Want to pay off your student loans faster? The math is simple: every extra dollar you send goes straight at the balance, so the more you can earn on the side, the sooner you’re done.
The side hustles that move the needle are the ones that pay per job, like delivery and driving. Reward apps and surveys pay less, but they’re easy to stack on top.
Here are the 9 best ones, and what each really pays.
Paying off student loans quickly
If you are planning to pay off your student loan debt ahead of schedule, it is a good goal to have.
I personally paid off $30,000 worth of student loans in under 12 months. I attribute some of that to having smart side hustles like finding ways to make extra money fast with answer questions for money apps and flipping items for a profit.
The ability to pay off student loans early depends on having discretionary income. That’s the money left over from a paycheck after you cover all the basic expenses of life.
So how do you get more of it? You earn more. Even an extra $50 a week is $2,600 a year off your balance.
Best side hustles to pay off student loans
These work even if you have $40,000 of student loan debt or more. It just takes longer.
1. Deliver with DoorDash
DoorDash is looking for people who want to start delivering food to earn extra money and work on their own schedule.
You get base pay of $2 to $10 or more per delivery, plus promotions, plus 100% of tips received. Rates will vary by location.
Pay goes out by weekly direct deposit, or you can cash out daily with Fast Pay for a charge. You can sign up in minutes and start earning within days.
This is the one to start with if you want a real dent in your loans. Pick two or three busy nights a week and send everything you make to the loan.
2. Deliver with Uber Eats
The old version of this list had Postmates here. Postmates is part of Uber now, and its “Sign up to deliver” link takes you to Uber.
The deal is similar to DoorDash. You can deliver by car, scooter, bike or on foot, and 100% of tips are yours to keep. Earnings go to your bank account weekly, or you can cash out up to 6 times a day for a charge.
Nothing stops you from running both apps and taking whichever order is better.
3. Stack two reward apps
These won’t pay off a loan. They will cover a streaming bill or a tank of gas, which frees up money for your payment.
Freecash pays you for playing mobile games, taking surveys and trying apps. PayPal and Venmo payouts usually process the same day, and most people earn a few dollars up to around $50 in a typical month.
Bigcash has more than 3,000 offers, and most take 5 to 10 minutes. You’re paid in coins (250 coins is $1) that you trade for cash or gift cards.
4. Sell your old tech
There is no need to keep old gadgets around when you can sell them and put the money toward your loans.
Check your old phones, tablets and laptops, and get a quote from a buyback company like Gazelle. You tell it about your device, it gives you an offer in about two minutes, and it pays by PayPal or check.
Compare that offer against what the same phone sells for on a marketplace before you take it.
5. Score cash with Survey Junkie
Survey Junkie is a free survey app for your phone that pays you to take online surveys, participate in focus groups, and try new products.
And, I really mean free all around: free to join and they don’t charge anything to be a member.
You can cash out at $5 through PayPal, a bank transfer or a gift card. You definitely won’t make $500 fast with surveys alone, but you won’t waste much time, and you can make some money the easy way.
6. Get paid at Swagbucks
Swagbucks is another great survey site to make some extra money that can go towards paying down your debt. You can also get paid to play games, shop online and scan grocery receipts.
Points trade in for PayPal cash or gift cards.
The $10 welcome bonus has a catch. You have to activate it and spend at least $25 at a featured store within 30 days of joining, so only go for it if you were buying something anyway.
7. Claim up to $60 a year with Nielsen
By using the internet as you do every day, Nielsen invites you to make a difference, and you can make money too.
You install its app on your phone and computer and leave it there. Your points are worth up to $60 a year in rewards ($30 for mobile, $30 for a computer), and the computer app enters you in a monthly $10,000 sweepstakes.
It’s small. It’s also almost no work.
8. Earn extra money with your car
Did you know that you can use your car to make you extra money?
If you have a car that sits in a parking spot most of the week, you can drive for a rideshare app like Lyft on your own schedule. Evenings and weekends tend to be the busy times, which fits around a day job.
Just count your gas and the wear on your car before you decide it’s worth it.
9. Play games
Paying off your student loans by playing games sounds crazy, and honestly, it is. But Mistplay will give you points for playing new mobile games on Android or iPhone, and you can trade them for gift cards from Amazon, Visa, Walmart and more.
Use the gift cards on things you’d buy anyway and send the cash you saved to your loan.
What about investing your student loan money?
Some students think about investing part of their loan money to make more and pay the debt off sooner. It’s risky, because you owe the loan back with interest whether the investment goes up or down.
You can learn more about investing student loans before you try it.
Side hustles to pay off student loans
Select the side hustle you are most comfortable with and stick with it for a few months. If you want more ideas, here are other ways to make money.
The part that matters most is what you do with the money. Send it to the loan the same day you get paid, before it turns into spending money.
Good luck!