school.
Colleges and Universities: Find out if any colleges and universities need someone to teach a dental class. Teaching schedules may be flexible, allowing you to focus on dentistry while maintaining an educational position.
Dental Instructor: Facilities may hire you to train their staff on various dental techniques. You may mentor students and guide them in a real-world setting.

Dental Real Estate Ventures

If you are in a position to open your own facility, you can make money by leasing your spaces. Inquire to find out if any dentists need a room to practice in. Charge them rental fees to generate extra income and ease your financial burden.

Expert Witness and Legal Consulting

Dentists are often called upon to provide expert testimony in legal cases. If you train in forensic odontology, you can also consult on criminal cases. You will incur additional educational fees, but with paychecks of $250 to $500 per hour, it’s well worth the investment.

Social Media & Blogging

Social media and blogging can be an excellent source of income, especially for someone with dental expertise. Here are some ways you can put your educational background to good use.

Blogging can be a very lucrative side hustle if you set up a subscription site or allow companies to advertise on your pages.
YouTube: Post videos about the dental profession and monetize your channel.
Influencer: Become a dental influencer and get paid to showcase products from your industry.
Affiliate Marketing: Social media posting is often tied to affiliate marketing, in which you feature a brand’s products in your content with a link or purchasing instructions. If you get a viewer to buy the product, you receive a percentage of the sale.

Note, you typically need to build a strong following before you can make money through social media. However, you will be able to develop your brand along the way, potentially attracting more clients.

Dental Specialties

Various dental specialties can help you earn extra money outside your regular gig. For example, you may offer:

Teeth whitening
Dental anesthesiology
Oral and maxillofacial surgery
Endodontics
Orthodontics
Periodontics
Prosthodontics
Pediatric dentistry

Do Temp Work

Temp positions are another way to increase your income. You can find a temporary gig as a dental hygienist, dental assistant, dental receptionist, or in a field unrelated to the dental industry. Several agencies specialize in helping people find temporary work.

These positions are not necessarily flexible and could conflict with your current schedule. However, you may find the ideal gig and earn extra money before returning to full-time dentistry,

An Unrelated Side Gig

You may have studied dentistry, but not all side gigs have to be dentist-related. For example, you can earn extra money in one of these roles:

Rideshare/Delivery Driver: Uber, Lyft, Uber Eats, and Amazon are just some companies that offer freelance driving opportunities.
Marketplace Seller: Various online marketplaces allow you to sell new and used items to earn extra, and almost passive, income.
Pet-Sitting & Dog-walking: An animal lover’s dream!
Cleaning: If you know your chemicals, you may make extra cash by cleaning windows, houses, cars, or doing yard work.
Market Studies: Sign up with market study companies to get paid for providing your opinion.

Make Your Business More Profitable

While side gigs can help, the ultimate goal is to make your dental practice more profitable, so it becomes your primary focus. Companies and services like Cherry Payment Plans and CareCredit can help. They enable you to attract more patients by offering 0% down-payment plans for various dental services.

Do you have any questions about becoming more profitable? Shoot me a call or reach out through my website. I’m always happy to help.

This post may contain affiliate links.

More Recommended Ebike/Scooters

Check out these other ebikes and scooters I've reviewed:

Urban Arrow Ebike – Last year, I made one of the largest purchases I’ve ever made – I bought a $9,000 electric cargo bike from Urban Arrow. In my Urban Arrow review, I will discuss what it is and why I decided to buy this bike, as well as discuss how impactful a bike like this can be on your journey to financial independence.
Troxus Explorer Step-Thru Ebike – The Troxus Explorer Step-Thru is a fat-tire ebike that I’ve had the pleasure of riding for a while now. It has amazing power, great looks, and awesome range. If you’re looking for a great fat-tire ebike that offers a lot for the price, the Troxus Explorer Step-Thru is definitely one for you to consider. Check out my Troxus Explorer Step-Thru Review.
Hovsco HovBeta Ebike – The HovBeta is a folding ebike with great specs and a lot of interesting features, and importantly, it’s sold at a good price point. I’ve had a blast commuting with it and using it to do deliveries with DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. Check out my Hovsco HovBeta Ebike Review.
Vanpowers Manidae Ebike – The Vanpowers Manidae is a fat tire ebike that I’ve been riding as my primary winter commuting bike and have also been using it to do food delivery with apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. After clocking in a decent number of miles with this ebike, I wanted to write a post sharing what my experience with the Vanpowers Manidae ebike has been like. Check out my Vanpowers Manidae Review.
Sohamo S3 Step-Thru Folding EBike Review – A Great Value Folding Ebike – The Sohamo S3 Step-Thru Folding Ebike is an entry-level folding ebike that offers a lot of value for the price point. I’ve been riding the Sohamo S3 for a while now, putting the bike through its paces, and I have to say, this bike has exceeded all of my expectations. Check out my Sohamo Review.
KBO Flip Ebike – The KBO Flip is an excellent bike. I’ve had a great time riding it and think it’s a versatile bike that can be used for a lot of purposes and can fit a variety of lifestyles. It’s worked out great for me as a general commuter bike and as a food delivery bike. Check out my KBO Flip Review.
Hiboy P7 Commuter Ebike – The Hiboy P7 is an excellent electric commuter bike that’s offered at an affordable price point. The range and speed of this bike are both very good, so you won’t have any trouble getting anywhere you need to go with it. As a food delivery vehicle, this is also good – with how much range it offers, you’ll be able to work all day on a single charge. Check out my Hiboy P7 Commuter Electric Bike Review.
Himiway Escape Ebike – The Himiway Escape is an interesting bike for anyone looking for a moped-style ebike. If you’re a gig economy worker, the Himiway Escape is particularly interesting and it’s possible to think of it as an investment, especially if you can opt to do deliveries with the Himiway versus using a car. It’s not cheap, but you can definitely make your money back when you compare the mileage you’ll put on your car versus using an ebike. Check out my Himiway Escape Bike Review.
Espin Sport Ebike – The Espin Sport is a good ebike for someone who is looking for an ebike that feels and rides more like a regular bike. There are many ebikes that are really only bikes in name. In reality, they’re basically electric mopeds. The Espin Sport, by contrast, is a bike you could probably ride without the battery and you’d feel like you’re just riding a regular bike. Check out my Espin Sport Review.
Varla Eagle One Scooter – The Varla Eagle One is an excellent scooter that can make sense for a lot of people. It can work as a primary mode of transportation. You can use it to work on gig economy apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. And it can also be a recreational vehicle if you’d prefer to use it for that. Check out my Varla Eagle One Review.
Varla Falcon Scooter – The Varla Falcon is an excellent scooter that offers a good amount of power at a lower price point compared to more powerful scooters. It’s not exactly an entry-level scooter, nor is it a high-powered scooter. I think it fits somewhere in-between those two categories – an intermediate scooter if I had to give it a category. Check out my Varla Falcon Review.
Hiboy S2 Scooter – The Hiboy S2 is an excellent entry-level commuter scooter that's perfect for someone looking to save some money in transportation costs and improve their commute. Check out my Hiboy S2 Review.
Hiboy S2R Scooter – The Hiboy S2R is one of the more interesting electric scooters I’ve been able to test out. It’s not a high-powered scooter, but for an everyday transport option, it’s very useful, especially given some of the unique features that it has. Indeed, for the price, the Hiboy S2R might be the best value scooter I’ve used. Check out my Hiboy S2R Review.
Fucare H3 Scooter – The Fucare H3 is a fun scooter and I’ve enjoyed testing it out. For a daily commuter or quick trips or errands, the Fucare H3 is probably the scooter I’ll use. It’s portable and easy to maneuver, so it’s just easier to take on the road when I need it. Check out my Fucare H3 Scooter Review.

More Recommended Investing App Bonuses

For additional investing app bonuses, be sure to check out the ones below:

M1 Finance ($75) – This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $75 for opening an account. Check out my M1 Finance Referral Bonus – Step-By-Step Guide.
SoFi Invest ($25) – SoFi Invest is an easy brokerage account bonus that you can earn with just a few minutes of work. Use my SoFi Invest referral link, fund your SoFi Invest brokerage account with just $10 and you’ll get $25 of free stock. I also have a step-by-step guide for the SoFi Invest referral bonus.
Robinhood (1 free stock) – Robinhood gives you a free stock valued between $2.50-$225 if you open an account using my referral link.
Public (1 free stock) - Public gives you a free stock valued between $3-$70 if you open an account using my referral link.

More Recommended Bank Account Bonuses

If you’re looking for more easy bank bonuses, check out the below options. These bonuses are all easy to earn and have no fees or minimum balance requirements to worry about.

Ally Bank ($100) – Of all the banks out there, Ally is, without a doubt, my favorite. At the moment, Ally is offering $100 to customers who open an eligible Ally account and meet the requirements. Here are the step-by-step directions to earn your Ally Bank referral bonus.
Chime ($100) - Chime is a free bank account that offers a referral bonus if you use a referral link and complete a direct deposit of $200 or more. In practice, any ACH transfer into this account triggers the bonus. This bonus is easy to earn and posts instantly, so you’ll know if you met the requirements as soon as you move money into the account. I wrote a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Chime referral bonus that I recommend you check out.
US Bank Business ($400/$1200) – This is a fairly easy bank bonus to earn, since there are no direct deposit requirements. In addition, you can open the Silver Business Checking account, which comes with no monthly fees. Check out how to earn this big bonus here.
Current ($50) – Current is a free fintech bank that’s offering new users a $50 referral bonus after signing up for an account using a referral link. Current is an easy bonus to earn and also gives you access to three savings accounts that pay you 4% interest on up to $2,000. That means you can put away up to $6,000 earning 4% interest. That’s very good and makes Current an account I recommend to everyone. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Current Bank bonus.
Novo Bank ($40) - Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. In addition to being a good bank bonus, Novo is also a good business checking account. It has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements and operates a good app and website. Indeed, it’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog. Check out my post on how to easily open a Novo account.
Varo ($25) – Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $25 bonus to new users that open a new Varo account with a referral link. The bonus for this bank is very easy to meet, all you need to do is spend $20 within 30 days of opening your Varo account. Check out my step-by-step guide to learn how to earn this bonus.

Kevin is an attorney and the blogger behind Financial Panther, a blog about personal finance, travel hacking, and side hustling using the gig economy. He paid off $87,000 worth of student loans in just 2.5 years by choosing not to live like a big shot lawyer.

Kevin is passionate about earning money using the gig economy and you can see all the ways he makes extra income every month in his side hustle reports.

Kevin is also big on using the latest fintech apps to improve his finances. Some of Kevin's favorite fintech apps include:

SoFi Money. A really good checking account with absolutely no fees. You'll get a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi Money account with a referral link, and an additional $300 if you complete a direct deposit.
5% Savings Accounts. I'm currently getting 5.24% interest on my savings through a company called Raisin. Opening a Raisin account takes minutes to complete, it's free, and all of your funds are FDIC-insured. I explain how it works, why I'm now using it to store my emergency fund and any other cash savings I have, and why I recommend everyone check it out in this review.
US Bank Business. US Bank is currently offering new business customers a $400/$1200 signup bonus after opening a new account and meeting certain requirements.
M1 Finance. This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $75 for opening an account.
Empower. One of best free apps you can use to monitor your portfolio and track your net worth. This is one of the apps I use to track my financial accounts.

Feel free to send Kevin a message here.