Picking up extra shifts is the default way nurses earn more, but it's also the fastest route to burnout. A side hustle that uses your skills differently can add income, variety and even a future career path.
Side hustles that use your nursing skills
- Tutoring nursing students and NCLEX candidates. Students pay for one-on-one help with pharmacology, care plans and exam strategy. You can tutor online through platforms or independently.
- Clinical instructor or lab facilitator. Colleges often hire part-time instructors for clinical placements and skills labs.
- Flu and vaccine clinics. Seasonal work with pharmacies, public health or private clinic companies.
- Medical writing and content review. Health websites and companies hire nurses to write or review patient education materials.
- Digital products. Study guides, care plan templates, report sheets and planners sold on Etsy or your own site. You make them once and sell them many times.
- Legal nurse consulting. Reviewing medical records for law firms. Usually requires experience and sometimes certification.
- Telehealth or nurse advice lines. Remote shifts from home.
- Camp, school or event nursing. Summer camps, sports events and concerts need nurses.
- Insurance and paramedical exams. Collecting health information and samples for insurance applications.
- CPR and first aid instruction. Get certified as an instructor and teach classes.
- Content creation. Social media, blogs or YouTube about nursing life, earned through ads, affiliate links or brand deals.
- Health coaching or lactation consulting, with the right additional training and certification.
Choose based on time and energy
| If you have... | Try |
|---|---|
| A few hours a week, at home | Tutoring, writing, digital products |
| Occasional free days | Vaccine clinics, events, insurance exams |
| Long-term goals to leave the bedside | Teaching, legal nurse consulting, telehealth |
Protect your licence
- Stay within your scope of practice and follow your regulator's or board's standards.
- Check whether you need your own liability insurance.
- Be careful giving health advice online. Education is not the same as individual medical advice.
- Check your employer's policies on outside work.
Tax basics
- Canada: report self-employment income on your return. You'll pay CPP on both the employee and employer portions, and you must register for GST/HST once you pass $30,000 in taxable sales in four consecutive quarters.
- US: self-employment income is subject to self-employment tax as well as income tax. You may need to make quarterly estimated payments.
Set aside 25% to 30% of side-hustle income for taxes until you know your real number.
Is it worth more than an overtime shift?
Compare your hourly take-home. Use the nurse shift pay calculator to see what an overtime shift pays, then read our guide on whether overtime is worth it. A side hustle may pay less per hour at first but cost you far less energy.
This article is for general education and isn't financial, legal or tax advice. Rules about outside work and scope of practice vary by employer and regulator.