36 Business Ideas for Housewives

When many young families compare the cost of daycare for even one child – let alone multiple children under the age of five – to the income Mom will bring in, they often realize that they would spend as much on daycare as Mom often makes.

At the same time, many housewives find they wish to contribute somehow to the income of the household. We’ve compiled a number of business ideas for housewives that will allow women to earn money right from the comfort of their living room or home office.

This list offers a multitude of business ideas for housewives, but there are also a number of business ideas for any woman who wishes to work from home.

Daycare Service

Housewives with small children of their own often consider opening a daycare service themselves because they realize that some moms cannot avoid working away from home. They offer these services because they know that moms want their children cared for in the same way they would.

You’ll need to get some certifications, and your home – assuming this is the location of the daycare service – will need to pass a few inspections by the state. In addition, your own small children will have others to play with each day.

Pet Daycare Services

Do you enjoy taking care of animals? Would you enjoy taking dogs on walks or to the dog park as a part of your daily routine? Do you have a nice yard where you can allow pups to run and play while their owners are on vacation or just away at work for the day? Consider opening a pet daycare service!

You can start by offering to walk a few dogs in your neighborhood. You can also open up your home as a “doggy daycare.” Caring for a few dogs every day will not only give you a little side income, but you’ll also enjoy the extra activity that caring for your charges will give you. Not only will you need to provide several walks per day for these dogs, but you’ll also want to take them outdoors and allow for playtime – even if that only means playing a game of fetch.

Tutoring

Perhaps your background is in education, or maybe you have always been a whiz at math or English. You can open up your home in the evenings to students working as a tutor. This business opportunity takes very little of your time – you’ll still have the daytime to run errands or do household chores. Also, there’s very little start-up capital required to begin tutoring at home.

Some tutors also offer their services during the summer! Many parents will send their children to tutoring a few days a week so that they don’t “lose” what they learned during the school year.

Start a Food Blog

Do you believe you have culinary skills? Do you enjoy trying new foods, and you find that your family is often your band of taste-testers? Take your knowledge and start a food blog!

You can post new recipes, and when you take pictures of a dish that turns out to be “pretty” (it does happen!), you can post it to your blog. Comments and “shares” will garner your blog attention, and, if you can get a sponsor, your blog will make money.

This job takes very little time, and, moreover, it is often an enjoyable “job” because you’re doing something you love. If you’ve ever posted pics of your dinner on your social media, then consider starting a food blog as this can translate to a large following and multiple sponsors.

Freelance Writing

If you’ve always been good at writing, then there are a wealth of websites that will pay you to freelance write for them. You can write for academic purposes, write business plans, or how-to articles.

Getting into freelance writing is often somewhat difficult, especially when writing for online job mills. However, you can get your own clientele by advertising your services on social media (some even go as far as offering their services on Craigslist). You can make a lot of money, but be aware that you aren’t paid for your time to research. You’ll only be compensated for the final product, and production is key to making money in this field.

The great thing about freelance writing is that you can do it from anywhere as long as you have an internet connection.

Ebook Writing

This is another branch of freelance writing, and all you need is an internet connection and a trusty computer. You can write about your own topics (Amazon carries many books written by independent authors), or you can get contract work ghostwriting for others.

Proofreading

This is a great service for housewives who are also grammar queens! You can offer your services to students in your neighborhood, or you can advertise via social media. Again, the great thing about this kind of work is that you can pick up as much or as little as you wish.

Counseling for College Preparation

This is a great idea for housewives in a college town! You can discuss majors, course offerings per local colleges and universities, and financial aid. You can assist future students in filling out forms and even in how to apply for financial aid.

Teach English – Online or Right at Home

If you have a knack for the English language, there are multiple sites hiring teachers. All you need is a bachelor’s degree – in any field! Hook your laptop to the internet, and you can teach as many hours as you’d like. Often, the hours are early morning or evenings (when it is afternoon or early morning in Asia), so you will still have much of your day free to take care of your own chores.

If you are truly innovative, you can also host your own webinars during which you teach classes online.

Resume Services

If you enjoy writing but can’t devote hours to sitting at a computer each day, consider offering Resume Writing Services. Advertise online for more business, and you can set your price for solid work.

Data Entry Jobs

Many online sites are looking for people who can type in data from home. It should be noted, however, that there are some websites that aren’t on the up and up. Be careful before accepting a job from just any site.

Event Planning

Have you assisted a friend or a family member in planning a wedding or even a simple birthday party? You could open your own event planning service! Advertise online, and work on garnering a great online reputation, and you’ll see your customer base widen significantly.

Another great thing about event planning? The hours are flexible to fit your schedule!

Baking and Custom Cake Creation

Do you have a flare for making great desserts? Do your friends and family refer to you as another Julia Child or Giana? Then it is possible that you can make some extra money baking from home!

Custom cake decorating classes are available online, and your family will surely enjoy being able to taste-test all your creations! Once you find your niche, you can set your prices as you see fit.

One downside to making custom cakes for the public? You will need to devote a lot of time – typically on weekends – to bake and decorate your cakes. You’ll also need to learn how not to overbook yourself and how to competitively price your creations.

Baking for the public often requires some certification from the state health department, but check with your local laws before investing in a commercial kitchen or attaining SafeServ status. Some states offer “cottage laws” which allow home bakers to make certain foods such as cakes, cookies, and canned goods (things that will not spoil or typically cause food poisoning) in certain quantities for business purposes.

Again, you’ll need optimal time management skills when embarking on a home cooking business.

Catering

Many housewives who love to cook may be able to launch their own catering business. Once again, check with your local state and county laws to make sure that you have the proper (if necessary) certifications to run this type of business.

Selling Homemade Products

Can you knit? Do you paint? How about making your own jewelry? People buy homemade products more often than you think – especially when it comes to items (such as a knitted beanie or a baby blanket) that people do not make by hand very often anymore. The great thing about selling homemade items such as paintings or knitted items? You won’t need any certifications to sell these, just a social media following.

Dropshipping

Dropshippers take orders for online merchants then pass the orders along to the manufacturer.

Flea Market Vendor

Whether you are peddling your own homemade products or you are selling for others, you can make a great deal of money by working as a flea market vendor. In fact, if you open a booth at your local flea market, you might not even need to be away from home very often to make sales! Some indoor flea markets take payments for the vendor then pass on the profits (minus a small commission) to the vendor once the sale is completed.

E-commerce Re-selling

Much like a flea market vendor, you can pick up a variety of items and re-sell them on your own E-commerce website. Your profit comes from cumulative sales.

Consignment Sales

You can open up your own little consignment business in your home. Advertise online, and let the buyers come to you. This is especially profitable for housewives with small children. People on social media are continuously looking for “closet clean-out” sales on Facebook or Instagram.

Event Photography

Are you the mom who is always asked to take pictures at birthday parties or at school events? Put that talent to use! With computers and printers that allow for retouching and printing pictures at home, you can do everything a professional photographer can do for a small percentage of the price.

Portrait Photography

This is a part-time gig that pays well, and you can largely choose your own schedule.

Photography Blog

Much like a food blog, you’ll post your favorite pics and work to garner a fan base and sponsors.

Virtual Assistant

If you enjoy working online, you can get work as a virtual assistant. You’ll need to be able to utilize a headset, make calls, complete data entry, and communicate on your employer’s schedule. However, if you can set your schedule to fit your employer, then you can still spend plenty of time with your family.

Answering Service

If you can answer the phone and use your computer to re-route the call to the proper person, then you can work on your own time for an answering service.

Errand Services

If you are a housewife with school-aged children, you can work as an errand-runner. You might pick up groceries for those who are unable to drive, or you might do laundry for a busy single person who works long hours.

Other jobs busy housewives might consider involve: pet care services such as grooming or popping in to feed animals during the work day, gardening/landscaping, making candles, web design, creating a YouTube channel, create Online Courses, selling photos online, running a laundry service, teaching online, or doing online accounting for a business.