Part-Time Work From Home Jobs: What You Need to Know

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As the Covid-19 pandemic recedes, many Americans are trading in their sweatpants for slacks and heading back to the office. But the current economic climate—a cocktail of persistent inflation, the threat of recession, and rising commodity prices—has more people looking into the feasibility of adding a part-time work from home job.

Working from home has changed significantly over the last few years. Videoconferencing software is much more advanced than it was pre-pandemic, and the average American is more comfortable using it. Experts now believe the future of work to be hybrid, with an increasing portion of employment taking place remotely. There are around 70,000 part-time WFH jobs listed on Indeed, an employment aggregator. Even the average workday appears to be changing to match trends in the WFH environment.

Not everyone takes a part-time WFH job out of economic concern, of course. Some people want to swap their full-time job for a part-time one to spend more time with family; other people want to use a part-time WFH job to pursue broader ambitions. No matter which type of part-time WFH job is right for you, it’s never been easier to get started.

To learn more about part-time WFH jobs, including where to find them and how to excel at them, read on.

Gig Work From Home

The most common type of WFH job falls under the category of gig work. These types of jobs are sought out by people who are looking to add a steady stream of additional income. Typically, these jobs operate on a project-by-project basis, with a schedule based on deadlines. However, they can also include longer-term assignments with hourly pay rates.

Examples of part-time work from home jobs in the gig work category include:

  • Transcription
  • Virtual assisting
  • Tutoring
  • Website design

Part-time gig work is particularly valuable if you want additional income and a flexible schedule. Those who are going to school simultaneously, or those who wish to prioritize time with family, may look to add part-time gig work.

But while gig work is a steady source of income for many, it’s not always highly paid: in many part-time WFH jobs at the entry level, applicants are competing with English-speakers from across the globe, which can deflate pay rates. Building a portfolio of work and references will allow you to network your way into higher-paying gig work over time.

To find part-time WFH jobs in the gig work category at the entry level, check out some of the resources below:

Entrepreneurship From Home

The second most common type of part-time WFH job falls under the category of entrepreneurship. People often pursue this type of work out of personal ambition and start their own business. These are jobs that take dedication, strategy, and patience: profits will be uneven, especially in the beginning, and hours may be long, too.

But those who excel at starting their own WFH business may find that it begins to pay for itself, and requires less and less maintenance over time.

Examples of part-time WFH jobs in the entrepreneurship category include:

  • Dropshipping
  • App development
  • Craft sales
  • Affiliate marketing

Entrepreneurship jobs are not as flexible as gig work; they may even demand prioritization over your home and school life, testing the limits of the ‘part-time’ label. And while many businesses fail in their first year, many more continue on, unprofitable, for much longer. People who seek out this kind of part-time work from home job will need resourcefulness, discipline, and dedication. In the early stages, one’s profits are more a resource and a scoreboard than they are a form of income.

The tricky part of this type of job is you have to do most of it yourself. But at the same time, there are plenty of others who have done it already. To learn more about starting your own part-time WFH job, check out some of the resources below:

Volunteering From Home

Volunteering is the least common type of WFH job, but it’s a meaningful one. While often unpaid, volunteer work can also apply to paid (but low-paid) positions at organizations you feel passionate about. These are perhaps the most flexible of all part-time WFH jobs.

Examples of part-time WFH jobs in the entrepreneurship category include:

  • Crisis line operation
  • Charity fundraising coordination
  • Literary magazine submissions management
  • Peer-to-peer support networks

Volunteer WFH jobs aren’t going to pay your rent if they pay at all. But they can translate into more serious and higher-paid opportunities down the road. Those who take part-time volunteer positions gain valuable experience and connections in a field that they’re passionate about. Still, these jobs are best taken for altruistic reasons, and for the sake of doing what needs to be done.

To learn more about part-time volunteer work from home, check out some of the resources below:

Tips for Every Part-Time WFH Job

One of the biggest shifts one undergoes when taking on a part-time WFH job is the adjustment to manual control that comes with self-employment. In most cases, you’ll now be responsible for setting aside a portion of your income for state and federal taxes; you’ll also be in charge of tracking all your business-related expenses, which will increase significantly with this type of work.

If you are taking on a job within the entrepreneurship category, you may want to consider seeking professional guidance related to tax matters: a home office deduction can be very profitable, for example, but the guidelines are strict, and the penalties are real. Structuring your WFH job for tax optimization is something that, if set up early and correctly, can make a significant difference in your bottom line.

People who stay in traditional jobs but move to remote work setups enjoy a boost in productivity and efficiency. The same is not necessarily true for those transitioning to part-time self-employment.

To succeed in a part-timeWFH job, you need to know how to manage yourself: that could mean setting up a separate office, making a separate budget, opening a business-only bank account, and/or managing your time more effectively. According to Harvard Business Review, many of the most important strategies for successful part-time work are related to scheduling and routines.

Blogs and guides can give you some tips in this direction, but in the end, when it comes to part-time WFH jobs, you’re on manual control. This is the price you pay for the freedom that comes with busting out of the cubicle: you have to hustle on and figure out what works best for you.

Matt Zbrog
Matt Zbrog
Writer

Matt Zbrog is a writer and freelancer who has been living abroad since 2016. His nonfiction has been published by Euromaidan Press, Cirrus Gallery, and Our Thursday. Both his writing and his experience abroad are shaped by seeking out alternative lifestyles and counterculture movements, especially in developing nations. You can follow his travels through Eastern Europe and Central Asia on Instagram at @weirdviewmirror. He’s recently finished his second novel, and is in no hurry to publish it.

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