38 Great Side Hustles for Nurses
Side hustles for nurses are more than just a way to make more money — they’re about creating more stability, flexibility, and fulfillment in your life. From telehealth and tutoring to wellness coaching and private duty care, nurses have a wide range of options to earn extra income while making a meaningful impact. In this guide, we’ll explore some of the best gigs for nurses, so you can find the right fit for your skills and interests.
Side Hustles for Nurses: 3 Paths for Nurses to Earn More
Building multiple income sources is a smart way to achieve financial stability. Warren Buffett, one of the world’s most successful investors, famously said, “Never depend on single income. Make investment to create a second source.”
Have you ever wondered, How can a nurse make extra money on the side? For nurses, there are three primary ways to increase earnings — whether by staying in traditional clinical roles or exploring new opportunities beyond bedside care:
| Path to Earn More | Description |
|---|---|
| 1. Pick up a second job | Many nurses take on per diem shifts or part-time shifts in hospitals, clinics, or long-term care facilities. This path offers flexibility and a chance to explore different specialties — such as substance abuse, rehabilitation, or hospice care — without the commitment of a full-time role. |
| 2. Explore nonclinical or healthcare-related roles | If you’d prefer to step away from direct patient care, consider roles like breastfeeding consultant, medical interpreter, or health insurance advisor. These options let you apply your nursing knowledge in new, rewarding ways that are often less physically demanding. |
| 3. Start your own venture | Looking for a side hustle for nurses that’s even more distant from nursing? You can turn your expertise into a business — whether that’s health coaching, tutoring future nurses, or developing your own health-related product. |
Path 1: Nursing Side Hustles
One of the most straightforward ways to earn more is by picking up a second job. But nursing is already intense, so adding more work can feel daunting. Here’s a carefully selected list of side jobs for nurses outside typical hospital roles to help you boost your income with less risk of burnout:
1. Advice Nurse
What you’ll do: Provide guidance to clients via phone or telehealth on symptom management, medication use, preventive care, and when further in-person evaluation or intervention may be necessary.
Where you’d work: Insurance companies, telehealth providers, or urgent care call centers.
How much you’d earn: The average salary for an advice nurse is around $41 per hour.
2. Case Manager
What you’ll do: Coordinate patient care by managing treatment plans, liaising with healthcare providers, and assisting with insurance approvals and community resources.
Where you’d work: Hospitals, rehabilitation centers, or social service agencies.
How much you’d earn: The average nurse case manager salary is about $45 per hour.
3. Fitness Nurse
What you’ll do: Design fitness programs to support patients with chronic health conditions, such as heart disease or arthritis, or lead group classes in senior living or rehabilitative care settings.
Where you’d work: Wellness centers, rehabilitative care facilities, and corporate healthcare organizations.
How much you’d earn: The average salary for a fitness nurse is around $39 per hour.
4. Home Health Nurse
What you’ll do: One of the most flexible side hustles for nurses is providing skilled care to patients in their homes — offering wound care, medication management, education, and chronic condition monitoring.
Where you’d work: Home health agencies.
How much you’d earn: The average salary for a home health nurse is about $30.40 per hour.
See the latest home health nursing jobs.
5. Infusion Nurse
What you’ll do: Administer intravenous medications and therapies, monitor patients during infusions, and educate patients on post-procedure care.
Where you’d work: Infusion centers, wellness clinics, and home care agencies.
How much you’d earn: The average salary for an infusion nurse is around $50 per hour.
See the latest infusion nursing jobs.
6. Legal Nurse Consultant
What you’ll do: Use your nursing expertise to analyze medical records, identify key clinical issues, and provide insight for legal cases. You may also assist attorneys in preparing depositions, trial exhibits, or expert testimony.
Where you’d work: Law firms, insurance companies, or independent consulting.
How much you’d earn: The average salary for a legal nurse consultant is approximately $43 per hour.
7. Nurse Coder
What you’ll do: Translate medical documentation into standardized codes used for billing, insurance claims, and data analysis.
Where you’d work: Hospitals, clinics, insurance companies, or medical billing firms.
How much you’d earn: The average salary for medical record specialists is about $27 per hour.
8. Nurse Coach
What you’ll do: Serve as a mentor and motivator for patients seeking to improve their physical, emotional, or mental health, creating actionable strategies and tracking progress over time.
Where you’d work: Private practice, wellness centers, or telehealth platforms.
How much you’d earn: The average salary for a nurse health coach is about $34 per hour.
9. Nurse Educator
What you’ll do: Teach nursing students or practicing nurses, develop curriculum, deliver lectures, and evaluate competencies. Responsibilities may also include leading continuing education workshops.
Where you’d work: Colleges, universities, hospitals, or professional training organizations.
How much you’d earn: The average salary for a nurse educator is about $32 per hour.
See the latest nurse educator jobs.
10. Nurse Navigator
What you’ll do: Help patients and their families navigate complex healthcare systems by coordinating care, scheduling appointments, explaining treatment plans, and connecting them with appropriate resources. Nurse navigators often specialize in areas such as oncology or cardiology.
Where you’d work: Hospitals, specialty clinics, or outpatient care centers.
How much you’d earn: The average annual salary for a nurse navigator is around $52 an hour.
11. Nutrition Nurse
What you’ll do: Provide dietary guidance to patients based on medical needs, helping them create personalized nutrition plans to manage conditions such as diabetes, obesity, or hypercholesterolemia.
Where you’d work: Specialty clinics, wellness centers, telehealth-based businesses, and private practices.
How much you’d earn: The average annual salary for a clinical nutrition specialist is around $31.
12. Occupational Health Nurse
What you’ll do: Promote and protect the health and safety of employees by conducting health screenings, managing workplace injuries, and ensuring compliance with occupational health regulations.
Where you’d work: Large corporations, manufacturing companies, or government agencies.
How much you’d earn: The average occupational health nurse salary is about $32 per hour.
13. Private Duty Nurse
What you’ll do: Offer personalized one-on-one nursing care for clients in their homes or private settings, which can include medication management, health assessments, and responding to emergencies.
Where you’d work: Private homes, senior living communities, or concierge healthcare agencies.
How much you’d earn: The average salary for a private duty nurse is around $29 per hour.
14. Recuperative Care Nurse
What you’ll do: Provide short-term medical care and case management for patients who are recovering from illness, surgery, or injury but don’t have stable housing or support at home.
Where you’d work: Recuperative care centers, homeless shelters, or community outreach programs.
How much you’d earn: The average salary for RNs in the U.S., including recuperative care nurses, is $47 per hour.
15. Research Nurse
What you’ll do: Support clinical trials and research studies by recruiting participants, collecting data, administering study medications, and ensuring adherence to research protocols and ethical standards.
Where you’d work: Universities, pharmaceutical companies, or clinical research organizations.
How much you’d earn: The average medical scientist salary is $53 per hour.
16. Telehealth Nurse
What you’ll do: Looking for a remote side hustle for nurses? Telehealth nursing lets you use your expertise from home — assessing symptoms, offering health education, guiding medication adherence, and coordinating follow-up care.
Where you’d work: Telehealth companies, hospitals, insurance providers, or virtual care startups.
How much you’d earn: The average telemedicine registered nurse salary is $47 per hour.
See the latest telehealth nursing jobs.
17. Triage Nurse
What you’ll do: Assess the severity of patient symptoms — usually via phone, telehealth, or in emergency departments — and determine the appropriate level of care.
Where you’d work: Hospitals, urgent care centers, or telehealth organizations.
How much you’d earn: The average salary for a telephone triage nurse is $42 per hour.
Path 2: Non-Nursing Side Hustles in Healthcare
Looking for some other options? There are plenty of opportunities to use your medical knowledge in creative ways without working in a direct nursing role. Here are some non-nursing roles to explore:
1. Breastfeeding Counselor
What you’ll do: Support new parents with breastfeeding guidance, including proper latch techniques, milk supply concerns, and nutrition advice.
Where you’d work: Hospitals, birthing centers, or telehealth platforms.
How much you’d earn: The average certified breastfeeding counselor salary is around $21 per hour.
2. CPR/First Aid Instructor
What you’ll do: Teach CPR, first aid, and emergency response skills to individuals or groups, ensuring participants can confidently respond to medical emergencies.
Where you’d work: Hospitals, medical clinics, community health centers, and corporate offices.
How much you’d earn: The average CPR and first-aid instructor salary is $23 per hour.
3. Doula
What you’ll do: Becoming a doula is a meaningful side hustle for nurses who want to support birthing parents before, during, and shortly after childbirth. Duties may include birth planning assistance, labor coaching, and postpartum guidance.
Where you’d work: Home care agencies, mother-baby clinics, or private practices.
How much you’d earn: The average doula salary in the U.S. is $34 per hour.
4. Health Insurance Advisor
What you’ll do: Help clients understand their healthcare coverage options, navigate insurance policies, file claims, and select plans that meet their medical and financial needs.
Where you’d work: Insurance companies, private consulting firms, and government agencies.
How much you’d earn: The average health insurance agent salary is $25 per hour.
5. Medical Equipment Trainer
What you’ll do: Teach healthcare staff or patients how to properly use medical devices and equipment, including troubleshooting and safety best practices.
Where you’d work: Hospitals, medical equipment companies, or home health agencies.
How much you’d earn: The average medical device trainer salary is $27 per hour.
6. Medical Interpreter
What you’ll do: Translate medical records, patient instructions, or live consultations for non-English speaking patients, ensuring accuracy and clear communication.
Where you’d work: Hospitals, specialty clinics, telehealth companies, or translation agencies.
How much you’d earn: The average interpreter salary is about $34 per hour.
7. Nurse Scheduler
What you’ll do: Manage staff schedules, coordinate shift coverage, and ensure appropriate nurse-to-patient ratios in clinical settings.
Where you’d work: Hospitals, specialty clinics, mental health institutions, and long-term care facilities.
How much you’d earn: The average nurse scheduler salary is around $19 per hour.
8. Nurse Writer
What you’ll do: Use your clinical expertise to create accurate, engaging, and evidence-based content for healthcare publications, nursing education platforms, or patient information materials. Your work may include writing articles, blogs, continuing education modules, or policy briefs.
Where you’d work: Freelance, healthcare marketing firms, or medical publishers.
How much you’d earn: The average annual salary for a medical writer is around $42 per hour.
9. Pharmaceutical Sales Representative
What you’ll do: Present pharmaceutical products to healthcare providers, explaining their clinical benefits, proper usage, side effects, and safety considerations.
Where you’d work: Pharmaceutical companies or distributors.
How much you’d earn: The average pharmaceutical sales representative salary is about $37 per hour.
10. HEDIS Nurse
What you’ll do: Use the Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) to measure care quality and write reports for insurance companies and healthcare organizations.
Where you’d work: Health plan providers, insurance providers, quality-improvement organizations
How much you’d earn: The average HEDIS nurse salary is around $72,000 per year.
Path 3: Entrepreneurship Side Hustles for Nurses
For nurses interested in taking a more entrepreneurial path, there are many ways to turn your expertise into a flexible source of income. Whether you want to start a wellness brand, create a useful product, or launch a trendy line of scrubs, these opportunities allow you to be creative while also building your own business, reputation, and financial independence.
1. Burnout Recovery Coach
What you’ll do: Use your nursing background to help other nurses recover from burnout, manage stress, set healthy boundaries, and prevent compassion fatigue. You can combine coaching, wellness planning, and group sessions for maximum impact.
Where you’d work: Online, via corporate wellness programs or independent sessions.
How much you’d earn: The average wellness coach salary is about $27 per hour.
2. Health and Wellness Influencer
What you’ll do: One of the most visible side hustles for nurses online is using social media to share health tips, wellness advice, and motivational content, partnering with brands for sponsored posts or campaigns.
Where you’d work: Online, through Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and other platforms.
How much you’d earn: The average influencer salary is about $28 per hour.
3. Health App Consultant
What you’ll do: Collaborate with app developers to design, test, or advise on mobile health applications, patient management tools, or wellness apps.
Where you’d work: Tech startups, med tech companies, or as an independent consultant.
How much you’d earn: The average nurse consultant salary is about $44 per hour.
4. Health Product Development
What you’ll do: Invent health-related products, such as ergonomic tools, wearable devices, or patient care aids, and guide them from concept to market launch.
Where you’d work: Independently or in collaboration with healthcare companies.
How much you’d earn: Earnings depend on product success and sales.
5. Health Workshop Facilitator
What you’ll do: Design and lead wellness workshops, seminars, or lunch-and-learn sessions on topics like stress management, ergonomics, nutrition, or chronic disease prevention.
Where you’d work: Corporations, community health facilities, health departments, nonprofits, or virtual education platforms.
How much you’d earn: The average workshop facilitator salary is about $23 per hour.
6. Home Safety Consulting
What you’ll do: If you’re seeking practical side hustles for nurses, home safety consulting is a good choice for those who want to help seniors or individuals with disabilities live safely at home. You’ll assess living spaces for fall risks and recommend modifications to improve safety and independence.
Where you’d work: Home health agencies or senior care organizations.
How much you’d earn: The average safety consultant salary is about $41 per hour.
7. Nurse Career Strategist
What you’ll do: Guide nurses looking to pivot — whether into leadership roles, education, or nonclinical positions — by helping them craft strong nursing resumes, LinkedIn profiles, and transition plans.
Where you’d work: Independently or through professional organizations.
How much you’d earn: The average career strategist salary is about $53 per hour.
8. Nursing Student Tutoring
What you’ll do: Provide one-on-one or group tutoring for nursing students, including NCLEX exam preparation, clinical skills coaching, and study plan development.
Where you’d work: Online platforms, local colleges, or home settings.
How much you’d earn: The average student tutor salary is about $25 per hour.
9. Medical Product Reviewer
What you’ll do: Test and review healthcare-related products such as medical devices, scrubs, wellness gadgets, or patient care tools. Provide honest, evidence-based feedback through blogs, YouTube, or social media.
Where you’d work: Freelance, through brand partnerships, or independently via your own content platform.
How much you’d earn: The average medical reviewer salary is about $42 per hour.
10. Online Course Creator
What you’ll do: Develop and sell educational courses on health, wellness, or nursing skills, creating video lessons, worksheets, and interactive content. This practical option for side hustles for nurses can be managed entirely online.
Where you’d work: Online platforms like Teachable, Udemy, or your own website.
How much you’d earn: The average online course creator salary is about $40 per hour.
11. Subscription-Based Health Programs
What you’d do: Create ongoing programs like meal planning for diabetics, fitness plans for seniors, or mental health support groups for people struggling with anxiety.
Where you’d work: Use subscription models online, combining coaching, content, and virtual group sessions.
How much you’d earn: Earnings depend on program success and sales.
Start Growing Your Nursing Career and Income Today
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