20 Best Jobs for Stay-at-Home Moms and Dads

This page may contain links from our sponsors. Here’s how we make money.

Best Jobs for Stay-at-Home Moms and Dads

As a parent, you may be faced with the decision of going to work vs. staying home with your kids. Fortunately, there are ways to make money while being a stay-at-home parent. This article will cover the best jobs for stay-at-home moms and dads.

If you’re looking for ways to make money as a stay-at-home parent, this list should give you plenty of ideas. Some will allow you to start making money right away, while others will involve building a business that will grow with time.

Regardless of whether you’re looking for a way to make a few hundred dollars per month or a few thousand dollars per month, you’ll find some options here.

Of course, what’s right for you will depend on your own personal and family situation. With that in mind, you’ll find pros and cons for each opportunity to help you determine if it’s right for you.

Take Our Free Quiz to Find Your Ideal Side Hustle Take Our Free Quiz to Find Your Ideal Side Hustle
Just answer a few simple questions and you'll immediately be presented with some suggested side hustles that may be a perfect fit for you. It's free and there is no email optin required - just take the quiz and see the results.

Best Jobs for Stay-at-Home Moms and Dads

1. Child Care Provider

One of the best and most practical ways to make money as a stay-at-home parent is to provide child care for other kids in addition to your own. You may even have a friend or family member who needs care for their child, so finding opportunities usually isn’t that difficult. Many parents would rather send their kid to stay with someone they know as opposed to sending them to day care somewhere else.

Of course, you’re not limited to only providing care for people that you know. You could also look for other clients as well. The Child Care Aware website can be a great resource if you are considering this.

According to Care.com, the average cost for in-home child care ranges from about $4,000 – $10,000 per child depending on the state.

Pros of Providing Child Care

  • You probably have people in your personal network that would hire you to watch their kid.
  • You can help out your friends and make money at the same time.
  • Your kid(s) may enjoy having others around.
  • You’re already providing care for your own kid(s), why not get paid for watching someone else’s kid at the same time?
  • Start making money right away.

Cons of Providing Child Care

  • You may be busy enough with your own kids before adding any others.
  • Added responsibility.
  • May limit what you’re able to do during the day.

2. Pet Sitting

Another great option is to take care of other people’s pets. Pets, in some cases, are a little bit less work than kids. You can run a doggy daycare out of your home and make money while staying home with your kids.

Rover is a great website that makes it easy to become a pet sitter or dog walker. You can set up a profile on Rover and pet owners in your area will be able to find and hire you. A few months ago I interviewed Lily, who is making more than $40,000 per year from pet sitting and dog walking gigs, and she gets all of her clients through Rover.

Of course, with kids in the house, you’ll want to be careful about the animals that you have around them. Lily only accepts small dogs, so it’s definitely possible to be picky and still make money.

If you’re interested in making money as a pet sitter, go to Rover and set up your profile to get started.

Pros of Working as a Pet Sitter:

  • Ideal way to make money while you’re home with your kids.
  • If you already have pets, watching another dog or two is not that much extra work.
  • Good income potential.
  • Start making money right away.

Cons of Working as a Pet Sitter:

  • Some pets may be a safety concern with young children.
  • You’ll need an apartment or house that is suitable for pets.

3. Start a Blog

Blogging is a favorite way to make money for many stay-at-home moms and dads. A successful blog will allow you to work a flexible schedule and from home, and there is plenty of income potential.

You can start a blog on just about any topic that interests you. It certainly doesn’t have to be a mommy or parenting blog.

The downside to blogging is that you may or may not make money. It takes time to grow a blog and you’ll need some patience before it pays off. It’s not like a service-related business (like child care or pet sitting) where you get paid for your work/time right away.

But once your blog is making money, it’s a perfect gig for stay-at-home parents.

If you’re interested in starting a blog, see my article How to Start a Blog that will walk you through the technical aspects of getting your blog set up (in just a few minutes).

Pros of Blogging:

  • Create a blog on a topic that interests you.
  • Totally flexible schedule, so you can work whenever you have time.
  • Great income potential.

Cons of Blogging:

  • Can take 6-12 months (or more) before you start to make money.

4. Create Niche Websites

Niche websites are very similar to blogs, but they take a very specialized approach. A niche website will publish content that is hyper-focused on one topic, or a few very closely related topics.

Many niche websites make money through affiliate programs (promoting someone else’s product or service), but they can also be monetized with ads, digital products, services, or sponsored content.

One of the main ways that niche websites differ from blogs is that you’ll have a little more flexibility in terms of how frequently you publish new content to a niche website. Most blogs get traffic from a number of different sources, and engaged readers and followers like to see new content being published on a regular basis. Niche websites typically get the majority of their traffic from Google searches and there are usually fewer regular readers who come back to the site frequently. As a result, it’s not as important to publish content on a regular basis with a niche website.

If you’re interested in learning how to do this, please see my article on how to make money with niche websites.

Pros of Creating Niche Websites:

  • Totally flexible work. Do it whenever you have time.
  • Good income potential.
  • Create a website on a topic that interests you.

Cons of Creating Niche Websites:

  • You’re unlikely to make much money the first 6+ months.

5. Freelance Writing

If you think it would be fun to work as a blogger but you don’t want to put in work for a year without making money, working as a freelance writer is an ideal option. As a freelance writer you can still write articles on topics that interest you, but you’ll be able to start making money right away.

There are plenty of different services that you can offer as a freelancer, but one of the reasons freelance writing is such a great opportunity is because many of the gigs you’ll find will involve on-going work. A lot of freelance writing opportunities are for websites or blogs that publish content all the time, which means they have a constant need for new content. You may find gigs that require you to write a certain number of articles per week or per month.

Recurring work is the dream for freelancers because it means you’ll be able to spend more time doing the work that gets you paid, and less time looking for clients.

If you want to get started, you can see my guide to making money as a freelance writer or take a course like Earn More Writing that will teach you everything you need to know.

Pros of Working as a Freelance Writer:

  • Flexible schedule.
  • Plenty of work available, writing about all different topics.
  • Good income potential.
  • Start making money as soon as you have your first client.

Cons of Working as a Freelance Writer:

  • Some freelance jobs pay low rates (but there are plenty of jobs that do pay well).
  • While the income potential is good, the ceiling may not be as high as starting your own blog.

6. Take Online Surveys

One of the most popular side hustles involves taking online surveys for cash. It’s a popular option because anyone can do it, and because the schedule is completely flexible. You can take surveys whenever you have time, even if it’s just a few minutes. You can also go for long periods of time without taking any surveys and it’s ok.

While it’s an extremely flexible side hustle, you’re not going to make a ton of money by taking surveys. If flexibility is your main concern, or if you’re looking for something that you can easily start right away, surveys can be a good option. Taking surveys is a great way to easily make a small amount of extra money.

Another nice thing about taking surveys is it’s easy work. Let’s be honest, as a stay-at-home parent you’re probably tired by the time you get some time to do something productive. Easier work, like taking surveys, may be more realistic for you than something that takes a lot more concentration. You can even take surveys while you’re watching TV or doing something else.

If you need more than a few hundred dollars per month, I would recommend considering other options on this list.

There are many different websites and apps that allow you to get paid for taking surveys, but some of the best options include:

Pros of Taking Online Surveys:

  • Extremely flexible and can fit into any schedule.
  • Easy work.
  • Anyone can do it. No real skills are required.

Cons of Taking Online Surveys:

  • Limited income potential.
  • Some survey websites can be irritating to use (you answer several questions before being told that you’re not eligible for the survey).

7. Sell on Amazon

Amazon provides some amazing opportunities for selling products on its platform. Third-party sellers can list products for sale and benefit from Amazon’s massive customer base, as well as the FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) program, which will handle all of the order fulfillment and shipping for you.

There are several different approaches that you can take. One option is to create your own private label brand, which involves hiring a manufacturer to create a product with your logo or branding. You can build a popular and successful brand on Amazon without the need to manufacture products.

If you’re interested in this approach, please see my guide to selling private label products on Amazon.

Another approach is to sell products from other companies. The retail arbitrage approach involves buying inventory at sale prices and reselling it on Amazon for a profit. You can buy products at retail stores or online when you find a great sale and then list it for sale on Amazon at a higher price.

If the retail arbitrage approach appeals to you, see this free email course from The Selling Family.

Pros of Selling on Amazon:

  • Benefit from Amazon’s massive audience.
  • Great income potential.
  • Amazon will handle the fulfillment and shipping for you (for a fee).
  • Very flexible hours.

Cons of Selling on Amazon:

  • Requires some financial investment for inventory.
  • Lots of competition.

8. Sell Handmade Crafts

If you enjoy making handmade goods, starting an Etsy shop is an ideal way to make money. There are endless possibilities for the types of products that you can make, and Etsy has a huge audience of buyers that are looking for custom, unique products.

Creating handmade products can take a lot of time, so be sure you are pricing your products to allow for a good profit, otherwise it is not worth your time. Like blogging, creating a niche website, or starting a private label brand selling on Amazon, starting an Etsy shop will take some time and effort before you start making money. And of course, there are also a lot of sites like Etsy where you can sell as well.

Pros of Selling Handmade Crafts on Etsy:

  • Good income potential.
  • Flexible working schedule.

Cons of Selling Handmade Crafts on Etsy:

  • You’re unlikely to start making money quickly.
  • Creating handmade products will require more time than sell products that are made by other people (like an Amazon-based business).

9. Virtual Assistant

One of the best ways to make money online and from home is to work as a virtual assistant (VA). As a VA, you could offer a lot of different services like management of social media profiles, writing and content marketing, blog admin work, customer service, graphic design, and many more. Of course, you wouldn’t offer all of those services, but you could choose the ones that are the best fit for you.

There is a huge and growing demand for VAs, so there is plenty of work available. Some VAs are paid low rates, but there are also plenty of VAs who successfully make a very good hourly rate (some earn over $100 per hour).

If you’re looking for more information, please see my article How to Become a Virtual Assistant. For thorough training, you can take the course 10K VA from Kayla Sloan to learn how to make a great income as a VA.

Free Workshop - 5 Steps to Become a Virtual Assistant Free Workshop - 5 Steps to Become a Virtual Assistant

If you're interested in making money from home, be sure to check out this free workshop from Kayla Sloan. She shows how to use the skills you already have to start making money as a VA.

Pros of Working as a VA:

  • Very flexible schedule.
  • Plenty of different services that you can offer.
  • High demand and a lot of jobs available.
  • Good income potential.
  • Start making money as soon as you have your first client.

Cons of Working as a VA:

  • Not all jobs will pay well.
  • You’ll need to find clients.

10. Proofreading

If you have good grammar skills and attention to detail, an online proofreading job could be an excellent opportunity. It’s ideal for stay-at-home parents because you can do the work from anywhere, and you can work around your existing schedule.

Writers and journalists are often looking for someone to proofread their work and you can make pretty good money. Aside from proofreading books and blog articles, you could also work on transcripts, which can increase your income potential.

If you’re interested in learning more, Proofread Anywhere offers courses that will teach you how to get started and make money from home.

Pros of Working as a Proofreader:

  • Flexible schedule.
  • Good income potential.
  • A lot of jobs are available for qualified proofreaders.
  • Start making money as soon as you have your first client.

Cons of Working as a Proofreader:

  • Can be difficult to find clients if you don’t know where to start.

11. Flea Market Flipping

Many parents are frequent shoppers at places like yard sales and thrift shops. Have you ever thought about buying and reselling items? Flipping can be a great way to make extra money, or it could even turn into a full-time income.

Of course, the key is to buy items that are under-priced and could be resold at a profit (see our list of the easiest things to flip for profit for ideas). It may involve buying an item at a yard sale and then selling it on the Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist at a higher price (see our list of selling apps and websites).

In addition to making money, flipping can actually be fun! If you enjoy finding bargains, this may be the perfect opportunity for you. You can even start small and work your way up.

If you want to learn the ins-and-outs from experienced flippers who make six-figures per year, be sure to check out this free workshop that will teach you how to start a profitable flipping business in as little as 14 days.

Pros of Flea Market Flipping:

  • Flexible schedule.
  • Good income potential.
  • Anyone can do it.
  • Start making money quickly.
  • Fun!

Cons of Flea Market Flipping:

  • You’ll need to know the value of things that you buy (to know that you can resell it for a profit).
  • You’ll need to get out to yard sales, thrift shops, and flea markets, which may be difficult with kids.

12. Flipping Furniture

Although we looked at flipping in the previous point, I wanted to list this one separately because it is a little bit different. Flipping furniture involves buying cheap (or free) furniture, improving it, and re-selling it. In most cases, it will be wood furniture that you can drastically improve by painting it. In some cases, it may involve re-upholstering furniture to give it a completely new look.

There are basically three aspects that you’ll need to master (thankfully, none of them are that difficult):

  1. Finding free or cheap furniture.
  2. Improving the furniture.
  3. Selling it for a profit.

Cheap furniture isn’t too hard to find. Of course, you need to find quality furniture that will have some value once you’re done with it, so that eliminates low-quality furniture that you will come across. You can find good, old wood furniture at yard sales, thrift shops, on Craigslist, and sometimes even by the side of the road being discarded.

There are plenty of free YouTube videos that will show you have to paint wood furniture, so it’s a skill that is relatively easy to learn (and the supplies are inexpensive).

When you are ready to sell your finished item, be sure to take good quality photos and post them to the Facebook Marketplace or someplace else that will get a lot of exposure.

If you want to learn more, don’t miss my interview with Virginia where she shares her experience about how to flip furniture for profit.

Pros of Flipping Furniture:

  • Inexpensive furniture is pretty easy to find.
  • The skills to paint and improve the furniture can be learned easily.
  • Start making money quickly
  • Satisfaction in improving an item and giving it new life.

Cons of Flipping Furniture:

  • You’ll need to find inexpensive items before you can start making money.
  • You’ll need to find buyers for your items.

13. Drive Other Kids

Ridesharing apps like Uber and Lyft are obviously very popular, but Zemcar is a ridesharing option especially created for families. Those who need rides for their kids can interview potential drivers and build a “circle of trust” so they are only using drivers that they trust. They can schedule one-time or recurring rides and set up pickup permissions and notifications. They can also watch the ride real-time through a secure video feed in the car or track the location on a map.

You can make money by becoming a Zemcar driver and giving rides to other families and kids. The cost for riders using Zemcar is higher than other ridesharing options, and as a driver you can make more than you would make with other ridesharing apps.

As a Zemcar diver, you can work as much or as little as you want, so it leaves plenty of flexibility in your schedule.

If you’re interested, apply to become a Zemcar driver.

Pros of Driving for Zemcar:

  • Very flexible schedule.
  • Start making money quickly.
  • Better pay than other ridesharing apps.
  • You’ll be helping other families by providing safe transportation.

Cons of Driving for Zemcar:

  • Wear and tear on your car.
  • Gas and car maintenance will reduce the amount of money that you make.

14. Airbnb Host

This one may not be an option for everyone, but it can be a good way to make some extra money if it applies to you. If your home has a separate unit (if you own multiple units or if you have in-law quarters or lock-off unit), you can make extra money by renting it out on Airbnb.

You could also rent a spare bedroom, but most parents won’t like the idea of having strangers in the same living quarters as their kids, so a separate unit is more ideal.

This can be a good way to make extra money because you’re taking advantage of your home and most of the work you’ll need to do will involve cleaning the unit between guests. Airbnb, or another similar website, makes it easy to get your rental in front of people who are looking for a place to stay.

If you’re interested in making money this way, please see my interview with Riley about renting a room on Airbnb.

Pros of being an Airbnb host:

  • Fairly easy way to make extra money.
  • Doesn’t require a lot of your time.
  • Start making money as soon as you have your first guest.

Cons of being an Airbnb host:

  • You’ll need to have the right home or set up in order for this to be a good option.
  • You may not want to have strangers staying in your home.

15. Do Other People’s Laundry

As a stay-at-home parent, you probably do plenty of laundry. But did you ever think about getting paid to do laundry for other people? Laundry Care is a website that offers laundry services to people who don’t have the time or aren’t able to do their own laundry. You can sign up as a provider and start making money.

As a provider, you will need to pickup and deliver the laundry from clients. Aside from that, it’s easy work that you can do from the comfort of your home. The amount that you make will vary, but it averages to about $20 per bag of laundry (a bag is 2-3 loads).

If you’re interested in this opportunity, learn more and apply at Laundry Care’s website.

Of course, you could also offer this service on your own outside of using a company like Laundry Care. You can start with people in your own personal network, post a listing on Craigslist, or advertise locally somewhere else.

Pros of Doing Other Peoples Laundry:

  • The work can be done while you’re at home.
  • Relatively easy work.
  • You can be doing other things at the same time.
  • Start making money as soon as you have your first client.

Cons of Doing Other People’s Laundry:

  • Laundry Care isn’t available everywhere (right now it is mostly in major U.S. cities).
  • If you work through Laundry Care, you will need to pick up and drop off laundry.

16. Design and Sell Custom T-Shirts

If you enjoy design, have you ever considered creating custom items like t-shirts? Websites like Teespring and Merch by Amazon make it possible for anyone to earn some extra money by creating designs that other people want to buy.

Some people have done extremely well with this approach. It’s totally flexible and you can work on new designs whenever you have the chance. Teespring and Amazon will take care of a lot of the headaches involved with running the site and handling orders and shipments. See our Merch by Amazon review for more details.

Pros of Designing and Selling Custom T-Shirts:

  • Very flexible work.
  • Decent income potential.
  • Can be somewhat passive income if you have designs that make a lot of sales.
  • Start making money relatively quickly.

Cons of Designing and Selling Custom T-Shirts:

  • You’ll probably need to create a lot of designs in order to make the most money.
  • You’ll need design skills.

17. Rent Out Your Car

If you have a car that you don’t use very often, why not rent it out? Getaround is a website/app that allows car owners to make their cars available for rent. Renters get a lower price than they would get with a major car rental chain and you get paid for allowing someone to use your car.

One of the nice things about Getaround is that you don’t have to make your car available all of the time. Keep it to yourself when you are going to need it, and make it available for rent at other times.

It’s a great way to make money when you’re not using your car, and Getaround provides insurance and screens drivers.

If you’re interested in making money from your car, list your car with Getaround.

Pros of Renting Out Your Car:

  • Make money without time or effort on your part.
  • Turn your car into a money-making asset.
  • You control when the car is available for rent and when you want it.
  • Getaround provides insurance and makes the process easy.

Cons of Renting Out Your Car:

  • Added miles and wear and tear on your car.

18. Use Your Expertise

JustAnswer is a website that matches people who have questions with experts that can help. Experts in a wide variety of areas (lawyers, doctors, accountants, mechanics, plumbers, electricians, parenting experts, etc.) can make money through JustAnswer.

As an expert, you’ll set your own hours and work as much or as little as you want. You’ll simply answer people’s questions and provide advice, and you’ll get paid for it.

Visit this page to apply as an expert, or to see the list of 175+ categories.

Pros of Working for JustAnswer:

  • Completely flexible schedule.
  • Make money from your existing knowledge and expertise.

Cons of Working for JustAnswer:

  • You’ll need to get approved as an expert.
  • Your income will be limited by the number of inquiries and questions that are available.

19. Start a YouTube Channel

Earlier, we looked at blogging as a way to make money for stay-at-home parents. Starting a YouTube channel is kind of similar in some ways, but it involves creating video content instead of text-based content.

Starting a YouTube channel is a long-term approach that probably won’t pay very much in the first year, but if you stick with it and have some success, the sky is the limit.

Your YouTube channel can be about whatever you know well. It could be about cooking, cleaning, photography, parenting, DIY projects, or anything else. YouTubers can make money from ads on their videos, from sponsorships, and from affiliate links.

If you want, you can even involve your kids or your whole family in the videos.

Pros of Starting a YouTube Channel:

  • High income potential.
  • Create a channel on a topic that interests you.
  • Flexible schedule.

Cons of Starting a YouTube Channel:

  • You’ll need to put in a lot of work to grow your channel before you start to make money.
  • Creating and editing videos can take a lot of time.

20. Bookkeeping

If you have any accounting or bookkeeping experience, this is a skill that you can put to good use. You could work from home as a bookkeeper and make a nice hourly rate and benefit from a flexible schedule. You can use a website like FlexJobs to find work opportunities, or use your own network and promote your services as a freelancer.

To learn more, please read How to Become a Bookkeeper.

Pros of Bookkeeping:

  • Good pay.
  • Flexible schedule.
  • Start making money as soon as you find your first client or job.

Cons of Bookkeeping:

  • You’ll need to find an employer or clients.

This list is, of course, not an exhaustive list, but it does include many great options to make money as a stay-at-home parent. Take some time to think about the pros and cons, and pick an option (or two) that will be a good fit for you and your family.

READ NEXT: Side Hustle Ideas: 150+ Ways to Make Money in Your Spare Time.


Investment Platforms

 
 
 
Features:
  • Commission-free trades of stocks and ETFs
  • Buy and sell 25+ different cryptocurrencies
  • Fractional shares
  • Access alternative investments
  • High-yield treasuries accounts
  • Social community of investors
  • User-friendly interface
Features:
  • Commission-free trades of stocks, ETFs, options, and ADRs
  • Powerful screening and charting tools
  • Free real-time level 2 data
  • User-friendly mobile app
  • AI monitoring
  • AI-powered price forecasts
  • Free investing courses
Features:
  • Commission-free trades of stocks, ETFs, options, and cryptocurrency
  • Buy fractional shares for any amount
  • Extended trading hours
  • Advanced reporting tools
  • Schedule recurring investments
  • IRAs now available
  • 24/7 customer service
Features:
  • Commission-free trades of stocks and ETFs
  • Buy and sell 25+ different cryptocurrencies
  • Fractional shares
  • Access alternative investments
  • High-yield treasuries accounts
  • Social community of investors
  • User-friendly interface
Features:
  • Commission-free trades of stocks, ETFs, options, and ADRs
  • Powerful screening and charting tools
  • Free real-time level 2 data
  • User-friendly mobile app
  • AI monitoring
  • AI-powered price forecasts
  • Free investing courses
Features:
  • Commission-free trades of stocks, ETFs, options, and cryptocurrency
  • Buy fractional shares for any amount
  • Extended trading hours
  • Advanced reporting tools
  • Schedule recurring investments
  • IRAs now available
  • 24/7 customer service

Disclosure: Information presented on Vital Dollar and through related email marketing is intended for informational purposes only and is not meant to be taken as financial advice. Please see our Disclosure for further information.