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Financial Independence, Side Hustling, and Ebikes

February 2022 Side Hustle Report – $776.90

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I’m a little late getting this month’s side hustle report out, but here it is for those of you waiting for it. February was a slow side hustle month for me. When you have a toddler and a busy family life, it gets pretty difficult to balance everything.

Before we had kids, it was especially easier for me to take time in the evening to do some side hustling and get things done. These days, my evenings are packed with dinner time, bath time, and bedtime for my son. This is one of the reasons why I’ve said that if you’re going to do weird things, do them when you can, because life likely won’t get easier for you later. I still think I live weird – but it’s not as weird as it used to be.

It also doesn’t help that the weather wasn’t particularly great in February. The average temperature for the month was 17 degrees, with a lot of days close to 0 degrees. When the weather is that bad, I’m usually not too motivated to get outside for longer than I need to.

Below is a breakdown of my earnings for each category in February 2022.

Side Hustle Income for February 2022

Total Side Hustle Income for February 2022 = $776.90 

This past month is the first month I’ve had in a while where I didn’t break the $1,000 mark. Historically, February has tended to be my worst side hustle month. This is mainly due to poor weather. When it’s cold outside, I just don’t do as much side hustling as I do when the weather is nice. 

On the flip side, I had one of the best income months I’ve ever had for the blog, so that helped take the sting out of the poor side hustle income. 

Percentage-wise, here’s how much each category made up my earnings for the month: 

One of the incredible things about my side hustle income sources – and why it’s so important to diversify your income sources – is how much the “other” category makes up my side hustle income. Rover and food delivery (i.e. DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub) made up the majority of my earnings, but all of the other little things I do account for 40% of my side hustle income for the month. It doesn’t seem like much when you look at each thing by itself, but when you add them up, it can be significant. 

Below is a more detailed look at my side hustle earnings for the month.

 

Airbnb/Rental Income Income: $2,400 

The rental property continues to do well, generating $900 to $1,000 of profit each month after I pay the mortgage, taxes, and insurance. In February, I had a few larger handyman expenses, so that lowered the profit a bit. The good thing is that I don’t need the rental income, so right now it all goes back into the property for maintenance (or future maintenance). The nice thing is that I’m able to maintain the property and gain equity in the home, all from the rent the tenants pay. 

 

Rover Income: $316 

I think I’m going to write a post at some point about how Rover is the most passive side hustle income source in the gig economy. That’s because watching a dog really isn’t much work, especially if you already have a dog. Most of the time, I don’t have to change anything with my daily life when I’m boarding a dog in my house. And every night they’re in my house, I make money. 

I ended up watching two dogs this month and I also did some drop-in catsitting for a neighbor. My favorite dog for the month was this one: 

This dog was bigger than the dogs we usually watch, but he was so well-behaved and fit in perfectly with my family. I currently limit myself to small dogs on Rover but wish there was a way to accept only big, low-energy, well-behaved dogs. There are a lot of these types of dogs I like, but I rarely see them unless the owner happens to put them at 35 pounds or less in the Rover app. 

If you want to learn more about how Rover works, check out this post: Rover Pet Sitting – How To Make Money Dog Sitting With Rover. You can also sign up to be a Rover sitter using my Rover referral link. 

 

DoorDash/Uber Eats/Grubhub Income: $150.68 

I didn’t do a ton of food deliveries in February, which is why my income is low here. Things will improve once the weather warms up, but right now I’m mainly being lazy. Below is a breakdown of my earnings on each platform last month:

DoorDash and Uber Eats remain my two busiest delivery apps, although I’ve noticed some pretty long dry spells with DoorDash recently. Grubhub has also had some negative changes. In my market, the minimum payout used to be $9 per order, but now it can be as low as $3 (which, of course, I always reject). 

I did most of my deliveries this month using my Himiway Escape and Gen3 Outcross, which are the two fat-tire ebikes I currently own. Both of them are absolute workhorses in the snow and cold weather. I have a full review post of the Himiway Escape that you can read here. And my next post will be about the Gen3 Outcross, which is a bike I’m liking more and more each day I use it.

When the weather is warmer, I also will sometimes do deliveries with my son on our way home from daycare. It’s usually easy enough for us to snag a delivery heading in the right direction. 

For more information about the different food delivery apps I use, feel free to check out the detailed posts I’ve written about each: 

 

Trash/Flipping Income: $8.70

I don’t have much to report here. I didn’t sell any trash finds last month and the only things I did sell were a few small things on eBay. It’s not much money, but it’s always nice to get a little bit of money while clearing things out of your house. 

 

WeGoLook Income: $32 

WeGoLook income was solid once again. As usual, WeGoLook isn’t a large moneymaker in itself, but the tasks I accept – usually ones that are nearby and don’t take me much time to complete – are worth completing. One of the gigs this month was to take photos of a car that was one block from my house. I was able to walk over there on a weekend morning and snap a few photos, making $20 in the process. 

WeGoLook won’t work for everyone, but it’s easy enough that I still check the app regularly to see what is available. The only annoying thing is that they keep calling you to see if you’ll accept stupid assignments. I always ignore their phone calls now (I might block their phone number soon just so they stop bothering me).

 

ProductTube Income: $65 

After a few months of weak ProductTube numbers, I’m glad to see my earnings in this category grow again. All of my assignments for this month were at a Target next to my son’s daycare. The videos take 5 minutes or less to complete and pay $5 to $20 per video. It’s nice to start my mornings with some money in my pocket. 

 

Gigwalk/EasyShift/Field Agent/Merchandiser/Observa/IVueIt/Pickl Income: $60  

All of my money in this category came from IVueIt. It’s become a regular app in my monthly side hustles. Right now, I’ve been doing the same “dark store” Vues, which is when I go into a closed-down coffee shop and take photos to make sure everything is still in order. The Vues pay $20 each and take me 10 minutes or less to complete. I usually do these with my son on our way home from daycare. I make some money and he gets to have some fun running around an empty store while I take photos. 

If you’re interested in learning more about IVueIt, check out my post: IVueIt Review 2022 – Make Money Taking Photos.

 

Google Opinion Rewards/Surveys On The Go/1Q Income: $7.69

Here’s what I made with each short survey app in February:

Google Opinion Rewards was slow. 1Q remained strong though, which is a nice bonus. I’ve been using Surveys On The Go less because the app is really slow. Eventually, I’ll hit the $10 mark so I can cash out my earnings, but that might take a while.

 

Secret Shopping Income: $94 (plus free food) 

Secret shopping remains strong. I was able to earn $94 this month, as well as get tons of free food. As in past months, all of my earnings came from Marketforce, which can sometimes pay really well. 

For more info about how you can use secret shopping to eat for free, check out these posts:

 

ProductLab Income: $18.55  

ProductLab earnings for February were solid. In addition to paying $3 per week for a screenshot of my DoorDash earnings, they’ve also started occasionally accepting random receipts. I already take photos of receipts with other apps, so that’s a nice bonus.

 

ReceiptPal/Receipt Hog/Fetch/CoinOut/Amazon Shopper Panel/Tada Income: $11.85

My receipt earnings this month came from Amazon Shopper Panel, which is a no-brainer receipt app that everyone should sign up for if they can. I’ve been making at least $10 per month from my receipts. That’s $120 per year from random receipts that I already get. Not bad at all.

 

Premise Income: $11.45

Premise is an app I discovered a few months ago that I think has some potential. It’s sort of like a poor man’s version of Job Spotter. Unfortunately, it seems to have slowed down a bit, but I was still able to earn some money from the app this month.

 

Medium Income: $0.98 

I’ve basically given up on Medium. It’s not that I can’t make money on it, but I’m just spread too thin if I try to blog here and write on Medium at the same time. If I were starting out today, I might consider solely writing on Medium. But since I have an established blog that I own with a fairly loyal audience, I get a better return writing here versus on Medium.

 

And that concludes the February 2022 Side Hustle Report!

February wasn’t a great side hustling month, but I was still able to make a little bit of extra money even with a busy schedule. As the weather warms up, things will start to improve. 

For more ideas on how you can use the gig economy to earn extra income, check out my post, The Ultimate List of Gig Economy Apps. Thanks for stopping by this month! Feel free to drop any questions or comments below.

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.
  • 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 ($100) – 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 $100 for opening an account. Check out my M1 Finance Referral Bonus – Step-By-Step Guide.
  • Moomoo (15 free stocks and 1 stock of Tesla or Google) – Moomoo is a free investing app currently offering 3 different referral bonuses if you open an account using a referral link. Read my Moomoo referral bonus guide for more information.
  • Webull (12 free stock shares) – Webull's current promotion gives you 12 free shares valued between $3-$3,000 each if you open an account using my referral link. Here’s a guide I wrote about how to earn your free shares using Webull.
  • 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.
  • 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 $100 and you’ll get $25 of free stock. I also have a step-by-step guide for the SoFi Invest referral bonus.

Recommended Bank Account Bonuses

If you’re looking for 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.

  • Chime ($150) - 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.
  • SoFi Money ($275) – SoFi Money is a free checking account from SoFi. They’re currently offering a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi account with a referral link and deposit $10. You can also make an additional $250 as well if you complete a direct deposit. This is a good bank that is also 100% free, so you won’t have to worry about managing this account. Here’s a post I wrote with instructions on how to earn your SoFi Money bonus: SoFi Money Referral Bonus: Step By Step Guide.
  • Upgrade ($150) – Upgrade is a free checking account that’s currently offering a $150 referral bonus if you open an account and complete a direct deposit. These bonus terms are easy to meet, so it’s well worth doing this bonus as soon as you can. Here’s a post I wrote with more details: Upgrade $150 Referral Bonus – Step By Step Directions.
  • US Bank Business ($800) – 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.
  • GO2Bank ($100) - GO2Bank is an easy bank bonus that I recommend people take advantage of if they have an easy way of meeting the direct deposit requirement. I like that it’s easy to open the account and that the bonus pays out quickly. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your GO2Bank $100 referral bonus.
  • 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.
  • Netspend ($40 + 5% Interest Savings Account) – Netspend is a company that provides 5% interest savings accounts. If you sign up using my referral link, you’ll get a $40 signup bonus once you make your first deposit into your Netspend account of $40 or more. That means you get a 5% interest savings account and a free $40 to start! Make sure to check out my in-depth guide on how to set up these accounts.
  • Digital Federal Credit Union ($20) – Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is a free, nationwide credit union that I recommend to readers for two reasons. First, DCU has a $20 referral bonus if you open a free DCU checking account with a referral link. Second, DCU has a saving account that gives you 6.17% interest on your first $1,000. Check out my in-depth post on how to set this account up.
  • 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 ($30) – Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $30 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.
financial panther

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 $250 if you complete a direct deposit.
  • 5% Savings Accounts. I'm currently getting 5.25% 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 $800 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 $100 for opening an account.
  • Personal Capital. 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.

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