Grocery shopping and delivery
Instacart
Shop a grocery list and deliver it, where Instacart hires shoppers. You need a car that can take bags, and a tolerance for substitutions. Signup is free.
Checked 22 September 2026. Figures are ranges, not offers.
- Where
- US and Canadian cities and suburbs with participating stores. You drive to the store, then to the customer. Not remote.
- Hours
- A batch can take an hour or more, including the shop. Weekends are busier. Heavy cases of water are part of the job.
- Pay
- Batch pay plus tip, before fuel. Net of costs it is ordinary gig money, not a premium hourly rate.
- To start
- Free to apply. There can be a background check through Instacart’s process. You supply the car, the fuel, and insulated bags if you want them.
Why it is listed
The payer is Instacart, the application is free, and the work is understandable. We are not dressing it up as a business you scale.
What you can realistically expect
You are on your feet, in a shop, then in traffic. Calculate fuel. A full boot of shopping is heavier than the app makes it look.
Who pays you
Instacart pays batch earnings. Tips should appear in the app. A customer who asks you to pay for the groceries yourself and “they’ll refund you” is not a customer.
How to start
- Apply on instacart.com as a shopper.
- Complete only their background check.
- Do one small batch before a large one.
- Track miles.
Read this before you start
- Do not buy a shopper account.
- Never front the cost of an order.
- If a batch pay is not worth the drive, decline it. That is allowed.
Sideline will not ask you for money. Anyone who messages you claiming we will is not us. Write to [email protected] if something on this page looks wrong.
Nearby on the list
Listed openingFreelance marketplace
Upwork
Offer a skill you can already prove — writing, design, bookkeeping, development, or admin — to clients on a long-running freelance marketplace. Opening a profile is free.
General work often starts around $15–40 an hour before fees
Remote, United States, United Kingdom, and others5–10 hours, 10–20 hours
Listed openingPackaged freelance gigs
Fiverr
Sell a tightly described service — a résumé rewrite, a short voiceover, a simple logo — as a packaged gig. Buyers come to you. Listing is free; Fiverr’s commission is steep.
New sellers often see $150–600 in a good early month, after a 20% commission — many see less
Remote, United States, United Kingdom, and othersUnder 5 hours, 5–10 hours
Listed openingLocal tasks in Australia and the UK
Airtasker
Bid on local jobs — gardening, moving, assembly, deliveries of large items — or post an offer. Used heavily in Australia and also in the UK. You are paid per task. Airtasker takes a service fee.
You quote each task; the fee comes off what the client pays
Australia, United KingdomUnder 5 hours, 5–10 hours