Top Summer Side Hustles That Actually Make You Money Online

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Summer is getting close. The season of sun-kissed naps, questionable tan lines, endless scoops of ice cream, cozy sleep-ins, and spontaneous travel plans… or not!

Because let’s be real — while everyone’s lounging by the pool, sipping something cold and suspiciously sugary, some of us are out here plotting world domination, or at least trying to get that PayPal balance to stop crying.

And guess what? If you’ve been dreaming about starting an online hustle, summer is the perfect time to do it. People are in vacation mode, which means they’re shopping more, planning more, spending more, and looking for content that makes their lives easier or more fun.

From planners and coloring books to Instagram templates and funny T-shirts, this guide will walk you through the best summer side hustles to jump into right now — so you can make money while everyone else is making piña coladas.

Vacation Planners: The Chaos-Savers

Let’s be honest—vacation without planning = chaos on wheels. From forgetting the hotel check-in date to overpacking six pairs of shoes and zero chargers, we’ve all been there. That’s why digital vacation planners are hotter than the sand at noon.

Why It Works? People love organizing their trips in a digital, printable, or editable format. Especially families—because herding toddlers through TSA is already a full-time job. They’re more than happy to pay for a sleek, helpful planner.

↪ How To Create One:

☑ Open Canva. Take a look at popular vacation planners for inspiration. What sections do they have? What colors do they use? Borrow ideas (don’t copy), then get creative.

☑ Decide on the elements. Think checklists, day-by-day schedules, budget sections, packing lists, emergency contacts—your job is to make travel feel like a breeze.

☑ Using Pre-made Bundles of PLR Planners is a great way to skip the headache and save time — they’re absolute gold.

☑ Save your planner as a high-res PDF or editable file, and triple-check for spelling issues and formatting errors.

💡 Pro Tip: Add free bonus products like travel checklists, budget guides, or even a mini "vacation goals" worksheet to stand out.

Summer-Themed Coloring Books: Bye Screens, Hello Zen

Too much screen time in summer makes your eyeballs feel like baked marshmallows. That’s where coloring books come in. For kids, adults, and parents needing a quiet moment—they're a lifesaver.

Niche Down First.

Get specific. Broad themes flop. But “Fruit Houses,” “Underwater Adventures,” or “Ocean Vibes” = yes please. Scroll through Amazon, Etsy, and Pinterest to find what’s trending.

↪ What to do:

☑ Choose your niche: Fruit Houses? Deepsea mermaids? Lazy summer animals?

☑ Go to Canva, choose U.S. Letter or A4 dimensions.

☑ Collect 30+ coloring pages (you can draw them, Buy PLR packs, or use AI sketch styles).

☑ Design the cover! This is your book’s red carpet moment. Use tools like Coolors to get your summer palette poppin’. Think turquoise blues, coral pinks, sunny yellows—but make it you.

💡 Add fun extras like motivational prompts, scavenger hunts, or secret easter eggs inside the pages to boost value.

Seasonal Wall Arts: Decor That Sells While You Sleep

Some people get really excited about changing home decor. And guess what? You can cash in on that with summer-themed printable wall art—with zero inventory stress.

↪ What to Do:

☑ Choose a summer theme: beaches, fruity drinks, van life, or minimal typography.

☑ Go to Canva, set dimensions like 8x10 inches or A4.

☑ Design from scratch, buy Pre-Made Coloring Pages, or use AI to generate summery backgrounds.

☑ Save in high-res PDF format.

Now list it on Etsy, Gumroad, or Your Own Website. BUT—don’t stop there.

Pinterest is your BFF. Set up a business account, design some vibrant pins—or grab your own Pre-Made Pin Templates for Wall Art—and start posting daily. This visual search engine can drive crazy traffic straight to your shop.

Summer-Themed Instagram Templates: Feed Goals for Sale

Social media managers, influencers, and small biz owners are always on the hunt for ready-made Instagram templates. Especially in summer, when everyone’s posting their “living-my-best-life” content.

↪ How To Create Them:

☑ Pick a niche: travel, food, fashion, beauty, fitness...

☑ Open Canva, and use Instagram dimensions (1080x1080 or 1080x1920 for stories).

☑ Use fonts like Raleway, Allura, and Montserrat to keep things fresh but classy.

☑ Generate your summer palette using Coolors.

☑ Bundle 15–30 templates, add a stylish mockup cover, and upload them to Etsy or your store.

Travel Journals & Notebooks: Capture the Magic

Some people journal their travel stories not because it’s trendy, but because phones die and memories fade. Help them out with beautiful travel journals—for both kids and adults.

↪ What to Do:

☑ Open Canva and choose A5 or 6x9 in.

☑ Decide: is this a minimalist journal or a detailed tracker with sections like “Day Overview,” “Funniest Memory,” “Places I Ate”?

☑ Design a drool-worthy cover. (Yes, again—covers matter more than we like to admit.)

☑ Export as a PDF for KDP, Etsy, or printables.

Funny POD T-Shirts: Summer + Jokes = Sales

Let’s face it. Everyone loves a T-shirt that says “I’m on vacation, don’t talk to me unless you’re a cocktail.” Funny summer T-shirts are the gift that keeps giving—to your wallet.

What You Need to Do:

☑ Come up with funny summer quotes or puns.

☑ Design it using Canva or upload it directly to your POD platform (like Printful or Teespring).

☑ Keep your designs clean, bold, and legible.

☑ Start pinning them on Pinterest with SEO-rich descriptions and tags.

Summer Stock Photos: Hot Visuals, Hotter Sales

Content creators, bloggers, and small brands need stock photos like they need iced coffee—daily.

↪ Two Options:

Use AI tools to create original, royalty-free images (make sure to disclose AI use).
Or, if you’re a photo lover, grab your camera and hit the beach, park, or even your own backyard. Shoot lemonade, palm trees, flip-flops—anything summery and aesthetic.

Then sell your bundles on platforms like Creative Market, Etsy, or Your Own Website.

Travel Guides: From Local to Profitable

You don’t need to be a globe-trotter to create a top-selling travel guide. If you know a city well, you’ve already got gold.

↪ Here’s What To Include:

☑ Top tourist spots (and hidden gems!)

☑ Local expressions and how to not get scammed ordering food

☑ Budget tips, best times to visit, transportation hacks

☑ Personal recommendations for food, coffee, WiFi-friendly cafés

Add photos or maps to jazz it up, and upload as a digital download.

Summer Fitness Trackers: For the Motivated Few

Some people use summer to build their beach body. Others use it to build their ice cream tolerance. For the former, fitness trackers can be big sellers.

↪ How To Make One:

☑ Open Canva, choose a clean layout.

☑ Add sections for goals, daily tracking, hydration, meals, etc.

☑ Insert motivational quotes and fun facts to spice things up.

☑ Bundle it with a mini eBook, planner, or meal guide to increase perceived value.

POD Hats: Shade Meets Sass

Just like T-shirts, POD hats can be gold. People love trucker hats with bold quotes, cute icons, or funny slogans.

↪ Tips:

☑ Design with simplicity. Less is more.

☑ Use funny sayings like “Beach, Please” or “Sunkissed & Salty.”

☑ Upload to your POD platform and link everything to a Pinterest pin or Etsy store.

Vacation Checklists: Minimal Effort, Maximum Use

Packing checklists, pet-sitter to-do lists, emergency contacts, itinerary printables—you name it. These are quick to design and super valuable for busy travelers.

But they work even better when bundled as a freebie with another product—like planners or trackers. It’s a smart way to boost value and make your offer way more irresistible.

Summer-Themed Pinterest Templates: Pin Like a Pro

Just like Insta templates, Pinterest templates help bloggers and Etsy sellers promote their content. And a summer aesthetic? Even better.

Design bundles for:

☑ Travel bloggers

☑ Summer sales

☑ Recipe pins

☑ Summer fashion lookbooks

Challenge Calendars: Not Just for Fitness

Challenges can cover anything—30-day business goals, gratitude journaling, meal plans, language learning. Create fun, printable calendars with daily tasks and motivational notes.

Custom Recipe Cards: Cook, Create, Repeat

Summer = mangoes, BBQ, smoothies, and salsa recipes. And what better way to share your secret sauce than recipe cards?

Design cute, themed cards with Canva. Include:

☑ Ingredients + Method

☑ Fun notes or pro tips

☑ Optional matching kitchen labels

Kid-Friendly Vacation Printables: Peace at Last

Parents want to enjoy their vacation, not become full-time cruise entertainers. That’s where activity printables come in.

Design:

☑ Matching games

☑ “I Spy” road trip sheets

☑ Word searches or scavenger hunts

☑ DIY postcards or drawing prompts

Bundle them for maximum value.

Where to Sell Your Summer Hustle Products: 6 Best Platforms

You’ve brainstormed, designed, exported, caffeinated, maybe cried a little — and now you’ve got digital products hotter than a dashboard in July. But where do you actually sell these money-making masterpieces?

Here are the top platforms to launch your summer side hustle:

1. Etsy – The cozy marketplace where creativity meets credit cards.

Perfect for: Printables, digital planners, coloring books, Pinterest templates, and all things aesthetic.

Etsy already has traffic. People are literally searching for “summer travel planner PDF” or “funny beach shirt” — and your product can show up in front of them without you running ads like a maniac. Plus, it’s super beginner-friendly.

Quick note: SEO matters. Title your listings with actual search terms, not “Sunshiney Bundle of Dreams.” Save the poetry for the product description.

2. Gumroad – Minimalist vibes, maximum potential.

Perfect for: Digital files, templates, mini courses, eBooks, and design bundles.

Gumroad is like the chill friend who doesn’t ask for much — no monthly fees unless you’re scaling big, and a clean storefront that’s fast to set up. You can even do pay-what-you-want pricing if you’re feeling generous (or experimental).

Warning: It’s a bit bare-bones on aesthetics. But if you love clean and simple, it’s basically the IKEA of digital selling (minus the assembly instructions).

3. Payhip – Etsy’s lowkey twin with a secret love for digital sellers.

Perfect for: eBooks, planners, printables, digital journals, coaching guides.

Payhip lets you set up a full storefront for free, offers EU VAT handling (bless), and gives you upsell features, discount codes, and affiliate setup all in one dashboard.

Bonus: They have an "embed" option to add buy buttons to your blog or website like a tech-savvy wizard.

4. Your Own Website – Welcome to Boss Level.

Perfect for: Those ready to build a brand and keep all the profits (yes, all of them).

Why it rocks: You control everything — branding, pricing, customer experience. It’s like owning the whole lemonade stand instead of renting a cup on someone else’s table.

Plus, you’re building your email list and customer base for yourself, not for a marketplace.

Heads-up: More setup involved. But once it’s running, it’s your empire. Highly recommended if you want to scale, blog, or expand long-term.

5. Creative Market – Designers, this one's your runway.

Perfect for: Instagram templates, social media kits, fonts, illustrations, Canva graphics, and stock photo bundles.

Creative Market buyers are design-focused and willing to pay premium prices for beautiful things. If you’ve got polished templates, themed graphics, or AI art packs — get them listed here.

Not ideal for: Casual sellers with one or two products. This is more curated and competitive, but the exposure is solid.

6. Ko-fi – For creators who want tips, sales, and support in one place.

Perfect for: Selling one-off digital downloads, offering commissions, or getting donations for your creative work.

Ko-fi is charming, community-driven, and lets you sell digital products or open a shop with no monthly fees. If you’re building a small but mighty audience on Instagram, TikTok, or your blog, this platform works beautifully.

It’s like a digital lemonade stand — but people throw money at you just for being cool.

Don’t Let Summer Scroll Away

Whether you’re lounging under a beach umbrella or chilling in your backyard with Wi-Fi and a lemonade, this summer is yours to build a profitable online hustle.

From planners and coloring books to stock photos and Pinterest templates, there’s never been a better time to create, sell, and thrive.

So open Canva, brew your iced coffee, and start building something amazing.