Let me give you some quick context, so you understand why this post exists.
I work full-time, but I'm currently off work with a back problem. That's a can of worms in itself. Let's just say that finding a side hustle is never far from my mind these days.
I'm always on the lookout for viable online side hustles. Something that brings in money and helps towards the dream: our own dog sanctuary, and being in control of our own lives in a self-sustaining way. I've written more about that in The sanctuary, but for now it explains why I watch the kind of content I do.
First, let me say this, and I mean it. There are content creators out there who consistently put out useful content with no hidden agenda. Yes, it benefits them when we watch, but the content isn't just a lead-in to a sales pitch. I'm not going to name names yet. That would be unfair to the ones I'd forget, so I'll save that for when I've put together a list of the genuine good eggs.
Daytimes are for hands-on technical stuff and house chores. Evenings are for research. So I was scrolling through the list down the right-hand side of YouTube, the one based on your digital footprint, when something caught my eye.
You need to know one thing first. A good majority of YouTube creators copy the titles of other successful videos. So I keep seeing "I took my side hustle from $0 to $1 million", "The top ten Claude side hustles for over 50s" and "The easiest way to make money with AI". I scroll past 90% of them, unless it's from someone I resonate with. That's what happened when I saw a video promising seven remote jobs I could do from home.
I'm always up for that. I'm at home, so it's win-win. I don't sit there grading the opportunities. I just ask whether it's something I'd enjoy and could actually earn money doing.
I tried putting images on clock faces once, back in the early nineties. They sent us sample clock faces to finish and send back, so they could decide whether we were good enough for the real work. We didn't get the work. If you've ever answered one of those stuffing-envelopes adverts, you'll know the feeling.
Anyway, about halfway through the video, it dawned on me. The jobs being described as genuine opportunities to earn decent money really weren't. Everything was skimmed over and made out to be amazing, and it really wasn't.
Just start a newsletter, get 1,000 subscribers and you'll be bringing in at least $500 a month. At least.
So here are the seven, and what got skipped.
1Start a newsletter
A newsletter earns nothing until people read it, and nobody reads it until you've built an audience. That takes a year or two of writing for a handful of people, if you're lucky. The video shows the destination, not how to get there.
In short: a long game. Not a side hustle for anyone who needs money this year.
2Teach your language online
Speaking a language isn't the same as teaching it, especially to someone who doesn't speak yours. The qualification is brushed off as easy. And the success story is out of date. The company in it stopped foreign tutors teaching children in China in 2021, after a government crackdown on paid tutoring.
In short: real work for people who can teach. Not money for anyone who happens to speak English.
3Social media manager
It's tedious, it isn't for everyone, and you only get paid properly if you know what actually works. Scrolling isn't the skill. Getting results for a business owner who pays you every month is.
In short: a real job with a real learning curve. Not scrolling for money.
4Voiceover artist
On one of the big sites mentioned, free members can only audition when a client invites them. Public jobs need a paid membership. You're up against trained actors, and AI voices are already taking the cheap work.
In short: possible with talent and patience. Paying to audition against professionals isn't an easy start.
5Mystery shopper
Maybe I was being harsh. Who am I to talk? It's not like I've done any of these things, right?
Not quite. When it came to mystery shopping, I actually know a little about it. I have two of the apps on my phone. The online jobs, the ones you can genuinely do from home, pay £1.50. The restaurant visits near me pay £2, and they're a couple of kilometres away. How many £1.50 and £2 jobs does it take to make a side hustle worth it?
You can earn more if you're prepared to travel to random shops. Even then, your photos have to be perfect. And I mean perfect.
In short: pocket money. Pounds, not tens of pounds.
6Start a digital agency
This is a business, not a remote job. You need to sell to business owners, and you need to know how to do the work yourself, or you can't tell when the freelancers you hire get it wrong.
In short: a real business for someone with skills and sales experience. Not a first step.
7Virtual juror
The sites take US citizens only, so nobody in the UK can do it at all. One site mentioned, quoted at up to $1,000, is reported to be dead.
In short: a novelty for Americans. Nothing for UK readers.
Where that leaves us
By the end of the video, whatever had drawn me in had gone. It had 880,000 views last time I looked. That's reason enough for a sponsor to get on board, and that's nice work if you can get it.
How many of those viewers will try some of these jobs? How many will have their hopes shattered, yet again?
Why squeeze seven separate possibilities into twenty minutes? Surely the better, more empathetic script would be to showcase just one opportunity and really dig into it. Explain the pros and cons, who it's for and who it wouldn't suit.
Maybe that wouldn't get as many views. Especially if you had to change the title to "1 Remote Job You Can Do From Home".
None of them is. Each one needs an audience, a skill, a lot of time, or a US passport.
Sources: VIPKid ending foreign-tutor classes in China (EdWeek Market Brief), Voices.com membership rules, mock juror site eligibility (Money Pantry). App screenshots are from Jon's own phone, October 2026.